Search This Blog

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Sunflower Seed Crusted Tilapia

Now, I know this might not be the prettiest fish dish I've ever posted, (trust me, one of two that I posted, I wonder what I was thinking!!) but it is one of the easiest and could easily become a favorite.  At first, I thought leaving the sunflower kernels whole would be a bad idea.  I thought, yikes, what if they get too baked and they become hard and gross?  lol  No worries though.. they worked perfectly as was and has actually given me great ideas on how to use them in other breading recipes. So see, sometimes it's good to go out on a limb and try something you aren't too sure about... you might just find a hidden gem :)

Sunflower Seed Crusted Tilapia
Fish recipe adapted from Cooking Light
Sauce recipe created by Jenn's Food Journey
- Serves 2 -
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
2 tilapia fillets
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
3 Tablespoons panko breadcrumbs
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
For the sauce -
2 Tablespoons Ranch dressing
1 Tablespoon mayonnaise
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon prepared pesto
1 teaspoon grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Rinse fish and pat dry with a paper towel.  Place in prepared baking dish.  Drizzle olive oil and lemon juice evenly over both pieces of fish.

In a small bowl, mix together the sunflower seeds, panko, salt and pepper.  Evenly top each piece of fish with the mixture.  Place baking dish in preheated oven and bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the fish flakes evenly with a fork.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, add all the ingredients for the sauce and stir until well combined.  Place in refrigerator until ready to use.  Serve with fish and enjoy!

One Year Ago:  Stir Fried Chicken with Bacon, Chili and Mint
Two Years Ago:  Chicken Capellini Capricciosi
Three Years Ago:  Spicy Mac and Cheese with Chorizo

8 comments:

Big Dude said...

Hmmm, I'll have to think about this one :-)

Stephen C said...

We love this idea here at the Vatican. I turned the fishes into dinner for 40.

Pope Benedict

Yenta Mary said...

The toasted sunflowers seeds would be so good! It seemed different at first, but actually makes perfect sense ... :)

Mary Bergfeld said...

This is really a great idea. I love to try new things and this is one I've never seen before. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

Pam said...

I think it looks delicious - I love sunflower seeds.

Pam said...

This is a unique dish, and that's a good thing. I've never cooked with sunflower seeds, just put them out in the feeder for the cardinals.

Jean | Delightful Repast said...

I think you *have* found a hidden gem! I love sunflower seeds, but have never thought to put them on fish. Must try i!

Chris said...

I love sunflower seeds to top a salad or by themselves but I never used them as a crusting before, cool idea. Now that I think of it, Wolfgang Puck uses almonds in the crust for his crab cakes so it's kind of like that.