Light, Yet Incredibly Flavorful

Good evening everyone!  Here on the blog, we love to experiment with different ingredients and concepts when cooking with those ingredients.  It always surprises me when those recipes turn out and taste incredible.  That's exactly what I'm doing tonight and trust me, you'll want to experiment with it too.

The Recipe:  Hazelnut-Crusted Halibut with Roasted Asparagus
Original Recipe Found From:  www.myrecipes.com

What You'll Need:
1 Tablespoon Butter
2 Teaspoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, divided
4 (6 Ounce) Halibut fillets, skinned
1 Egg White, lightly beaten
1/2 Teaspoon Salt, divided
1/2 Teaspoon Pepper, divided
1/2 Cup finely chopped Hazelnuts
2 Garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 Pound Asparagus, trimmed
1 Teaspoon chopped fresh Thyme

To start, preheat an oven to 400 degrees.  Also, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with the butter and one teaspoon oil.  While both of these begin to heat up, prepare the fish.  Brush the tops of the fish fillets with the beaten egg white and sprinkle evenly with a 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Sprinkle the tops of the fish with the chopped hazelnuts and press gently, yet firmly to adhere the nuts to the fish.

Once the skillet is heated, place half the fish, with the nuts side down, in the skillet.  Cook the fish for three to five minutes or until the nuts are browned.  Carefully, turn the fish over and continue to cook.  Cook for another three to five minutes, or until desired degree of doneness.  To prevent any burning, slide the skillet off the burner, gently pick up the fish to place on a clean plate, and cover to keep warm.

By now, the oven should be preheated and you can begin to prepare the asparagus:  combine the remaining olive oil, garlic, and asparagus on a baking sheet, coated with an even layer of cooking spray.  Toss all these ingredients until well combined.  Sprinkle the remaining salt, pepper, and thyme on top of the asparagus.  Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and cook for eight to ten minutes, or until crisp tender.  Serve the asparagus with the fish and enjoy!

The End Result:

The fish was cooked perfectly, flakiness and all.  If you want a little boost of flavor, gently spritz with lemon juice, but not enough to completely soak.  But the real star of this dish was the chopped hazelnuts.  I don't cook (or eat, except when it comes to Nutella,) with hazelnuts to warrant using them. But the hazelnuts on top of this fish?  Phenomenal!  They still have a bit of nuttiness, but when they are warmed, they taste great.  The asparagus was quite delicious also.  Roasting in olive oil, garlic, and thyme made them super flavorful and a great alternative to any "standard" vegetable.  Such a great combination, paring the fish and asparagus together, and for only 356 calories, it's a worthy dish to cook in your kitchen tonight!

Thanks for joining us tonight.  Tyler will swing by tomorrow for a very unique spin on a taco.  Until then,

~Cheers!