Easy Fish Dinner

Word on the street is that fish is good for you. I personally love fish, and in particular the fattier types that are loaded with Omega 3's like swordfish, halibut, yellowtail etc. The trouble has always been finding good quality fish, and so I decided that whenever I go out to eat, that I should always order fish with the theory that quality restaurants will have quality fish. These days however, like most of us trying to keep on a budget, I don't seem to be going out to eat as often as I used to and I am so much more interested in cooking at home since I have had the gift of time for the past year to do so!

I found a local fish market here and the fish is very fresh....it's in Fulton Market and it's called, Isaacson and Stein. They have a great variety of fish all in an "open air" style market and you actually pick your fish (and I mean you bag it!) and if you need to have it filleted or anything, they will do that for you. A very different type of experience!

Conversely, I have experimented with buying my fish at Whole Foods- don't judge me but I actually tried the "frozen" wild caught salmon and swordfish they sell! I gotta tell ya, it was pretty darn good too....I have been quite a snob about frozen food in my life- believing that fresh is the only way to go...but my snobbery has been getting a challenge lately not just with frozen fish, but with other foods too. Like frozen berries, for instance. Great for smoothies or quick sauces for pancakes! (more on that on another post)

Back to the fish though...I made a wonderful swordfish dish courtesy of Epicurious.com. I made a side of jasmine rice and it was deelish! The butter sauce is amazing! I will definitely make this one again and again...it was very easy!

This recipe serves 4 but you can easily scale it down for one or two like I did:

Pan-Roasted Swordfish Steaks with Mixed Peppercorn Butter

• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground mixed peppercorns, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon (packed) grated lemon peel
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 1-inch-thick swordfish fillets (about 6 ounces each)

1.Preheat oven to 400°F. Mash butter, parsley, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon ground mixed peppercorns, and lemon peel in small bowl. Season to taste with salt.

2. Heat oil in heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle swordfish with salt and ground mixed peppercorns. Add swordfish to skillet. Cook until browned, about 3 minutes.

3. Turn swordfish over and transfer to oven. Roast until just cooked through, about 10 minutes longer. Transfer swordfish to plates. Add seasoned butter to same skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, scraping up browned bits, until melted and bubbling. Pour butter sauce over swordfish and serve.

I added some cherry tomatoes at the end of step 3, just to give it some color, and I also added extra pink peppercorns (I had used these in my shrimp dish a while back and just love the flavor!)