Next time you’re making fish consider wrapping and cooking it in foil. You can either bake it in the oven or stick it on the grill, which ever way you choose you’ll love how these foil packets lock in all the moisture and flavor of the fish, and clean up is a breeze!
I bought a beautiful fresh filet of Alaskan cod the other day from Whole Foods, I’ve always been a fan of cod I love the texture, the mild flavor and those big moist flakes. I’ve made cod this way, and this way before but this time I wanted to try something a little different.
After a little Google research I got my inspiration from a Jacques Pepin recipe. I was sold when I read that the assertive ingredients used in this crust is just right for flaky and mild flavored cod. I made mine slightly altered but the basic ingredients are the same, briny olives, sundried tomatoes, garlic, parsley and scallions rough chopped and drizzled with olive oil.
I placed my olive crusted fish on top of a layer of zucchini ribbons then drizzled the whole thing with a lemon and olive oil dressing that I whisked together. Extreme flavor!
It was a hot day and I didn’t want to turn on my oven so I decided to make individual foil packets for the grill, something I do often anyway. Easy cleanup and it takes less then 15 minutes to cook!
Just look at all that flavorful juice! Here is my version for the grill.
- 1lb of fresh cod
- ¾ cup of mixed olives, kalamata, nicoise, and green
- ½ cup of sundried tomatoes, dried or drained of oil
- 2 small garlic cloves
- 3 scallions
- ¾ cup of parsley
- juice of 1 lemon
- olive oil
- zucchini ribbons, optional
- Rough chop the olives, sundried tomatoes, garlic,scallions and parsley in a food processor.
- Use heavy duty foil and cut it large enough to be able to enclose fish without leakage.
- Drizzle bottom of foil with olive oil, place zucchini ribbons first and then fish.
- Spread olive mixture all over the top of the filet.
- Whisk together the juice of 1 lemon and olive oil and drizzle that on top of the olive crusted fish.
- Crimp foil to enclose fish.
- Place on hot grill at 400 degrees for around 15 minutes.
I love the large portobello mushroom caps because basically you can stuff them with almost anything you want resulting in a beautiful meal that you created in no time. You don’t need a bunch of ingredients to make them and you feel totally satisfied after you’ve eaten them.
We often eat these as a main course during the week along with a nice big salad but if you want to make them as a delicious side dish next to grilled chops or a steak, I’m here to tell you they go perfectly together!
One of the reasons this tastes so good is that you cut and prepare your cherry tomatoes ahead of time letting them sit in a bowl for a few minutes with your olive oil, fresh basil, salt and pepper, letting all the flavors meld together. I also like to scrape out the gills, it gives you more room for all the toppings, and of course good tomatoes are the key!
Will you be firing up the grill for Father’s Day? If so, I’d like to suggest a platter of grilled fennel as a side! It goes wonderful with steaks, chicken, fish and my absolute favorite, a 
Cooked fennel doesn’t taste licoricey at all, it’s delicate and mellow and has a natural sweetness with a texture that is similar to bok choy.
Fresh herbs combined with lemon, lemon zest, olive oil and shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano makes for the perfect topping to enhance the flavors even more.
You can grill your fennel ahead of time either outside or on an indoor grill, just don’t flip them until you get a nice char on each side and they’re tender to the touch. I like to keep my grill on medium, watching closely. They take about 5 minutes per side.
If you’re having a BBQ then your going to need some side dishes, here’s a few that I’ve been making lately. When I make a salad I don’t fuss about exact measurements, I just grab a bowl or a platter, the size of which is always determined on how many people I’m feeding, then I just start cutting and tossing in all my favorite ingredients. If you love artichokes like me then add more, if you’re not crazy about onions, don’t add any. If I’m adding chickpeas I might want to start with a handful at first adding more as I go. That’s how I make a salad, so for these four salads I’m featuring I’m giving you the combination of ingredients I used but not the exact amounts, you can be the judge according to your tastes!
ZUCCHINI RIBBON SALAD with ASPARAGUS and CORN. Everything here is raw except for the grilled corn, After you dress it let it sit for an hour so all the flavors meld together. It includes yellow squash and zucchini ribbons, ( 
GRILLED RED POTATO SALAD. This is a tasty side for steaks, ribs, pork and chicken. Pre-grill some red potato slices by cutting the top and bottom off of the potatoes then cutting into planks, toss in olive oil and place on your grill until tender. Grilled red, yellow and orange peppers, chopped bite size, Nicoise olives, sliced grape tomatoes, chopped green onion and fresh parsley. Vinaigrette dressing.
I get asked many times how I make my Vinaigrette so here it is, 3 parts good olive oil to 1 part wine vinegar, a splash of balsamic, 1 smashed garlic clove, a dollop of dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon of oregano, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, ground pepper to taste. Whisk everything together. I always have a jar sitting in my fridge at all times! 
Grilled Veggie Quinoa Salad. A great healthy lunch as well as a side. For this I used a tricolored quinoa that I precooked according to the package then I just added assorted and chopped grilled veggies, yellow squash, zucchini, onion, eggplant, red, yellow and orange peppers, chopped basil and lemon zest. Lemon slices for garnish. Lemon and olive oil dressing.
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
