31....here I come.

I am not a big birthday person but did have some fun with the fact that I am a 30 something this year....yeah! This is my decade, I feel it! This year the day was pretty low key, Matt took me out for brunch (my favorite meal of the day), sent me on my way for a massage and then cooked a delicious meal. I have to share the recipe because it is one of my absolute favorites. Easy to prep and tastes like it came right out of a 5 star restaurant. You can use most any white fish in this recipe. I love Chilean sea bass and have also tried this recipe with flounder, cod and tilapia, usually I just get whatever is on sale as long as it is wild, caught in the US or stamped by the Marine Stewardship Council.

Ingredients:

3 TB peeled fresh ginger

1/2 c pineapple juice

1/2 c orange juice

1/3 c soy sauce

2 TB sesame oil

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

4- 6 ounce fish fillets

2 chopped green onions

Grate the fresh ginger and mix with orange and pineapple juice, soy sauce, sesame oil and cayenne pepper in 1 gallon zip top bag. Squeeze bag and mix well. Add fish and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place fish in a baking dish, skin side down, and pour in the marinade. Cover with foil and bake until the center of the fillet reaches 150 degrees (about 25 minutes). Transfer fish to plates. Strain marinade and place in a saute pan over high heat and reduce, reduce, reduce! Boil marinade until thickened enough to coat a spoon, about 6 minutes; spoon over fish. Garnish with green onions.

I do love myself some green beans but mine always turned out mushy until I learned this great trick! So, toss beans (with the ends cut off) in a pot of boiling, salted water. Wait until the water begins to boil again. Once boiling let it be for about 5 minutes. Drain the beans in a colander but DON'T rinse them. Put them back into the pot and stir over high heat for about one minute (this will dry them out). Toss in 1 TB of butter and serve. Crunch, crunch!

One last thing, I was spoiled rotten this year. Gift cards, clothes, picture frames, you name it but I am thrilled to say I received a Nutrimill Grain Mill so I can starting grinding my own flour to make homemade bread. I have been waiting for this, semi patiently and can't wait to get started! Ordering my grains here shortly so stay tuned.......