Our family lives on a fishing beach on the coast, which means that our sweet neighbors often drop by with their ‘catch of the day’ to share- everything from tuna to barracuda to sardines to cuttle fish to crabs to an entire bucket of clams.

Drew and I love seafood, so this is pretty much heaven to us. And we’re resolved that, if we’re going to live here in Fish Heaven, the girls pretty much need to love seafood as well.

Luckily, I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve, including this incredibly delicious, oh-so-mild fish dish- a great intro to seafood for non-fish lovers.

We made it for Kirst and the kids when they were here and it was given the stamp of approval by all (though, Adam and Kirstin love seafood like we do and have been making similar help-the-kids-love-fish efforts, so it wasn’t the most anti-fish crowd- haha). As an added bonus this recipe is also packed with veggies and I’m telling you, their plates are wiped clean when I  make this! If you’re hoping for seafood to be a regular family affair, this recipe is a great starter!

INGREDIENTS

4-6 filets tilapia, white fish or any mild fish*

2 lemons (one for the recipe, one for garnish)

2 medium tomatoes

1 purple onion

1 medium zucchini

1 bunch asparagus

1 carrot

salt and pepper

FOR THE TOPPING

1.5 cups panko bread crumbs**

1/4 cup almond powder

1/4 cup parmesan

2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon garlic salt

*Adjust how many fillets depending on the size of the fillet- you need enough to fill a 9X13 pan

**If you would like this recipe to be gluten free, substitute 1/2 cup flax meal for the panko crumbs  and increase almond powder to 1/2 cup.

DIRECTIONS

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9X13 glass pan with olive oil and lay fish in pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and the juice of half a lemon.  Slice tomatoes into thin slices and lay on top of the fish. Chop all remaining vegetables into 1/2 inch pieces and toss together with the rest of the lemon, salt and pepper. Pour over the fish and tomato.

In a separate bowl combine all the ingredients for the topping and mix thoroughly. Pour topping over the vegetables. Cook uncovered for 25 minutes.

Slice lemons to serve with the fish.

Watch your kiddos fall in love with seafood before your very eyes- yum!