from Steamy Kitchen food column in Tampa Tribune

It never fails that at least twice a day, I’m asked, “so when are you gonna start your own restaurant?” My reply is always the same, “only when I have an extra million in the bank and I don’t have to worry about making money.”

I know a restaurant is just too much for to handle for my delicate psyche. How would I ever explain to the IRS why “weekly psychotherapy” is part of operating expenses? And the only way I’d be able to handle the long hours and hard work is with back to back shots of double espressos followed by a Red Bull chaser. But really, with that regimen, I’d scare off innocent, unsuspecting people with, “DUDE! YOU! NEED! TO! TRY! MY! SESAME! SHRIMP!” leaping out of the doorway and shoving a sample in any open mouth passing by. Yeah, maybe hyperactive, assertive marketing wouldn’t work well.

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Since I’ve been working on my cookbook, which is all about modern Asian cooking, almost everything edible that comes out of my kitchen has been Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian or Korean. Yes, it can be tiring and I’m considering starting a new blog called “Steamy Kitchen, UnAsian” just to break the monotony. Gimme some Brazilian! Moroccan! Australian!

My family has been begging for something different, and everytime that I ask the kids, “so what do you want for supper tonight?” They chime excitedly, “McDonald’s HAPPY MEALS! Hip, hip, HOORRAYYYY!”

Which is fine. I give in. Because I do love me some McD french fries dipped in soft serve ice cream. I know, You’re groaning. It’s a leftover habit and craving from my pregnancy days.

Please tell me that I’m not alone in this craving! Please tell me that you, too have strange culinary cravings and secret flavor combinations that just make other people squirm uncomfortably in their pants.

Tell me and I’ll enter you in the drawing to win one of three gorgeous Cooking Light The Complete Cookbook - this baby is MASSIVE, weighing in at 4.4lbs with 1,200 recipes, 630 color photographs and a companion DVD. Plus I think there is an offer for 1 free year of Cooking Light magazine subscription inside.

OHOHOH! And there’s a bonus…at the end of this post.

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I spent 6 years of my childhood living in North Platte, Nebraska during the 70’s when the local census guy officially determined there were 4 Asians living in the town - me, my brother, mom and dad. Really. Like tax dollars could have been spent on something more useful, like building a cultural center to attract more than just red necks to the town. So, what did the 4 Asian people in the town do for fun? Going cow tipping just seemed so useless to us, plus my parents didn’t let me drink beer until I was 8. (that was a joke, Ma) We went fishing almost every weekend in the summertime. We caught Yellow Perch, Crawfish, Striped Bass, Walleye, Bluegill, and Northern Pike (my parents have a dead, stuffed 5 ft Northern Pike hanging above their 60″ flatscreen TV to remind us of our humble days in the Midwest)

We ate fish stew, steamed fish, baked fish, fish curry, fish balls, fried fish, fish lollipop on a chopstick…anything you could imagine. Despite eating all my Mom’s variations of fish dishes, I still love fish. My two toddlers love fish. My husband….not so much. So it was a challenge to come up with a non-fishy fish dish non-fishy fish dish non-fishy fish dish non-fishy fish dish non-fishy fish dish hee hee! that my husband would like. I’m also cooking for a family who doesn’t eat fish. Their Mom just asked if I could make a non-fishy fish dish for her 3 girls to try. So I needed something mild, and to totally disguise the fish so that it looked like chicken. But just because my husband can be easily tricked, the 3 girls wouldn’t be. I needed something sweet to coat the fish too. The result was scrumptious. My husband actually liked it! I’ll let you know next week if the 3 girls like it too. (for the family, I’ll be substituting Blue Agave for the honey since they are on a no-sugar diet)

Pecan Crusted Tilapia with Honey Glaze

You can serve the Tilapia over pasta (see photo above), Basmati rice or Couscous. *Note - for Gluten free, serve over gluten free pasta.

4 whole Tilapia fillets, cut in half lengthwise - you should have 8 pieces about 6″ x 2.5″ each
3 T organic honey
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs (or Gluten free breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup crushed pecans (I used a mini food processor)
salt & pepper
3 eggs, beaten in bowl
Honey Glaze: 3 T organic honey mixed with 2 T hot water
3 T olive oil, for frying

1) Wash Tilapia and pat dry. Using a brush, brush both sides of the fillet with honey. Generously salt & pepper both sides of the fillet.

2) Combine the Panko and crushed Pecans. Lay out your ingredients in this order: Tilapia - Egg mixture - Panko/Pecan Dip the fish in the egg, coat with panko/pecan on both sides, set aside. Repeat with all fillets.

3) Heat a large fry pan over medium heat. Add olive oil. When the oil is hot, turn the heat down to low. Add the fillets to the pan, make sure the fillets don’t touch each other. You may have to do this in separate batches. Fry on low for 2 minutes until the underside is golden brown. Turn. Fry another 2 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. Pour the honey glaze over the fish. Note: if you don’t fry on low heat, the panko/pecan coating will burn before the fish is cooked through.