Thank you, Giada. Your recipe in the January/February 2014 issue of Food Network Magazine inspired this delicious and quick-cooking rosemary salmon.

Giada’s version included foil-wrapped salmon with olive oil, fresh rosemary, lemon slices and lemon juice, white wine and capers. Since I didn’t have fresh rosemary, fresh lemons or wine on hand, I broiled my frozen salmon in foil packets with olive oil, dried rosemary, capers and a little broth. Because it was frozen, I simply broiled the packets for about 20 minutes.

I served the salmon with parmesan and mushroom barley “risotto” and sauteed kale with garlic. Delicious! I will definitely make this again. And, next time I’ll try it with the white wine!

TELL US: What are your favorite ways to cook salmon from frozen? We’d love to hear from you!

Posted by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

The pure Mediterranean flavor of cooked olives, tomatoes and capers is a tough one to beat. Cooked on top of halibut? Scrumptious.

Halibut is a mild, firm and low-fat fish. To keep this high-protein, low-fat fish moist, I broiled the halibut with me favorite Mediterranean-inspired “relish” on top. And, it worked great. The juice from the chopped cherry tomatoes, capers and canned olives kept the halibut (complete with a splash of olive oil, salt and pepper) moist and tender.

I served this Mediterranean-style halibut with sauteed spinach, mushrooms and garlic and a side of colorful Israeli couscous for the kids. Within 30 minutes, this tasty meal was on the table.

TELL US: What are your favorite ways to prepare halibut? We’d love to hear from you!

Posted by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

We visited Asheville, North Carolina recently and trout is everywhere.

Our first night in the lovely city of Asheville, we ate at a downtown restaurant recommended by several friends. I had no idea Tupelo Honeywas a southern chain when we went, but that wouldn’t stop me from going back. The food was fabulous! We got the Sunburst Mountain Trout with Capers, Roasted Red Peppers and Spinach Buerne Blanc, served with Goat Cheese Grits (yum!), fresh asparagus and toasted almonds. The server told us we would see trout on many of the Asheville menus because mountain trout is caught locally about 25 minutes outside of town.

On our second night in Asheville, we ate dinner at the beautiful Grove Park Inn’s French-inspired Vue 1913. And because the trout was so local and fresh, I had to order the Pan Roasted Local Trout with stewed tomato compote, roasted spaghetti squash and saffon mussel cream with pepitas. I would not have thought to serve spaghetti squash with trout, but why not? Thefish was so fresh and tender and paired deliciously with the sqaghetti squash.

I’m not sure I’ll be able to visit Asheville again without order more trout. North Carolina trout, two ways… and both were delicious!

TELL US: Do you have a favorite trout recipe or restaurant dish?If so, please share. we’d love to hear from you!

Posted by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

Crockpot. Slow cooker. Whatever you call it, this handy machine reigns as my all-time favorite kitchen gadget. Especially during the holidays.

Hope everyone is having a great holiday season!

This time of year is so much fun, but jam-packed with parties, events and travel… leaving little time for home-cooked healthy meals. That’s why I had to make this Orange Honey Tilapia Slow Cooker RecipeI saw on @StephanieOdea‘s A Year of Slow Cooking site.

It was super-easy and a great way to use up frozen fish. I simply placed frozen tilapia on large piece of alumnium foil, added honey and balsamic vinegar (how can you go wrong with that combination?) and topped with canned mandarin oranges. After closing the foil to make a pouch, I cooked the fish about 2.5 hours until it was thoroughly cooked. I served alongside a mixed greens salad withcucumbers, tomatoes and white beans drizzled with a homemade olive oil-balsamic vinegar-honey dressing.

It was easy, festive and delicious. Even my kids gobbled up this dish, no surprise since they both love mandarin oranges. And since all I had to was plate the fish and toss together a quick salad, we had enough time to enjoy a nutritious meal AND the evening’s holiday festivities.

Wishing everyone a happy, safe and healthy New Year’s! See you in 2014.

-Posted by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD-

Frozen to fabulous in less than 30 minutes… that’s how easy it is to get a delicious and nutritious Mediterranean dinner on the table.

I love frozen seafood. It’s so easy, doesn’t need to be used right away and takes little extra prep time than cooking from fresh or thawed.

This dish was so easy. I preheated the oven to broil and grabbed a package of salmon from the freezer. After drizzling some olive oil in a roasting pan, I placed the salmon in the pan and topped with Mediterranean-inspired ingredients I had on hand… canned sliced black olives, cherry tomatoes (quickly sliced in half), capers and frozen parsley. I drizzled on a little more olive oil, some balsamic vinegar and a dash of sea salt. Then, I broiled for about 10 minutes on one side, flipped and broiled for another 10 minutes, until the salmon was throroughly cooked and flaked easily.The oil, vinegar and juice from the tomatoes helped keep the salmon moist.

While the salmon was cooking, I sauteed a veggie and made a pot of couscous.And within 30 minutes, we had a delicious Mediterranean-style meal on the table.

The best part? This tasty weeknight entree was rich in heart-healthy omega-3 fats, protein, vitamin C and other antioxidants. Perfect for this season when time is short and cold germs are everywhere!

TELL US: What are your favorite weeknight seafood meals? Please share with us. We’d love to hear from you!

Written by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

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Yesterday, I celebrated my birthday. My husband presented a beautiful three-layer yellow cake (filled with fresh strawberries!) two nights early this year, so I could celebrate with family that was leaving Saturday morning. I won’t tell you exactly how old I am, but–after all of the Thanksgiving feasting, pies and birthday cake–I will tell you that the day called for a delicious and light birthday dinner.

When my husband asked what I wanted to do for dinner, I promptly replied “Fish. At home.” So, he prepared this delicious and healthy seabass with kale and cherry tomatoes.

First, he pan-seared the seabass in canola oil until it was golden in color. Then, he flipped it over and baked for 10 minutes at 400F degrees. He then added butter and white wine to the pan, covered the fish and baked until it was throroughly cooked. He topped the fish with a splash of the butter wine sauce and served with sauteed kale and cherry tomatoes.

It was simply delicious! A tasty and light dinner, perfect for a celebratory dinner or even just after a few days of carb-heavy Thanksgiving dishes.

TELL US:Do you have a favorite celebrary fish dish? If so, we’d love to hear from you!

Written by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

Not everyone likes breakfast foods for dinner, but Ido. In fact, Ilove eating breakfast foods at dinnertime.

Recently, I made an egg and lox frittata.Served with a beautiful fruit salad (inspired by Jewel Box Salad in the Best Lunchbox Evercookbook by fellow RD @katie morford), mixed greens and a whole wheat bialy, the egg and lox frittata made a high-protein, nutrient-rich meal. I sauteed a chopped onion and added scrambled egg whites (with a yolk or two) with pieces of light cream cheese and smoked salmon. Once the egg was cooked through,I finished in the pre-heated oven for a couple of minutes and paired with sliced avocado. Although you can’t tell by this photo (the light was not cooperating!), the meal was beautiful, delicious and simple!

Although Imade this for dinner, eggs and lox make a great weekend brunch. Who says you need to wait until dinner to get your seafood fix?

TELLUS: What are your favorite breakfast-for-dinner seafood meals?

Written by Rima Kleiner, MS,RD

Lloyd is going to be out of town for the next few days, which means 1) I dont need to make as much food, but 2) I dont have someone to entertain Harris while I make said food. These seafood pot pies seemed like the perfect make-ahead solution. I assembled them yesterday while I still had someone to keep my little ankle-biter at bay and can heat up an individual serving whenever I want it for the rest of the week. What a great way to get in our seafood (I used frozen barramundi) in a non-traditional way.

Healthy dinner in a pinch… That pretty much sums up my every weeknight. Last night was no different.

After looking in my pantry,I pulled out whole wheat pasta (always a “safe” choice for the kids), white beans, pouch of light tuna, walnuts and a packet of dry pesto. While heating the water for pasta, I mixed the pesto packet with some olive oil and water, sliced some beautiful rainbow Swiss chard and chopped some walnuts. And to save myself another pot to wash, Iused the hot pasta water to wilt the Swiss chard and warm up the beans and tuna. Then,I mixed it all together for a delicious and simple dinner!

Rich in omega-3 (heart-healthy) fats, dietary fiber and vitamin K, this meal was ready in about 20 minutes. Here’s an abbreviated recipe.Play around with it and see what additions and substitutions work for you!

Pesto Pasta w/ Tuna and Swiss chard

8 oz. whole wheat pasta
1 Tbsp. walnuts, chopped
Bunch of rainbow Swiss chard or other dark leafy green, rinsed and sliced
Family-sized pouch or can of chunk light tuna
15-oz. can of white beans, rinsed and drained
Packet of pesto (dry) + olive oil and water(make according to directions)

Cook pasta, according to directions.While pasta is cooking, mix pesto sauce (heat, if needed). Layer beans, tuna and Swiss chard in large colander (place Swiss chard on top). Place medium-sized colander inside large colander, directly on top of Swiss chard. When pasta is finished cooking, pour hot water into medium colander to wilt greens and warm up tuna and beans. Drain and mix all ingredients together. Makes about 4-6 servings. Enjoy!

TELLUS: What are you favorite recipes using pouch or canned tuna? Please share with us.We’d love to hear from you!

Written by Rima Kleiner, MS, RD

We’re in the middle of two weekends away from home. Last weekend was Harris’s first birthday celebration, a cowboy cookout weekend at Lloyd’s familiy’s ranch. I have to admit, no seafood was served. Harris double-fisted his favorite food – ribs – then dove face first into his mini cake.

And this weekend we’re headed back to the ranch for a reunion with our Marine Corps friends from Hawaii. BBQ will again be dominating the menu.

So to get in our fish, we’re enjoying a sweet and crunchy tuna salad for lunch and snacks this week. Here’s what I tossed in:

Tuna Salad with Grapes and Almonds

2 cans albacore tuna, drained

a handful of red grapes, quartered

a handful of sliced almonds

a handful of dried cranberries

a dallop of plain yogurt or plain Greek yogurt

a handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Combine all the ingredients and enjoy on whole wheat bread as a sandwich and with crackers as a snack.

Posted by Jennifer McGuire, MS, RD