Hudson's Baked Tilapia with Dill Sauce

Ok, continuing the lemon theme of this month, but branching out from desserts (there are more to come, I promise) - fish! With lemon! And dill! What could be better?? (the hubby disagrees on the fish part, but he's rather silly, so we shall ignore him this time)

Hudson's Baked Tilapia with Dill Sauce

      Ingredients
Makes 4 servings
 4 (4 ounce) fillets tilapia
 salt and pepper to taste
 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning, or to taste
 1 lemon, thinly sliced
        Sauce
 1/4 cup mayonnaise
 1/2 cup sour cream
 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

     Directions

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.

2) Season the tilapia fillets with salt, pepper and Cajun seasoning on both sides. Arrange the seasoned fillets in a single layer in the baking dish. Place a layer of lemon slices over the fish fillets. I usually use about 2 slices on each piece so that it covers most of the surface of the fish.

3) Bake uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

4) While the fish is baking, mix together the mayonnaise, sour cream, garlic powder, lemon juice and dill in a small bowl. Serve with tilapia.

   I love fish, and the hubby does not, so I'm always looking for new fish recipes for "fend-for-yourself-night", which are at least a bi-weekly occurrence in our household. Plus, anything with dill is always a good option. Add sour cream...even better! Now, on to changes. :D 

   I don't have Cajun seasoning, so I used the Grill Mates Mojito Lime Marinade rubbed on half of the fish filets, and a mixture of seasoning salt, pepper, and garlic salt for the other half. I really liked that combination of flavors with the lemon and dill sauce. I tend to bake my fish a little bit longer than directed, about 25ish minutes for this recipe...I have this phobia of uncooked fish, so I tend on the over-cooked side. These were still moist, so I consider it a success. 

    Made the sauce as directed, with a extra couple dashes of dill (because really, can you have too much dill??), and added a bit less mayo than called for. It was soooooo good! I had more sauce than needed for 1 pound of fish, and I was trying to figure out what else I could use it on! No luck on that, by the way. I served it with roasted asparagus...yum yum! 

Kentucky Hot Browns/Bocci Ball

Happy Derby Day!!! The Kentucky Derby is quite the event at my household. I've been following/watching the iconic race since I was at least 14, and while in later years I haven't been as zealous at following the pre-race horse history, the actual race is always something to be excited about. We pick our favorites, cheer loudly, and crow proudly if we correctly guess any of the top three placers. (I would like to boast at this point that I did in fact pick the winner this year - Orb) This year we cranked up Derby fever a bit and added classic Derby food to the day! It was quite yummy, so I am going to share it with you. Enjoy! (Recipe copyrights go to Shine on Yahoo)

Kentucky Hot Browns

Ingredients

4 thick white bread slices 3/4 pound sliced roasted turkey 
Mornay Sauce (see below)
1 cup (4-oz.) shredded Parmesan cheese 
3 plum tomatoes, sliced 
8 bacon slices, cooked 

Preparation: 
1. Preheat broiler with oven rack 6 inches from heat. Place bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until toasted. 

2. Arrange bread slices in 4 lightly greased broiler-safe individual baking dishes. Top bread with turkey slices. Pour hot Mornay Sauce over turkey. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. 

3. Broil 6 inches from heat 3 to 4 minutes or until bubbly and lightly browned; remove from oven. Top sandwiches with tomatoes and bacon. Serve immediately. 

Mornay Sauce 
1/2 cup butter 
1/3 cup all-purpose flour 
3 1/2 cups milk 
1/2 cup (2-oz.) shredded Parmesan cheese 
1/4 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon pepper 

Preparation: 
Melt butter in a 3-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk in flour; cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk. Bring to a boil, and cook, whisking constantly, 1 to 2 minutes or until thickened. Whisk in Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. 

      Follow as directed (pretty much ;p). I used Garlic Texas Toast for the bread, and shredded block Parmesan in the food processor. I did bake the bacon prior to starting the recipe - I feel like once you get started with the sauce, you're stirring until you put everything together! As a result, the bacon wasn't piping hot, so instead of adding it right before serving, I put it on top of the bread/turkey/Mornay sauce/Parmesan combo before putting it back in the oven to broil for the 3-4 minutes. This was perfect, as it browned the bacon just a bit more, and didn't interfere with the browning of the Parmesan. I used 1 piece of bacon, and 1 and 1/2 thick cut slices of turkey breast per sandwich, which was a great ration of meat to bread.

       The sauce is a little bland...I think next time I would spice it up with some sort of seasoning +/- extra salt. There is also a TON of sauce made with this recipe! I typically like things really saucy, and even making 6 sandwiches, I still have over half the pot of sauce left! Definitely recommend halving the sauce portion of the recipe, or devising something else you could use it for!  And while in traditional Derby fashion, this should be served with a Mint Julep...I just don't like them! I'm not a big fan of drinks with mint in them. So we opted to serve a Hunt classic - The Bocci Ball! 

     The Bocci Ball is pretty simple - mix orange juice, club soda, and amaretto together (as much of each as desired, and served cold - typically it's 1 cup orange juice, 1/3-1/2 cup club soda, and 1 shot amaretto) with a splash of lime juice. Stir well and enjoy!