Seared Mahi Mahi over Cauliflower Mash with Peas
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This is an elegant dinner that at the same time is simple. With subtle seasoning, the flavor is enhanced from the nice browning of the Mahi Mahi on both sides in butter. Cooking in a pre-heated cast iron pan helps create a nice crust. The smooth texture of the Cauliflower Mash wonderfully contrasts with the Mahi Mahi. The peas are a nostalgic touch from my childhood when my mom always served mashed potatoes and peas. I used the cauliflower as a lower calorie option in place of potatoes. Plate these ingredients before serving for an eye-catching presentation. Easy enough for a weeknight and classy enough for company.
Mahi Mahi over Cauliflower Mash and Peas
2 servings
1 large or 2 small Mahi Mahi fillets
2 tablespoons butter
1 head cauliflower
1 cup peas
2 slices of lemon
Mahi Mahi
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Pat the Mahi Mahi dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Let sit in refrigerator for 1 hour.
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Heat a cast iron or heavy-duty skillet over a medium flame. Melt 1 tablesoon butter. Add Mahi Mahi skin side down. Allow the fish to cook until browned on the skin side. Carefully flip and continue to cook until browned on the top side and cooked through.
Cauliflower
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Core cauliflower and cut into pieces. Place into pan and add 1 cup water and ½ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and then lower heat. Simmer until fork tender.
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Drain. Using an immerser, purée the cauliflower until very smooth. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
Peas
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Use frozen or canned peas. Heat to warm.
Assembly
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Place 2 tablespoons of cauliflower on each plate and smooth into a circle.
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Place a Mahi Mahi fillet on the cauliflower on each plate. Sprinkle peas around the edges.
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Drizzle each piece of fish with the slice of lemon. And serve.
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Expandthetable suggestions
Other fish: Substitute any sturdy white fish for the Mahi Mahi
Bring the hostages home.
Foodie Lit
How people survive adversity and triumph despite the meanness of their lives moves our emotions. Without sentimentality, Catherine has given us that inspiration. She shared, “At a time when our media, our popular culture, and our literature seem to dwell so heavily on the negative aspects of human nature, I wanted the novel to focus—in an uplifting but down-to-earth and non-sentimentalized way—on the triumph of kindness and generosity over mean-spiritedness and the selfish pursuit of self-interest. I’d intended the stories to be sort of an antidote to the pervasive ‘gloom and doom’ with which we were being bombarded with daily.”
Catherine deftly creates her characters, realistic in their goodness and their heartlessness. She told me, “I live the lives I write about.” Hallie Jo is a life worth reading about, an inspiration for our new year.
