Easy Italian Baked Tilapia

Do you love fish but have some fish haters in the house? You might want to try this Italian Baked Tilapia recipe. It’s fish, but not fishy tasting and it couldn’t be any easier to put together. It had even my PICKIEST eater cleaning her plate! 

I haven’t always been a fish person. In fact, I never had a “real” piece of fish (fish sticks don’t count) until I was in my 20’s. Crazy, I know. My mom was raised on meat and potatoes and while my dad would clean and cook the fish that we caught the few times we went fishing, those small rainbow trout fillets were not on my radar when I knew there were burgers grilling over the fire.

But, I’ve been cured!  When I started culinary school and the head chef told us on our first day that we needed to tell him right then if there was anything we wouldn’t eat, I held my tongue. I knew it was my chance to try new things even if they were scary, I didn’t speak up, and I held my peace with every bite of alligator, sweet breads, sealife, and the like.

This fish isn’t rocket science. It isn’t fussy and you won’t find it on fancy restaurant menus but it’s just what I need on a busy night when I’m tired of chicken or grilled cheese sandwiches, or soup, or, let’s be honest, cereal. It take 4 ingredients– fish, Italian dressing, olives, and tomatoes.

It might not sound like much, but the combination of the baked and tender fish with flavor of the Italian dressing, charred tomatoes, and olives pretty much makes for a fun dance party in your mouth.

So, if you have a few in your household that need a little “curing” like I did by way of exposure therapy, this may be a good way to introduce them to fish. It’s so flavorful, not fishy, and definitely needs to be on your MAKE NOW list!

Easy Italian Baked Tilapia

Do you love fish but have some fish haters in the house? You might want to try this Italian Baked Tilapia recipe. It's fish, but not fishy tasting and it couldn't be any easier to put together. It had even my PICKIEST eater cleaning her plate!

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Ingredients

• 4, 6-8 oz tilapia fillets
• 1/4 C Italian Dressing (I used Olive Garden's)
• 1/4 C sliced kalamata olives
• 1/2 C grape tomatoes, halved
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to broil.
2. Spray a 9x13" baking pan with cooking spray and lay the fish across the bottom. Sprinkle each fillet with salt and pepper and pour the Italian dressing evenly over the fish followed by the tomatoes and olives.
3. Place fish under the broiler and cook for 8-10 minutes or until fish flakes easily in the center when turned with a fork and tomatoes are charred.

by Heather Cheney

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