503
As you know, I have an iPhone. As I am certain you also know, I like wine and cooking. What do these have in common? Well, the bottom line is my waistline. Stay with me here. A like, ok love of wine and home cooked meals combined with an over 30 sluggish metabolism certainly don’t equate to abs of steel, rock or any other solid adjective. So in an attempt to shed a few and maybe even tack on a few more years in the process I installed an iPhone app called LoseIt. I really like the app because it makes calorie & carb counting easy. So far in the month since I really starting faithfully tracking food intake I have lost 7 pounds. Keeping track of what I eat is something I have always done anyway (being type 1 diabetic) however with this app it doesn’t leave it to guesswork and often times poor memory.
I started at 185 and my goal is to get down to 150 which is about what I weighed when my wife and I were dating. I have found it really amazing how much I was eating before. 2000 calories a day, hell probably more like 2400.
This was what we had for dinner last night and usually have at least 1-2 times a month. It’s basically an adaptation of a few recipes I’ve seen. Peppered lemon tilapia with green beans.
2 tilapia filets
1 lemon with 2 thin slices cut and set aside to place on top of the fried filets and the rest juiced.
1 can of French sliced green beans. Ground black pepper
3 tablespoons of butter.
An individual serving for this meal with a 10 ounce glass of chianti is only 503 calories. Hence the title.
Even if you aren’t a fan of fish you will probably like this as tilapia takes on the flavor of whatever it is fried or seasoned with.
The green beans just get heated up in a small pot.
For the tilapia place 1-1/2 tablespoons in the frying pan. The other 1-1/2 should be heated (microwave 15-20 seconds) in two small containers for pouring over the green beans and fish when done.
On medium to med-high heat place the two frozen tilapia filets in the frying pan with the butter. Generously season the top if the filets with ground pepper.
Fry for about 3-4 minutes* on the one side the flip. Again season the current side with pepper and allow to fry for another 3-4 minutes.* Pour the lemon juice into the pan and allow it to cook until it has reduced to a slight paste consistency. Flip once more. Season with more pepper if desired. After another 3-4 minutes* it should be thouroughly fried to an almost blackened appearance.
Place the fried filets and cooked, drained, greenbeans on plates. Place 1 lemon slice on top of each filet until you are ready to eat. Place the small dishes of melted butter on each plate. This can be poured over both the fish and beans or the fish can be dipped in it. (My wifes preference)
*Depending on the size and thickness of the filets you may need to add or reduce frying times. The filets cool rather quickly so I reccommend placing them on the plates immediately before serving.
Here are pictures of the entire process:
