Pan Seared Tilapia with Pineapple Salsa and Asparagus

Happy Friday!

Oh my gosh you guys, this week has been a whirlwind. The weather is slowly starting to warm up, we are getting blasted with April showers and thunderstorms, Ben and I are heading to Cancun next week for vacation, and the days are getting longer and longer. Spring is my favorite season and I'm super excited that it's coming to Chicago so early this year! Last winter I don't think the snow melted until almost May. 

Ben is on his spring break right now so we took advantage of an extended Easter weekend to visit both of our families in central IL, and now I'm attempting to be productive but it's really hard to stay motivated when you work from home and your husband is sleeping in and watching movies in the living room all day, so I'm just embracing a slower pace too! It feels good to give myself permission to relax after spending last month so intensely focused on personal and business growth.

Anyway, after relaxing and indulging in multiple Easter dinners, pie, cake, Pinot, candy, and pizza over the past few days, my body is craving lighter and fresher foods and veggies again! Last night I whipped up this easy and delicious tilapia with tropical-inspired salsa and asparagus. Ben and I both love asparagus and I recently discovered these easy and delicious frozen steamer packs of it at Aldi! It's a new staple and perfect for spring.

This recipe is also husband approved. Ben said he'd order it at a restaurant...aka highest praise ;) It's not shown in the pictures but we served it with brown rice!

Pan Seared Tilapia with Pineapple Salsa and Asparagus

Serves 2

Ingredients

+ 2 tilapia filets (I used thawed frozen fish)
+ Old Bay seasoning (I almost typed Old Spice. Do not use Old Spice.)
+ 2 tsp coconut oil
+ 1 bunch fresh or frozen asparagus
+ cooked brown rice for serving (not pictured...because I ate it straight out of the pot haha)

For salsa

+ 1 cup finely chopped fresh or canned pineapple
+ 1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
+ 1 medium tomato, diced
+ 1/4 c cilantro, chopped
+ juice of 1 lime

Directions

Combine salsa ingredients in a bowl and set aside to marinate while you cook the asparagus and fish.

Steam the asparagus or microwave until cooked.

Season tilapia liberally with Old Bay (or your favorite seasonings!). Preheat a large skillet, swirl in the coconut oil, and pan fry the fish for 2-3 minutes per side or until cooked through.

Assemble and serve with brown rice! Easy peasy beautiful.

(1 red, 1 green, 1 purple, 1 yellow for rice on the 21 Day Fix)

Have a wonderful weekend!! Do you have any fun plans?

xo Anna

Balsamic Roasted Veggies with Garlic Chicken

Ok, it's official. Chiberia has returned. The highs this week are in the single digits, the snow and ice mountains on the sidewalks and roads have solidified into rock, Ben has another "cold day" off school tomorrow, and even though the days are slowly getting longer it's really hard to beat the winter blah's! This is the first winter I haven't struggled with winter blues exactly, but all week I've been seriously lacking motivation and energy! Instead of feeling bad I'm just leaning into the slump and giving myself permission to relax and slow down.

One of the good things about cold weather is that our metal firebox of an oven can heat the whole kitchen, and since I love anything baked or roasted it's been getting plenty of use!

One of my favorite weeknight dinners is roasted veggies and chicken. Roasted vegetables are seriously addicting to me, I could kill an entire batch on my own! I love how a good long roast brings out the natural sweetness. Yum. Tonight's variation was extra delicious so I thought I'd share the "recipe!" I love healthy comfort food that's simple and easy to throw together, with leftovers to spare.

Balsamic Roasted Veggies with Garlic Chicken

Serves 4

Veggies
+ 1 pound carrots
+ 2 large parsnips
+ 3 red onions
+ Glug of olive oil
+ Generous drizzle of balsamic vinegar
+ Salt, pepper, garlic powder, rosemary
(or your fave herbs and spices)

Chicken
+ 1 package chicken breasts
+ Juice of half a lemon
+ Balsamic vinegar
+ 4 cloves garlic, minced
+ Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400* F and line two baking sheets with aluminum foil. Chop all the veggies into bite sized pieces, spread in a single layer on foil lined baking sheets, and toss in the olive oil, vinegar, and spices.

Place the chicken in a baking dish coated in cooking spray. Squeeze lemon juice and drizzle vinegar over the chicken, then sprinkle with garlic, salt, and pepper.

Bake the veggies and chicken in the oven together. The chicken will be done within 25-40 minutes depending on the thickness. I usually slice into a piece after 30 minutes to test for doneness. The veggies can go a little longer, 45 minutes or so as long as you stir them a couple times. The longer they bake, the more caramelized and delicious they'll become!

Serve the chicken over veggies and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

21 Day Fix: 1-2 green, 1 red

Enjoy and stay warm!

xo Anna

Sirloin Roast with Brussels and Sweet Potatoes

Oh hi October! Where did you come from?

Cooler weather means it's time to turn on the oven and roast ALL THE THINGS! I've been all about the simple, fast, fool proof, healthy weeknight dinners lately. Tonight I whipped up a beef sirloin roast with balsamic-honey glazed Brussels sprouts and caramelized sweet potatoes!

I found this pre-seasoned sirloin roast at Aldi's, you can also do a pork loin roast. I just put it in a small pan and roasted according to the package directions (450* for 30-40 mins).

On the side, I sliced up two sweet potatoes, coated them in olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic salt, and roasted along with the beef. I also dumped a bag of Brussels sprouts into a third pan and coated them with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper, garlic salt, balsamic vinaigrette, and a little bit of honey.

Flip the sweet potatoes after 15 minutes, and remove them when they're getting browned. Mine took about 20-25 minutes total. The brussels sprouts and beef took the full 35 minutes.

Let the beef rest for 5 minutes before slicing. Then plate up and enjoy!

(Come visit my Facebook page for more of my simple healthy recipes!)

21 Day Fix: 1 yellow, 1 green, 1 red