Easy Baked Fish Recipe with
Red Pepper & Cucumber Salad

Thank you, Lent, for the reminder that fish makes for a fast and healthy supper, not just for a few weeks in late winter but year-round. This recipe relies on a handful of pantry ingredients. Quick-quick, it's on the table in 30 minutes. Weight Watchers, you're going to love this recipe, the fish and salad add up to just 3 Weight Watchers points.

Easy Baked Fish with Red Pepper & Cucumber Salad

Careful readers might wonder what's growing in the dish behind the plate? That's Lenten grass, an old Finnish tradition, one of my favorite ways to observe Lent.

My home of St. Louis is a bedrock of Catholicism. Catholic schools abound, some 123 of them, their playgrounds filled with rambunctious kids in plaid-jumper and khaki-pant uniforms. It’s not so rare to meet faithful parishioners like my neighbors who have been married 58 years this month and walk to Mass every morning.

During Lent, many parishes host Friday-night fish fries, attracting throngs of hungry eaters, Catholic or not, the kitchens abustle with volunteers, the lines stretching out the parish-hall doors.

I wish I could report that the food is fabulous – but it's just not. So like my fellow foodies, I choose fish for Friday suppers during Lent, but cooked at home – baked not fried, served hot not wait-in-line cold, with a crispy salad not canned baked beans. The good news is, that’s a non-denominational meal, for Lent, sure, but also throughout the year.

ALANNA’s TIPS Paprika gets such a bad rap. No wonder, when it’s relegated to a sprinkle or two for dishes needing a little color – served with a side of curly parsley, no doubt. Since I discovered pimentón, the smoky paprika from Spain, paprika has become a signature flavor, in stews, grilled meat, eggs, even grain salads. (See spices for purchase information.) But if you don't have pimentón, and regular paprika sounds a mite dusty, try ground fennel, thyme, even ginger or cumin.

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences.

Do you have a favorite fish recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com.

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QUICK SUPPER:
EASY BAKED FISH with
RED PEPPER & CUCUMBER SALAD

Hands-on time: 10 minutes for fish, 10 minutes for salad
Time to table: 30 minutes
Serves 4

2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise
2 tablespoons low-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/2 a shallot, minced
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon paprika, preferably pimentón (see TIPS)

1 pound mild white fish filets, cut into four pieces
Sprinkle of paprika

1 tablespoon fish topping mixture
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 red pepper, trimmed and chopped small
1/2 an English cucumber, chopped small
1/2 a shallot, minced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro or parsley

FISH Preheat oven to 350F. In a small bowl, whisk together the fish topping ingredients. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the mixture for the salad, evenly spread the rest on the filets, reaching right to the edges. Arrange the filets on a baking sheet, sprinkle with paprika and bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until the centers are flaky. (The general rule for cooking fish is to allow 10 minutes per inch of thickness. This takes a little longer, perhaps because of the topping. If needed, run under the broiler for a minute or two for a little extra color.)

SALAD Mix the salad ingredients.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE (How many calories in Baked Fish? How many Weight Watchers points in Baked Fish?) FISH ONLY Per Serving: 113 Calories; 2g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 51mg Cholesterol; 70mg Sodium; 1g Carb; 0g Fiber; 0g Sugar; 20g Protein; Weight Watchers 2.5 points

FISH & SALAD Per Serving: 139 Calories; 3g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 52mg Cholesterol; 76mg Sodium; 1g Carb; 1g Fiber; 3g Sugar; 21g Protein; Weight Watchers 3 points

This recipe has been 'Alanna-sized' with smaller portion sizes, lower-calorie ingredients and the addition of a salad and flavor-forward spices.

A Menu

Simple Hummus with Crackers

~ Easy Baked Fish with Red Bell Pepper & Cucumber Salad ~
(recipe above)
Quinoa & Black Bean Salad

Cinnamon Sugar Cookies

More Fish Recipes for Lent

(hover for a description, click a photo for a recipe)

Quick Supper: Cornmeal Catfish with Warm Potato Salad

~ more fish recipes ~

~ more seafood recipes ~

Meatless Suppers

(hover for a description, click a photo for a recipe)

Lent calls for abstaining 'from' meat, not 'for' eating fish. This fact seems to have been lost but once we remember, vegetarian suppers work too.