Parmesan-Crusted Tilapia and a Giveaway!

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that last week I reached a crazy milestone in my life. I made seafood on my own free will, ate it without tons of ketchup and mayonnaise, and...I enjoyed it! This may not sound completely earth-shattering to everyone else, but to me, it's a huge deal. I've been anti-seafood for the majority of my life. But this parmesan crusted tilapia has changed me forever.


The inspiration to make this dish came from this month's Mystery Dish ingredient list. And speaking of Mystery Dish, today marks 12 official months of Mystery Dish and to celebrate, we've got an awesome giveaway for you! I'll tell you more about that later. But first, Andi from The Weary Chef was the host for this month and she gave us an interesting list: pistachios, wine, mint, gluten-free flour, red pepper flakes, fish, agave nectar, applesauce, blueberries, parmesan cheese, milk, and corn.

Instinctively, I wanted to make dessert, as I have for the past 11 months! But after giving it more thought, I decided to go out of my comfort zone and make a savory dish. I guess this means I reached two milestones last week!


I knew right off the bat I was going to be using the fish and parmesan, and I considered maybe using the gluten free flour as a coating, or the milk as part of an egg/milk dipping mixture, but in the end I went with the red pepper flakes. I wanted to ensure the fish would be as flavorful as possible, and I knew the red pepper flakes would add a nice kick.

After taking the first bite, I was seriously in love and in awe of how amazing it tasted! The coating was crunchy and super flavorful, and the texture of the fish was perfect! I licked my plate clean. Now that I have discovered how delicious seafood can be, I can't wait to try so many other dishes!


Now on to this giveaway! Because we were inspired by the popular cooking show MasterChef to create this monthly Mystery Dish challenge of ours, we are giving away two cookbooks from MasterChef winners Luca Manfe and Christine Ha! Just enter via the widget below!

Parmesan-Crusted Tilapia

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients: 

4 tilapia fillets (about 1 pound total)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
3/4 cup seasoned panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick spray. Set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine tilapia, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Let tilapia marinate for 15-20 minutes.

In a shallow pan, mix together parmesan cheese, panko bread crumbs, italian seasoning, garlic powder, paprika, red pepper flakes, and parsley flakes.

Press each fillet into the coating, then flip it over and press firmly again. Place coated fillets onto prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Don't forget to check out what the rest of the Mystery Dish gals cooked up this month!