Last week, we celebrated Nana’s birthday with a family dinner. I worked from home in the morning and spent the afternoon running around town picking up groceries from various places, shopping for a birthday gift, picking my brother up from his first day at a new job, then home to make dinner.
It was a busy day. I was glad to end the day with a good, home-cooked meal and some time with my family. It was a very typical visit at home: cook, dinner, dessert, walk the dogs, visit a while longer, then I headed home.
Because I had the afternoon off, I got to plan dinner. Nana had specifically requested fish, any kind, so dad asked me to pick up trout. I also stopped by Herrle’s, a farmer’s market just outside town and picked up a bunch of fresh, local vegetables (tomatoes, cucumber, romaine lettuce, and green beans). For dessert, I baked a confetti cake (my family’s favourite). I’ll admit, I took the easy way out with the cake. I used an Angel Food cake mix from a box added a few sprinkles to the batter and a package of Dream whip for the frosting. It was delicious nonetheless.
We all pitched in to bring dinner together.
I chopped tomatoes and cucumber for the salad. My brother and his girlfriend cleaned and trimmed the massive amount of green beans. Dad prepped and baked the fish. My step mother cooked the potatoes on the barbecue. My brother finished working with the green beans quickly, so he helped me tear the romaine lettuce for the salad, then he blanched the green beans.
Amazingly, even with five cooks in the kitchen, we managed to have everything ready at the same time and sat down to a lovely family dinner.
Who cooks when you attend a family dinner? Just one cook or does everyone pitch in?
Trout with Almond Slices, Lemon, Butter, Parsley, Pepper, and Capers
Dad’s recipe
Ingredients
- 4 large trout fillets – approximate cost $25.00
- 1/4 cup lemon juice – approximate cost $1.00
- 1/2 cup almond slices – approximate cost $1.00
- 1/2 teaspoon salt – approximate cost $0.05
- 1 teaspoon black pepper – approximate cost $0.15
- 1 teaspoon parsley – approximate cost $0.15
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted – approximate cost $1.25
- Capers for serving (optional) – approximate cost $1.50
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Rinse trout fillets with cold water.
- Lay fillets flat on a baking tray.
- Pat dry with a paper towel.
- Drizzle lemon juice and butter over the fish.
- Sprinkle fish with salt, pepper, parsley and almond slices.
- Bake until cooked through.
- Serve with capers and enjoy!
Makes 8 servings (approximate cost: $3.76 per serving).
Monday Link Parties
- Mangia Mondays (hosted by Delightfully Dowling & Shine Your Light)
- Must Try Mondays (hosted by My Favourite Finds)
- Marvelous Mondays (hosted by Julie from This Gal Cooks, Ang from Juggling Act, Pamela from It’s Me Again…Pamela, and Deb from Cooking on the Front Burner)
- Mop It Up Mondays (hosted by Kristi from I Should Be Mopping the Floor)
- Mouthwatering Monday (hosted by Rachel from A Southern Fairytale)
- Hunk of Meat Monday (hosted by Beyer Beware)
- Makin’ You Crave Monday (The Bulletin Board) (hosted by Mrs. Happy Homemaker)
- Made by you Monday (hosted by Skip to my Lou)
- Melt in Your Mouth Monday (hosted by Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms)
- On the Menu Monday (hosted by Stone Gable)