52 New Recipes in 2023, #1/52 Sublime Swordfish

2 years ago, I started a journey to lose some weight in a healthy way, my New Year’s resolution was to make one healthy snack a week. Well, this year my New Year’s resolution will be to make one new recipe every week for a year. As a domestic engineer, meal planning multiple meals a day is exhausting. I have found that I am more motivated to cook when I am trying something new! So, please leave me some comments if there is a favorite dish you love and want me to try. I am really excited to embark on this culinary adventure and grateful to have you here for the ride! If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do so at the end of this blog post.

The first new recipe of the year is Swordfish. I decided to try the Best Grilled Swordfish recipe from Tasting Table, and I am so happy I did! This is definitely a recipe I will make again in the future; the taste was sublime. I decided to pair it with pesto spinach and cheese tortellini and sauteed green beans. If you try it, let me know what you think too.

Ingredients

  • 3 lemons
  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • ½ cup olive oil, divided
  • 4 (6-ounce) swordfish steaks
  • 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
  • 1 bunch fresh basil, coarsely chopped
  • 1 bunch fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
  • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Instructions

  1. Wash and dry the lemons and fresh herbs.
  2. Zest and juice 1 lemon into a 1-cup glass measuring cup. Juice a second lemon into the cup, but do not zest it. Then, add the thyme to the mixture.
  3. Finely mince the garlic or paste using a garlic press
  4. Add ½ the garlic to the lemon and thyme mixture. Then, add ¼ cup of olive oil. Whisk to combine the marinade.
  5. Dry the swordfish with a paper towel.
  6. Using 1 teaspoon of salt, season both sides of the fish.
  7. Place in a zip-top bag and add the marinade.
  8. Place in a shallow dish and marinate in the fridge for up to 20 minutes.
  9. Meanwhile, make the vinaigrette. Pick the fresh basil leaves and fresh parsley leaves from the stems, and coarsely chop. (You are looking for about ½ cup of each basil and parsley after the leaves have been chopped.)
  10. Add the leaves to a food processor. Add the juice from the remaining lemon, ½ teaspoon of salt, the rest of the garlic, ¼ cup of olive oil, and the red pepper flakes. Pulse until the herbs are finely chopped (do not process until smooth), about 5 to 7 pulses.
  11. Heat the grill using high heat for 7 to 10 minutes. Clean well with a grill brush. Then, reduce the heat to medium.
  12. Remove the fish from the marinade and place it on the grill.
  13. Grill the swordfish for 3 to 5 minutes per side, until it easily releases from the grill and the inside is flaky and opaque — or a probe thermometer registers 130 F in the thickest piece of fish.
  14. If desired, cut an additional lemon in half, and grill it for 3 minutes. Serve with the fish for a final squeeze of freshness.

Contradicting Thoughts and Realizations 

I went to a CA meeting on New Year’s Eve. The gentleman sharing was 21 years old. He had 5 years clean. I instantly judged him as not credible. He didn’t have enough experience. He didn’t have enough to lose.

Then he said something that instantly made me feel terrible about my judgments. “It doesn’t matter if you hit rock bottom or not we are all here for the same reason.” We go to meetings because we have a problem, we keep it anonymous to not be judged, we all agree we need help and that we cannot stay clean doing it alone. 

I felt horrible for having that initial thought, but that’s the point right? To catch ourselves if we do something wrong, recognize the error, and make it right. I realized this initial thought was silly based on one of my own beliefs. You only hit rock bottom when you die, if you are still alive there is still room for improvement. If you aren’t alive, you never have a chance to make things right. It doesn’t take a major life event to open your eyes to your addiction or a developing addiction. Sometimes all it takes is a realization that alcohol or drugs are causing you more pain then the pain you aim to escape from. Meetings are to give hope, to know you’re not alone, and something greater can help you conquer your addiction in despair. 

Pain is the touchstone of spiritual growth. It is important to stop pursuing whatever your idea of perfection is, you will never be happy if you aim for such an ideal. Find beauty in the littlr things. Happiness is appreciating what you have, not getting what you want.

Sobriety is a journey not a destination. I am excited to see what 2018 has in store for me!

#alwaysgettingbetter