Tilapia with Oranges, Tomatoes, and Toasted Garlic

We awoke this morning to snow, and underneath that, ice.

Pleased that we didn’t need to drive anywhere today, my first duty was to clear the ice from our birdfeeders.

Poor little guys, half of the perches were iced over, as was the tray which held the seed, and small icicles hung from the top. It looked very cold.

I spent a couple of hours today cleaning our hall closet, which is a very nice job for a cold winter day (especially when a nice, warm radiator is nearby). I hope to make a trip to the recycling center sometime in the next week or two, and the stacks of old magazines were falling over into each other. It’s amazing how many magazines I bundled up.

I grew up reading magazines. One of my earliest reading memories was reading Good Housekeeping in bed, while staying at my Gram’s house. My Mom has probably kept a subscription to that magazine for over 50 years (they should award super-long-time subscribers like her!). As I grew older, I bought my own—Tiger Beat, then later, Seventeen and Glamour then onto Cosmopolitan as I slid into my mid-20’s. Then Jack and I were married and I realized that I needed to evaluate my subscription choices since I was living on a farm and no longer working in the city so I started reading cooking and home-decorating magazines. After the internet came into my life, I’ve been able to pare down to a few hard-copy magazines such as Eating Well, Health, Real Simple, and Better Homes & Gardens.

Mom still subscribes to more than I do, and she passes me her issues when she is finished with them. One which I seem to get some decent recipes from is Woman’s Day.

After a wonderful, yet rich, lunch at a Mexican restaurant the other day I decided that we needed to have something very light for dinner. I opened my binder of “to try” recipes and found one taken from the November 2011 issue of Woman’s Day.

Tilapia with Oranges, Tomatoes, and Toasted Garlic was a great choice. It is incredibly quick to make and very tasty. Somehow, I didn’t think that oranges, tomatoes, and garlic would be this good. I served it with roasted butternut squash cubes, but I think that garlic-sautéed spinach would be even better for the next time.

Jack is not wild about couscous, so I subbed steamed jasmine rice. It will be on our regular rotation for these winter months.

Tilapia with Oranges, Tomatoes, and Toasted Garlic

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup(s) whole-wheat couscous
• 1 large orange
• 3 teaspoon(s) olive oil
• 4 small tilapia fillets (about 1½ lb)
• Kosher salt and pepper
• 2 clove(s) garlic, thinly sliced
• 1.5 piece(s) fresh ginger, very thinly sliced
• 1 pint(s) cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Cook the couscous according to package directions. Cut away the peel and white pith of the orange. Working over a bowl, cut the orange into segments, adding them to the bowl along with any juices.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tsp oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Season the tilapia with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and cook until opaque throughout, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
3. Wipe out the skillet and heat the remaining 2 tsp oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook, tossing occasionally, until beginning to break down, about 3 minutes. Add the oranges and any juices and gently toss to heat through. Serve with the tilapia and couscous and sprinkle with the scallions.