Fish Medallions with Thyme

I can't believe this is the very first fish dish on my blog. It's not that we don't eat fish, but I usually prepare it for dinner, and you know, fish must go to the table immediately, there's no time for pictures or stalling. Cold fish is not much to my liking.
The second problem with fish is THOSE who don't like it. HE growls and mumbles as soon as he opens the entrance door and feels the smell coming from the kitchen.
The kids believe it's enough to have it once a week at school (thanks God, at least that they always eat).
And I could eat it more or less every day, if it wasn't so expensive and sometimes troublesome to prepare but even more to eat.  You see I mostly like those species like sea bream  or other types of sea fish that you just stick in the oven (whole, with the head, skin and everything) with a little olive oil, a few lemon slices and herbs. Delicious, but when you have to clean it for yourself, for your husband and the children, and you're the last one to eat end even get critisized if you miss to remove a bone as if you intentionally tried to kill them. Well, in that case, you may easily opt for types of fish that are easier to prepare.
Fish fillets (although I avoid them, because even more expensive) can be an easy solution to satisfy everyone. When I don't have much time or want to cheat them (shhhhhhhhhh!!!) I use this strategy. And you? Would you be easily attracted by these golden medallions?

Fish Medallions with Thyme

Medallions
* 400 g fish fillets (I used grouper, you can use any fish you like)
* 3 small potatoes
* 3-4 twigs of fresh thyme
* 2 TBspoons extra virgin olive oil
* salt, pepper
* cornflour


Stuffed cherry tomatoes
* 250 g cherry tomatoes
* 4 small zucchini
* 1 clove of garlic
* 10 mint leaves
* extra virgin olive oil
* salt

Carefully wash the potatoes and put them in a pot with cold water. Cook until tender.
Peel them and cut roughly into pieces. Let them cool completely.
Season the fish fillets with salt, pepper, olive oil and thyme leaves. Cook them in a heavy bottom skillet for about 5 minutes on both sides, being careful they don't burn.
Mesh the potatoes with a fork. Add the fish and mix together. Check if there's enough salt for your taste and, with wet hands, shape the mixture into 8 medallions.
Coat them with corn flour. Place them on a baking sheet lined with a slightly oiled piece of baking paper. Drizzle just a little oil over the medallions and bake them for 15-20 minutes in an oven preheated to 190°C or until lightly golden.

In the meantime, cut the zucchini into tiny sticks or shred them. Put a little EVOO into a skillet with a garlic clove and start warming it up. Add the zucchini and sautee for 10 minutes on medium heat. Salt and put aside to cool. Add the finely chopped mint leaves.
Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and using a small scooper or a spoon remove all the inside. Salt them on the inside and fill with the zucchini.
Serve these tomatoes as a side dish with fish medallions.




Medaglioni di pesce al timo


Medaglioni:
* 400 g di filletti di pesce (ho usato cernia)
* 3 patate piccole
* 3-4 rametti di timo fresco
* 2 cucchiai di olio EVO
* sale e pepe
* farina di mais per impanatura


Pomodorini ripieni
* 250 g di pomodorini
* 4 zucchine piccole
* 1 spicchio d'aglio
* 10 foglioline di menta
* olio EVO
* sale


Lavate bene le patate e mettetele a bollire. Una volta cotte, spellatele e tagliate a pezzettini. Lasciatele raffreddare.
Condite i filetti di pesce con sale, pepe, olio EVO e foglioline di timo. Cuoceteli in una padella con fondo spesso per circa 5 minuti a fuoco medio, facendo attenzione a non bruciarli. 
Schiacciate le patate con un forchetta e unite il pesce. Mescolate bene e aggiustate di sale se necessario.
Con le mani inumidite formate 8 medaglioni e passateli nella farina di mais.
Metteteli su una placca da forno rivestita con un pezzo di carta da forno leggermente unta con l'olio d'oliva.
Cuoceteli per circa 15-20 minuti nel forno riscaldato a 190°C.


Nel frattempo preparate i pomodorini ripieni. 
Tagliate le zucchine a pezzettini oppure grattugiatele. Scaldate un po' di olio con l'aglio in una padella. Unite le zucchine e fatele saltare per 10 minuti a fuoco medio. Salate e lasciate raffreddare. Poi aggiungete le foglioline di menta tagliate finemente.
Tagliate i pomodorini a metà e svuotateli dai semi. Salateli dentro e riempiteli con le zucchine.
Servite questi pomodorini come contorno con i medaglioni di pesce.

Uspjela sam ubaciti još jedan arhivski recept za ovomjesečni krug igre Ajme koliko nas je. Domaćica nam je Katarina s bloga Laka kuharica, a zadala nam je kao temu timijan (majčinu dušicu), koja se kod mene često nađe, kako u povrću tako i s mesom, jajima, i kao u ovom receptu, s ribom.

Riblji medaljoni s timijanom


Medaljoni
* 400 g ribljih fileta
* 3 manja krumpira
* 3-4 grančice svježeg timijana
* 2 žlice maslinovog ulja
* sol, papar
* kukuruzno brašno za paniranje


Punjene rajčice
* 250 g cherry rajčica
* 4 manje tikvice
* 1 češanj bijelog luka
* 10-ak listića mente (ili zamijenite bosiljkom ako ne volite mentu)
* maslinovo ulje
* sol


Krumpir dobro operite i skuhajte u ljusci.
Ogulite ga pa narežite na komadiće i ostavite da se ohladi.
Riblje filete (ja sam ovaj put koristila kirnju, možete i druge vrste po želji) posolite, popaprite, začinite maslinovim uljem i listićima timijana.
Popržite ih u tavi s debelim dnom, barem 5 minuta na jačoj vatri, pazeći da ne izgori.
Zgnječite krumpir vilicom i dodajte namrvljeno meso ribe. Provjerite je li vam smjesa dovoljno slana.
Vlažnim rukama oblikujte medaljone (ja sam dobila 8 komada). Uvaljajte ih u kukuruzno brašno (ako nemate za kupiti gotovu kukuruznu smjesu za paniranje, može i obično kukuruzno brašno), i složite na pleh obložen papirom za pečenje.
Sasvim malo nauljite medaljone i stavite peći u pećnicu zagrijanu na 190°C dok ne porumene - okrenite ih na polovici pečenja (15-20 minuta bi trebali biti dovoljni)


Prilog:
Sitno nasjeckajte ili naribajte tikvice. Zagrijte malo ulja u tavi sa češnjem bijelog luka. Dodajte tikvice i pirjajte 10-ak minuta na srednje jakoj vatri. Posolite ih ostavite da se prohlade.
Ako ste ih samo nasjeckali, izgnječite ih poslije vilicom i dodajte desetak sitno nasjeckanih listića mente (ili bosiljka).
Rajčice prerežite na pola i žličicom izdubite sjemenke.
Malo nasolite unutrašnjost i napunite ih tikvicama.
Poslužite medaljone uz prilog od rajčica s tikvicama.

My herbs this summer (plus the guardian)

 W