Baked Whitefish with Tomatoes

I was struck by the lack of fish in The Cookbook. I've been taught that fish is pretty much a staple of Southern Italian cooking, but there wasn't a single recipe that involved fish within the collection my mother had gathered.

I think it has something to do with Madre not being a big fish fan as well as the expense of fish in general. An interesting aspect of Bisnonna's cooking is how influenced it was by the Great Depression. Lots of the recipes she used sub out the traditional meats or other items for those that could be obtained more cheaply.

So, there were no fish recipes, but I wasn't about to let that stop me. Beside, I ended up with a lot more fish from the farmer's market than I actually meant to buy...[Farmer's Markets make me nervous, what can I say?] So I concocted something of my own based on what I had around and some guidance from Giada DeLaurentis and the BBC.

I do love fish. And in the Great Lakes, whitefish is -the- fish. Whitefish, of course, refers to a variety of fish so far as fisheries are concerned, but the fishery we go to uses the term to refer to Lake Whitefish. As always, when choosing fish, remember to shop sustainably.

Baked Whitefish With Tomatoes
Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis and BBC's Good Foods Magazine

[ingredients - serves 4]
2 Whitefish fillets (or other sustainable fish for your region)
1/3 cup Olive Oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
3 large tomatoes
Basil, Parsley, Black Pepper to taste

[What to do]

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Drizzle some of the olive oil in the bottom of a glass baking pan.
3. Season the fillets and add them to the pan. Cover in rest of oil, lemon juice and tomatoes cut into smaller pieces.
4. Cover baking pan (I used tin foil) and bake for 25-30 minutes

I served this fish with some brown rice sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.