Recently I have been really busy with work and travels and I have not had the time to properly take care of myself and my health.
This month, I have decided to make time for myself and do what I love doing most, COOK!
I’m not the best chef, but I do enjoy experimenting in the kitchen when I have the time, and this past weekend I made time for myself and worked on a recipe that I think came out amazing! And #OHMYCOD, let me tell you. I was proud of myself for creating this dish 😊
I’ve partnered together with Blue Circle Foods to create this dish using their frozen Atlantic Wild-Caught Cod! Their cod is sustainably sourced from the Norwegian North Sea and the icy Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Iceland, as you all know from my previous blog post, my favorite country!
Their cod is mildly flavored, yet dense and flaky, and very easy to cook! All of their products have no antibiotics, growth hormones, GMOs or synthetic pigments, so you can feel at ease knowing that this is one of the highest quality fish out there.
For those of you who opt to eat low-carb, this dish can be made with or without the pasta! Just take out the pasta instructions and you've got yourself a carb-free dish OR you can even substitute the pasta for zucchini noodles!
I hope you enjoy my easy and fun recipe!
Tomato Basil Cod With Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
For the Tomato Basil Sauce:
· 4 tablespoons olive oil
· 3 large cloves garlic, finely minced
· 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
· 2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
· 2 cup vegetable stock
· 1/2 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
· 2 tablespoons lemon juice
· 1/2 teaspoon salt (add more to taste if needed)
· 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper (add more to taste if needed)
For the Pasta:
· 4 cups cooked pasta of your choice
· 3 tablespoons pesto
· 2 tablespoon ricotta cheese
· Tomato Basil Sauce from the pan-seared cod
For the Cod:
· 2 tablespoons olive oil
· 1 package of Atlantic Wild-Caught Cod from Blue Circle (thawed)
· Salt and pepper to add flavor
Instructions
For the Tomato Basil Sauce:
1. Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan.
2. Add crushed red pepper flakes and garlic. Sauté for about 1 minute.
3. Add cherry tomatoes and cook for about 5-6 minutes, until soft.
4. Add in vegetable stock, stir, and allow the mixture to come to a gentle simmer.
5. Add the basil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and cook for about 2 minutes.
6. Transfer the sauce into a bowl and set aside until needed.
For the Pasta:
1. Cook your desired pasta as instructed.
2. Once the pasta is cooked, save 2 tablespoons of pasta water. Drain the pasta and place into an empty pot.
3. Stir in the reserved pasta water, Tomato Basil Sauce, pesto, ricotta cheese into the pot with the pasta. Stir and toss the pasta until everything is well combined, and then transfer to plates.
For the Cod:
1. Preheat oven to 380 degrees (F).
2. Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan.
3. Season both sides of Cod with salt and pepper.
4. Place Cod in the sauté pan and cook for about 5 minutes until each side is lightly brown. (Remember that Cod is very delicate, so be gentle when flipping the cod over!)
5. Once the Cod is done, place both the Tomato Basil Sauce and Cod into an oven pan. (Make sure to leave some Tomato Basil Sauce to sauté the pasta)
6. Bake for about 5-8 minutes or until Cod is cooked through.
7. Place baked Cod onto the bed of pasta plates and then serve!
For more information on Blue Circle’s quality seafood products, visit their online store: www.bluecirclefoods.com/shop and use coupon code welcome2bcf at checkout to get 15% off on any Blue Circle product.