Kids’ Favorites: Cornflakes Coated Fish Fingers with Roasted Root Veggie Chips

“We’re moving!” – Soeren and the move

One of the things I often get asked when people hear that we are moving away from Germany is “What about Soeren? How did he react to the news?”

Even my blog family, friends and readers have sent me emails or left comments asking me about this. When you have kids it’s definitely not an easy topic to tackle. So, how did we tackle it?

We included Soeren into our discussions from Day 1. When Tom got the offer we discussed the issue with Soeren and told him what the situation was. At first Soeren was excited – new adventure, new home, new room etc. As it developed we made sure to keep Soeren a part of the discussions and also the decisions.

Yes, the decision too. We told him that if he felt he did not like the idea of moving away from friends or school we would reconsider the move. Some might think that this is a huge decision weighing on the shoulders of a 6 year old, but we packaged it in a way that a 6 year old could digest it.

We gave him the positive and negative points of both sides. We did not make Qatar sound nicer than Weimar. At the end there actually were more points on our list that spoke for Weimar! Points like leaving good friends and great school behind, a solid social network. However, Soeren tackled the decision the way he always does – with gusto.

“Mum – dad – I will make more friends in Doha then I will have double the amount of friends!” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. Then he said “Sure I think I will cry when I have to say goodbye to my friends but they will be sadder as I am leaving!”

Then there was my favorite comment “Hey how bad can it be – the beach, ocean, sun and sand – I mean – how bad can that be?” I do not want him to look through rainbow glasses so I try to balance it by telling him that although sun, sand and sea are great but that also means no snow and rushing out with the sledge and a bunch of friends to the nearest hill and the only four seasons there is in the form of a hotel. He looks at me with his huge eyes and says “We’re still gonna be OK – we have each other!”

With that I knew that we could move to the moon, all that was really important to him is that we are together. The quintessential point however, was that Soeren was a part of our discussions from the beginning. This way he had time to think about all aspects of the move in his own way – without us interfering. The decision was not announced to him, instead it was shared with him. It gave him time to deal with it day for day – to talk about it with his friends, with his teacher, with us and then he was able to go away and think about it and sort out the good and the bad.

Singularly, all three of us have our fears and thoughts about the move, but together we know “we’re gonna be OK”.

Fish and chips – a classic kids’ favorite. However, what I do not like is the frozen stuff coated in something that is supposed to be breadcrumbs. There certainly is a way to optimize this favorite to a healthier meal. I used fresh Pollack fillets and coated them with cornflakes instead of white breadcrumbs. Instead of fries I used root vegetables and roasted them in the oven gently with garlic and herbs.

 

Cornflakes coated fish fingers with roasted veggie chips

Printable version of recipe here.

Ingredients

2-3 parsnips, cut into sticks
2 rutabaga, cut into sticks
3-4 potatoes, cut into sticks
handful of rosemary, chopped
handful of thyme, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

100-150g plain cornflakes, crushed
600g Pollack fillets, cut into thick strips about 3 cm each
5 tablespoons flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Canola oil

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to approx. 180-200 degrees C.
   
   
2. To make the roasted vegetable chips, throw all the vegetables in a large bowl, drizzle a good shot of olive oil and mix in the garlic, salt and pepper and herbs. Using your hands massage the flavors into the vegetables. Spread out the vegetables on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until tender but still crisp.
   
   
3. In the meantime, sieve the flour into a deep plate, pour the beaten eggs into a separate plate and add the cornflakes into a another plate.
   
   
4. Dab the fish with kitchen paper towels, salt and pepper then coat the fish first in flour, then soak in the egg and finally coat with the cornflakes.
   
   
5. Heat enough canola oil in a pan to pan-fry the fish fingers. The fish does not need to swim in the oil, just enough so that the fish can be shallow fried. Fry the fish on each side for approx. 5 minutes or until the coating is lightly golden.
   
   
6. Remove and place on a plate covered with paper towels.
   
   
7. Serve with the roasted vegetables and some homemade remoulade sauce.

Make sure the oil to pan fry the fish is really hot. The best way to check if the oil is at the right temperature is to put the back end of a wooden spoon into the oil and if bubbles form around it the oil is just right.

If the oil is not hot enough and you start to fry the fish it will soak up the oil and the result will be greasy and mushy instead of tender and crispy fish fingers.

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Verdict

This is far better than the frozen pre-coated stuff one can buy in the stores. The cornflakes add a lovely crunch and give the coating a delicious golden color. The fresh fish is juicy and tender, with the garlic roasted root vegetables this is a delicacy that even grown ups will gladly indulge in.

This is my entry to this month’s Monthly Mingle, where the theme is Kids Lunches. My guest host this month is the lovely Srivalli of Cooking 4 All Seasons.

This also brings me to the very much overdue announcement for the lucky winner of Caribbean Cooking Roundup. If you remember all entries had the opportunity to win a signed copy of My Caribbean Cookbook by everyone’s darling Cynthia.

Cynthia chose Cornmeal Cou Cou by the talented Siri. Cynthia says:

“Choosing a winner was not easy, there were varying elements I used such as difficulty of task, familiarity with ingredient or ingredients and technique, going out on a limb and trying something different. I did not look for photography or food styling, I looked for areas where people seemed to be genuinely interested and where they learnt something. I found several entries that fit the bill but the prize goes to Siri of Siri's Corner with her Cornmeal Cou Cou. Cornmeal dishes play a very important part in Caribbean cuisine and attempting to make Cou Cou is something that most Caribbean people themselves shy away from, from failure of not being able to get the consistency right but just looking at Siri's picture, it is clear that she got it”

Siri, many congratulations and your copy of Cynthia’s cookbook is already on it’s way to you. Hope you enjoy it!

You might like these great fish ideas from WFLH:

Fried Fish Provencal Style	Spicy Black Sesame Sea Bream with Corn-Coriander Salad	Trout with Olive Sauce and Lemon Mashed Potatoes

From around the blogs:

• Baked fish and potato tortino – The Perfect Pantry
• Red Mullet with Potatoes and Black Olives - Elegant Sufficiency
• Jalepenos and Lemon Tilapia - SippitySup

  

Daily Tiffin Reading Tip

5 Surprising Facts for a Healthier You! written by Mansi

 

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