seared tilapia with feta, corn quinoa

A large part of my diet consists of raw, poached, or seared salmon or tuna, so I rarely find myself eating white fish.  I was doing groceries last week and researching new recipes, and this one just happened to pop into my head when I was in line and thought I was about to buy a whole cart of hodgepodge ingredients.  Turned out to be one of the best dishes I've made in a while - perfectly seared tilapia with the right amount of smokiness combined with a bed of fluffy quinoa, mouth-watering corn, creamy avocado, rich goat cheese, all tied together with a cut of tomato and dill.

+BLOVIN’+

Seared Tilapia with Corn, Feta Quinoa Salad serves 4 Ingredients 4 Medium-Large Tilapia filets 2 tsp. (Smoked Spanish) Paprika 1 tsp Salt 1 tsp Pepper Parsley (optional) 1/2 lemon Olive oil 1 cup Organic Quinoa 1 1/2 cup water A few pinches of sea salt, for taste 1/4 cup Goat Cheese 1 medium Tomato, chopped 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced 1 sprig fresh Dill, coarsely chopped 1 Avocado, pit removed and chopped 3 ears of corn

Directions Evenly season both sides of each filet with paprika, salt, pepper, a few sprigs of coarsely chopped parsley. Cover and refrigerate while preparing quinoa salad.

Quinoa Salad - Thoroughly wash and dry quinoa. In a large saucepan, cook 1 1/2 cups water and quinoa for about 12-15 minutes keeping the lid closed.  Prepare corn in a separate saucepan by bringing  4 cups of unsalted water to boil. Drop corn into boiled water, cover the lid, and cook for 3-4 minutes. Remove corn from water.  Once corn is slightly cooled, using a knife, cut corn off the cob, and set aside.  Turn off heat to quinoa, leaving the lid closed for another 5 minutes. Lift lid, fluff with fork, season with salt. Transfer and mix quinoa and corn in a large bowl.   Set aside to cool.

Tilapia - In a large (non-stick) skillet or frying pan, heat 1/2 a tbsp of olive oil on medium-high. Gently place tilapia into the pan, add lemon juice over the fish and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.  Pan sear other side for another 2 to 3 minutes, until nicely browned.  (To test to see if fish is cooked, use a fork to push the thickest part of the largest filet to make sure it is uniformly opaque throughout and that it easily flakes)

Finish preparing the quinoa salad by adding corn, tomato, avocado, dill, and goat cheese to the cooked quinoa.  Serve with tilapia.