Baked Tilapia & Pretty Parsley Potato Crisps

 These are absolutely beautiful! [almost too pretty to eat!]

2 (or more) baking potatoes
Fresh herbs such as flat leaf parsley, sage, dill, chives
Salt or seasoning
Cooking spray

I'm on fall break, and what better way to spend time with family (and Michael Buble) than in the kitchen. : ))
My mom helped me assemble these pretty potato crisps and they were done in no time at all. To begin, we used a Kitchen Aid attachment to slice the potatoes and chose flat leaf parsley to place between the slices. If you don't have such fancy contraptions a simple slicer will do or you can make thin slices using a knife (this may take some practice : )). Make sure they are thin, a couple of millimeters - don't worry if your slices are not transparent, they will become more translucent as they bake. Our potatoes were a bit old and somewhat soft...but it didn't make a difference. [Note: we did not peel our potatoes, the peel makes a nice edge.]

Place the potato slices on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray them with cooking spray (you can try using flavored sprays such as garlic or butter).

Use your choice of fresh herbs to "decorate" the chips. We used flat leaf parsley. It did not provide for much flavor, so it is a good choice if you're going to serve these with a flavorful dip.  The original recipe suggested sage, dill or chives.

Top the decorated slices with the remaining potato rounds.  Note this important step: Spray the tops of the assembled chips with cooking spray before placing another sheet of parchment paper on top. I somehow missed this minor detail and after carefully peeling back the baked on paper, my mom and I managed to salvage most of the chips...

Salt or season the chips. Place another baking sheet (another flat cookie pan) on top of the second layer of parchment paper and use heavy casserole dishes or a skillet to weigh it down.  This will help the chips stay flat and prevent them from bubbling up. Bake the chips at 400F for 12 or so minutes. Then flip the chips to avoid burning (I skipped this step too..oops!). Bake for another 10-12 minutes.

Admire your beautiful potato chips. Serve them your guests and wait for oooo's and ahhh's.

Tilapia & Crisps

with an orange infused balsamic vinegar reduction

Not your typical Fish & Chips

2 Tilapia Filets
1 lemon
2 cloves of galic; chopped
Parsley or dill, chopped
Olive oil or butter

Simple. Healthy. Delicious.  Set your oven to 400F.

Place the each tilapia fillet on lightly sprayed or oiled aluminum foil (I separated each fillet. You can use your fish of choice, Salmon would work well for this recipe because the balsamic reduction lends a strong flavor).


Coat the fish with some light olive oil or cooking spray.


Squeeze some lemon juice onto the fish. (I used a half lemon for two tilapia fillets approximately 1lb total.)


Sprinkle one clove of chopped garlic (on each) and add chopped parsley (or perhaps dill) on top of the fish.


Fold the foil to make a pouch. Place the folded pouches on a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, or until the fish flakes.

Orange Infused Balsamic Vinegar Reduction


A friend of mine, Will, introduced this recipe to me and I fell in love with it immediately! You'll feel like a true chef and no one has to know all you did was add the ingredients to a skillet and left it to simmer for 20 minutes. : ))

1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 large orange
2 tsp orange zest
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp olive oil


Heat the olive oil on a medium sized skillet and add the chopped garlic. Occasionally toss the garlic until browned. A few minutes.


Add the balsamic vinegar and turn the heat up to medium high.  With the vinegar at a rolling boil, stir every 5 or so minutes.  After about 10 minutes add the juice of one orange and orange zest.


Continue to let the sauce boil for another 5 minutes. 


Reduce heat to a medium-low and let sauce simmer until it begins to thicken. 


Important note: do not cook your sauce until it is very thick. Although, you would like a thick sauce for the end result it will continue to thicken after you remove it from the heat. Simmer until it very slightly resembles a runny syrup. 

Serve with the simple tilapia and as you receive boucoups of compliments and requests for the recipe, let every one know its quite complicated and you'd rather them just enjoy it. ; ) It can be our little secret.