Lemon Sole with Lemon and Basil Stuffing

Let’s be honest: it’s quite hard to find indigenous American cuisine, because it’s usually been influenced by one country or another. This, however, is a dish I had in Boston, albeit made with another fish. It has wonderful flavors and can be prepared in advance and cooked just before serving.

Serves 4

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 celery rib, finely diced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/2 onion, finely chopped
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1. cups cooked brown rice
4 tablespoons low-fat Greek natural yogurt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
oil, for greasing
8 lemon sole fillets

Food for Thought
1. In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the celery, garlic, and onion, stirring frequently, until softened without coloring-about 8 minutes. Add the lemon juice and zest, paprika, and a couple of tablespoons of water, and bring to a boil. Add the rice, stir to combine, remove from the heat, and set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Add the yogurt and basil.

2. If you are preparing the dish for eating immediately, preheat the oven to 350ÅãF. Lightly oil a baking sheet. Roll each fillet, head to tail, slightly overlapping to form a hollow tube, secure with cocktail sticks, then place on their ends on the baking sheet. With a tablespoon, fill each cavity with the rice mix, slightly mounded. (At this point the dish can be set aside, lightly covered, ready to cook later.)

3. Pop the fish into the oven for 12 to 15 minutes from room temperature or 20 minutes from refrigerated. Serve withgreens.

Amount per portion: Energy 332 cals, Protein 39.2g, Fat 9.4g, Saturated fat 1.9g, Carbohydrate 24.1g, Total sugars 1.8g, Fiber 0.8g, Salt 0.54g, Sodium 212mg

Recipe and photo:
Excerpted from The Essential Diabetes Cookbook by Antony Worrall Thompson (Kyle Books, 2010) Photo Credit: Jonathan Gregson