Oven Roasted Wahoo with Fried Eggplant Marinara

Served with Parmesan Pasta and Arugula Salad

Serves 2 (Double the recipe works great for 4)

Ingredients:

2 6 ounce Wahoo filets
1 small red chile pepper diced finely
4 C fresh arugula
1 medium sized eggplant cut: 1 ½” discs
1/3 C (+ or -) good olive oil
2 T Tuscan olive oil
Salt and pepper (Generous amounts! See recipe for how to season)
¼ C corn meal
¼ C all-purpose flour
½ t oregano
½ t coriander powder
¼ C plain yogurt
2 eggs
Milk to moisten
2 C bottled marinara sauce
1 T good white balsamic
Flat leaf parsley to garnish
3 ounces angel hair pasta
1/3 C fresh grated parmesan cheese
Dash of garlic powder

Direction:

• In a bowl, combine the corn meal, flour, oregano, coriander and about 1 t salt and ¼ t pepper. Combine well. Beat the two eggs and add. Stir to combine. Add enough milk, adding only about 2 T at a time, until it resembles runny pancake syrup. Cut up the egglplant and set on a plate with a paper towel underneath. You’ll use that to drain the eggplant when fried.
• Bring a large saute pan to high heat and add enough olive oil to be about ¼ inch deep. Dip the eggplant in the better, covering WELL, and fry in the oil until crispy and light brown. (I typically turn the heat to about medium high after they begin to cook so you can keep your oil at a constant temp. If you’re using a deep fryer, fry at 375 degrees F.) Remove, drain. Don’t cover, they’ll get soggy.
• In a shallow baking dish, place the Wahoo skin side down, rub with 2 T tuscan flavored olive oil. (You can use plain if you’d like. Don’t use any other strong flavor, though. Wahoo is GREAT on its own. Just a hint of flavor is what you’re after and I find the Tuscan oil to be balanced and perfect for this dish.) Sprinkle with 1 T kosher salt and ½ t cracked black pepper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove and cover with foil and let sit for about 3 minutes.
• Cook pasta in 6 C boiling water to al dente. Drain, add the cheese, 1 T oil and garlic powder. Toss. Heat the marinara in a saucepan.
• To plate. Toss the arugula with about 1 T oil and 1 T balsamic. Place on dish. Place 2 of the egglplant discs on the plate, and then the pasta. Spread the marinara over. Then top with the cooked fish and garnish with the chopped chili peppers and the parsley. Serve!