Resolute...or something.

So there were a lot of new faces in the gym this morning. Apparently there's basis for the joke about January gym attendance. I don't think I've seen so many shiny new workout outfits in one place before. It will be interesting to see who sticks to it, and how long it takes the ones who don't to quit. I have to admit to feeling a small amount of satisfaction that I wasn't a part of the resolution crowd...even if in a way I am.

As to the plan, today I did good. I went to the gym, although I was tired and didn't really work very hard. I barely got my heart rate up, but something is better than nothing I suppose. I drank my water...two liters actually so I'm really ahead. I stuck to my fish diet as planned. I had tilapia and grouper. I had to go to the seafood market and squeeze some cash out of my budget in order to stick to my goals, but the very attractive man that was there last time was there today as well, making it all worth it. I've decided to try something new each time I go, since I really don't know many fish outside of catfish, tilapia, and whitefish. Today I got 7 fillets: 3 catfish, 3 tilapia, and 1 grouper. The grouper was expensive at about 11 bucks for just the one fillet, so I wanted to do something special with it as it was my first time eating grouper and I wanted it to be good. Usually I make all fish pretty much the same way: pan seared with a little seasoning salt. But no, not for my grouper, although now that I've eaten it I know it would be very tasty that way as well. I decided to crust and bake it, and it turned out very yummy so I decided to share.

The crust was made of oatmeal, a little cornmeal, garlic, pepper, salt, paprika, a dash of cumin, a spray of allspice, a smattering of oregano, a little lemon juice, and some softened butter. It all went into a food processor and was mixed until it was slightly crumbly. Sorry I don't have exact measurements so you might duplicate it exactly. I don't cook that way.  Anyway, after the crust was crumbly I pressed it onto the grouper fillet. Then the whole thing went into the oven to cook at 375 for about 35 to 40 minutes. It's possible it cooks faster than that. The oatmeal doesn't really brown(as it's already brown) so it was hard to tell if it was done or not. I went by the way it smelled. And it smelled delicious.  It was delicious, although in hindsight I'd go a little easier on the salt and pepper. Also, if you left out the butter you could probably lightly "bread" the fillet and have a much thinner coating. As I cooked it the crust was pretty thick. But there you go! This crusting would probably work with a variety of fishes, and possibly even chicken. I'll definitely be using it again.