How will you fill the grill with seafood this August?
This past weekend, The Wall Street Journal featured nutritional psychiatry and broke the first news of our Antidepressant Food Scale being published in The Journal of World Psychiatry. They also featured the Trout recipe from my book, Eat Complete (extra complete with the great photo form the book by Ellen Silverman.) I wanted to make sure you had the recipe and to share a little bit about the meaning of the piece.
I’ll fill you in on the Antidepressant Food Scale when is published later this month.
So, a little #BTS. My dad likes fish, and that’s really the food category that most people struggle with. Growing up in Indiana, fish meant fish sticks in the cafeteria… you know the smell.
During my residency in NYC at Columbia, the omega-3 fat science was taking off. It was the first time I wondered where those special fats came from and started really researching the connection between nutrition and psychiatry. (And now, we have nutritional psychiatry making headlines.) The data seemed pretty clear. I needed to start eating seafood.
Back to the land of fish sticks. Two summers ago, while working on recipe ideas for Eat Complete, I wanted to make a fish recipe applicable for grills In the Midwest. Plus, I had wild salmon fatigue and needed some diversity in my seafood rotation. I picked up some trout from The Whole Foods in Louisville and then grabbed some herbs from the garden, it seemed like a good start! I fine tuned the recipe with some help from the Skinny Chef, Jen Iserloh, and I couldn’t be happier with the results (and my dad loved it, too).
It’s great to see Nutritional Psychiatry in the headlines again and to be able to share this recipe with so many people. I hope you give it a try and let me know what you think.
If you’re interested in more of the science behind Omega-3 fatty acids and mood, you can check out this literature review I did for Medscape (you need a login but you can register for free). Or check out this 2016 Meta-analysis, Adjunctive Nutraceuticals for Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Grilled Whole Trout in Parchment Paper with Garlic Broccoli
Cooking fish in parchment paper is a simple and elegant way to enjoy whole cooked fish. Whole fish in the market tend to stay fresher longer compared to the filets, and the meat falls away easily from the bone after it’s cooked. Watch your fingers for hot steam you open the package or simply wear kitchen gloves for ease of handling before you dig in.
Serves 4
4 whole trout, cleaned (about 1 ½ pounds)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ freshly ground black pepper
2 lemons, thinly sliced
1 small bunch assorted fresh herbs
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
3 garlic cloves
2 anchovies
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Rub each trout generously with one tablespoon of the olive oil and sprinkle with the salt, paprika, and black pepper. Place half a quarter of the lemon slices and herbs into cavity of each trout.
Set out four 8X8 sheets of parchment paper or aluminum foil. Fold over the edges of the parchment and secure with toothpicks or pinch the edges of the aluminum foil shut. Transfer to a baking sheet and place in the oven, baking 20 to 25 minutes until the fish flakes when pressed with a fork and is cooked through.
Place the remaining olive oil, garlic and anchovies in a mini-chopper or food processor and chop. Transfer to a large bowl along with the florets and toss well. Place the broccoli in another sheet of parchment paper or aluminum foil. Transfer to another baking sheet. Transfer to the oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes until tender. Serve immediately with the fish.
To your health,
Dr. Drew
