Peggy Lampman's Wednesday dinnerFeed: Snowed-In Crispy Nut-Crusted Mahi Mahi

Like pairing wine with food, it's fun to pair nuts with varieties of fish; certain fish fillets, in particular, lend themselves to a quick pan-fry with a nutty crust. Walnuts and pecans are wonderful with walleye and trout fillets, pistachios and macadamia nuts are great with mahi-mahi.

Today, I can't be so selective. I'll just use the nuts roaming around in my pantry. I have a mixed bag purchased from Trader Joe's that has alot of pistachios, cashews and macadamia nuts — perfect for mahi mahi.

A perfect snowed-in dish, that is wonderful served with seasoned brown rice tossed with a can of drained black beans.

Here's another great snowed-in pasta dish: Spinach Pasta with Tuna and Capers. I wrote it during the February 2010 snow storm. Sometimes the best dishes are born from your cupboard's suggestions.

Be safe! Have fun! (Anyone up for snow cones?)

Yield: 4 servings
Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup panko (Japanese bread flakes)
1 cup ground nuts, such as macadamia or pistachios
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
4 pieces mahi mahi fillets, approximately 6 ounces each
1/4 cup peanut or grape seed oil
Lime wedges

Directions

1. In three dishes, each large enough to accommodate a fillet, place flour, egg and panko, combined with nuts and parsley.
2. Season the fillets with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper and dredge each fillet in flour. Dip each fillet in the eggs, then the panko-nut mixture, coating both sides and pressing lightly to adhere.
3. In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat and sauté the fish until golden brown on each side and cooked thoroughly, 4-5 minutes on each side. Serve with lime wedges.