The kids have been a little difficult lately.

Firecracker just turned 2.5 and I don’t know if there’s some cognitive leaping happening, physical growing, or it’s those 2 year old molars working their way in but his ability to listen and obey has taken a turn in the wrong direction. It’s been highly frustrating and our patience levels keep getting lower by the hour. It doesn’t help that he doesn’t nap and when he’s tired he becomes destructive and a bit of a Tasmanian devil. His ability to sleep through the night, a skill he’s never conquered, has reverted back to coming to our bed 2-4 times meaning none of us are getting the sleep we need!

Treat meanwhile is definitely working on teeth, he’s constantly hungry, and the cough he had at the end of the year has crept its way back into our lives. He’s following his brother around like a hawk and has developed quite the skills for climbing and “jumping.” There’s no room for a lapse in childcare with that one!

With two tired and hungry boys on my hands, my husband deserves a lot of credit on the execution of this recipe. I quickly made them a blue box of macaroni and cheese in the middle of trying to make our dinner. I pull out the freshly purchased cod from Whole Foods while my husband feeds the boys and I discover that one of the fillets was not deboned. And we don’t have proper fish cleaning tools. The adults switched places.

In a mode of determination, my husband grabbed a clean pair of pliers, washed them, and got to pulling. We’d definitely be “chopped” for execution skills as that fillet looked a bit mangled. He then proceeded to season the fish with S+P and sear it in olive oil while I get the kids cleaned up, put in pajamas, and started the bed time routine. I even stuck him on photography duty while I sat with Firecracker until he fell asleep.

He was able to eat his fish and accompanying salad warm while watching Treat and then getting him to fall asleep.

By the time I made my way back upstairs I had a cold plate waiting for me. And you know what, the fish was delicious cold! It was such a light, refreshing, and healthy meal.

The dish was inspired from a recipe in Giada de Laurentiis’ cookbook Happy Cooking. We followed her method for cooking the fish, but the salad co-star was changed. I omitted the olives, used dried oregano instead of fresh, and the main difference, used kale from the farmer’s market instead of arugula.

I prepared the salad first, allowing the kale to marinate in the dressing while the rest of the meal was prepared. It’d been a long while since I’d last had kale and it was a nice surprise to realize how much I like the dark green!

Seared Cod with Tangerines and Kale

Ingredients:

• 2 tangerines
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tbsp + 4 tsp olive oil, divided use
• 4 C chopped kale, stems removed
• 4 6-oz filets cod

Steps:R

1. Using a paring knife, cut of the top and bottom of each tangerine. Follow the curve of the fruit to cut off the entire peel. Place a strainer over a small bowl. Segment the tangerines over the bowl then squeeze the juice out of the remaining flesh.
2. To the tangerine juice, whisk the mustard, oregano, and 4 tsp olive oil. Reserve 1/4 C of the dressing. Toss the kale and tangerine segments in the dressing. Set aside.
3. Season cod with S+P. Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear cod, flesh side down, for three minutes. Flip, an cook another three minutes. Serve alongside kale salad and drizzle with reserved dressing.