Cheesy Flounder & Veggie Pouch

After watching an episode of Good Eats on the benefits of pouch-cooking (he calls them ‘papillotes’), I’d been dying to try this method out for a while.  Finally, this past weekend, I made up a recipe using the pouch theory/method that I’d learned from Alton Brown. 

• white fish.. I used frozen flounder filets; I recommend if possible, using fresh white fish, but if you have to, use the frozen; just thaw it out completely and pat dry with a paper towel.
• frozen veggies… I used a mix of broccoli and a bag of “broccoli normandy” which is a squash, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrot mix.  again, if you can, use fresh veggies, if not- if you’re lazy like me and don’t want to chop, or don’t have what it takes to keep fresh veggies on hand (cuz I don’t)- thaw these and pat them dry with a paper towel.  excess moisture will make this dish super soggy and icky.
• sharp cheddar, shredded
• cherry or grape tomatoes
• tin foil
• butter
• lemon juice
• dried dill
• salt & pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450.

Rip a piece of tin foil that is definitely large enough to seal up your pouch tightly (mine wasn’t big enough, I had to get more tin foil and wrap it again).  Spray lightly with Pam or butter it or whatever, to make sure it doesn’t stick.  Lay fish smooth side down; season liberally with dill and lemon juice, sale & pepper.  Lay two spoonfuls of butter over fish; layer veggies on top.  Sprinkle with cheese liberally; seal pouch tightly.  (I suck at sealing, so I’ll let you guys figure out yourself how to do this better than I could.) 

Pop into the oven- straight onto the rack- and cook for 15-20 minutes.  Be careful when opening, steam will be hot!! 

Open up carefully and enjoy… yum yum!!! 

***Try to keep liquids to a minimum, because vegetables will give off a lot of water as it is.  Tomatoes will be hot inside but very sweet to eat; yummy!!! 

***This meal is also low carb.  I think.  I mean, there are no starches or anything… *shrug*  You can always add chopped potatoes – try to keep your veggies the same size – if you really want.

***This meal is also easy to clean up- serve straight from the pouch, on top of a plate; when finished, just crumple up the tinfoil (we recycle!) and voila, no dish to wash!!!