*This post is part of San Diego Hospice’s series of healthy recipes for patients. This series will be updated monthly. Feel free to let us know if there is a type of recipe you’d like to see more of.

by Susan Griswold

According to the Center for Disease Control, nine out of ten heart disease patients have at least one risk factor from the below list:

• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Cigarette smoking
• Overweight and obesity
• Poor diet
• Physical inactivity
• Alcohol use

To help combat these risk factors, look for foods that are low in saturated fats, cholesterol, and high on fiber. These heart healthy nutrients can be found in vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts, whole grains, cheese or yogurt and fish. Also, eating a variety of foods is important because no one food item has all the nutrients and other substances needed by your heart, or entire body for that matter.

With Memorial Day around the corner, here is one recipe that you can create with many kinds of fish so you can enjoy it over and over again with family and friends. Serve it with fresh green beans tossed with almonds and you’ve got yourself a heart healthy meal that tastes great!

A Heart Healthy Recipe for Mouth-Watering Oven-Fried Fish

You’ll need:
2 lb fish fillets
1 Tbsp lemon juice, fresh
1/4 C skim milk or 1% buttermilk
2 drops hot pepper sauce
1 tsp fresh garlic, minced
1/4 tsp white pepper, ground
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 C cornflakes, crumbled, or regular bread crumbs
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 fresh lemon, cut in wedges

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 475 °F.
2. Wipe fillets with lemon juice and pat dry.
3. Combine milk, hot pepper sauce, and garlic.
4. Combine pepper, salt, and onion powder with cornflake crumbs and place on plate.
5. Let fillets sit briefly in milk. Remove and coat fillets on both sides with seasoned crumbs. Let stand briefly until coating sticks to each side of fish.
6. Arrange on lightly oiled shallow baking dish.
7. Bake for 20 minutes on middle rack without turning.
8. Cut into 6 pieces. Serve with fresh lemon.

Yield: 6 servings
Serving size: 1 cut piece

Each serving provides:
Calories: 183
Total fat: 2 g
Saturated fat: less than 1 g
Cholesterol: 80 mg
Sodium: 325 mg
Total fiber: 1 g
Protein: 30 g
Carbohydrates: 10 g
Potassium: 453 mg

Susan Griswold is part of the marketing team at San Diego Hospice and The Institute of Palliative Medicine team. She enjoys teaching herself how to cook, traveling, and trying new things.