Golden Lemon Panko Tilapia Sticks

I buy my son breaded fish sticks. I've tried to be a "good" Mom and bread my own fish sticks, but he has yet to give a recipe the thumbs up. I always use tilapia because of the mild flavor. How do I, being a vegetarian, know that the flavor is mild? Because my husband tells me so...and since he's eating it and I'm not, I'll trust him. So I use a mild flavored fish to try and win my son over. I found this recipe in Bon Appetit Magazine (November 2008). The fish sticks are pan-fried so I thought my little one would be more open to giving Mommy a "happy plate". Ya know...I didn't even attempt to get him to try one. Why not? Because I started dinner too late in the evening and I just quickly tossed something together for him. "Bad" Mommy.

My husband gladly ate it and he actually raved. I had the biggest smile on my face after hearing him describe the flavors and texture. At first he said it was really good (even though it wasn't hot because I took photos of it for 8 minutes). Then after a few more bites he said it was fantastic! He loved the panko coating and the lemon zest in the breading. He squeezed a little more lemon on it too. The batter is made with dark beer but it seems as though that flavor might have gotten lost as it competed with the lemon and cayenne pepper. When he went on to describe all of the effort it must take to pull off my dinners, I got the sense that he really appreciated the work that went into this meal, which to be honest wasn't any big deal. Overall, hubby gave it two thumbs up and asked me to make it again. Yay!

Adapted

Ingredients

2 pounds tilapia fillets, cut into rectangular sticks
3 ounces panko breadcrumbs
1 tbs finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tsp coarse kosher salt
2 tsp finely grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 large egg whites
1/4 cup dark ale
3 tbs EVOO

Directions

1. Sprinkle fish with salt & pepper. In a large bowl, combine fish sticks with next 5 ingredients.
2. Whisk egg whites and ale in a medium bowl. Add fish to ale mixture and toss to coat. Shake off excess, then toss fish in panko mixture to coat all sides.
3. Heat 3 tbs EVOO in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the fish sticks. Cook until golden and just opaque in center; about 2 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining fish. Adding more oil as necessary.
4. Transfer fish to paper towels on a plate. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Serve immediately (don't take 8 minutes to take photos of it!).

Serve with lemon slices on the side and sweet potato fries.