“Dishing with…” Liz Weiss of Liz’s Healthy Table

April 18, 2019

Calling all seafoodies!

We recently sat down with Liz Weiss, MS, RDN, from Liz’s Healthy Table and talked all things seafood. We also learned how she successfully juggles her roles as registered dietitian nutritionist, blogger, podcaster, mom and author.

For more than 20 years, Liz’s passion has been helping families discover the joy of wholesome and delicious food. She accomplishes this mission through her successful Liz’s Healthy Table blog and podcast. In the fun and conversational podcast, Liz invites chefs, cookbook authors and fellow RDNs to reveal their family recipes, cooking tips, mealtime advice, picky-eater wisdom and more. In addition, she is the proud author of five cookbooks!

Her favorite job of all, Liz confesses, is cooking up healthy, delicious and fun meals for her husband and two sons. Let’s dig in!

Tell us about your blog.

On Liz’s Healthy Table, I share easy, delicious and wholesome family recipes and tips accompanied by a tasty side of science, good nutrition and fun. My readers – mostly parents and grandparents – are hungry for clever ways to feed their kids a wholesome diet without the fuss. We tackle all sorts of topics, from fermentation and cooking with pulses to the benefits of omega-3s and seafood.

Why do you love seafood?

I love seafood for so many reasons! It’s nutritious, delicious, versatile, and always a hit with my family. My husband is a pescatarian and one of my sons appears to also be moving in that direction, so seafood makes its way onto our table many nights of the week. Lately, I’ve become obsessed with foil-pack dinners, so my recipe for Cod, Carrot and Green Bean Foil Packets with lime avocado sauce has made an appearance a few times in recent weeks.

What is your favorite seafood dish to make at home or order at a restaurant?

I don’t have a favorite seafood dish as much as I have a favorite type of seafood, which is salmon. For breakfast, I love smoked salmon on whole-grain toast with mashed avocado; at lunch, I make salmon salad with canned salmon, shredded carrot and a mix of mayo and plain Greek yogurt; and at dinner, I bake salmon and eat it as is or turn it into fish tacos. It’s versatile, luscious in flavor, and super nutritious.

What’s next on your “must make” or “must order” seafood list?

I don’t tend to cook scallops, but I just saw a recipe for seared scallops with radish and candied jalapeno in the beautiful new cookbook, “Secrets of the Southern Table,” by Virginia Willis. I’m itching to try it!

What are your tips for people who might be intimidated by the idea of preparing seafood at home?

Search cookbooks and magazines or go online for a recipe that looks and sounds good. Try it. Start with something simple such as cod or another mild whitefish and top it with something familiar and crunchy. There’s a recipe from Eating Well magazine for Breadcrumb-Crusted Cod that I make all the time and love!

Any words of wisdom for parents who have picky eaters?

The first recipe I’d try with picky eaters is one for fish sticks. Look for a wholesome brand of fish sticks in your supermarket’s freezer section and serve them with ketchup or another familiar dipping sauce. Or make your own fish sticks from scratch. Either way, fish sticks are a good gateway recipe for seafood. You may also want to give fish cakes a try. I have a recipe for salmon cakes on my website – it makes eight cakes, but I’d suggest forming them into 12 smaller cakes, instead. Anything cute works well with picky eaters – or any kid, for that matter – as do recipes kids can eat with their fingers. It’s fun!