Harissa Fish with Farro and Spinach

I just have to start this post off by saying that I am going to be so upset when I have to leave Rhode Island in a couple of weeks and be separated from my beloved weekly farmer's market where I got this beautiful local fish. The particular fish that I got this past week was hake, which I had never eaten or cooked with before.

Hake is a firm white fish that cooks like cod or haddock, and you can easily use haddock or cod in this recipe instead of hake. I also have to warn you that the hake picks up the spiciness of the harissa paste extremely well in this recipe and this dish definitely cleared out my and my boyfriend's sinuses while we ate it.

Although this dish is spicy (which I love), it is still extremely flavorful and very healthy. You get so many vitamins and nutrients from the spinach, tomatoes and farro that are incorporated into this one pot meal. The spicy harissa will also raise your metabolism, so enjoy to your heart's content.

I wouldn't be posting this wonderful recipe if I didn't think it was a keeper. If you have small children you may want to leave out the harissa or replace it with some different spices such as thyme, oregano and rosemary to make this dish more Italian. Either way you decide to prepare this, you will love it!

Harissa Fish with Farro and Spinach:

(recipe adapted from: http://afoodieliveshere.co.za/)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon harissa paste

1 onion, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

3 roma tomatoes, pureed

1 teaspoon sugar

4 cups spinach

2-3 firm white fish fillets (I used Hake)

1 cup farro, cooked

salt and pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add in the onions and harissa paste and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion is tender. Add in the garlic and saute for another minute.
2. Add in the pureed tomatoes, spinach and sugar and simmer for 5 minutes. Add in the fish fillets and let cook for 10 minutes. Stir in the cooked farro, salt and pepper and continue to simmer everything together for another 2-3 minutes.
3. Garnish with parsley and serve. Enjoy!