Baked Blackened Catfish

We love spicy food. Blackened fish is one of the few ways I can get fish into my husband. In my continued (although not consistent) quest to eat healthier, I wanted to try a baked vs fried version. We thought it was just as good if not better!

Baked Blackened Catfish
1 lb catfish fillets
½  Tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp cayenne pepper
½  tsp dried thyme leaves
½  tsp paprika
1  tsp lemon pepper
1  tsp black pepper
1  tsp salt
1  tsp garlic powder
1  tsp onion powder
2 Tbsp reduced fat Italian salad dressing
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rinse catfish fillets under running cold and then thoroughly pat dry with paper towels. Combine the cayenne pepper, dried thyme leaves, paprika, lemon pepper, black pepper, salt, garlic powder and onion powder in a small bowl to make the seasoning mixture
Brush melted butter lightly over one side of catfish fillets and sprinkle liberally with blackened seasoning mix. Repeat process for other side.
Heat a large oven proof skillet over medium-high heat very hot. Coat with cooking spray. Cook the catfish fillets in the skillet for about 2 minutes on each side until slightly blackened.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Coat the top of each fillet with the Italian salad dressing. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes until the fish easily flakes with a fork.

We served it with a little sauteed spinach and a tomato-basil salad.