recipe :: fish for non-fish-lovers

mustard-roasted snapper :: from ina garten

Ever since I knelt on the class goldfish in kindergarten I've hated eating fish. I could catch it, kill it with a lead pipe (it was Alaska), clean it, prepare it, and serve it -- but I hated to eat it. I've managed orange roughy, the 3-hour-old salmon I'd just caught, and really good Wisconsin fish fries if they're accompanied by a lot of beer.

But because of the book French Kids Eat Everything, by Karen le Billon, I am now preparing a variety of foods in a variety of combinations and cooking methods. This book seriously changed my life. Our lives. But more on that in the coming weeks.

So I planned on this mustard-roasted fish recipe, picked up red snapper at Sendik's ($13 bucks for a large filet!), some creme fraische (because I forgot to make it) and a side dish of fennel. We froze the fish until last night when Hot Uncle Dave came over to help me hang a few curtain rods. We never made it to the hanging, but we enjoyed this delicious dish with some Infamous Goose 2011 Sauvignon Blanc.

mustard-roasted snapper :: from ina garten, back to basics, p136-7

16 oz fish fillets such as red snapper (original calls for four 8-oz fillets)

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (original calls for Kosher salt)

8 oz creme fraiche

3 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp whole-grain mustard

2 tbsp minced shallots

2 teaspoons drained capers

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Place the fish fillets skin side down on sheet pan.

Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Combine all remaining ingredients plus 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper in a smal bowl.

Spoon sauce evenly over fillets, completely covering fillets.

Bake for 10-15 minutes (we did 12 in a gas oven) until it's barely done. Don't over cook it. The fish should flake easily at its thickest part.

Serve hot or at room temperature with sauce spooned from the pan over the top.

We served it with, but not over, brown rice, spooning the sauce over both separately. This allowed us to really taste the fish (another great lesson from French Kids Eat Everything). I also made a side of Fennel Braised with Ginger from French Women for All Seasons. I'll try to include that recipe soon.

I really loved this recipe. Our 19-month-old ate 4 bites easily and I devoured the whole thing. Perfect recipe for first-time fish cooking, and the perfect recipe for people like me who dislike fish in general but want to cook something great and worth eating.

Please let us know if you try it!!!

icj,

~j

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