Mad As a Fish

Goodness, there's been some major cookage in South Williamsburg lately. Ann's been churning out baked items like a crazed baked-item-churning thing: mince pies, cookies, mini pies... she's been like a woman possessed, and as a result the apartment is in desperate need of pie exorcism. To that end Sophie and I were ordered to fill a couple of rucksacks and haul them to school/office on Monday. It was either that or give the neighbourhood wildlife an early festive treat, and that would never do. So last Sunday I decided it was high time I reclaimed the kitchen for a few hours so that I could knock up a couple of old favourites. One was a dessert recipe of my mothers (which will feature in the next "Bad Teeth and Lousy Food" post), the other was Salmon en Croute.

This is a dish which appeals to me because it is easier than it looks, can be prepared well ahead of cooking and, above all, is damned tasty. If you have a childish sense of humour like me you can also have fun making the thing look comical and giving your guests a laugh before they take a bite and start drooling. I've served this with new potatoes and green beans, but it also goes well with salad, mixed grains... anything that gives a lighter balance to the rather rich pastry and succulent salmon. Here's what you do.

Salmon en Croute
Serves 6 - 8

2 skinned tail fillets of salmon, about 1lb each or slightly under
A large bunch/bag of watercress
I tsp grated lemon rind
1 beaten egg
1 oz pine nuts
2 oz softened butter
1.5 lb puff pastry
Cherry tomatoes and watercress for garnish

Heat your oven to 400 degrees. Wipe and season the fillets. Pick the big stalks off the watercress (tedious, but I think it's worth it) and blanch. Drain well. Lightly grill (broil) the pine nuts (this doesn't take long - just until they're very, very slightly browned.) Chop the watercress and mix with the pine nuts, butter, rind and a little salt and pepper until you have a lovely buttery green paste.

Roll out two pieces of pastry so that each is at least a good couple of inches bigger than your fillets all around. Place one fillet  skinned side down on one  of the pieces of pastry (If one fillet is slightly larger than the other, make it that one.) Evenly spread the stuffing over the top of the fillet and lay the other one on top, skinned side up.

Brush the pastry surrounding the fish with beaten egg, lay your second piece of pastry over the top and firmly press it down around the fish so that it sticks to the eggy bit. Now trim off the excess pastry, roll it out again and you can use it to get 'creative'. Add fins, eyes, smiley face..., use the end of a spoon to press "scales" into the beastie's back and sides. Go nuts. You can be clever and try to make the thing look realistic if you're that way inclined, but it's much simpler and much more fun to be silly, I think. Like this!

He could do with a dorsal fin and maybe a visit to the radiation detox unit, but I think he's cute, so there. Put your creation onto a lightly greased baking tray, brush the whole thing with beaten egg then bake for 35 - 40 minutes. When he comes out he'll look crisp, golden and luscious. And possibly googly-eyed, if you're lucky.

As you can see, I surrounded him with watercress and cherry toms. It's nice to make a simple white fish sauce to serve on the side, and hollandaise works very well too. If all has gone as it should you'll find the salmon will be perfectly cooked and the filling moist and tasty. This one turned out pretty well in spite of our much-complained-about dodgy oven. I called him Sammy.

Comments

[Lisa]

OK, that's it...I'm moving in!

[Ann]

I have to say that Sammy had more of a perplexed expression than a smiley face. :-) Maybe he knew the knife was inevitable?

[Manggy]

Awesome. Maybe that *is* Sammy's dorsal fin, he just has both eyes on one side, like a Turbot.

[Jack]

Lisa - okay, but you have to do all the cooking. :-)

Ann - I think you're right. He was probably wondering where the hollandaise sauce was. Answer: I'd forgotten to make it!

Manggy - I actually considered that but I thought he was entirely the wrong shape for a flatfish. And as you can see, realism was very important to me. Err...

[frenchtart]

from the front he looks very much like a whale. i love how you named him Sammy. we have a habit of doing the same (we had a Larry, the rotisserie bird, a while back).

[Maryann]

What a cute face on your salmon!

[Adele]

I love a good salmon recipe, and this looks delicious. I'll add it to my (embarrassingly long) to-cook list.

[Ann]

Okay, every single time I look at that fish I start laughing again. Now, in a fit of madness I decided it needed a wider audience and submitted it to TasteSpotting. Somehow I don't think it will make the editorial cut, though. :-)

[yulinka]

That is hilarious and beyond cute. I will be making this sometime soon (subbing spinach for watercress).

[Sophie]

Haha, these photos are just amazing, as is Sammy. I loved that meal!

[myfrenchkitchen]

Well, Sammy looks beautiful....and your meal looks delicious(can't say Sammy looks delicious, it feels a little carnivorous..
Ronell

[Gretchen Noelle]

This is a rather comical looking meal! I love when food just looks good and sammy sure does look good!

[Jack]

Sammy, they're all laughing at you! Or perhaps it's with you...

[Chris]

How great is this guy! I have never made or had such a dish. Looks good!