What’d You Do Last Weekend?
Heading to a party where there will be lots of wine, and not sure what to take? How about some simple savory cookies - biscotti and sables made for wine pairing?
Fish Loaf
Each year for Thanksgiving, Todd's family likes to do an out-of-the-ordinary dinner. This tradition's been going on for years, and each year there's always a new dish with an interesting twist. Last year, for example, Todd's mom had hit a deer on election night and not wanting to waste it, her son-in-law came out to the scene of the accident, field-dressed it (it's legal in their state), and we had it for Thanksgiving.
This year was no different. Well, we didn't have venison again, but we did have a few trout that Todd's brother-in-law (Mike, the field-dresser) had caught. Everyone had been eating plenty of pan-fried trout, so we wanted to do something that was a little more challenging for us too.
We settled on a fish loaf from Stephane Reynaud's Terrine, and it made a wonderful rich first course. We served it with a salad with a tangy vinaigrette, which balanced the velvety cream in the terrine. This is going on our 'do it again!' list for the next time we have fresh trout!
Fish Loaf
1 lb + 5 oz fish fillets
3 tomatoes
2 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 shallots, chopped
4 eggs
1 c heavy cream
1 T ketchup
1 bunch basil, chopped
Salt and pepper
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Skin the fish and remove any bones. Cut into large cubes.
- Peel the tomatoes, then quarter and seed them. Cut them into a fine dice and set aside.
- Heat the oil in the pan over low heat. Add the garlic and shallots and cook 5 minutes or until they are transparent. Remove from the heat.
- In a blender or food processor, blend the fish, eggs, and cream until smooth. Pour into a large mixing bowl.
- Season the fish puree with salt and pepper. Stir in the onion and garlic mixture, the ketchup, tomatoes, and basil.
- Line a loaf or terrine pan with plastic wrap, enough that it hangs over the edges.
- Pour the mixture into the pan and cover with the plastic wrap.
- Place the loaf pan into a roasting pan full of hot water so that the water goes halfway up the sides of the loaf pan.
- Cook for 40 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow it to rest.
Note: We allowed our loaf to rest about an hour, and it held together remarkably well.
Serve warm or cold.
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More Info
Stephane Reynaud's Terrine