Black Cod with Morels and Minty Pea Puree

Amy — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:17:58 +0000

We’ve had such a cruddy spring here in NYC and it’s hard to believe the summer solstice is just a week and a half away. Luckily, it’s been chilly and wet during the work week and sunny and warm at the weekends. It doesn’t make you feel that much better, though. You can’t fully get into the swing of summer because the weather just isn’t matching up. It feels like early April and we’re two weeks into June. Sadness. I want to wear my freaking sandals again and eat dinner outside and not wear a COAT ANYMORE!

Venting over. The one way we’re finding we can brighten our rainy, cool day is by cooking meals like this one. Fish (and our Black Cod is sustainable… double happiness) reminds me of the beach, which reminds me of sunny days. Morels and peas remind me of spring which (usually) remind me of flowers and sunny days. Mint reminds me of my garden in the summer which, say it with me, reminds me of sunny days. It was cool enough outside to use my oven, but we could just as easily have done this on the grill. The minty pea puree was fabulous and could have been eaten with a spoon alone. We paired this dish with some sliced Yukon Gold potatoes in their skin, sprinkled with olive oil and some herbs de Provence and crispily roasted in a hot oven. While these are cooling down, you can finish your fish.

Here’s to warmer, sunnier days ahead wherever you are!

BLACK COD WITH MORELS AND MINTY PEA PUREE (serves two)

1 lb. black cod/sablefish, skin on

Green Pea Puree:

olive oil
1/2 tablespoon of butter
1 box frozen peas (or equal amount of fresh peas)
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup veggie or chicken stock
1/2 tbsp. ground fennel seed
15 mint leaves (about 1/2 cup)
10 basil leaves
2 tablespoons plain yogurt, drained

Morel Sauce:

15-20 morels, cleaned and trimmed
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 cup of white wine
1/8 cup of chicken stock
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper

What to do:

Make your green pea puree by putting a bit of olive oil and the butter in a hot pan. Saute the onion and garlic until soft – about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the peas, wine and stock and reduce by 1/2. Turn up the heat a bit if necessary. Add the ground fennel and stir. Turn off heat and add everything to a blender. Add in basil and mint along with the yogurt. Puree in blender. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary. Set aside.
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Make morel sauce by heating up olive oil and sauteing onion and garlic until it gets a bit of color. Add the morels along with one tablespoon of butter and allow to saute for about thirty seconds. Now add the wine and stock and reduce by half, slowly allowing to reduce. Could take about 5-8 minutes. When it is reduced, stir in your final two pats of butter. Keep warm until fish is ready.
Make fish by rubbing the meaty side (non skin side) with olive oil. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper and some more ground fennel (optional).
Sear, skin side up in a screaming hot pan for 2 minutes until a crust forms.
Turn over skin side, kill heat.
Put into a 400 degree and turn off heat – allow to cook for 8-10 minutes depending on thickness.

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Black Cod with Morels and Minty Pea Puree