dear fellow crumbsnatchers,
summers at my grandparent's house were filled with comfort and routine. you could always count on newspaper reading and crosswords in the morning, listening to the radio in the afternoon, and watching the news, wheel of fortune and jeopardy in the evening. if we were allowed to watch tv during the day, it was pbs. from kidsongs to antique roadshow, pbs was the only grandparent-approved channel. the only other things we watched were sports (especially nascar races) and the oj simpson trial (1995).
i always loved watching pbs cooking shows featuring jaques pepin, martin yan and my all-time favorite, julia child. of course, my love for cooking started in my yia-yia's kitchen, but my interest and passion in "geeking out" about food like alton brown started with these cooking shows. it was a dream come true when the food network launched - a whole channel dedicated to cooking shows!
in 2009, my best friends gifted me a copy of julia child's mastering the art of french cooking. this was around the time the book and movie, julie & julia, became popular. come to think of it, crumbs for gypsie is my version of the julie/julia project, except instead of blogging about julia child's recipes, i blog about all my favorite recipes. thanks to julia powell for being a food blogger pioneer.
today is julia child's birthday. instead of throwing on a set of pearls and apron and making her signature beef bourguignon recipe, i decided to make sole meunière instead. see, sole meunière supposedly inspired julia's passion for french food and she inspired me to try french cooking. sole meunière sounds super so-fish-ticated but honestly, it's an easy and delicious way to prepare delicate white fish.
sole meunière recipe
crumb confession: i don't use sole to make this dish. we live in the landlocked midwest and there are only a few places i trust to get fresh fish. fortunately, the manfriend stocks our freezer with fresh-caught blue gill, crappie, sunfish, bass and the occasional catfish. typically, we'll pan-fry the fish and serve with a side of stewed tomatoes and cowboy potatoes. oddly enough, we both ate this meal with our families growing up. lately, we've been frying the fish on the smoker for baja fish tacos but i'm always open to new recipes, especially ones that rely on items i usually have in my pantry or fridge.
cuisine: french
prep time: 10 minutes
cook time: 5 minutes
serves: 2
ingredients
4-6Â skinless, boneless fish filets (e.g. sole, blue gill, crappie, tilapia, bass)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
6 tbs clarified butter or ghee
2 tbs capers, optional
1 lemon, cut into wedges
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
directions
place fish filets on paper towels and pat dry. season with salt and pepper.
in a small bowl (i use a pie dish), add flour. dredge seasoned fish lightly in flour.
in a skillet, heat pan on medium-high heat. add butter to pan.
cook filets in butter until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side. do not overcrowd the pan or else you'll steam the fish. this fish is best with a crispy texture.
place cooked fish on serving platter or plate. add capers to remaining butter in pan.
pour butter caper sauce over fish and garnish with lemon and parsley.
i recommend serving sole meunière with dinner du jour's recommendation of parmesan roasted asparagus and herbed new potatoes, which are actually recipes from another one of my favorite chefs, ina garten. i love any excuse to eat asparagus and with the abundance of fresh herbs in our garden, these buttery potatoes are the perfect compliment to the rest of the meal. happy birthday, julia!
love and crumbs,
christina & gypsie
p.s. did you make this recipe? be sure to drop us a crumb on instagram at @crumbsforgypsie and hashtag it #crumbsforgypsie.
#crumbsforgypsie #crumbconfessions #cheftina #solemeunière #juliachild #thewaytocook #frenchcooking