TROUT: A SHOUT OUT

TROUT:  A SHOUT OUT

OK, I have a bone to pick.  If I planned a smorgasbord menu for my last supper it wouldn’t include trout. I mean, really, trout?!?!?

On my table would be a juicy medium rare cheeseburger… a steamed hot dog representing the red-dye food group... some veal parm and New York pizza. Roast chicken w/ crispy skin, and cheesy mac & cheese, garlic mashed potatoes and a baked potato w/ lots of butter and chopped chives.  Well, this is a last meal so I don’t think I need worry about clogging my arteries or a heart attack, right?  Oh, and did I mention lobster w/ clarified butter and Beluga caviar on toast points?  For sure. 

But fish, fish?  Nah.

So when Richard made Kathy Kitchens Downie’s whole trout stuffed w/ mushrooms and bacon, I wasn’t prepared to kvell.

But that’s what I did.  I kvelled.  Since then, he’s served it two ways (see pictures below) – filleted and "un"filleted.  Either way, even if I still won’t add it to my last supper menu, it’s a palate’s delight.  But, take note, even with the fish filleted, make sure you pick out the bones or this just may be your last meal.

Kathy Kitchens Downie

MUSHROOM & BACON STUFFED TROUT

Ingredients:

2 (1 ounce) slices of white bread

Cooking spray*

¾ cup chopped green onions (about 2 bunches)

¾ cup chop onion

1 cup chopped cremini mushrooms (about 4 ounces)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

4 center-cut bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

8 (8 ounce) dressed whole rainbow trout

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

¾ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Lemon wedges and fresh thyme sprigs (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place bread in a food processor; pulse 2 times or until crumbly.  Sprinkle crumbs on a baking sheet; bake at 350 for 5 minutes or until golden.

Increase oven temperature to 400.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Coat pan w/ cooking spray*.  Add green onions and onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes.  Add mushrooms to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until mushrooms soften and most of liquid evaporates.   

 

Add chopped thyme; cook 30 seconds.  Remove from heat.  Combine mushroom mixture, breadcrumbs and bacon in a bowl.

*Richard uses olive oil or olive oil spray because he doesn’t think cooking spray is good for the nonstick skillet.

Open trout flat as you would a book. Drizzle trout evenly w/ lemon juice; sprinkle evenly w/ salt and pepper.  Spoon about ¼ cup mushroom mixture onto bottom half of each fish; fold over to cover w/ top half of fish.  

  

Arrange fish on a foil-lined broiler pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily w/ a fork or until desired degree or doneness.

Garnish w/ lemon wedges and thyme sprigs, if desired.

Serve immediately.

filleted

 

"un"filleted

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 stuffed trout)

Note:  You can serve it whole or filleted.  I prefer it served filleted.

Calories: 294 (26% from fat);

Fat 8.4 g (sat. 3.7 g. mono 2.4 g. poly 0.9g);

Protein 46,6 g

Carbs 8.2g

Fiber 0.9 g

Chol. 102 mg

Iron 3.7 mg

Sodium 436 mg

Calc. 34 mg