Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon dried lemon zest (page 351) or high-quality purchased dried lemon zest
- 5 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds 1 teaspoon anise seeds (not
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon fennel pollen (see note)
- 2 tablespoon flaked sea salt
- 3/4 cup baccalà mantecato (page 195)
- 4 cup black cod fillets, about 5 ounces each
- 4 cup small sprigs fresh thyme 12 very thin garlic slices
- 4 ounce chanterelle mushrooms, trimmed
- 16 ounce asparagus spears, preferably thin ones, trimmed to 3 inches and blanched (see page 194)
- 12 ounce to 16 pieces roasted cherry tomatoes (page 323)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Preparation
Baking Directions:
With its fragrant spice rub featuring lemon and anise, the cod is quite delicious on its own.
But it becomes spectacular when paired with baccalà mantecato, a Venetian specialty that's similar to brandade but more like a thick, creamy sauce.
Roasted cherry tomatoes cut through all that richness and adds a pop of color to the plate.
For the spices: In a small sauté pan, toast the dried lemon zest, fennel seeds, anise seeds, and crushed red pepper over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes.
Transfer the spices to a spice grinder, add the fennel pollen, and grind finely.
If not using right away, let cool to room temperature, and store air- tight.
Mix 1 tablespoon of the spices with the flaked sea salt to be used as finishing salt and reserve it separately from the rest of the spices.
(Both spice mixes will keep for months, tightly covered, but their aroma and intensity will lessen over time.)
To serve: heat a convection oven to 375°F or a conventional oven to 400°F.
Warm the baccalà mantecato over low heat, if necessary.
Pat the cod dry, lightly dust both sides with just a little of the unsalted spice mix, and season lightly with kosher salt.
heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large sauté pan over high heat, add the cod skin side down, and top each fillet with 1 sprig thyme and 3 slices garlic.
Immediately transfer to the oven to cook until just cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes depending on thickness.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium sauté pan over high heat.
Add the mushrooms, season lightly with kosher salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned on all sides, about 4 minutes.
Add the asparagus, roasted cherry tomatoes, and parsley and cook, stirring occasionally, to heat through.
Season with kosher salt and black pepper to taste.
Divide the vegetables among serving plates.
Using about 3 tablespoons of the mantecato per plate, dollop it over and around the vegetables.
Place the fish, skin side up, on the vegetables.
Drizzle a little Black olive oil over everything and finish with a pinch of the spices mixed with sea salt.
Note: Fennel pollen, long a part of culinary tradition in northern Italy, is exactly what it sounds like: granules of pollen harvested from the buds of flowering fennel plants.
Just a little bit not only adds its own sweet, licorice-like notes, but it also boosts the overall flavor of the dish.
Look for it in specialty markets.
