Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

1/2 lb Cold cooked salmon or trout
- (sea or river trout)
1/2 lb Florentine fennel
- (trimmed weight)
1/2 lb Steaky bacon
2 oz Butter
1 1/2 oz Flour
1/2 pt Whole milk
1/4 pt Fish stock
Lemon juice
Dijon mustard
Toasted or fried breadcrumbs

Serves 8 as an appetizer, or 3-4 as a main course.

Trim the fennel in the usual way, scraping away fibrous threads with a
potato peeler, or remove and discard the outer layers if they are
tired-looking or tough. Chop the flesh into small chunks and toss in
1/2 oz melted butter. Half cover the pan and leave to cook gently
for 10 minutes just shaking the pan occasionally. Add the bacon, cut
into snippets, increase heat and cook, stirring frequently, for
several minutes until the bacon is cooked and the fennel is steaked
with gold. Season with a good squeeze of lemon and plenty of pepper,
and set aside to cool before mixing with the fish, which should be
broken into large chunks.

Make a sauce with 1-1/2 oz each butter and flour, the milk and the
stock, and simmer gently, half covered, for about 10 minutes. Away
from the heat, season with scant 1 teaspoon mustard, a little salt
and plenty of pepper. Gently fold in the fish mixture and divide
between 8 small scallop shells or cocottes or put it all into one
large gratin dish. Cover with foil and reheat in the oven straight
away, or if preparing ahead, set aside in a cool place until close to
serving time. If the mixture is cold when it goes into the oven, it
will probably need 25 minutes or so at 425 F (220 C) gas mark 7 to
become thoroughly heated through. Stand the dish(es) on a pre-heated
baking sheet to help speed things up. When thoroughly hot, remove the
foil and sprinkle the fish mixture generously with freshly toasted or
fried breadcrumbs immediately before serving.

Source: Philippa Davenport in "Country Living" (British), June 1987.
Typed for you by Karen Mintzias

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