This mackerel fillet was marinated, flesh side down, for thirty minutes in a mixture of wine vinegar and water, parsley stalks, thinly-sliced red onion and lemon, and a tablespoon of sugar, heated and cooled (it was gorgeous; I wish it could have come to the table!).  The mackerel was then removed from the marinade, patted dry, brushed with olive oil then pan grilled over a high flame.  The flavor was great, but I still felt the fish was missing something in its taste (and appearance), even though the recipe asked for nothing more.  I’m thinking at least chopped parsley, or another herb, sprinkled on top, or maybe something tomato.  A spot of something red on that plate would certainly have made it more exciting.

While I’m critiquing the presentation, I should definitely have sliced those wonderful, sweet Désirée tomatoes into halves before bringing them to the table, sprinkling the lovage on then.

• fillets of Spanish mackerel from Blue Moon Fish Company, marinated as described above, then pan-grilled and finished with a drizzle of lemon, then oil
• boiled ‘new’ Désirée potatoes from Berried Treasures, rolled with butter and oil, finished with chopped lovage from Mountain Sweet Berry Farm
• baby Italian arugula from Hawthorne Valley Farm, simply dressed with oil, lemon, salt and pepper, in spite of its appearance here
• a Spanish rosé, Rioja Muga Rosato 2013