looking a bit like emeralds mounted on silver, but much more rewarding

 

I’ve prepared John Dory, which I’ve described as “aka le Poisson de St.Pierre, Pesce San Pietro, Petersfisch, Heringskőnig, Zeus Faber, or ‘the-funny-shiny-one with-the-sourpuss-face'”, at least 3 times since initiating this blog. Each time I assembled it a little differently, but the fish itself has always retained its distinctive flavor and texture, a flavor and texture quite unlike other white fish.

And it’s delicious.

This time, as always, the formula was adjusted for the season, and for what I had on hand.

• John Dory fillets from Pura Vida Fisheries, arranged in a lightly-buttered copper au gratin pan, sprinkled with a few (3?) tablespoons of lemon juice, seasoned with salt, and pepper, the skin side spread with half of a mixture of 1-2 tablespoons of softened ‘Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter‘, chopped lovage from Two Guys from Woodbridge and finely-chopped wild garlic from Lani’s Farm, baked in a 350º oven, skin-side down for 5 minutes, turned over, the other side spread with the remaining mixture and the pan returned to the oven for another 10 minutes, served with both chopped lovage and parsley sprigs from Eataly (this is the recipe, except for my substitution of the herbs it suggests) [the smooth silver skin can be eaten or easily removed, and I’ve done both]
• a mix of greens, mostly mustard, from Norwich Meadows Farm, wilted in a little oil which had already warmed one halved clove of bruised garlic from John D. Madura Farm, seasoned with salt and pepper, finished with a drizzle of oil
• the wine was an Austrian (Kemptal) white, Schlosskellerei Gobelsburg Kamptal Grüner Veltliner 2014
• the music was Peter Maxwell Davies, Symphony No. 2, the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Maxwell Davies