Crappie Version One

This will be the first of several blogs about fish, specifically crappie (pronounced croppie round here). We are committed to eating more fish and our friends - the fanatical fisher people – supplied us with 10 bags of frozen fillets each containing 8-12 pieces (each piece is half a fish). Some times the planets must be in alignment for things to work out so well. We don’t fish but like to eat them and they love to fish but can’t eat all they catch – is that great or what, especially for us. So anyway, with about 80 pieces, we should be fixed until their next crop comes in the spring - unless we throw a big fish fry.

For those of you not familiar with them, crappie are a delicate fish with a very mild flavor – Bev doesn’t like her fish to taste like fish – go figure. As a result, they must be handled gently and not overwhelmed with other flavors – except for Bev’s.

Last night for dinner Bev cooked crappie version one. We had tried the chicken schnitzel recipe from tomatoes on the vine and liked the sauce, which is very similar to one we use on a catfish dish we like alot. She lightly breaded the fish in flour and sauted it in olive oil. After she turned the fish, she added the sauce ingredients to the skillet, thereby adding the pan fond to the sauce. The sauce was 4 tbsp butter – plus the olive oil, 2 tbsp lemon juice, and 2 tsp capers. She served it over some Knorr Cheddar Broccoli Rice Sides and sided it with steamed broccoli stems (the florets had aged too much in the frig and we like the stems just fine) and some cut up fresh fruit. The fish was outstanding this way and a definite keeper recipe. Here’s a shot of my plate.