Stuffed Trout a la Branch 27

I love when a restaurant really nails a dish.  With local and in-season ingredients and simple yet thoughtful preparation, it is hard to pass up something like the trout from Branch 27 (corner of Noble and Chicago, just off the Blue Line).  This was so good, in fact, that I broke my rule of not turning the oven on in the summer months.  (Just choose a cool day.)

The best local pub

I thought I didn't like trout

This sure convinced me!

Ingredients:

• 1 rainbow trout, deboned
• 1 small head of cabbage
• 1 medium shallot, chopped
• 2 small apples (gala, or the like)
• 2 handfulls pecans, crumbled
• butter
• red peppercorns
• olive oil
• corn from three ears
• 1/3 cup cream
• fresh thyme
• red pepper flakes
• cooking twine

1.  Preheat oven to 400.  Saute most of the shallot in butter.  Chop and add the cabbage.  Cube and add the apple.  Crumble and add the pecan.  Toss/stir over medium-high heat until the combination is softened, aromatic, and browned in parts.
2. Rinse fish in water and a little bit of cream.  Place two pieces of cooking twine across a baking dish.  Place fish, open, in the dish and fill with the cabbage mixture (extra mixture can be tucked around the fish).  Close the fish around the mixture and tie.
3. Brush the fish with olive oil and sprinkle with red peppercorns.  Loosely cover and bake 20 minutes.
4. While the fish is baking, saute the rest of the shallot in a little more butter and add the corn.  Throw in a nice sprig of thyme.  Cook until the corn is golden and the thyme is a vibrant green.  Add cream and cook to reduce.
5. After 20 minutes, remove the covering from the fish and cook 5 minutes longer or until fish is flaky.  
6. Remove the fish from the oven and let it sit a minute while you dish up corn to plates.  Portion fish to plates and enjoy!

This dish is especially lovely followed by a dessert of blue cheese, sherry and walnuts.

Pictures taken by April Faith-Slaker