Lake Trout with Butter Sauce.

Can you believe I didn't post any recipes last week?  The audacity! 

Truth be told, I haven't really been making food that requires real recipes.

For example, yesterday we feasted on an enormous trout that my Grandpa caught in a nearby lake.  It was too much fish for him to eat, so he gladly shared (rather gave us all) his bounty.  Two delicious lake trout - no joke, I bet they were about four pounds each!  Stuart and I were in heaven because a) we never get truly fresh fish and b) we never get to just eat as much fish as we want.  It's so rare for us to eat fresh fish that I never have the pleasure of filleting fish and thus, have no fillet knife.

This, my friends, is what happens when you filet a trout with your Wusthof paring knife.  Yikes.

Regardless of the fact that this fish looks like it's been through a blender, I assure you it was delicious.  We grilled it with the skin on for extra flavor (Georgia was eating the fried fish skin like candy!) and cooked up a wonderful butter sauce to drizzle it with.  In the spirit of posting a recipe, I will now share the sauce recipe with you.  Just in case you are lucky enough to have fresh fish in your near future.  

Lake Trout with Lemon Butter Sauce

You will need: 

 - Fresh trout (or other fish), 3-4 pounds, clean & filleted to your liking

 - 2 tablespoons olive oil

 - 6 tablespoons of organic butter

 - 3 tablespoons of freshly chopped chives (I already have some growing in the garden!)

 - 3 teaspoons of freshly grated lemon zest (use organic!) 

 - 2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice

 - Salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

Step One:  Drizzle the fish with olive oil and place on a preheated grill for about 4 minutes per side, or until flaky and completely cooked.

Step Two:  While the fish is being grilled, melt the butter, chives, lemon zest, and lemon juice together in a small saucepan.  Don't boil, just melt.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Step Three:  Once the fish is cooked, remove it to a platter skin-side down.  Drizzle with the butter sauce and try not to die of happiness.  Regardless of what sort of fish you're enjoying, I'm positive this sauce would be a great addition.


You know what else makes a great addition?  Homemade peach wine.  I'm just sayin'.  

We finally opened our *second* bottle of this wine, much more pleased with the results than our first bottle.  As it's had about two years to age now, it's finally developing some real flavor!  I must admit, I was very impressed considering we made it ourselves. 

We ate.  We ate so much fish we thought we were going to explode.  And then we ate some more.  It.  Was. Awesome.

I have got to find a source for local fish.  We live right on the Columbia and Wenatchee rivers, not to mention a handful of nearby lakes - there's gotta be someone out there fishing in March, right?  Like my Grandpa!

I could not believe the difference eating fresh fish makes.  I've grown so accustomed to supermarket fish I'd forgotten what it a freshly caught fish tastes like.

I think I'll have to con my brother-in-law to bringing a cooler of fresh fish from Bellingham next time he visits.  Located right on the bay, they have lots of access to fresh seafood.  

I must eat more seafood.  

It is my destiny.

This trout confirmed it.

And on top of getting to eat another trout today, we get the bonus of making fish stock with the fish carcasses and scraps.  I know, I know.  I lured you in with the organ meat post last week and now I'm really sealing the deal with fish stock.  

Do I have any readers out there still?

Hello?  Anyone?  Anyone?

...

I knew I shouldn't have done that organ meat post.

Goodbye forever.