Recipes & Food Styling

Lent can be fun and delicious!

Lent can be fun! With the right recipes and ingredients, fish and other Lenten meals can be as crave-worthy as a Chik Fil A!

Even though we are less than 3 hours from two of The Great Lakes, it is impossible to get fresh fish in my community. So I’ve dug deep to find frozen fillets that are atleast wild-caught. That can be scarce here too, even in a state that got a mention for ice fishing in the Titanice movie!

While I can’t figure it out, I’ve stumbled onto great ideas for making frozen fish delish. This recipe for Fennel Orange Whitefish is a great example. It’s simple and tastes great and a bit lower maintenance with frozen fish stashed in the freezer. There are advantages to everything, I guess!

Gingery Orange Whitefish with Roasted Fennel

4 Tablespoons butter, room temperature

2 oranges, sliced and cut into half-moon pieces

3 small fennel bulbs, thinly sliced

4 large whitefish fillets, thawed

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground multi-color peppercorns  

1/4 teaspoon pink Himalayan sea salt    

1 cup orange marmalade  

Juice of 1 large lemon   

1 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika

1 garlic clove, finely chopped   

1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced

Spread half of the butter liberally around the bottom and sides of a 9-inch-round pie plate or other baking dish.

Artfully arrange the orange slices and the fennel on the pie plate.

Sprinkle the top and bottom of the fish with the pepper and salt, and lay the fillets on top of the fennel and orange.

Spread the marmalade across the top of each of the fish fillets.

Spread the lemon juice, paprika, garlic, and ginger on top of the fish. Top each fish fillet with the remaining butter.

Bake in the oven until the fish, fennel, and orange slices are browned and the edges of the fish lift up from the pie plate a bit, about 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven, and serve over rice, potatoes, or pasta.