Brook Trout al Cartoccio with Artichokes and Olives
A special guest calls for a special meal! My partner's mother Jenny came to visit us from Malta for a few days and, as always when we have a special guest, I got overly excited about planning our dinners and sightseeing trips days before she arrived. I love to have her here and it's been a while since her last visit so there was a lot to pack into six days!
During one of our last phone calls she asked if we could make a Bavarian Beer Roasted Pork. It's been years since I cooked it for her but she enjoyed it so much that she never forgot about our Bavarian night. Our first day together in Berlin was quite busy, I had to travel, my partner had a concert and we could only fit in a lunch. Inspired by all those wonderful Mediterranean seafood feasts we had at Jenny's house in Msida this summer, I wanted to present a fish of the north, brook trout. I love its earthy taste, somewhere between trout and salmon, and its beautiful pink colour. It's a member of the salmon family and lives in streams and brooks, although it's called trout it's actually a char. I prefer to cook sweet water fish al cartoccio wrapped in parchment pepper with spices, herbs and strong flavours like bacon or capers, like in my trout recipe. This method keeps the meat juicy and infuses it with all the delicate aromas it's filled with and wrapped in. For my brook trout, I chose artichokes, parsley, olives and bay leaves which bring out the best in any kind of sweet water fish. Cooked for about half an hour in some white wine, it just needed a fresh, crunchy baguette to dip into the juices to make a delicious lunch for my beloved guest!
Brook Trout al Cartoccio with Artichokes and Olives
For 2 people you need
brook trout 1 (about 500g / 1 pound)
black olives 10
small preserved artichoke hearts (tinned), cut in half, 6
parsley, a small bunch garlic, quartered, 3 cloves
bay leaves 2
white wine 100ml / 3.5 ounces
olive oil
salt and pepper
Set the oven to 180°C / 355°F.
Cut 2 pieces of parchment paper, about 20cm / 8" longer than the fish. Put them on top of each other and brush the top with olive oil. Lay the trout in the middle and season it with salt and pepper inside and out. Put 1 bay leaf and half of the parsley under the fish and the other bay leaf and the remaining parsley inside. Fold up the sides of the parchment paper, twisting the ends without closing it. Arrange the artichokes, garlic and olives around the fish and pour the wine over it. Close the top by folding it twice, put the cartoccio in a baking dish and cook in the oven for about 25 minutes.
The fish is done if you can lift the meat with a knife off the bone. Gently cut along the middle line on one side to check. If it needs a little longer fold the parchment paper to close it again and put it back into the oven for a few minutes. Enjoy with fresh baguette and a glass of white wine!
