Sea Bass Chermoula with Braised Fennel (Page 305)

RECIPE #1139

• Date: Monday, April 5, 2010 -- 7pm
• Location: Berkeley, CA
• Kitchen: Our Temporary California Home
• Dining Companion: Matty
• Recipe Rating: B
  

I made this recipe as part of the All Seafood All The Time plan. I started by grinding cumin, coriander, black peppercorns, red pepper flakes, and sea salt in a spice grinder. Then I stirred in paprika, parsley, cilantro, olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic. I marinated the fish topped with this chermoula. While the fish was marinating I cooked some fennel on the stovetop. I baked the fish until cooked through and served it on a bed of fennel. This dish was perfectly fine. I like sea bass, and I enjoyed eating this preparation of it. However, I didn't think the North African blend of herbs and spices suited the fish that well. It would have seemed more appropriate on grilled beef or lamb. That said, the chermoula was quite flavorful and well-balanced. There are definitely better sea bass recipes in The Book, but this dish was pretty tasty and I enjoyed it.

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What a lovely weekend! With all the traveling that we have done lately my special gentleman and I haven't had many weekends in Berkeley. This weekend we had no trips planned, though, and it was wonderful! Friday evening we made dinner from The Book, then went for a long evening walk. On Saturday Emilee, Brian, and Sam came up from Palo Alto. My friend Ricky was also in town from Boston, and the 5 of us got together to cook a special lobster lunch from The Book (more on that in another post!). We were joined by my special gentleman and our friends Alp and Eli and we had a leisurely afternoon eating on the deck, followed by a trip to the park and rose garden. We picked up pizza for dinner and hung out at the house, eating pizza, drinking beer, and playing games (Celebrity and then Taboo). It was a really fun, super relaxing day.

This morning my special gentleman and I met up with Alp, Eli, and Puneet, to visit Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard -- an organic garden and kitchen classroom at one of the middle schools in Berkeley. In the afternoon we played soccer. There is a weekly soccer game here with some of the mathematicians in my special gentleman's field of research. After an exhausting game, my special gentleman, Josh, and I went out for some super-yummy Thai food.

I would say that the weekend was pretty much perfect. I got to spend time with some of my favorite people. We did things that I love to do. The weather was fantastic. I can't complain!