Whisk Wednesday -- Snapper with fennel en Papillote

This week for Whisk Wednesdays we made Snapper with fennel en Papillote or Snapper with Fennel baked in Parchment! Baking fish in parchment is very popular in Florida and it's on just about every restaurant menu. I love fish in parchment, it's like getting a little present on your plate.

Living in the Midwest, once again, I was limited to my fish varieties and substituted Sole for the Snapper. Last week I had a huge choice of fish, but this week Sole was the only white-fleshed fish I could find. The Sole fillets were gorgeous and we do love Sole, although I do think the recipe would have been better with Snapper or Grouper.

It was fun making the pipillote which were ridiculously easy and an added bonus is there's little clean up afterwards!



Snapper with fennel en Papillote
Recipe adapted from Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cooking Techniques

2-3/4 lb snapper fillets
2 large bulbs of fennel
4 TBL unsalted butter
16 fresh basil leaves
4 TBL dry white wine

Preparing the fish was so easy. Just cut a heart shape out of parchment, making sure it's big enough to comfortably hold your fish, plus about 1" for crimping. Brush the parchment with melted butter up to about 1" from the edge.

Prepare the fennel by rinsing in cold water. Discard the thick stalks, reserving the leaves and bulbs. With a sharp knife, cut the bulb in half and cut off the root end and discard. Cut the fennel into 1/4" slices. Saute in butter for about 25 minutes or until tender.

Put a layer of fennel on one side of parchment in the shape of your fillet. Rinse off your fillet with cold water and pat dry. Place the fillet on top of the fennel and season with salt and pepper. Arrange 4 fresh basil leaves on top of the fillet. Sprinkle fillet with about a TBL of white wine. Top with the reserved fennel leaves.

Crimp the edges of the parchment. Bake at 425 degrees for 5-8 minutes.


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