Fennel and Blood Orange Salad
We love Fennel. We really started using it a lot a couple years ago. It is so versatile. You can eat it raw as a snack. Toss it into a salad. Roast it and add it to your mashed potatoes, make a lovely soup, bake it into a Galette, turn it into a creamy risotto inspired dish; the possibilities are endless. The taste is very unique. A bit of black licorice that is slightly green. Very refreshing.
Tonight I was inspired by a salad in the January issue of Gourmet. It was made of thinly sliced fennel, roughly chopped oranges (we used blood oranges), shaved Parmesan and a lovely dressing made of Pomegranate juice, olive oil and some sea salt.
To make this salad a meal we decided to add a nice piece of fish and we chose some beautiful sea bass. We love sea bass as it has a wonderfully thick but smooth texture and has a buttery but delicate flavor. You really do not need to add a lot of seasonings, simple is the best. I drizzled it with olive oil, Fumee de Sel (we received as a gift & love it) and cracked black pepper. Then I slowly baked it. To serve I zest some Meyer Lemon and Blood Orange over the top.
The citrus from the salad and the freshness of the fennel complimented the buttery delicate flavor of the fish very well. A really nice and light dinner.
What do you like to do with Fennel?
I like fennel but have never used it at home because Shawn hates fennel seeds. I have thought about trying it since the flavor seems different enough that he won’t associate the it with the seeds that he hates. I just can’t tell him what it is. Once I ground up fennel seeds and put them in some lasagna hoping he wouldn’t notice. He came home from work and immediately said “it smells like those funnel seeds” (yes, funnel, not fennel). Oh, the joys of trying to cook like a foodie for a meat and potatoes man from the sticks. Anyway, the salad looks beautiful—very fresh and light.
i love fennel. in france they serve it with the crudities salads. i use it in soups all the time. love the orange touch! bon appetit
Love the use of pomegranate juice as a dressing