Sea Bass With Leeks Potatoes And Thyme Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Season fish with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Sear the tomatoes over medium heat, add the leeks, and cook together 3 minutes. Add the shallots, olives, capers, reserved tomato juice, vermouth, and stock, and cook 5 minutes more over medium heat, or until the sauce reduces slightly.
• Pour the vegetable mixture into an ovenproof casserole. Place the fish on top of the bed of vegetables and roast the fish for 8 to 10 minutes. Gently remove the fish from the casserole, stir in the tarragon and butter and spoon the vegetable sauce around the fish.
• Serve immediately, sprinkled with additional chopped tarragon.

Steps:

• To prep artichokes, use a serrated knife and cut off outer leaves to the tender yellow/pale leaves. Trim the bottom and spoon out the 'hair'. Trim the stem to the heart. Quarter the artichoke with stem on. In a pot of salted, boiling water, blanch the prepped artichokes to al dente, about 10 minutes and shock in ice water. Set aside. To make the sauce, use a hot non-reactive sauce pan coated with oil and sautee garlic, ginger, and leeks until soft, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the artichokes and tomatoes then deglaze with vinegar and reduce by 80 per cent. Add the butter and stir in. Check for seasoning. Meanwhile pre-heat an oven to 425 degrees. In a very hot skillet coated with oil, pan sear the seasoned fish until brown on both sides, about 3 minutes a side. Transfer to oven and roast for 5 minutes or until a skewer can easily penetrate the fish.
• In a saucepan, add potatoes and fill with cold water. Add a little salt. Slowly boil potatoes for 30 to 40 minutes until potatoes come cleanly off of a pairing knife. In another hot saucepan coated with oil, caramelize garlic than add thyme and cream. Reduce cream by 30 per cent. In a large stainless steel bowl, add hot potatoes and garlic cream. Hand mash together. Add butter, salt and pepper and check for seasoning. Keep warm.
• PLATING Place a mound of mash in the center of a plate. Surround with the artichoke/vinegar sauce. Place bass on top and garnish with chives.

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, combine the wine, shallots and thyme and simmer, uncovered, until the wine is almost evaporated, about 45 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream and set aside.
• Using a mandoline, cut the potatoes lengthwise into paper-thin slices. Place the slices in a large bowl, toss with 2 tablespoons of the clarified butter and season lightly with salt. Season the fish fillets with salt and shape them, tucking in thin portions as necessary, to form compact rectangles.
• On a square of baking parchment or wax paper, overlap the narrow ends of 2 potato slices by 1 inch. Lay 2 more slices down in the same manner, overlapping the sides of the first 2 by 1/2 inch. Repeat until you have 4 rows of slices. Place each fillet lengthwise across a row of potatoes. Wrap the potato slices around the fillets, using the parchment paper to help lift the slices. Refrigerate.
• In a small saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the clarified butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Season the leeks with salt and pepper and set aside to keep warm.
• Over a low flame, bring the reduced wine and cream to a simmer and whisk in the butter chunks, 1 at a time. Remove from the flame, season with salt, pepper and the sugar and strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve. Return the sauce to the pan and set aside to keep warm.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place a large nonstick skillet on top of the stove over high heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of clarified butter and the wrapped fish fillets, seam sides down. Saute, turning once, until the potatoes are crisp and golden brown, about 8 minutes. Check the fish for doneness, and transfer the skillet to the oven if the fish needs to cook longer. Serve the fish on a bed of leeks with the sauce spooned around. Garnish with chives.