Sole with White Wine Lemon Sauce and Savoy Cabbage

Fern said, "anything not fatty." 

I looked at beef tenderloin, pined a moment and went to the fish counter. I was in the mood for crab cakes again but they didn't have any good imitation crab.  The cheaper stuff tastes almost as good but it doesn't have the right texture. So I decided on the fresh sole. Fresh green vegetables are expensive right now so I'm experimenting a little.  I tried savoy cabbage successfully once before and cabbage is all that's affordable right now so I'll have another go.  

I looked up a sole recipe with a white wine sauce on the internet. It called for battering the fish which I'd never tried in a frying pan before so I decided to have a go.  I got potatoes going on the stove.

Batter for fish or anything else

1/2 cup flour

1 large egg

1/4 cup milk 

1/2 tsp salt

I put the fish in a plastic bag with flour and salt to coat them before dipping in the batter. I laid them on the counter till everything else is done.  The fish cooks in a minute or two each side so once everything else is ready, start cooking the fish. 

Lemon Sauce (not a particularly good one)

1 tsp flour

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp salt

1 lemon juiced

1 cup white wine

Before starting the sauce I put a pad of butter in the sauce pan and browned the sliced almonds. Actually I burned them the first time so I threw them out and did them again. I took them out and put them aside. In the sauce pan put the flour and oil and mix them on medium heat.  Cook the flour taste off but don't brown the flour.  Remove from heat and add the wine, lemon juice and salt. Whisk lumps out. Put back on low heat and let it thicken.

I fried several pieces of bacon till crisp and put them out on paper towel. Drained the grease out of the pan and put a layer of water in the bottom.  I chiffonade (cut in strips) the cabbage and toss it in the water.  When it has softened I drained the water and put it back on medium low heat with extra virgin olive oil. Keep tossing it.   The potatoes are done so drain and add butter salt and milk.

Dredge fish in batter and put in hot oil in frying pan.  I filled the pan and washed the batter off my hands.  I turned the fish over and broke the bacon into the cabbage. while I turned it in the pan.  Plate the fish, potatoes and cabbage.  Put some toasted almonds on the fish and pour lemon sauce over top. Call the dogs.

Making a batter and putting lemon sauce on it just results in soggy batter. I knew that, why I went ahead and did it I don't know.  I guess I thought because it was in a recipe it would magically work. The sauce wasn't particularly good compared to my own concoctions so I'd just leave it out next time.  If I want a sauce I won't batter the fish, just flour it. The almonds are a nice touch either way.

The cabbage with bacon was delicious, so was the fish for that matter.  I should have cut the stems out of the cabbage, they don't cook. The whole meal was inexpensive local fresh food, which is nice to have in northern hemisphere January. (almonds and lemons don't count) The winter molt is over and my chickens are laying again. I need to start using up eggs again!