Gifts of food - STEELHEAD TROUT WITH CHERRY TOMATOES

One day not too long ago, I got a phone call out of the blue from a woman who reads my column in the newspaper about Saskatchewan food. Her name was Genevieve. She said she had a gift for me. It was two big bottles of her marinated vinegar – one with garden herbs and the other with saskatoon berries – and a jar of pesto. What a treat! She told me to wait awhile before opening the vinegar. So, my first taste was last night. Here’s what I did with it:

STEELHEAD TROUT ROASTED WITH CHERRY TOMATOES
Steelhead is a type of trout raised at the Wild West Steelhead fish farm on Lake Diefenbaker near Lucky Lake, Saskatchewan. I purchased some trout while on a visit to the farm. It had been caught, cleaned and packaged within the hour. And cooked just a few hours after that! Any other fish fillets would work just as well in this recipe.

Heat the oven to 425. Take two handfuls of cherry tomatoes and cut them in half. (Red and yellow tomatoes would make a pretty mix.) Toss them with some shredded basil, a pinch or two of kosher salt and a good dousing of herb vinegar. Marinate for an hour.

Rub the bottom of a roasting pan with olive oil. Place two fillets of trout in the oil, skin side down. Season with salt and white pepper. Arrange the cherry tomatoes on top of the fillets. Drizzle with a bit more olive oil. Roast in the oven uncovered for about 15 minutes, until the fish is flaky.
Top the fish with some grated white cheese – parmesan, mozzarella or gruyere for example. Turn the oven to broil and bake until the cheese is melted. I served the fish with boiled fingerling potatoes and just-picked corn on the cob.

On the Airwaves - TROUT BAKED IN SALT

If you listen to CBC radio during the day (in Saskatchewan) you can catch my new food column Home on the Range on the program "Blue Sky" with Jen Gibson. I'll be on the show monthly to talk about my adventures in Saskatchewan foodland. My first show is today between 1:30 and 2:00 pm. We're going to talk (among other things) about my visit to Canada's largest fresh water fish farm - Wild West Steelhead on Lake Diefenbaker. It should be fun!

Update: The first program was marvellous. Robin called in from Regina to rave about Saskatchewan wild rice. He has a ten-year tradition of buying a big bag of rice and sharing it with his coworkers, so they get a chance to sample a product that is not readily available in their city. Isn't that sweet?! Lois called from Moose Jaw with her favourite recipe for Saskatchewan's fall bounty - beet borscht. Jen tried to twist Lois's arm to send us her secret family recipe. I'm crossing my fingers for that!

WILD WEST STEELHEAD TROUT BAKED IN SALT
Stuff the cavity of a whole 5-lb fish with lemon slices and fresh thyme. Place it in a long baking dish and cover with course salt. Use a 2 kg. box of Sifto salt (mined in Saskatchewan). The fish should be completely covered. Bake for 1.5 hours at 325 C. When it comes out of the oven the salt will be rock hard. Crack it open with a knife, peel off the skin of the fish and lift out the flesh.