Francine Segan: Food Historian, Author, Public Speaker: Recipes

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PHILOSOPHER'S KITCHEN

Red Snapper in Parchment
from Philosopher's Kitchen
Serves 4

This is one of my favorite recipes because it takes only minutes to assemble, can be made hours in advance, and gets rave reviews from guests. In antiquity, fish was often cooked wrapped in fig leaves seasoned with just salt and olive oil. This modern version substitutes parchment paper and adds the classic Mediterranean ingredients of capers, olives, lemons, and bay leaves that perfectly season the snapper.

Juice of 2 lemons

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

4 bay leaves, crushed

1/2 tablespoon whole pink peppercorns

2 tablespoons capers, rinsed

15 oil cured black olives, pitted and halved

4 red snapper fillets, about 8 ounces each

Salt and freshly milled pepper

Four 12 by 12-inch parchment sheets

Lemon wedges

1. Combine the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, bay leaves, peppercorns, capers, and olives in a large bowl. Add the red snapper to the marinade, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

3. Brush both sides of the parchment paper with a little olive oil. Remove a fillet from the marinade, season with salt and pepper, and place on the paper. Top with several spoonfuls of marinate. To close the packet, bring the top and bottom edges together and fold them over about 1/2 inch. Continue folding in 1/2-inch folds until you reach the fillet. Tuck each end of the parchment under the fish. Repeat with the other 3 fillets. Place the parchment packets on a baking sheet.

4. Bake the packets for 10 to 12 minutes. Serve the fish in the paper with lemon wedges on the side.