Halibut Osso Bucco & Pine Nut Pilaf

The fish market was jam-packed... it appeared that not everyone was serving prime rib, ham or turkey Christmas Eve. My husband emerged from the frenzy with four beautiful halibut fillets packed in ice for the long drive home.

The eve of Christmas Eve our daughter made the Halibut Osso Bucco* sauce in her kitchen and I made the Pine Nut Pilaf in mine, so we'd spend the least amount of time in the kitchen on Christmas Eve and our dinner would be all the more flavorful. Our Christmas Eve Halibut "Osso Bucco" dinner was so delicious it will most likely become a new culinary tradition for our family at Christmas time.

The Osso Bucco sauce is a savory stew of fresh ingredients finely chopped: onions, carrots, celery, parsley and garlic with pureed tomatoes, lemon peel, white wine, vegetable stock, butter, bay leaves, sea salt and pepper.

Our Halibut Osso Bucco recipe comes from Halibut - The Cookbook, page 100. Whitecap Books. Edited by Karen Barnby, this cookbook is the only one you'll ever need for preparing and cooking halibut to perfection. Every halibut recipe I've tried thus far, including this recipe is magnifico!

The halibut is salt and peppered and dipped in rice flour, then pan-seared over medium heat on all sides. The fillets are then placed in a glass baking dish. The sauce is brought to a boil and poured over the halibut and baked at 350-degrees for 10 minutes; 15 minutes at the most. We served four fillets and used all the sauce intended to serve 6. We enjoyed the extra sauce with our pilaf.


Pine Nut Pilaf

Ingredients:

2 large onions, diced (2 cups)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup butter
4-1/2 to 5 cups vegetable stock
2 cups Basmati rice, uncooked
1 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup currants, blanched (or golden raisins)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

1. Saute the onion and garlic in butter in a large skillet or pot until golden.
2. Add the vegetable stock (or chicken stock) according to the directions for cooking the rice.
3. Bring the stock to a boil and stir in the rice with a fork or whisk.
4. Cover and reduce the heat; follow the directions for cooking the rice.
5. When the rice is done, add in the blanched currants, parsley, pine nuts, salt and pepper.

Serves 10-12

* Italian Osso Bucco (or Buco) is traditionally made with veal shanks, carrots, onion, celery, garlic, pancetta, and gremolata with parsley, lemon zest, and garlic.

Macadamia Encrusted Halibut

In my recipe I call for macadamia nuts, but you can use pine nuts, also you can make this macadamia version with shredded coconut instead of Parmesan cheese.

I recommend fresh halibut for this recipe.

• 1/4 6-oz. Halibut fillets 4
• 1 Tbsp. Grapeseed or Olive Oil
• 4 Tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
• 2 cup Macadamia Nuts, coarsely chopped
• Salt to Taste
• Squeeze of Lemon

Directions:

1. Rinse and pat dry the fillets on both sides. 
2. You can either bake the fish in a preheat 425 ºoven for 10-15 minutes, or you can add a splash of oil to a non-stick skillet to cook at medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes a side, depending on how thick the fillets. Combine the macadamia nuts, Parmesan cheese and salt. 
3. Place the halibut fillets on a baking sheet, or cook stove top in a flat-bottomed skillet large enough cook two to four fillets at a time . 
4. Before I pat the macadamia mixture onto the halibut fillets, I brush oil on both sides (or you can brush on egg). 
5. Pressing the mixture lightly to make it adhere. Bake in the middle of the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the fish is opaque all the way through or cook on the stove top/ Since the crust is loosely patted onto the fish, turn gently. 
6. When flipped to the other side, you can add any remaining crust mixture on top. 
7. Add a thin slice of lemon and squeeze a little lemon juice and cracked pepper (optional) over all.

Serves 4