Perch Florentine

[catfish1]

Just tried this yesturday and thought it was great.

Perch Florentine

1. 10 perch fillets

2. one half cup shredded mozarella cheese

3. one cup heavy whipping cream

4. one cup of chopped (fresh or frozen) cooked spinach

5. one cup cooked shrimp

6. one quarter cup parmesan cheese

7. one cup seasoned flour

Preparation

Heat a small amout of olive oil in a non-stick pan. It's hot enough when it just begins to smoke. Then dip the perch fillets into the seasoned flour. A light breading works the best. Brown them quickly,remove fillets from pan,then drain the excess oil from the pan. Add the cream, and while it is reducing,layer the perch, spinach and shrimp in an oven-proof baking dish.

When the cream is reduced by half, pour it over the fish, top with the shedded mozerella and parmesan, then place it under the broiler until it turns slightly brown and the cheese is bubbly.

Note; Cut and serve like a lasagna. This is awesome.

Catfish1

[Leaky]

I was watching a Tony Dean show and saw the chef prepare this. Went to his HSOforum, found the recipe and tried it last week. Used walleye. It was very easy to make and was outstanding.

If you're looking for something different to do with your winters catch, this is a good one. Perch, Walleye, Crappie or any panfish would work.

[catfish1]

Leaky; I used smaller catfish fillets and it worked great. This is one recipe for the books and I'll use it alot.

Catfish1

[Leaky]

Ya, me too. I'll be making a few slight adjustments (crab instead of shrimp?) and putting it in Volume 2 of my cookbook. I also use Emril's Essence to season the flour, and then hit it again after the fish is fried.

I'm not a big fan of baked fish and am always looking for new things to try. This one gives me the fried taste that I enjoy, and the creamy cheese topping that really makes it. I was also thinking that maybe a small layer of french fried onions on top before broiling would give it a nice crunch and some additional flavor.

[catfish1]

That french fried onion thing sounds good. Will have to try that one myself.

catfish1

[BAIT956]

Catfish1, you've got a winner here. I tried it yesterday and it was awesome. Instant Classic.

With all due respect, I almost always tinker with any recipe, just to suit my tastes.

Not being a spinach fan, I substituted steamed cauliflower and topped the fish (I used crappie) with Old Bay seasoning. My old favorite, cayenne pepper is another option.

I'm sure that several other veggies would work too. Zuchinni and eggplant come to mind.

It did take me two beers to get the cream to reduce by half. Not a bad thing either.

I made a big pan and could only eat half. Thus, I have the other half left for today. I'll let you know if it is just as good cold, (doubt it) or reheated.

[catfish1]

Bait956; I think trying different veggies is a good then. But I have steamed eggplant on a test and sorry I tried it. So I do not think that would be a good choice and then again maybe I steamed it to long. Whatever you try keep us informed.

Catfish1

[BAIT956]

Catfish1, I got back to the recipe again and tried another couple of tweaks.

First, I seasoned the fish with Old Bay Seasoning and pepper and baked the fish in the oven instead of frying it.

Using the same pan, I added the rest of the ingredients, adding steamed caulifower and zuchinni.

Secondly, I substituted a can of undiluted cream of mushroom soup for the heavy cream.

I was out of beer and didn't want to wait around for the cream to reduce by half.

Third, covered the thing with the cheese and baked again in the oven for about 20 min. @ 400 degrees. When it looked sufficiently melted, I turned on the broiler for a couple of minutes to brown the cheese.

Absolutely fanastic. Those of you who have not tried this, do yourself a favor, get after it.

As for leftovers, I didn't like it cold, but I reheated the pan in the oven @ 250 for 20 min. or so and It was very good.

My dog, Coot, went nuts licking out the pan. Must have worked on it for an hour. Nearly as good as a self cleaning pan.

Bless you for supplying this recipe. It will always be one of my favorites.

[Ryan Berger]

Made some tonight with crappies and it was awesome,, but I dont think I reduced the cream long enough? To what tonsistancy should you reduce it to? What temperature do you use to reduce it?

ty for a great addition to the cookbook!!

[catfish1]

All I do is figure if there is 1/2" in pan cook tell there is only 1/4" in pan. Remember do NOT boil milk hard, You will cause it to curl and it will not be any good.As far as tempature goes I have no idea, Just do not boil hard. And like others have said maybe use a cream of any kind of soup. That way all you have to do is heat it up. Later

Catfish1

[LABS4ME]

Cook on medium heat so it is barely bubbling, and stir frequently... if you start out with a pint, you know it's reduced by half when you have a cup (8oz)....

I did this recipe last week with crappie at it is incredible!

Good Luck!

Ken

[rmh2o]

Made this tonight and it was great.Substituted scallops for shrimp.Top browned real fast so I baked it for about 15 minutes longer.Next time I will try puting the broiler on low or lower the rack.Will definitly make this again.