Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
• 1 Vidalia onion, diced
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 small zucchini, diced
• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced
• 1 fennel bulb, diced, fronds reserved
• 6 3-ounce halibut fillets (wild preferred)
• Zest of 1 orange
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup white wine
• 3 shallots, minced
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh chives
• Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To prepare the vegetables, heat a large sauté pan on medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add 4 of the minced garlic cloves, the zucchini, red pepper, tomatoes and diced fennel and cook for 4 minutes. Transfer to a platter.

Place the halibut fillets in a bowl and toss them gently with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the orange and lemon zests. Season with salt and pepper. Place the fillets in a large braising pan. Add the wine, shallots, remaining 2 garlic cloves, sherry, parsley, chives, and lemon juice and cook on medium heat for 4 minutes.

Cover the pan and bake in the oven for 12 to 14 minutes, or until halibut is cooked through.

Remove the fillets from the oven and transfer them with a slotted spoon onto the vegetables on the platter. Garnish with a few fronds of fennel. Strain the sauce from the braising pan through a fine-mesh sieve into a small serving bowl or sauceboat. Serve with the halibut.

Yield:

6 servings

Source:

This recipe is courtesy of Chef Frank McClelland, world-class chef and owner of L’Espalier restaurant in Boston. He is one of the nation’s master chefs and was early to embrace the farm-to-table or "locavore" dining philosophy. This recipe is from his cookbook Wine Mondays: Simple Wine Pairings with Seasonal Menus.