Although it looks fancy, this bacon wrapped cod with celery root and apple puree served alongside brussels sprouts is easy to make with less than 10 ingredients!
A big announcement! Recipe Redux turns 54 this month!! Yea I know, I know. It’s an odd number to be celebrating. However, when you become part of the community, you soon learn that we find any and every excuse to celebrate and have a good time ;). This month’s theme was to grab the nearest cookbook and redux the recipe on either page 54 or 154. Fun, right?
Honestly, I didn’t grab the nearest cookbook. To tell you the truth, I can’t even tell you the last time I purchased a cookbook. That’s what Pinterest is for. However, when I read the theme, I immediately knew which cookbook I wanted to dust off and utilize for the assignment – Rachel Ray’s Express Lane Meals.
This cookbook was a gift from my sister way back when… I recently rediscovered it during our recent move. There’s nothing like packing up and moving to help you rediscover and repurpose old, forgotten items.
In any case, I first fell in love with cooking by watching Food Network, and Rachael Ray was one of my favs. For a beginner cook, her quick and easy recipes (and her fun personality) really captivated me. And while my cooking skills may have improved over the years, elaborate meals that take forever to prepare still don’t fly with me. I’m sure I’m not alone…
On page 154, the recipe is:
The recipe sounded amazing, but after 8 years of marriage, if there’s one thing I know – the Hungryman does NOT do peas. And I’ve tried… Normally, even if he doesn’t like a vegetable, he’ll still tolerate it in a dish. But poor peas NEVER had a chance. So strange..strange, indeed.
So after much thinking about how I could transform this recipe so that the picky eater of mine would approve, bacon-wrapped fish ended up being the only thing that I followed from the original recipe. I didn’t even end up using halibut! I went to 2 different stores (Sprouts, H.E.B) and the fish mongers at both said halibut is not in season right now.
Despite all this, I invite you to follow my train of thought as to how I came up with this version of mine.
What would replace smashed peas? I needed something creamy and smooth to take its place and in my fridge was a celeriac root. Yes, the ugly, alien looking veggie that gets absolutely no lovin’. I’d tried celery root puree at many restaurants to know that it’d go perfectly with my fish.
Then, while I love cherry tomatoes, they’re not my favs during winter. I got spoiled by my farmers market during the summer. So I replaced them with an in-season veggie, brussels sprouts. My love for them continues to grow, and I believe the Hungryman is finally opening up to them…at least when bacon is involved.
When I placed the plate down in front of the Hungryman, he said, “Fancy! I feel like I’ve had something like this at a restaurant!” I may have stood a little taller at that moment. If you want to wow your guests but don’t want to spend a ton of time in the kitchen, this meal is for you! To speed up the process, I recommend you make the celery root and apple puree ahead of time. This way, all you have to do the day of is to sear the fish and cook the brussels sprouts in the same pan.
Enjoy! And don’t forget to check out my fellow reduxers’ delicious creations as well!
- 4 (6 oz.) halibut or cod fillets
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and black pepper
- 8 center-cut bacon slices
- 1½ lbs. brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved lengthwise
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 cups celery root, peeled and cut into ½ inch chunks
- 1 cup chopped apple (I used Ambrosia)
- 2 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
- salt and pepper to taste
- Melt butter in a large saucepan. Add chopped celery root and apples. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in stock. Bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook until pieces are tender, about 30 minutes.
- Drain fruit and vegetables in a colander being sure to set a bowl underneath to reserve the cooking liquid. Transfer pieces to a food processor or high-powered blender and season with salt and pepper to taste. Puree until smooth, adding cooking liquid as needed.
- Season the fillets with salt and pepper, going easy on the salt. Arrange 2 bacon slices side by side, overlapping slightly. Place one side of the fillet on the edge of the bacon slices. Wrap and roll the bacon around the fish, making sure both ends end up on the same side of the fillet (this will prevent the bacon from unraveling as it cooks). Repeat until all the fillets are wrapped. Preheat a large nonstick skillet with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add a bacon-wrapped fillet to the hot skillet, bacon-end side down first, and cook for 2-3 minutes on each of the 4 sides. Don’t turn the fillet until the bacon is crispy looking on each side.
- Transfer the cooked fillets onto a plate. Cook the brussels sprouts in the pan with the bacon drippings. Season with salt and pepper to taste
YUM – your apple and celery root puree sounds delecatble!!! And cod – wrapped in bacon – why, that’s fantatsic!!!!
Such a gorgeous plate of food! I love everything about it from that delicious fish, to that silky puree, to those Brussels…as Rachel Ray would say “Yummo!” Like you, my passion for cooking really blossomed from watching the Food network and RR in particular. This was back in the early 2000s when “30 Minute Meals” was all the rage. I then had the pleasure of doing my culinary school externship at the Rachel Ray Magazine test kitchen, that was such a wonderful experience 🙂
So pretty, Min! I’m like you. I love simple, sometimes elegant meals. When I see too many ingredients or steps, I immediately turn the page. I haven’t experimented with celery root at all but this looks like the perfect recipe to start. Love it!
i have never had celery root but i have already seen two recipes today with it, which means im missing out on something good.
Well I just love celeriac!! So perfect with the apple too!
Oh wow! I can’t wait to make this. I only hope I can make it look as beautiful as you did before I devour it ;-P.