gefilte fish

tweaking the gefilte

Sometimes it’s fun to mix it up. Especially when it comes to something that you serve over and over, every week.

Putting a twist on an old favorite keeps things interesting and gets everyone’s attention.

Standard gefilte fish is great, especially with a classic Ashkenazi meal. But I often make Shabbat dinners that are not typical Ashkenazi fare, and tweaking the gefilte to complement the tone of the meal eliminates confusing the theme.

Like most Americans and all Italians, I love Italian food. And when my Shabbat menu features Italian cuisine, I like to bring my gefilte along for the ride.

There’s nothing difficult about the recipe, and I certainly didn’t invent the tri-color gefilte fish loaf. But the Italian twist is all mine.

This is best made the day before it’s needed.

Ingredients:

• 2 loaves frozen gefilte fish, original or sweet (I like the sweet)

• 1 loaf frozen salmon gefilte fish

• ⅓ cup Italian extra virgin olive oil (I like Kirkland brand)

• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

• a few turns of the pepper mill

• 4 cloves of garlic, 1 finely minced, 3 coarsely chopped

• 1 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach (frozen works better than fresh here)

• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

• ¼ cup pine nuts, optional

• 2 seeded, chopped, certified San Marzano tomatoes, liquid squeezed out and seeds removed

• 1 tablespoon grated onion

• ½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 350°
  Defrost all three loaves of fish overnight in the fridge.

• In a small bowl, combine the olive oil with the salt, pepper, and 1 clove finely minced garlic.

• Brush the bottom and sides of a loaf pan, preferably glass, with ¼ cup of the oil mixture, and set the pan aside.

• Steam the spinach, in the microwave or on the stovetop, let it cool, and squeeze out the excess water.

• Put the spinach into the work bowl of a food processor with 1 clove of garlic, coarsely chopped, 6 basil leaves, and the contents of one package of white gefilte fish. Be sure to scrape every bit of fish off its paper wrapping. Process it until it’s very well combined.

• Gently turn the mixture out into the loaf pan, over the oil, into an even layer, and smooth the top.

• Rinse out and dry the food processor.

• If you’re using the pine nuts, put them into a dry skillet and toast them over medium heat until they start to turn color. This only takes a minute or so. Agitate the pan while they’re toasting, to toast them evenly. Coarsely chop the nuts.

• Put the second loaf of white gefilte fish into a bowl, with 1 clove coarsely chopped garlic, the lemon juice, and the pine nuts. Use a wooden spoon to mix it all together until it’s well combined. Gently lay this fish mixture over the spinach layer, being careful not to mix them together, and smooth over the top.

• Put the loaf of salmon gefilte fish into the food processor with the last clove of coarsely chopped garlic, the grated onion, the thyme, and the tomatoes (save the rest of the can for another use). Process it until well combined. Spread this last layer into the loaf pan, again carefully to not disturb the layers beneath it.

• Gently brush the top of the loaf with the remaining olive oil mixture. Cover tightly with foil, keeping the foil away from touching the fish.

• Bake the loaf for two hours, then remove it from the oven, remove the foil, and let it cool before refrigerating overnight.

• When ready to serve, turn the loaf out onto a flat platter or board and slice it, about 1 inch or so thick. Serve 1 slice per plate, with prepared horseradish on the side.