Table for One - Baked Fish and Chips

by Sarah LeTrent, Posted Oct 15th 2009 @ 5:00PM

Caramel Potatoes. Photo: Sarah LeTrent

Few of us want to make a complicated lasagna for solo dining -- by day six, you'll never want to see lasagna again! In this series, AOL Food staffer Sarah LeTrent taste-tests simple recipes suitable for a "table for one."

Most home kitchens are lacking in the deep-fryer department for authentic fish-and-chips, plus the process tends to leave quite a mess. And the thought of yet another lone baked potato seems painfully boring. Behold, a new combination of fish-plus-potato: oven-fried cod and caramel potatoes.

Caramel potatoes are, as the name suggests, boiled potatoes coated in a sugar and butter caramel. A traditional Scandinavian holiday dish, why save it for special meals, when potatoes, sugar and butter are common pantry staples. Yes, it may seem like a bizarre way of cooking potatoes but no, they're not sweet.

Caramel Potatoes

1/2 pound small new potatoes (about 4 potatoes)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon butter

Boil the potatoes in a pot of salted water until tender, about 15 minutes, then drain. Once they are cool enough to handle, peel them.

Melt the sugar in a skillet until golden brown, without stirring, watching closely as sugar can burn easily. Add the butter, stirring until melted and caramel is formed.

Add the potatoes and gently turn them in the caramel until the caramel starts to stick, about 10 minutes.

Oven-Fried Fish

1/2 cup crushed, plain Melba toasts
1 (6-8oz.) portion of cod (you can substitute haddock or other flaky, white fish)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon grainy Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a food processor or using a resealable bag and rolling-pin, crush the toasts into coarse crumbs.

In a resealable plastic bag, mix together the toast brumbs, salt, pepper and cayenne.

Whisk the mayo and mustard together in a small dish. Coat the fish evenly in the mayo mixture then drop into the plastic bag and shake until evenly coated.

Transfer the fillet to a well-greased baking sheet and bake until golden, about 12 minutes. Serve immediately with potatoes.

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Tags: caramel potatoes, CaramelPotatoes, fish, fish and chips, FishAndChips, oven fried fish, OvenFriedFish, table for one, TableForOne