FLOUNDER WITH HERB BLOSSOM BUTTER

Flounder With Herb Blossom Butter image

Herb blossom butter sounds fancy, but it's really just a prettier, more floral, summery version of herb butter, perfect with any white-fleshed fish, salmon or trout. If you have no access to flowering herbs, simply use chives, thyme and dill instead to make a plain herb butter. Look for herb blossoms at farmers markets or buy a couple of blooming potted herb plants, or ask a friend with a vegetable garden. Edible flowers and all sorts of herb blossoms are also available online.

Provided by David Tanis

Time 45m

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 17

Ingredients

1/4 pound unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons thinly sliced chives
1 chive blossom, pulled apart into tiny florets (or use an additional teaspoon thinly sliced chives)
2 teaspoons chopped dill
1 teaspoon thyme blossoms, roughly chopped or crumbled (or use chopped thyme leaves)
1 tablespoon mustard blossoms, snipped from flowering mustard greens (optional)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon whole-grain French mustard
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch cayenne
4 flounder fillets, about 1 1/2 pounds total
2 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
Extra herb blossoms, for garnish (optional)

Steps:

Make the herb blossom butter: Put butter in a bowl. Add chives, chive blossoms, dill, thyme blossoms, mustard blossoms if using, Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard, lemon zest and lemon juice. Add a big pinch of salt and black pepper. Mix well with a fork until well combined. With wet hands, form butter into a log shape, then wrap and chill. Bring to cool room temperature to serve.
Prepare the fish: Put flour in a low bowl or pie plate and season with salt, pepper and cayenne.
Season fish on both sides with salt and pepper. Dip each fillet in seasoned flour on both sides, shaking off excess, and transfer to a large plate.
Put 2 large skillets over medium-high heat and film bottoms with oil. When oil is hot, carefully place 2 fillets in each pan. (Alternatively, work in batches with 1 pan.)
Reduce heat to medium and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until fish is nicely browned on one side. Flip fillets with a spatula and cook for 2 minutes more, until fish flakes easily when probed.
Transfer fish to warm platter or individual warmed plates. With a paring knife, cut herb butter into 8 thin slices and lay 2 slices atop each fillet. Sprinkle with extra herb blossoms, if you wish, and serve immediately.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 502, UnsaturatedFat 14 grams, Carbohydrate 25 grams, Fat 34 grams, Fiber 1 gram, Protein 25 grams, SaturatedFat 16 grams, Sodium 567 milligrams, Sugar 0 grams, TransFat 1 gram