YOUR FISHING GUIDE FOR ALL SEASONS IN THE BERKSHIRES! MASSACHUSETTS' PREMIER SOURCE FOR GUIDED ICE FISHING!

Let me tell you that there is nothing finer than a fish fry! Some of earliest and best memories were of frying up some fish that we had caught the day before while ice fishing.

As many of you know I am an avid conservationist. I firmly believe in protecting our natural resources. A selective harvest of fish from lakes and rivers is vital to ensuring healthy populations of large and diverse game species for years to come. So PLEASE be selective when keeping fish for eating. Keep the smaller fish, Take a picture or two of the large ones, but put them back to reproduce and keep the Gene pools of our lakes and rivers healthy.

I am always interested in reading and trying your recipes. If you have one that I need to try, please e-mail me, paulyt@chartertheberkshires.com.

My Favorite Recipes for Winter Fish

Battered Panfish Filets

(This is my Grandmother's recipe. If an old Polish woman ever tells you how to cook ANYTHING, you had better write it down!)

Prep Time 10 min  cooking time 20 min

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh panfish filets

1 1/3 cup all purpose white flour

2 beaten eggs

3/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1 ½ tbsp Canola oil

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp Jane’s crazy mixed up salt

cooking oil as needed

1. Pat all filets with a towel or paper towels to remove excess water. You want the filets to be as dry as possible.

2. Combine all ingredients together in a mixing bowl except the cooking oil. You want the batter to be an even consistency, no chunks or dry flour.

3. Place all filets into the batter bowl making sure to cover them thoroughly.

4. Heat a cast iron skillet or frying pan to Medium - Medium high heat, add the cooking oil, just enough to cover the bottom of the pan.

5. Place enough filets into the pan to cover the bottom, do not place so many that there is not enough room for the spatula. Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side, then flip over and cook for 2 minutes on the second side. The filets should be a nice golden brown color.

6. Serve with lemon wedges or tartar sauce. Recipe cooks about 2- 2 ½ pounds of fresh fish, enough to serve 4 to 6 hungry adults.

Bourbon Cream Sauce Fish Fry

Prep time 5 min, cooking time 15 min

Ingredients

2 pounds of fresh fish filets

4 tbsp. salted butter

4 oz olive oil

4 oz Kentucky Bourbon

4 oz Heavy Cream

Salt and pepper to taste

Zest from one lemon.

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

1. Pat all filets with a towel or paper towels to remove excess water. You want the filets to be as dry as possible.

2. Heat a cast iron skillet or frying pan to medium heat. Add 2 tbsp of olive oil and 2 tbsp butter and wait for the butter to melt.

3. Place enough filets into the pan to cover the bottom, do not place so many that there is not enough room for the spatula. Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side, then flip over, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes on the second side. Filets should curl when done.

4. Add one more ounce of olive oil and one more ounce of butter and repeat step three. Repeat this until all filets have been cooked.

5. Keep all filets warm but set aside.

6. While the pan is still hot pour in the 4 oz of Kentucky Bourbon, (the real recipe says to light on fire and burn off the alcohol, but what a waste!) Then add the four ounces of heavy cream. Stir until the sauce is an even color.

7. Add the zest of the lemon and the fresh thyme. Reduce heat and stir for one minute. Allow the sauce to thicken, then drizzle over the filets and serve. Serves 4-6 hungry adults!

Rosemary & Chevre Perch Rolls

prep time 10 min, cooking time 20 min

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds of fresh perch filets

1 tub soft plain chevre

1 bunch fresh rosemary (on the stem if possible)

1 to 2 fresh lemons

about 12 - 14 perch filets

virgin olive oil for baking 

salt and pepper to taste if desired

Before you start...preheat the oven to 325

1. Pat dry all filets until they are dry to the touch

2. Lay a filet flat, put about 1 tbsp of chevre in the center of the filet and spread evenly. Once the center of the filet id completely covered lay one branch of rosemary in the center of the filet.

3. Roll the filet up into a cigar shape. Take a toothpick and pin the filet closed. Make sure that the toothpick ends are not exposed in the oven.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until all filets are done this way.

5. in a glass or ceramic oven dish, place all filets side by side. It is best to have them snugly fit so that the chevre does not bake out.

6. Thinly slice the lemons and remove the seeds. Place the lemon slices over each roll. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil (virgin is better than extra virgin so you do not over power the subtle flavor of the fish) over the fish, just enough so that a bit drips down to the bottom of the dish. You do not want the oil to cover the bottom of the dish.

7. Place the dish in the oven and set timer for 20 minutes.

8. Remove from oven. Filets should be white and flaky, chevre should be dripping out from ends of rolls. Enjoy!

Buffalo Bluegill

Ingredients

2 pounds of fresh panfish filets

1 1/3 cup all purpose white flour

2 beaten eggs

1 jar of tabasco sauce or your favorite hot sauce

1 ½ tbsp Canola oil

½ tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes

½ tsp salt

2-3 cups Ians Panko Bread Crumbs

cooking oil as needed

1. rinse all filets and pat dry. You want the filets to be dry to the touch.

2. Combine all the flour, eggs, Tobasco Sauce, canola oil, cayenne pepper and salt into a mixing bowl and thoroughly mix together.

3. Place all dried filets into the batter and cover them completely making sure that all parts of the filet have batter on them.

4. put cooking oil in a pot and bring to med-high heat. The oil should start to roll.

5. Mix the panko with the crushed red pepper in a sperate bowl. try to mix as well as possible.

6 take the well battered filet out of the mixing bowl and roll in the bread crums making sure to cover both sides of the filet evenly.

7. place the filets into the hot oil and allow to cook. each filet should take approx 3-4 minutes to cook thoroughly. Depending on pot and filet size you can cook more than one filet at a time.

8. repeat until all filets are cooked.

Serve with lemon, tarter sauce or blue cheese dip. excellent with a side of french fries!

Baked Stuffed Trout

Ingredients

1 whole trout between 1-2 pounds

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

1 tub plain Monterey Chevre.

2 lemons (one thinly sliced, san

2 TBSP capers

3 cloves Garlic

2 tbsp olive oil

Prep and wash the trout. Take a fork and prick between the ribs all the way from the head to the back of the cavity making sure to get between all ribs. I do this multiple times to ensure good flavor dispersal.

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. place trout in aluminum foil back down, cavity up. drizzle the olive oil around the trout, but not inside the cavity.

3. slice garlic into thin slices, do not chop. Place the rosemary in cavity against the spine, then lay slices of garlic on top of the rosemary.

4. Fill the cavity with the Monterey Chevre. I use as much as I can fit with out overflowing the cavity.

5 place the capers on top of the chevre as evenly as possible and then lay the Lemon slices on top and wrap the whole fish in the foil sealing both ends and top to keep the juices inside.

6. Bake for 35-40 minutes

7. Serve with remaining lemon cut into wedges