When I was looking for a fish dish that would use some of our abundant supply of sage, I came across a recipe by Helen Rennie of Natick, Massachusetts on the  vitalchoice.com  site.    Below is how I used her recipe.



INGREDIENTS

6 or 8 medium sized potatoes.

1 Tablespoon olive oil

3 Tablespoons butter

4 halibut (or cod) fillet portions without skin (6 oz each)

Sea salt and organic pepper

15-20 sage leaves

3 Tablespoons  dry white wine


METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 400° F.

• Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper.

• Peel the potatoes if you prefer or scrub them well.

• Cut each in half and add them to a pot of water.

• Bring potatoes to the boil and cook for about 15 minutes.

• Meanwhile place a serving salver into the warming drawer of the oven.

• After the 15 minutes, drain the potatoes, place them in a bowl, toss them with olive oil and salt.   Tip onto the prepared baking sheet and place in the center rack of the oven.

• Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large oven-safe non-stick skillet over medium heat being careful not to let it brown or burn.

• If using cod (as I was), cut the large fillet into smaller (say 4" X 3" or so) pieces. 

• Season the fish fillets with salt and pepper.

• Raise heat on skillet to medium-high and add the fish in one layer, without crowding.

• Sear fish on one side until nicely browned, 2-3 minutes.

• (If the pieces vary significantly in thickness, place the thicker pieces in first and cook for 2 minutes or so before adding the thinner pieces).

• Very carefully so as not to break the fish, flip the fish portions over.

• Scatter sage leaves around the fish in the pan, and move the skillet to the center rack of the oven, moving the potatoes to the top rack.

• Cook until the fish has just lost its translucency. The total cooking time (searing + baking) should be around 8 minutes per inch of thickness, but start checking 1-2 minutes before that.

• Gently remove the fish from the pan to the warmed salver.

• Mash sage into the pan drippings using a fork.

• Set the pan over medium heat.  Add the wine and the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter until it gets integrated into the sauce, about 1 minute.

• keep warm while you place the roasted potatoes around the fish on the salver.

• Pour the sauce over the fish and serve.