The Beurre Necessities

Feeling a bit decadent last night, and the fresh lemon sole at the local market looked too good to pass up. It also seemed to be begging to be bathed in butter. Who was I not to oblige?

Now, I have nothing against the generic unsalted sweet-cream butter that is always at hand and usually suits my humble purposes. But this called for something special. Perhaps a whole brick of high-butterfat-y Plugra? Told you I was feeling decadent.

The inspiration was Eileen Joyce's Sole with Herb Butter (c/o Bon Appetit). It's no exaggeration to say that I could have eaten the bowl of butter, whipped to ambrosial, airy creaminess and compounded with chives, thyme, dill and lemon juice, with a tablespoon. But I behaved myself. I knew I wanted to broil the fish. At the last minute, I decided that it should be breaded as well, if only to provide a contrasting crunch and another layer of flavor. A few minutes of broiling, a good dollop of the herbed butter atop each fillet, another minute or so under the element, and the sole was good to go.

Since I'm still just a budding dinner-table hedonist, I rationalized that such a decadent main course called for more sensible sides. A brown rice and orzo pilaf - out of the Middle East box, I confess, but with shallots and an improv(is)ed "spice pack" of cumin, coriander, smoked paprika and lemon zest - fit the bill. And a ratatouille, made with Delicata squash, zucchini, baby eggplant, celery and red and yellow peppers, rounded out the plate. The pilaf was still a touch soupy and underdone when everything came to the table, so back on the burner it went. That seemed to do the trick. And the ratatouille really deserves more attention, perhaps even an equal allotment of my usual adjective-laden verbal arabesques. But I'll abstain, and allow the fish - and the butter - to bask in the limelight.

I think the photo speaks for itself. Everything really was as delicious as it looks. Master had a look of utter contentment as he put away the last bite of his second full portion. And that speaks for itself, too.