Whole baked branzino, and coastal Alicante: Altea and Calpe

Natacha Sanz Caballero Fish, Events & Travel Alicante, Altea, Calpe, fish, mediterranean diet, Muralla Roja, pescado, Ricardo Bofill, seafood, Spanish cuisine

It has been a few weeks now, but we are still enjoying (and trying to finish) some of the sweets from the holidays. Is that your case? I’ve tried to balance  this sugar loaded end of meals with very healthy mains and sides, following the Mediterranean way of cooking I most enjoy, and whole baked branzino is one of those healthy, make-in-a-snap, delicious meals.

Ethan at La Muralla Roja (Calpe)

There’s quite a paradox in this part of the world where I live. On the one hand, lake living is a way of life. Many midwesterners and Hoosiers (the people of Indiana) own lake houses as second homes. Water sports and fishing are part of the fun and the daily life. On the other hand, only in recent months I have been able to find whole fish at the fishmonger or at the supermarkets. 

For the longest time (and I have talked about this extensively throughout this blog) I wasn’t able to even find shrimp with the heads on. All shrimp I found was headless. As for fish, forget about finding any variety that wasn’t already prepared as filets. How could one make a good fish stock in these circumstances?

The Peñón de Ifach on a cloudy day

Ricardo Bofill architecture

A view of Peñón de Ifach from La Manzanera (Calpe)

The Xanadú apartment complex, by architect Ricardo Bofill in Calpe

The first change in his paradigm came with the availability of whole langoustines, and  more recently, whole branzinos have made their appearance in the markets. I cannot be more thankful for it, and even though we don’t have the variety of fish I find at home in Valencia (and I will never expect to, given that we live in the middle of the country, in the middle of the continent) I make the most of the few varieties I can find. 

Seafood paella al El Cranc (Altea)

El Peñón de Ifach on a cloudy day

Strolling through the streets of Altea

Arroz negro at restaurant El Cranc

D’Origen Coffee Roasters in Albir

Interior of Our Lady of Consolation in Altea (Alicante)

D’Origen Coffee Roasters, Albir

The view of Calpe from Altea

Posing…or not

Branzino is a fish I’ve come to love, one I discovered while preparing the menu for Culinary Diplomacy Spain at Joseph Decuis (you can read more about this event here) with chef Marcus. Its delicate flesh is pleasing to everybody, and if one can look beyond its head and tail and bone, branzino is as delicious a meal as you can find.

Did I mention that it’s super easy to make? Like most everything that goes in the oven, whole baked branzino is prepared in a snap. Talk about good proteins and healthy fats from the fish and from the olive oil in the dish. This is starting the new year on the right foot. 

Calpe and Altea

The photos that accompany this post had to be coastal, and the towns of Calpe and Altea, in the province of Alicante, very close to my hometown and where I spent many summers with my family as a child, seemed very appropriate. A day enjoyed with my children, sister and nephews, strolling their streets, enjoying their food, admiring the architecture and the impressive sea and nature views of one of the most beautiful sites in Spain. La Muralla Roja and Xanadu in the cove La Manzanera in Calpe, from Spanish starchitect Ricardo Bofill, were on the must-see list for future architect Ethan Anderson. On Matthew’s list, coffee at D’Origen Coffee Roasters, recommended by one of his Californian cyclist friends. And on Paula and my list, lunch at restaurant El Cranc in Altea.

To learn more about these two beautiful coastal towns you can check here (Calpe) and here (Altea).

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WHOLE BAKED BRANZINO

Brancino o lubina al horno

Author: Natacha Sanz Caballero, Mama Ía blog

Ingredients

• 2 fresh branzinos
• 2 lemons
• Sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1 garlic head
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 450ºF.
• Clean the branzino: using fish scissors, remove all the fish fins. With a butter knife, scrape off the fish scales. Rinse the fish thoroughly and pat dry with paper towels.
• Lay the clean branzinos on an oven tray lined with parchment paper.
• Slice 1 1/2 lemons into 1/4 -inch thin slices. Peel and slice the garlic cloves into thin slivers.
• Open the branzinos and season them with salt and pepper. Lay half of the lemon slices inside the branzinos, overlaping them slightly. Place a few sprigs of thyme over the lemon slices, then scatter half of the garlic slivers. Close the fish and drizzle with some of the olive oil.
• Place the tray in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, sauté the remaining garlic slivers in olive oil at medium-low heat, removing from the oil when they become soft and golden (make sure they don’t turn brown!)
• Remove the fish from the oven and scatter the garlic slivers and the oil they were cooked in over the fish.
• To serve, carefully open the fish and remove the central bone, which will come off with the head attached. Plate the filets with some of the garlic slivers and lemon slices, making sure to drizzle some of the flavorful olive oil juice. Optional: add a squeeze of lemon.

Notes

Serve with your favorite side, or with wrinkly potatoes with mojo picón (recipe here)