Crabmeat-Stuffed Sole and Maple Syrup Pie

What is it about stuffed anything that seems intimidating? Stuffed rolled pork, stuffed pork chops, stuffed turkey...(well, maybe not the last one). I think it's that extra step of making stuffing, which I don't ever really do. In anticipation, it seems so complex. Really it's just the unfamiliarity of it.

You'll be happy to know that making Crabmeat-Stuffed Sole was about as difficult as mixing up a bowl of tuna salad, putting it on fish, rolling it up, and baking it.

OK, the ingredients are SLIGHTLY exotic--crabmeat, reduced-fat mayo (I brought some from home), yellow bell peppers, parsley--but the idea is the same. Actually, it was just sheer luck that I was able to find sole (but I would have subbed flounder)--sole is hard to come by. The fishmongers tell me that it's scarcer and therefore more expensive (and therefore less popular).

The dish also had a cooking step I've never come across before--covering the fish with wax or parchment paper (which I have now, ha ha sesame honey lace cookies) and then covering tightly with foil. The fish also went into a hotter oven than I expected (450) and for a longer time (20 minutes). The whole thing came out beautifully, so what do I know?


I couldn't resist the Maple Syrup Pie. Who makes pie out of maple syrup? How odd! When I think of pies, I think of fruit pies, or pecan pie, really I could rhapsodize for some time about great pie recipes I have known (Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie springs immediately to mind, and if you want that recipe, run right to Epicurious).

OK, making pie crusts is a bit of a pain, but I've learned to make friends with the rolling pin. (someday we'll have a long conversation about pie crust. But not now.) I've also started buying "white wheat" flour as a sneaky way to get some whole grains into the picture. (so far, so good.)

The ingredients are simple--not unlike the sweet part of pecan pie w/out the pecans, except instead of corn syrup you use brown sugar and maple syrup. I was actually somewhat indignant at the proportions of those two (1 2/3 cups brown sugar and 1/3 cup maple syrup) wouldn't you call that a Brown Sugar Pie? But the maple syrup flavor really shines through, even though I only had Grade A syrup instead of the more desirable (to me) Grade B, which is darker and more flavorful, and for some reason too strong for the general public to clamor for.

How was it? I'll let Dr. S. tell you. When I served it to them, he took one bite, turned to his wife, and said, "Dearest, we have a treat."