Roasted Fennel with Sardines and Toasted Garlic Breadcrumbs

Moses saw a burning bush and I saw a roasted fennel.

Yes, a vision came to me last night when I came home from Union Market with the ingredients to make Spaghetti con Le Sarde, a Southern Italian pasta dish with sardines, fennel, fennel seeds, raisins soaked in wine, and toasted breadcrumbs. Only: when I was in my kitchen I realized that, after a weekend of heavy eating, that sounded a bit like cooking up a lead brick for dinner. Was there a way to lighten things up?

That’s when I had the vision. What if I roasted the fennel whole (well, sliced in half), then served it over some couscous, put sardines on top of the fennel, and topped everything with toasted garlic breadcrumbs? I could work a lot of the pasta flavors into the couscous and the breadcrumbs, but it wouldn’t be a carb bomb.

The breadcrumbs were explosively flavorful because I started with lots of olive oil, lots of garlic, and anchovy paste. I went on to season them with toasted crushed fennel seeds, lemon zest, Aleppo pepper, and parsley.

The couscous I made with some chicken stock and then I pepped things up with the golden raisins soaked in red wine vinegar.

Now I realize, in my quest to do away with the carbs, I actually may have doubled the carbs (couscous and breadcrumbs, it turns out, are carbs). But then again, the ratios were different. Here the vegetables and the protein took the place of prominence, and I doled out the couscous and toasted breadcrumbs with great discretion. Okay, who am I kidding, I used a lot of all of it.

But doesn’t that look good? It’s a fun riff on a classic. So the next time you want to shake up your spaghetti con le sarde, do away with the spaghetti. Your Le Sarde bod will thank you!

Roasted Fennel with Sardines and Toasted Garlic Breadcrumbs

A deconstructed riff of a Southern Italian classic.

Ingredients:

For the fennel:

• 2 heads of fennel, cut in half through the core (for two people; for more, do 1 head of fennel per person)

• Extra-virgin olive oil

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Lemon (the same one you zest for the breadcrumbs, below)

For the couscous:

• 1/4 cup golden raisins

• Red wine vinegar

• 1 cup couscous

• 1 cup chicken stock

• 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter

• Pinch of salt

For the breadcrumbs:

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced

• 1 tablespoon anchovy paste (or two or three chopped anchovies)

• 1 1/2 cups Panko bread crumbs

• Kosher salt

• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds, toasted and crushed in a mortar and pestle

• 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

• Zest of 1 lemon

• 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley

For serving:

• 1 can of imported sardines

• Another lemon, cut into wedges

• More Italian parsley for sprinkling

• More Aleppo pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425.

2. In a oven-proof large non-stick skillet (I like Oxo), heat the olive oil until smoking. Drizzle some more olive oil over the fennel, and season with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down in the skillet and leave alone for a few minutes. Pop into the oven and roast for 10 minutes, then start to check to see if the cut-side is deep, golden brown. When it is, carefully use tongs to flip the fennel over. Keep roasting until a knife goes through the base of the fennel easily (about 30 minutes more). You may need to move the fennel around to keep it from burning on any one side. When it comes out of the oven, immediately squeeze the lemon over everything.

3. Meanwhile, cover your golden raisins with red wine vinegar just enough to cover and allow to sit for 20 minutes. To make your couscous, bring the chicken stock to a boil, add the olive oil or butter, some salt, and then the couscous. Immediately turn off the heat, cover, and leave for five minutes. Fluff with a fork and then work in the marinated raisins.

4. For the breadcrumbs, heat a large non-stick skillet and add the olive oil, the garlic, and the anchovy paste. Cook just until the anchovy paste is melted into the oil and the garlic is starting to become fragrant (but not to color). Add all of the panko and work with a heatproof rubber spatula, occasionally tossing the breadcrumbs by thrusting the pan forward and back. Keep toasting the breadcrumbs (add a pinch of salt) until deep, golden brown. Make sure the garlic doesn’t burn.

5. Pour the toasted breadcrumbs into a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Taste for salt and pepper.

6. To finish, spoon some couscous on to plates, top with the roasted fennel, place some sardines on top (drizzle the sardine oil over the fennel), sprinkle on the toasted breadcrumbs. Place a lemon wedge on the side of the plate, drizzle with some more olive oil, and sprinkle parsley and Aleppo pepper over everything.