Last Tuesday (2/17) I saw a great-looking recipe on The Martha Stewart Show for Chicken and Vegetables.  It was very simple, inexpensive, only had a few ingredients, and was delicious.  Two additional bonuses - the recipe could be made with easily found local ingredients and the extra vegetables I used made a great base for my next dish.

I made the Chicken and Vegetables dish on Sunday evening.  The leftovers were an easy reheat on Monday.  This morning I looked into the fridge and wondered what to do with the extra roasted squash, red onions and mushrooms.  Then it hit me.  I've been yearning for a nice piece of white fish, and monkfish was on my mind.  Aha!  Local monkfish cooked in chestnut butter and nestled into a puree of roasted squash, red onions and mushrooms.

After work I went to Browne Trading, where a helpful employee cut two fillets of monkfish for me.  Two?  What can I say - I had a craving, and I'm the type of person who likes to cook once and eat a few times from it.  While there, I also bought a jar of organic chestnut puree.  (I love that place.)  Anyway, once I got home, the process was quick and painless:

1. Preheat the oven to 425.
2. Peel the squash pieces and toss into a pot with the onions and mushrooms.  Add chicken stock.
3. While the veggies and stock are heating, melt butter and some chestnut puree together with some Italian flat-leaf parsley.
4. Coat the monkfish with the butter and bake for about 15 minutes (time will vary based on thickness of the fish - mine was very thick).
5. While the fish is cooking, add a dash of apple cider vinegar to the veggies.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Puree until smooth.
6. When the fish is ready, ladle the puree into a plate and top with a serving of fish.

This was really, really, really good!  The monkfish had a lobster-like texture, the chestnut puree and caramelized onions added sweetness, the dash of apple cider provided balance, and the squash was a perfect complement.  I'll definitely make this again soon.