A trip to Enzo: Cape-French fluke at its finest

Last night, we headed to P-town for a final evening out before the season descends. We picked Enzo—the upscale Italian joint in the early blocks of the West End—as an eatery. The ingredients were local, the food fresh, and the menu great. The only strange thing was that the dishes were all French.

That aside, I picked the local fluke from the tantalizing list of France's finest. The summer flounder (as fluke are often called) is a sure sign of spring—it is only recently that the fish have made their way from the offshore depths into the sandy folds of Cape Cod Bay. Served over a squid ink pasta with tendrils of marinated red pepper, the flat fish arrived at my seat pan-seared to perfection.

The fish was so good, in fact, that it inspired me to peruse the flounder selection today at Mac's Seafood in the Wellfleet Marketplace. I had a bag of fresh Deerfield fiddleheads from Phoenix Fruits in Orleans already in mind for dinner, a half gallon of milk in need of use, and a tucked away jar of pasta hiding up above the refrigerator—with the addition of the fish the makings for an tasty spring meal. I grabbed a half-pound filet and headed home.

Just now in the door, I haven't started cooking yet, but here's the recipe I've got in mind:

FIDDLEHEAD LINGUINI WITH PAN SEARED FLOUNDER

Serves 2

Steam 10-15 well-washed fiddleheads for 10 minutes; set aside.

Put on a pot of water with a dash of salt to boil; when rolling add 1/2 pound linguini.

In a heavy fry-pan, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil. Sauté one medium sized chopped onion until it starts to become translucent. Add the peeled cloves of one head of garlic; sauté for several minutes or until the cloves begin to soften.

Slowly add 2 tablespoons butter and 1 cup whole milk to fry mixture, making sure to keep pan hot; reduce by half. Add whole fiddleheads and sauté to absorb flavor. Add pasta to sauce and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.

In a separate pan, heat up 2 tablespoons butter and sear 1/2 pound flounder until just golden. Cut in two, place over hot pasta, and enjoy.