Herring with an Oatmeal-Nut Crust

Herrings and oats is a traditional Scottish dish, and this is a modern take on that idea. I mix the oats with crushed hazelnuts and mustard seeds -- the recipe is an adaptation of one in "50 Ways with Fish" by Katharine Blakemore -- and fry the herrings in a little butter or oil. This goes best with a sharp aioli, horseradish or mustard sauce. These herring "fillets" do still have small bones, but you barely notice them after they've been cooked.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 6-10 herrings, cut into small fillets
• 1 cup oatmeal
• 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
• 2 T. mustard seeds
• 3 beaten eggs
• 4 T. melted butter or oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Put 2/3 of the oatmeal and the hazelnuts and 1/2 the mustard seeds into a food processor and buzz them until the oatmeal is broken down, about 3 minutes. Do this in pulses.

Salt the herring fillets and set aside.

Mix the ground oatmeal mixture with the remaining mustard seeds and unground oatmeal -- this gives the crust a varied texture that's nice. Add lots of black pepper.

Dip the herrings in the beaten egg, then into the oatmeal mixture. Lay each one on a rack over a baking sheet. Brush each one with the melted butter or oil.

Bake the herrings for about 15 minutes and serve piping hot with sauce. Plain rice or mashed potatoes go well with this. To drink, I would suggest either beer or a sparkling wine such as Prosecco or a Spanish Cava.