Off The Counter: Halibut Hobo Packs And Butter Tossed Corn

To entertain our first guests in our new home, my husband chose a recipe from this month's Food & Wine :  Halibut Hobo Packs.  Besides the wrapping of ingredients into individual foil packs,  there's little prepping for this deliciously healthy meal.  The flavor of the shiitake mushrooms combined with the herbed butter, infuse the fish with an earthy freshness that releases as each individual foil pack is unwrapped.  Alex added extra corn cobs tossed in butter and fresh herbs as a tasty side dish.  Ingredients and instructions below:

  1. 1/4 cup snipped chives
  2. 2 tablespoons tarragon leaves
  3. 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
  4. Salt
  5. Freshly ground white pepper
  6. 2 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cobs
  7. 4 large shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and caps thinly sliced
  8. 4 skinless halibut fillets (6 ounces each)
  9. 8 baguette slices, cut on the diagonal
  1. In a mini food processor, pulse the chives and tarragon leaves until chopped. Add the butter and a pinch each of salt and white pepper and pulse just until the butter is bright green with flecks of herbs. Transfer the herb butter to a sheet of plastic wrap and form into a log. Freeze for about 5 minutes, until the butter is slightly firm. Cut the butter into 16 pieces.
  2. Arrange four 12-inch sheets of heavy-duty foil on a work surface and spray evenly with vegetable oil spray. In a medium bowl, toss the corn with the shiitake and season with salt and pepper. Mound the mixture in the center of the foil sheets and top each mound with a piece of the herb butter. Top with the halibut fillets and another piece of the herb butter and season with salt and pepper. Fold up the foil on all sides and pinch the seams to seal.
  3. Light a grill. Place the foil packets on the grill, close the lid and cook over high heat until the fish is cooked through and the mushrooms are tender, 8 to 10 minutes; let the packets rest for 2 minutes.
  4. Grill the baguette slices for 2 minutes, turning once. Top with the remaining herb butter, allowing it to melt. Open the packets and serve the fish and vegetables with the baguette toasts.
MAKE AHEAD:  The herb butter can be wrapped in plastic and frozen for up to 1 month.
Many thanks to DS and BB for their yummy basket of  baked goodies and for joining us in celebrating our new home!