By Late February. The cold continued. Brian got me a small space heater for under the stool at the food bank, because he had noticed I was wearing two sweaters at the kitchen counter. The space heater helped. I was warmer. I was older. Both were true.
Tuesday food bank: ropa vieja. Yolanda made it. The team is the team.
Wednesday La Cocina cohort 3 week six: pasteles workshop format. Same condensed version. Same enthusiasm. Ricardo the widower asked, at the end, "Mrs. Carmen, can I bring my grandchildren to the December full-day workshop?" I said, "Ricardo, how many grandchildren?" He said, "Mrs. Carmen, three." I said, "Ricardo, yes. Bring them. Brian will figure out the funding." Brian said, "I will figure out the funding."
Thursday Yolanda came to my house with her two daughters. We did the formal walk-through for the spring satellite. Yolanda would launch March 11 — Wednesday evenings, eight weeks, twenty-four students, Asylum Hill community center. The location was a smaller kitchen than Parkville. She had walked through it three times. She was ready. We went over the curriculum. She had it. We went over the team — she had her own TA, a woman named Patricia who had been in cohort 1 and who was Yolanda's friend. We went over the budget. We were ready.
Friday I sat with Mami for two hours. She was tired. She said, "Carmen, the spring program." I said, "Mami, yes." She said, "Carmen, you are not running the spring." I said, "Mami, no. Yolanda runs Asylum Hill. I run my Parkville Saturday class. The kingdom has divided." She nodded. She said, "Carmen, that is the right size for you. You are sixty. You should not be running everything." I said, "Mami, I am not." She said, "Good." She slept.
Sunday dinner: nine. Smaller than usual. Miguel Jr.'s family had a school thing. Just Eduardo, me, Sofía, Alex, Rosa, Carlos, Camila, Andrés. I made a chicken — roasted, simple, garlic and lemon. Sofía said, "Ma, this is not a Caribbean meal." I said, "Mija, the chicken is a chicken. Some weeks the chicken is just a chicken." She laughed. The chicken was very good. Wepa.
That Sunday I made a roasted chicken — garlic, lemon, nothing more — and Sofía teased me that it wasn’t a Caribbean meal. She was right, and I didn’t mind. Some weeks the food just needs to be simple and good and done, because the week itself was already full. This haddock is that same spirit: bacon, tomato, a piece of fish that asks nothing complicated of you and gives you everything back. It is the kind of recipe I reach for when the kingdom has been properly divided and I am allowed, finally, to sit down.
Bacon Tomato Topped Haddock
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 4 haddock fillets (about 6 oz each)
- 4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 2 medium tomatoes, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven. Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a baking dish large enough to hold the fillets in a single layer.
- Season the fish. Pat haddock fillets dry with a paper towel. Brush with olive oil and season both sides with salt, pepper, and paprika. Arrange in the prepared baking dish.
- Make the topping. In a small bowl, combine the crumbled bacon, diced tomatoes, minced garlic, and dried thyme. Stir to combine.
- Top the fillets. Spoon the bacon and tomato mixture evenly over each fillet, pressing gently so it stays in place.
- Bake. Bake uncovered for 18–20 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork and the topping is lightly caramelized at the edges.
- Garnish and serve. Remove from the oven, scatter fresh parsley over the top, and serve immediately — with rice, crusty bread, or a simple green salad.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 285 | Protein: 36g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 4g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 420mg