As a youngster growing up in the South, I remember that when my mother entertained, beef roasts and steaks, fried chicken, baked hams and smothered pork chops were the mainstays of her menus. Rarely did she serve fish as an entree.

It wasn't because she didn't like seafood -- she loved to order it when we ate out -- but rather that she was uneasy about how to prepare it. She considered fish delicate and was anxious about overcooking it. For years, after I left home and had my own kitchen, I shied away from Neptune's pleasures when having company for dinner, but today fish is a staple of my repertoire and of my cooking classes as well.

In fact, last week for one of my courses, I made Crab-Stuffed Trout Drizzled With Lemon Butter, a dish that my students found irresistible. For this colorful entree, which looks as if it is far more time-consuming to assemble than the directions indicate, rainbow trout fillets are mounded with a stuffing of sourdough bread cubes, chopped plum tomatoes, green onions and fresh crab meat.

The stuffing can be assembled two hours ahead, so the only necessary steps at serving time are to place it on the trout and bake the fillets for 10 minutes. A little melted butter combined with lemon juice and peel is poured over the fillets when they are taken from the oven, and a sprinkling of chopped parsley is added as a garnish.

I served these trout to friends a few weeks ago for an impromptu mid-week meal. Along with the entree I offered wilted greens in an herbed dressing and white rice as simple accompaniments. The fish, however, was the favorite of the evening. My mother would have been proud.

Crab-Stuffed Trout Drizzled With Lemon Butter

Serves 6

1 tablespoon olive oil

2/3 cup sliced green onions, including 2 inches of green stems

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cups fresh sourdough bread cubes ( 1/2 -inch cubes) (see Note)

1 cup chopped plum tomatoes, seeds and membranes removed

3/4 pound fresh crab meat, picked over

salt

scant / teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 teaspoons grated lemon zest (color portion of rind)

6 rainbow trout fillets, 4 to 5 ounces each (see Note)

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

For stuffing, heat olive oil in medium, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add green onions and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in bread cubes, tomatoes, crab meat, 1/4 teaspoon salt, cayenne and 1 teaspoon lemon zest. Toss gently just to combine. Do not over-mix. (Stuffing can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature 30 minutes before using.)

When ready to cook trout, arrange oven rack at center position. Place fillets on aluminum-foil-lined baking sheet. Salt fillets. Divide stuffing evenly and mound over top of each fillet. Bake at 350 degrees until flesh of fish is opaque and flakes easily, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt butter and remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and remaining 2 teaspoons lemon zest.

To serve, carefully lift fish with spatula onto warm serving plate. Drizzle each fillet with lemon butter and sprinkle with parsley.

Note: Use good-quality sourdough bread. If crust is not too crisp, make bread cubes without removing crust. If crust is very firm, remove it before making bread cubes.

I used salmon-colored rainbow trout that added visual appeal to this dish, but white-fleshed trout will work equally well.

Pub Date: 03/21/99