Fish heads

I’m not experienced in this department. Tell me, does fish taste better if it’s cooked with the head still on? In my eyes, it doesn’t look better because I don’t want to look at a dead fish’s eyes. This bacon-wrapped trout is from a London Observer article in which Nigel Slater ” dresses up a pair of classic summer dishes by adding some robust autumn flavours.”

I hold on to summer eating for as long as I can, only finally admitting it is autumn when I can no longer eat outside without a fleece. The last meal cooked outdoors has a celebratory feel to it: a glass raised to mark the change of scenery from green to amber. I am never quite sure whether this time of year feels like the end of something or the beginning. Yes, it’s the end of cooking pieces of salmon over the garden grill, but it is also the start of simmering onions in the pan for some slow, warming suppers.