My love affair with seabass is scandalous! I spare no expense to find what I want. I have often found myself hiding the receipt from Santa Monica Seafood from hubby – it that bad?

I am just kidding! Hubby loves seabass as much as me. I first experienced this fish while in Paris a few years ago and it has remained on my mind ever since.

Call it what you will – loupe de mer, Branzino, European seabass. Whatever the case, it is delicious! It is a silver-skinned fish found in European sea and saltwater lakes, loupe de mer goes by many names, including European sea bass, spigola, branziono, róbalo, and lubina.

Loupe de mer ranges in size from one-and-a-half to three pounds, has a firm, white, delicate-flavored flesh and few small bones. I typically find these fish in the market dressed, on ice, weighing in around .5 lbs. I bought two fish this morning for about $13. Not cheap, but less expensive then what you will find this fish for in a restaurant.

My favorite recipe is quite simple. I bathe the fish in olive oil and sea salt, and stuff it with fresh thyme and lemon. It works great on the grill and roasts well in the oven on high heat at 375.