Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Pat the cod fillets dry with paper towels and lightly season them on both sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Some Mediterranean ingredients, such as anchovy paste and capers, come packed in brine, so add salt minimally.

2. Cook alliums in olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat until softened and translucent, then transfer them to a baking dish, about 5 minutes. No need to get more precise than a rough, uniform chop here; quartered and separated shallots or small onions, 1/2-inch-sliced leeks and several peeled and smashed garlic cloves keep everything rustic and hearty.

3. Add chopped tomatoes to the saute pan and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Plum tomatoes, San Marzano, Romas or even regular beefsteak tomatoes add the acidity found in Mediterranean dishes.

4. Tear fresh herbs or roughly chop them and add them to the tomatoes. Basil, flat-leaf parsley, rosemary, thyme, mint and oregano, to name a few, are staples of Mediterranean cuisine.

5. Add a drizzle of olive oil and a secondary flavoring ingredient to the tomatoes, if desired. A condiment can be almost anything as long as it adds flavor. A small spoonful of anchovy paste, a healthy drizzle of balsamic vinegar or a couple thinly sliced anchovies would all work.

6. Add the tomatoes to the baking dish and taste. Adjust the seasoning as needed with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

7. Sprinkle olives over the tomatoes. Kalamata, Lugano, nicoise, Liguria and Picholine are varieties common to the Mediterranean. Use oil-cured olives if possible; they don't have the saltiness of brined olives. which means you have more latitude for seasoning. If using brined olives and capers, rinse them first and use sparingly.

8. Add a pour of dry white wine over the base ingredients. You don't want the base ingredients soupy; you just want enough wine to create some steam and add enough aroma to permeate, but not dominate, the dish.

9. Place the fillets side by side on the base flavoring ingredients. Space the fillets about 1/2 inch apart. Drizzle the top of the fillets with olive oil and place the baking dish in the oven.

10. Prepare a condiment for the fillets, if desired. A condiment can comprise just about anything, but the goal is to provide a final flourish of flavor and brightness to the dish. Mediterranean seafood condiments almost always include lemon in some fashion. For example, a simple gremolata -- a mix of finely minced parsley, lemon zest and finely minced garlic -- ties all the ingredients together and makes the cod sing. You can also use minced bell peppers, tomatoes and lemon, or simply fresh herbs and lemon juice.

11. Bake the cod for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fillets reach an internal temperature of 145 F. Take the dish out of the oven. Spread a layer of gremolata or fresh herbs and olive oil over the top of the filets and serve them immediately with a big spoonful of the base ingredients.