This is adapted from a recipe at Elana's Pantry: http://www.elanaspantry.com/gefilte-fish/ . I should also mention that, having been entirely vegetarian for 30 years (up until GAPS in April 2010), I have never eaten gefilte fish before tonight, and have absolutely no idea what they're supposed to taste like. But this was delicious--and straight from the kitchen of a non-kosher Atheist Jew, nontraditional lard notwithstanding.
Makes about 24 fish balls/patties
2 tablespoons lard
1 large red onion, diced
1 cup carrots, cut into chunks
½ cup parsley, large stems removed.
1 pound halibut or haddock fillets, boned
½ pound salmon fillets, boned
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ cup fresh dill, finely chopped, or 2 T. dried
1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
2 large eggs
Ghee for frying (1/3 cup or so) (optional)
Heat lard in a large frying pan, and saute onion over medium-low heat until soft and transparent; turn off the heat.
Meanwhile, pulse the carrots and parsley in the food processor until finely chopped.
Cut the fish into large chunks and place in a food processor along with the onions; pulse until finely ground, but do not puree.
Add and pulse to combine the salt, pepper, lemon juice, dill, and eggs into the fish mixture
Refrigerate mixture for 3 hours; then form into approximately 24 small patties.
Bearing in mind that I have absolutely no idea what gefilte fish is supposed to taste like, I have to say that I really liked the small fish patties fried gently in ghee until they were delicately crispy (about 5 minutes per side on medium heat)... SO good!
(Elena's recipe says to boil the fish balls, as follows: "Heat a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Shape fish mixture into 1 ½ inch balls. Drop balls into water and cook for 15-20 minutes until cooked through. Place balls in a large pyrex dish and refrigerate to cool." I tried some cooked this way, and didn't like them as much.)
Serve with Horseradish, if you've got it. :) (And garnish with fresh sprigs of parsley, if you're so inclined.)