Oh my goodness, this is the most delicious movie star favourite dish I have made in a LOOOOONNNNNNGGGGG time. Bravo Bette!

Artist’s impression of Bette with a fish and a fag…

This recipe is a winner. Despite having an ingredient that is not available here in the UK.

When any of my chums go to the States, they usually ask me if there is any weird foodstuff I need for my film star fodder. Some time ago I asked my chums Heather and Nathan

if they would get me some condensed cheddar cheese soup and Nathan said he would, but only under the condition that I wouldn’t cook anything for HIM that contained it. Haha! Here’s the haul of things we can’t get here that they kindly brought back for me.

A particular kind of chili mix I wanted for my Johnny Cash Chili, some hatch chilies that were destined for an Anne Baxter Mexican Cheese Supper Sandwich, A1 Sauce for a Joan Crawford Meatloaf and Cheddar Cheese Soup for Bette’s fish dish. The Mexican wrestler bottle opener was a random gift Nathan decided to buy me. What a guy.

It has amused me to discover by looking back at old blog posts, that this haul was delivered to me in 2015. Yes, folks, that cheddar cheese soup has been hanging around in my kitchen cupboard for almost 4 years.

Now I have eaten Bette’s dish I am going to ask EVERY SINGLE PERSON who is going to the States to bring me back a tin of this. It’s the bomb.

If you are based somewhere that doesn’t have Cheddar Cheese Soup on the shelves, I would recommend making a really THICK, really CHEESY cheese sauce and just seeing how this turns out. Mind you, there are recipes all around the web for making your own Condensed Cheddar Cheese Soup – this one looks good.

Bette’s dish is pretty simple, but utterly delicious. My sole was perfectly cooked (I cooked for 35 minutes then put my grill on, moved the dish up to the next level in the oven to brown it for about 5 minutes). It was soooooo good.

Under construction…

I thought Bette’s recipe was just perfect. For just me, myself and I, I quartered everything in the recipe and I ate about 2/3 of the fish and have a little portion left over that I reheated the next day. I didn’t use as much salt as Bette because I’m watching my salt intake. I probably used about half of what Bette recommended but honestly, I didn’t miss it.

All rolled up with spinach mix inside

This was A HUGE HIT at Silver Screen Suppers Towers, and I went to bed happy because there is A SECOND TIN OF CHEDDAR CHEESE SOUP IN MY CUPBOARD! I feel another batch of this coming on soon for sure.

All tucked up in my fave enamel baking dish
Finished dish – yum, yum!

Bette Davis’ Spinach Stuffed Fillets of Sole

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 pound fresh chopped spinach or 25 oz/700g frozen chopped spinach

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon white pepper

2 lbs/900g fillet of sole or flounder

1 can (11 oz/310g) Cheddar cheese soup

2 tablespoons milk or beer

Ground nutmeg

Cook onion in butter until tender, but not brown. Cook spinach quickly in small amount of salted boiling water. Drain well, pressing out all liquid. Combine spinach, salt, white pepper and onion mixture; mix well. Spread each fillet with a thin layer of spinach mixture; roll up tightly and spear with skewer or wooden toothpick. Put fillets into a lightly buttered, shallow baking dish. Mix cheese soup with milk or beer until smooth; spoon over fillets. Sprinkle nutmeg over the top. Bake uncovered in preheated 350 degree oven 20 to 25 minutes. If desired, run under broiler until cheese is bubbly, and browned.

Serves 6.

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