September 19, 2010
Grilled Swordfish with tomato braised cauliflower,
How to Roast a Lamb, by Michael Psilakis, pg 52
2 T olive oil
1 medium head of cauliflower, cut into florets
sea salt and freshly gound pepper
large pinch of ground cinnamon
½ large Spanish or sweet onion, thinly sliced
2 dried bay leaves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 T tomato puree
2 T red wine vinegar
1 ½ cups water
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp Dijon mustard
4 swordfish steaks
sea salt, freshly ground pepper, olive oil
In a large skillet, heat the oil until very hot, but not smoking. Add the cauliflower florets and season with sea salt and pepper and dust with ground cinnamon. Sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the onions, bay leaf and cinnamon sticks. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1-or so minutes. Stir in the vinegar and cook until the vinegar is absorbed. Add the water, Dijon mustard and thyme. Heat until boiling, then reduce heat to medium. Cook for about 20 minutes until tender.
Choose your medium of cooking: broil, grill pan, BBQ. Rinse the fish and pat dry. Coat with olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Do not over cook the fish. When you pierce it with a fork, it should penetrate easily.
How I did it: I Followed the recipe. I like the cauliflower mix over the fish, not as a side dish, as I find the swordfish to be a bit dull by itself.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
sauteed salmon with gremolata
September 10, 2010
Sautéed Salmon with Gremolata
Gourmet’s Five Ingredients, pg 71
What is Gremolata? I was a bit confused with the recipe. Gremolata is an herbal accompaniment made of parsley, garlic and lemon zest. I screwed it up twice. First time, I didn’t chop it finely enough. Second time, I used the food processor, which turned out well, but I forgot to refrigerated it and had to toss it the next morning. It would be really good as a sauce with a little olive oil.
¼ cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tsp finely grated fresh lemon zest
1 ½ tsp minced garlic
4 salmon filets
1 T olive oil
Toss together the parsley, lemon zest and garlic to make the gremolata.
Pat salmon dry and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-hot heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté the salmon, skin side down for 4 minutes. Turn salmon over and cook the other side until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Serve, skin side down, sprinkle with gremolata.
How I did it: I screwed up the gremolata twice. The first time I didn't chop everything fine enough. Second time, I used the food processor for the chopping, but I forgot to refigerate it. I think it would be with better with some olive oil to make a sauce.
Sautéed Salmon with Gremolata
Gourmet’s Five Ingredients, pg 71
What is Gremolata? I was a bit confused with the recipe. Gremolata is an herbal accompaniment made of parsley, garlic and lemon zest. I screwed it up twice. First time, I didn’t chop it finely enough. Second time, I used the food processor, which turned out well, but I forgot to refrigerated it and had to toss it the next morning. It would be really good as a sauce with a little olive oil.
¼ cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tsp finely grated fresh lemon zest
1 ½ tsp minced garlic
4 salmon filets
1 T olive oil
Toss together the parsley, lemon zest and garlic to make the gremolata.
Pat salmon dry and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-hot heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté the salmon, skin side down for 4 minutes. Turn salmon over and cook the other side until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Serve, skin side down, sprinkle with gremolata.
How I did it: I screwed up the gremolata twice. The first time I didn't chop everything fine enough. Second time, I used the food processor for the chopping, but I forgot to refigerate it. I think it would be with better with some olive oil to make a sauce.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Oven Poached fish in olive oil
September 9, 2010
Oven Poached fish in olive oil,
Gourmet’s Five Ingredients, pg 75
I've been spending a lot of time at Mac's this last week. So, between eating out and finishing the left-over stuffed peppers, I haven't cooked much. It's time to get back to it. So, here we go...
I had serious doubts about this recipe. I like all the ingredients, but it cooks in A LOT of oil.
¼ cup capers, rinsed
2 ½ pounds scrod or halibut
1 ½ large lemons, thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh flat leaf parsley
2 cups extra virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 250°F.
Rinse the fish and pat dry. Sprinkle fish with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Let stand for 10 minutes. Chop half the capers. Arrange half the lemon slices in an 8-inch baking dish and arrange fish in 1 layer over the lemons. Top with whole and chopped capers, remaining lemon slices and 3 T parsley, then pour the oil over the fish.
Bake, uncovered, in the middle of the oven until the fish flakes easily, about 1 hour.
Serve fish with some of the lemons, capers and oil spooned over. Garnish with parsley.
How I did it: I used Mahi Mahi. I seasoned it with Mediterranean salt, failing to realize that that much lemon and capers would dwarf the taste of the salt. I could have used my regular sea salt. I didn’t measure the oil, I just used enough to cover it completely. Save the remaining lemon oil to use in salad dressing (strain it through cheese cloth or a fine sieve first. Keep refrigerated).
This turned out better than I thought. The fish was a little over cooked (tough) but not at all dry. But, then again, how could it be since it was cooked in oil.
Oven Poached fish in olive oil,
Gourmet’s Five Ingredients, pg 75
I've been spending a lot of time at Mac's this last week. So, between eating out and finishing the left-over stuffed peppers, I haven't cooked much. It's time to get back to it. So, here we go...
I had serious doubts about this recipe. I like all the ingredients, but it cooks in A LOT of oil.
¼ cup capers, rinsed
2 ½ pounds scrod or halibut
1 ½ large lemons, thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh flat leaf parsley
2 cups extra virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 250°F.
Rinse the fish and pat dry. Sprinkle fish with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Let stand for 10 minutes. Chop half the capers. Arrange half the lemon slices in an 8-inch baking dish and arrange fish in 1 layer over the lemons. Top with whole and chopped capers, remaining lemon slices and 3 T parsley, then pour the oil over the fish.
Bake, uncovered, in the middle of the oven until the fish flakes easily, about 1 hour.
Serve fish with some of the lemons, capers and oil spooned over. Garnish with parsley.
How I did it: I used Mahi Mahi. I seasoned it with Mediterranean salt, failing to realize that that much lemon and capers would dwarf the taste of the salt. I could have used my regular sea salt. I didn’t measure the oil, I just used enough to cover it completely. Save the remaining lemon oil to use in salad dressing (strain it through cheese cloth or a fine sieve first. Keep refrigerated).
This turned out better than I thought. The fish was a little over cooked (tough) but not at all dry. But, then again, how could it be since it was cooked in oil.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Turkey stuffed peppers
September 4, 2010
Turkey Stuffed Peppers,
Williams Sonoma Backyard BBQ, pg 49
I modified their recipe to accommodate the ingredients I had. I had ground turkey breast that needed using soon, so I used that instead of turkey sausage that they called for. This is my adaptation:
6 green bell peppers (or mixed colors)
1 pound ground turkey breast
2 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 gloves garlic, minced
1 T curry powder
1 T dried oregano
1 T dried thyme
½ tsp ground pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 cup cooked white rice
3 T dried bread crumbs
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil
Start the grill.
Cut the tops off the bell peppers and seed the peppers. Chop the tops and set aside.
Combine the remaining ingredients and the chopped pepper in a large mixing bowl. Mix together using your hands or a wooden spoon. Stuff the peppers.
Grill over a medium-hot fire for about 40 minutes or until the peppers are tender when pierced with a fork.
Notes: Since turkey breast is bland, I added extra spice (noted in the recipe above). If you’re using Italian style turkey sausage, omit the oregano and thyme, reduce the salt to ¼ tsp, reduce the garlic to one clove, reduce the onions to one. If you're using ground turkey (mixed with dark meat, not just the breast) omit the olive oil because it has enough fat.
Turkey Stuffed Peppers,
Williams Sonoma Backyard BBQ, pg 49
I modified their recipe to accommodate the ingredients I had. I had ground turkey breast that needed using soon, so I used that instead of turkey sausage that they called for. This is my adaptation:
6 green bell peppers (or mixed colors)
1 pound ground turkey breast
2 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 gloves garlic, minced
1 T curry powder
1 T dried oregano
1 T dried thyme
½ tsp ground pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 cup cooked white rice
3 T dried bread crumbs
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil
Start the grill.
Cut the tops off the bell peppers and seed the peppers. Chop the tops and set aside.
Combine the remaining ingredients and the chopped pepper in a large mixing bowl. Mix together using your hands or a wooden spoon. Stuff the peppers.
Grill over a medium-hot fire for about 40 minutes or until the peppers are tender when pierced with a fork.
Notes: Since turkey breast is bland, I added extra spice (noted in the recipe above). If you’re using Italian style turkey sausage, omit the oregano and thyme, reduce the salt to ¼ tsp, reduce the garlic to one clove, reduce the onions to one. If you're using ground turkey (mixed with dark meat, not just the breast) omit the olive oil because it has enough fat.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Caribbean influenced chicken
I still haven’t been cooking much. I spent too much time at Mac’s last week, ate there a couple of times. I think I’m done with that for awhile. A few too many conversations that required me to "suffer fools gladly", which I do not do well. But, I did get to give out more constitutions, which should indicate the types of conversations.
I’ve had a whole chicken in my fridge (sealed air-tight) in the fridge for the last week, so I had to do something with it soon.
I modified a chicken recipe (really, I only took part of the ingredient list from a recipe). Since it doesn’t bear any real resemblance to the original recipe, I’m not counting it in the “used recipe” file.
Caribbean influenced chicken
1 whole chicken (remove giblet bag), rinse inside & out.
2 large onions, cut into slivers
1 large green pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
2 red chiles, seeded
large sprinkle of allspice
1 cup red wine
2 cups chicken broth
3 T Worcestershire sauce
3 T Braggs Aminos (substitute for soy sauce)
2 T ketchup
2 tsp dried thyme
2 T fresh Italian parsley, chopped
2 T fresh cilantro, chopped
Place the chicken in a 5-6 qt crock pot, add the onions, garlic, ginger, chiles, pepper, wine, broth, allspice, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce (or aminos), and ketchup.
Cook on high 4 hours or 11 hours on low. Remove the chicken to a platter. Add the cilantro and parsley to the cooking liquid. Reduce heat to low. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, (10 minutes) remove the skin and bones, and shred the chicken. Strain the cooking liquid and drain off the fat. Return the broth to the cooking pot or a serving bowl and add the shredded chicken.
This is how I did it. I used the ingredients I had. You can use a jalapeno instead of the red chiles, a red pepper instead of the green pepper. Add more garlic and onions, or less. It’s adaptable. This way turned out tasty.
This would be good with rice and cooked plantains, or in salads or tacos.
I’ve had a whole chicken in my fridge (sealed air-tight) in the fridge for the last week, so I had to do something with it soon.
I modified a chicken recipe (really, I only took part of the ingredient list from a recipe). Since it doesn’t bear any real resemblance to the original recipe, I’m not counting it in the “used recipe” file.
Caribbean influenced chicken
1 whole chicken (remove giblet bag), rinse inside & out.
2 large onions, cut into slivers
1 large green pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and minced
2 red chiles, seeded
large sprinkle of allspice
1 cup red wine
2 cups chicken broth
3 T Worcestershire sauce
3 T Braggs Aminos (substitute for soy sauce)
2 T ketchup
2 tsp dried thyme
2 T fresh Italian parsley, chopped
2 T fresh cilantro, chopped
Place the chicken in a 5-6 qt crock pot, add the onions, garlic, ginger, chiles, pepper, wine, broth, allspice, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce (or aminos), and ketchup.
Cook on high 4 hours or 11 hours on low. Remove the chicken to a platter. Add the cilantro and parsley to the cooking liquid. Reduce heat to low. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, (10 minutes) remove the skin and bones, and shred the chicken. Strain the cooking liquid and drain off the fat. Return the broth to the cooking pot or a serving bowl and add the shredded chicken.
This is how I did it. I used the ingredients I had. You can use a jalapeno instead of the red chiles, a red pepper instead of the green pepper. Add more garlic and onions, or less. It’s adaptable. This way turned out tasty.
This would be good with rice and cooked plantains, or in salads or tacos.
Lamb shanks with rosemary and olives
Lamb shanks with rosemary and olives, Better Homes and Gardens Slow cooker recipes, pg 182
1 pound boiling onions
½ cup pitted Kalamata olives
4 meaty lamb shanks
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
snipped fresh parsley for garnish
In a 5-6 qt slow cooker, place the onions and olives. Arrange the lamb in the cooker. Sprinkle with garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper. Pour broth over all.
Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 11 to 12 hours or on high setting for 5 ½ to 6 hours.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer lamb, onions and olives to a serving dish. Reserve cooking juices. Skim fat from juices. If desired, strain juices and serve with the meat.
How I did it: I used two large onions, sliced into slivers. I used three large sprigs or fresh rosemary. I used lamb shoulder chops instead of shanks. Once cooked, I shredded the lamb, strained the broth and added the lamb back to the cooking juice.
It was ok. I would use more pungent olives than Kalamata (green maybe?) and add some red wine or balsamic vinegar to make it more savory.
1 pound boiling onions
½ cup pitted Kalamata olives
4 meaty lamb shanks
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
snipped fresh parsley for garnish
In a 5-6 qt slow cooker, place the onions and olives. Arrange the lamb in the cooker. Sprinkle with garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper. Pour broth over all.
Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 11 to 12 hours or on high setting for 5 ½ to 6 hours.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer lamb, onions and olives to a serving dish. Reserve cooking juices. Skim fat from juices. If desired, strain juices and serve with the meat.
How I did it: I used two large onions, sliced into slivers. I used three large sprigs or fresh rosemary. I used lamb shoulder chops instead of shanks. Once cooked, I shredded the lamb, strained the broth and added the lamb back to the cooking juice.
It was ok. I would use more pungent olives than Kalamata (green maybe?) and add some red wine or balsamic vinegar to make it more savory.
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