02.05.10
Posted in Cuisines, Dinner, Fish, French, Leftovers, Seafood at 9:48 am by julie
When we buy a salmon fillet from Costco, I can usually spread it out for about 4 meals. I cook two-thirds of it fairly simply like that above, roasted in foil packet at 500F with some caper-anchovy butter for about 15 minutes, or just until cooked through. The inevitable leftovers from these simple recipes then go into salmon salads, croquettes, and chowders, and et cetera.
But it can be pretty boring working primarily with leftover cooked salmon, so I always try to save at least a little of the fillet to try out a new technique. So here are two slightly more interesting salmon recipes, both incorporating herbes de provence as a flavoring agent. The first is seared salmon with a beurre rouge sauce. I’ve made beurre blanc before; this is essentially the same thing using red wine. I served mine with muffin cup gratins.
Salmon with Beurre Rouge
2 T minced shallots
1 tsp herbes de provence
2 C fruity, not-too-tannic red wine
2 T balsamic or red wine vinegar
1½ to 2 lb salmon fillet
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 stick butter, cut into 6 or 8 pieces
Combine shallots, herbes de provence, wine and vinegar in a small saucepan and turn heat to high. Cook until it is reduced to about ¼ cup, 10 minutes or so. Strain if desired.
Meanwhile, put a nonstick skillet over medium heat; no fat is needed in pan. Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper and place it, skin side up, in skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until nicely browned, about 5 minutes, then turn.
When red wine mixture has reduced, turn heat to very low. Add butter a piece at a time, stirring after each addition until it is incorporated. When all butter has been added, taste and adjust seasoning.
Use a sharp knife to peek inside thickest part of fish to judge doneness. When done to your liking, about 3 to 5 minutes after you turn, remove it to a platter or serving plates. Spoon sauce over fish, garnish if you like, and serve.
Source: Slightly adapted from Mark Bittman, NY Times.
For the other recipe, I took inspiration from having randomly watched an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives in which a gentleman cooked salmon encrusted with hash browns. I’ve used a similar technique on halibut, which relied on a mayonnaise mixture and the starch from the potatoes to stick them onto the fish. This guy used what he called “salmon glue” to attach the potatoes, essentially a simple salmon mousse made with trimmings, seasonings, and cream. As I was trimming away the thin parts of my fish, I flashed back to this episode and decided at the spur of the moment to give it a shot, and it worked beautifully. I served my crusted salmon with a grainy mustard vinaigrette and a quick salad garnished with disks of fried goat cheese. The recipe is more of a method than anything, as I don’t include amounts.
Potato-Crusted Salmon
I think this method would also work with halibut or other fish; possibly even chicken cutlets, though I’ve not yet confirmed this with testing. If you don’t have scraps from trimming because you used steaks or already uniform fillets, you might be able to use raw shrimp or bay scallops as the base of your glue. It would work with shredded russet potatoes, zucchini ribbons, or virtually any thin layer you want to stick onto the fish. If I try out any of these variations, I’ll make a note of it here.
Boneless skinless salmon fillet, trimmed into rectangles of even thickness and scraps reserved
Red potatoes, thinly sliced (about 1/8″—I used a mandoline)
Cream
Herbes de provence (or other herbs, such as dill, that compliment the fish)
Shallot, diced
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
Place the salmon scraps in a food processor with some shallot, herbs and cream. For our two portions (plus a baby piece for Nolan), I had enough scraps to use 2-3 T cream, 1-2 T shallot, about 1/2 tsp herbes de provence, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Run the processor; you want to end up with a light, fluffy, spreadable, but not runny consistency, so add a bit more cream if necessary. Season the salmon fillets with salt, pepper and another sprinkle of your herbs, then smear on one side with about a 1/4″ of your glue; layer with potato slices, making sure each one has some contact with the glue. Flip fillets over carefully and repeat on the other side.
Meanwhile, heat some olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Carefully lower in the salmon, ensuring that the potatoes stay in place, and cook for about 5-7 minutes, until the potatoes are golden brown. Flip gently and cook on the other side until the potatoes are again golden and the salmon is cooked through to your liking; if you, like us, don’t care for medium salmon, you may need to turn the heat down at the end and lid the pan for a few minutes to finish cooking through. Serve with the sides and/or sauces of your choice.
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02.04.10
Posted in Cuisines, Dinner, Leftovers, Meats, Mexican, Pork and Ham, Sides at 7:42 pm by julie
You know, I’ve never been able to buy pork shoulder from my regular grocery store, which is such a shame because there is such a proliferation of braising recipes I want to try that call for it. Costco carries whole ones, but I’ve never been able to bring myself to purchase quite such a large chunk of meat for our little family, considering our limited freezer space, and the same goes for many of their enormous cuts of beef. However, we’ve had pretty good luck cooking their boneless country rib options in both the pork and beef. I seem to be accumulating quite a few recipes for dealing with these cuts, so look for quite a few posts discussing them in days to come.
My go-to recipe for dealing with these pork ribs in the past few years has been braising it Hawaiian style. But I think one of my new favorite applications is making carnitas. The recipe couldn’t be simpler. Essentially you braise the meat until it is meltingly tender and all the liquid has evaporated, then you sear it a little bit in the fat that is left behind, to give it even more flavor and texture. I served with homemade flour tortillas, jack cheese and a simple rice salad with corn and black beans, but you could take the toppings in any direction you like, or use the meat for quesadillas, burritos or what you will. Frankly, thinking back on this pork is making me hungry, so I won’t drag out the post any longer… dinner time!
Pork Carnitas
3 lb boneless pork shoulder or country ribs, lightly trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes (leave some fat on)
Olive oil
Water
1 T salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium white onion, diced
2 tsp ancho chile powder
Salt and pepper
Drizzle a heavy wide pan (I used my big red Le Creuset) with olive oil, season the pork with salt, pepper and ancho, and sear on all sides. Pour in just enough water to cover the meat, add the garlic and onion, and bring to a boil, uncovered. When the liquid reaches a boil, lower the heat, and continue to cook at a gentle simmer until all the liquid has evaporated, about two hours. At this point, the meat should be cooked through but not falling apart. Lower the heat a little more and continue cooking the meat until all the fat has rendered out of it. Keep turning the meat until it is lightly browned all over, about 15 more minutes. Makes a lot, but the leftovers are possibly even tastier than the first day.
Source: Slightly adapted from Food Network.
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02.03.10
Posted in American, Cuisines, Fish, Leftovers, Seafood at 11:33 am by julie
In case anyone wants to know, leftover fried fish can be acceptable, and even pretty tasty, fishcakes. When we were on our way to the airport with my folks after Christmas, we stopped at a McCormick and Schmick’s for lunch, where my mother and I both ended up ordering the cod fish and chips. Nolan threw a teething fit and refused to even sit in proximity to solid food, and we were concerned about getting to the airport on time, so I came home with most of the fish and chips in a doggie bag—probably about 3/4 lb of flaky cod. There was no way the batter was ever going to recrisp, so I just broke up the fish, batter and all, and made it into codcakes. For bulk, I steamed and riced 5 red potatoes, and added two crumbled up slices of white sandwich bread; I seasoned it with some grated onion, salt and pepper, and bound the whole lot together with two eggs.
This constitutes my basic fishcake recipe, and I use it frequently with all manner of leftover fish, particularly cod, halibut, and salmon. Sometimes I’ll dip the patties in a dusting of flour or panko crumbs, but I skipped that this time because of the extra starch from the batter. I served the codcakes with some arugula I sauteed with olive oil and garlic, and a quick dipping sauce that contained, I believe, mayo, Dijon, and some dill (the salmon variation above had a sauce of plain yogurt with mayo, lemon, and smoked paprika). Usually Nolan likes these a lot, because they are crunchy and starchy and contain fish, but the dreaded molars were still keeping him from eating; in fact, only one has fully erupted so far, so this is an ongoing problem that I will be very glad to see the end of.
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09.30.09
Posted in American, Cuisines, Dinner, Leftovers, Meats, Pies & Tarts, Poultry at 11:23 pm by julie
The weather here is on the verge of turning cool and wet, and we were in some serious need of comfort swathed in pie crust, so last week I set about making homemade chicken pot pies. I’ve never made them from scratch before, and I have never been a big fan of the frozen version—as with frozen quiches, I find the soggy bottom crust of most potpies appalling. I decided to make individual mug pies with top crusts only. Because I was out of shortening, I was unable to use my new standard pie crust from Baking: From My Home to Yours, so I picked an all-butter crust from Tyler Florence instead, and it did the trick.
For my potpie filling, I went with an adaptation of Ina Garten’s chicken pot pie, scaled back and simplified with boneless chicken breasts. Still, it’s a pretty involved recipe that takes a little while to complete, so you would be best served making lots and either refrigerating or freezing what you won’t be eating right away. This recipe made enough crust and filling for 6 large mugs, and I imagine it would double well. I baked all of them at once, and refrigerated half for another night, covered in foil; they reheated nicely in the oven at 350F for 20-30 minutes, keeping the foil on to protect the crusts from over-browning.
This recipe is extremely adaptable: put in whatever meat and veggies you like, season it up with herbs, wine, or mustard, go nuts. We all really liked it—Jeremy commented about how he wanted to gnaw the crust off the edges of his mug—so I’m sure I’ll make it again sometime this winter.
Chicken Mug-Pies
For the crust:
2 1/4 C all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small chunks
1/2 C ice water, plus more if needed
For the filling:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 T olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 C chicken stock, preferably homemade, divided
1 C yellow onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 C medium-diced carrots
6 small red potatoes, medium-diced
1/2 C frozen peas
4 T unsalted butter
1/3 C all-purpose flour
1/2 C heavy cream
For the crust: Combine the flour and salt in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pour in the ice water and pulse just enough to bind the dough into a ball. Squeeze a small amount together, and if it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Flatten the dough into a 1″ thick disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate while preparing the rest of the recipe (feel free to make the dough the night before if you prefer.)
For the filling: In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, and cook on both sides just until golden brown. Add about 1/2 C chicken stock, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer until chicken is cooked through and stock has cooked down. Remove chicken from the pan, cool, and shred with two forks; set aside in a large bowl.
In the same skillet, pour in another tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat, and add the onion, garlic, carrots, and potatoes. Season with salt and pepper, saute until they get a little bit of color. Add about another half a cup of chicken stock, cover, and simmer until the carrots and potatoes are just tender and the stock has cooked down, about 4-5 minutes. Pour this mixture into the bowl with the chicken.
Return the skillet to medium heat and melt the butter. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for a minute or two to cook out the raw flour taste. Add the remaining chicken stock and cream to this roux, and whisk to incorporate. Simmer over medium-high heat until the sauce thickens to a gravy-like consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning, then pour over chicken and vegetables; add the frozen peas to the bowl also, and toss well to combine.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Divide the filling equally among 4 ovenproof bowls or 6 mugs. Divide the dough into 4 or 6 pieces respectively, and roll each piece into an 8-inch circle. Brush the outside edges of each bowl with the egg wash, then place the dough on top. Trim the circle to 1/2-inch larger than the top of the bowl. Crimp the dough to fold over the side, pressing it to make it stick. Brush the dough with egg wash and make 3 slits in the top. Sprinkle with sea salt and cracked pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 45-60 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling hot.
Source: Food Network.
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09.28.09
Posted in Beef, Bread, Dinner, Dips & Spreads, Leftovers, Meats, Sides, Veggies at 6:05 pm by julie
I’m still not sure where the summer went. I’ve been meaning to post these recipes from our 4th of July dinner for several months now, but there always seems to be something pulling me away from the computer, and I just realized I haven’t posted anything but Daring Baker challenges . Time for a little catch-up. Our little sticky bun is now eighteen months old (!) and can walk, run, dance, climb, and almost reach stuff on the kitchen counters. He makes off with all of my Tupperware containers, and likes to help me unload the dishwasher, even before I’ve gotten the chance to run it, so a lot of our meals are prepared either very quickly or in short increments throughout the day. But he is still a very good little eater, and can handle practically anything thanks to his sparkly new molars and canine teeth. Not quite all of them had come through yet when I made these meals, but that didn’t stop him from eating lots and lots of thinly sliced beef and mashed potatoes.
We usually don’t buy filet mignon, but as long as we were splurging, I took the extra steps of crusting our steaks with ground porcini mushrooms and topping them with gorgonzola-garlic butter. To round out the meal with some greens, I made haricots verts with a shallot vinaigrette, and stirred some ribbons of wilted chard—courtesy of a friend’s prolific garden—into the mashed potatoes.
Porcini-Crusted Filet with Gorgonzola-Garlic Butter
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
6 1-inch-thick filet mignon steaks
2 T butter
4-6 cloves of garlic, skins on
1 T olive oil
1/4 C (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1-2 oz crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
1 T chopped fresh parsley
Process dried porcini mushrooms in spice grinder to fine powder. Transfer powder to plate. Sprinkle steaks with salt and pepper. Press steaks into porcini powder to coat both sides well.
Heat oil in a small skillet over medium heat, and add garlic cloves. Toast cloves, turning frequently to avoid burning, until tender. Remove from the heat, cool until you can handle them, and peel off the skins; they should come off easily. Mash garlic into a paste with your knife or a garlic press, and mix in with the butter, cheese and parsley. Refrigerate until needed.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add steaks to skillet and cook to desired doneness, about 6 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer steaks to plates. Spoon rounded tablespoon of gorgonzola-garlic butter atop each steak and serve.
Source: Epicurious and Epicurious.
The next day, I made a batch of rustic potato bread with some of the leftover mashed potatoes. This is a recipe from Macrina Bakery that I’ve used before with gargantuan results, so I knew that I would be able to get more than one boule from it. I ended up dividing it into a 4 sandwich rolls and a standard loaf, all imbedded with decorative flecks of chard. Split, toasted and spread liberally with leftover compound butter, the rolls made perfect vehicles for our extra filet, which I sliced thinly and slathered with caramelized onion for a sublime sandwich and a perfect end to the holiday weekend, if I do say so myself.
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06.08.09
Posted in Cuisines, Dinner, Lamb, Leftovers, Meats, Nuts, Grains & Legumes, Pastas, Sides at 12:59 am by julie
It’s been almost two months since I last posted a lamb recipe, so you know I’ve got some waiting in the wings. Sometimes I think Jeremy can’t walk past the boneless legs of lamb at Costco without picking one up, but I get really tired of braising or roasting them after a while. This time I split my leg in half and grilled it over two nights—part butterflied, and part chunked up for kebabs.
For the butterflied portion, I went with a hoisin marinade. The ingredients all scream Asian, but as one reviewer pointed out, the end result is a flavor that could be nudged in a variety of directions. I went slightly Mediterranean with the addition of a little dried rosemary, and served it with a baked potato and Mark Bittman’s sauteed mushrooms. Yes, you heard that right—I sliced up some mushrooms and sauteed them with a little garlic and white wine, no attempts to cut them into tiny bits or mask their flavor with cream. I don’t think I will ever agree that the smell of cooking mushrooms is second only to bacon; on the contrary, the smell alone is almost enough to make me change my mind about making them. However, I am proud to say that I ate some of the finished product without making horrible faces, even though room temperature mushrooms are really not appealing to me.
But the real point is that the lamb was delicious, and I will definitely keep this marinade in my arsenal; I suspect it would also be delicious on beef or pork. We did have some leftover, so I sliced it thin and served it over Asian garlic noodles (read: Jaden’s garlic-scallion noodles made with carrots, mushrooms, onions, peas, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds).
Grilled Hoisin-Marinated Butterflied Leg of Lamb
1/3 C hoisin sauce
3 T rice vinegar (not seasoned)
2 T soy sauce
2 T minced garlic
1/4 C minced scallions
1 T honey
1/2 tsp salt
a 2 to 2 1/2 pound piece of boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and butterflied
In a bowl whisk together hoisin sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, minces scallion, honey, and salt. Trim as much remaining fat as possible from lamb and in a shallow dish large enough to hold lamb flat spread marinade over both sides of it. Marinate lamb, covered and chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight.
Prepare grill. Bring lamb to room temperature and grill on an oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals 12 to 15 minutes on each side, or until meat thermometer registers 140°F. for medium-rare meat. (Alternatively, lamb may be broiled under preheated broiler about 4 inches from heat for approximately the same time on each side as for grilling.) Transfer lamb to a cutting board and let stand 20 minutes before carving. Holding a sharp knife at a 45° angle, cut lamb across grain into thin slices.
Source: Epicurious.
I still had half a leg of lamb in the fridge waiting to be used, so I decided to make that into kebabs. Ever since I first tasted the lamb brochettes at Marrakesh in Portland (which may, incidentally, have been my very first taste of lamb), I’ve been trying to duplicate that flavor at home, and I think I am getting closer. The meat was marinated in a simple spice blend, and threaded onto skewers with chunks of zucchini that I tossed with olive oil, lemon pepper and garlic. These went on the grill while I made pistachio-date couscous to serve under it.
Moroccan Lamb Kebabs with Zucchini and Pistachio-Date Couscous
2 lb piece of boneless leg of lamb, well-trimmed and cut into 1″ cubes
2 T ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground sweet paprika
1 T dried lemon zest
Kosher salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 large zucchini, cut into 1″ cubes
Lemon pepper
Garlic powder
1 C couscous
1 1/2 C chicken broth
1/2 C pistachios, shelled, roasted and coarsely chopped
1/2 C dates, chopped
For the lamb: Mix together the cinnamon, ginger, cumin, coriander, paprika and lemon zest with about 1/4 C olive oil in a large ziploc bag, add the lamb and toss to coat. Press out all the excess air and marinate in the refrigerator for 4 hours or up to overnight. Remove from the fridge before cooking to allow meat to come up to room temperature.
For the zucchini: When you remove the lamb from the fridge to come up to temperature, cut the zucchini into chunks; toss with olive oil to coat, and season to taste with lemon pepper, garlic powder and salt.
Thread alternating chunks of lamb and zucchini onto your skewers while your grill heats up (I use an electric tabletop grill). Grill the skewers, turning as necessary, until they are nicely charred on all sides; the zucchini should be tender, and the lamb should be about medium rare.
Meanwhile, bring the chicken stock to boiling in a medium saucepan; remove from the heat and stir in the couscous (if your dates are particularly dry, you can add them now as well). Allow to sit covered off the heat for about 5 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and stir in the pistachios and a drizzle of olive oil.
Source: Adapted from The Barbeque Hut and Everyday with Rachel Ray.
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06.06.09
Posted in Cuisines, Dinner, Fish, Leftovers, Seafood, Spanish at 12:33 am by julie
We’ve been finding some pretty good deals on wild halibut fillets at Costco recently, and the best part is that the portion size is almost reasonable. I decided to make a romesco sauce to brighten up what could otherwise be a pretty palid meal. I adapted this recipe with what I had available, using a combination of roasted red pepper and rehydrated ancho in place of the piquillos, almonds in place of the hazelnuts, and canned diced tomato. It came out very flavorful, but spicier than I had anticipated, right on the limits of what I can comfortably eat. Granted, what I can comfortably eat is pretty darn mild by many people’s standards, and Jeremy had no problem with it.
We ate about half of the fish for dinner, and the leftovers went into a batch of fishcakes the next night. I broke up the fish, and filled it out with some shredded russet potato, a handful of bread crumbs, and some finely diced red bell pepper for flavor. Then I added an egg and a dollop of mayonnaise as a binder, and seasoned it all with a few tablespoons of leftover romesco and some smoked paprika. While the fish cakes were pan-frying, I quickly whisked together the last little bit of romesco with some mayonnaise for a dipping sauce, and made a basic salad with sherry vinaigrette to continue the Spanish flavors. This was a perfect way to spin a relatively small amount of leftover halibut into a second hearty meal.
Halibut Romesco
9 oz diced canned tomato (or 1 large tomato, roasted and diced)
1/2 C toasted almonds (about 2 1/2 ounces)
1/2 C coarsely chopped drained roasted red pepper
1 dried ancho chile, stemmed and seeded, and rehydrated in hot water, chopped
4 T extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp sherry wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 T unsalted butter
4 6-ounce halibut fillets
1/2 C low-salt chicken broth
Chop nuts in processor; add tomato, peppers, 2 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, paprika, vinegar, salt, and cayenne, then puree. Transfer romesco sauce to bowl. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.
Melt butter with remaining 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add halibut and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side (fish will not be cooked through). Transfer halibut to plate.
Add broth to same skillet and bring to boil; stir in romesco sauce. Add halibut; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until halibut is opaque in center, about 2 minutes. Transfer halibut to plates. Spoon romesco sauce over, and serve.
Source: Adapted from Epicurious.
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04.14.09
Posted in Baby Food, Cuisines, Dinner, Leftovers, Meats, Mexican, Pork and Ham, Sides, Veggies at 3:11 pm by julie
I owe Molly Stevens big-time. Not only did she write a great book about braising, which is one of my very favorite ways to deal with meat, but the woman knows how to make cooked carrots taste great. I myself am no friend of cooked carrots: they get mushy and overly sweet with that same flavor that I dislike in sweet potatoes and squash. The thought of carrots cooked with brown sugar or ginger gives me the shivers, just a little bit. But I trust Molly with carrots because the glazed ones that accompany her Zinfandel-braised pot roast were a revelation to me: very savory with only a trace of sweetness, cooked to the perfect degree of doneness between crunch and mush. So I decided to break into a fresh jar of ground ancho from Penzey’s, and give this recipe a try. It came together quickly, even though I used full-sized carrots split down to baby carrot size, and the honey and spices hit just the right balance with the natural sweetness of the carrots. I do admit that I left out the jalapeño, and my tongue thanks me.
To go along with this vaguely Tex-mex recipe, I decided a batch of scallion-sour cream corn muffins was in order. Turned out I didn’t have quite enough sour cream, so I snuck some of Nolan’s cream-top plain yogurt in to make up the difference. These were pretty good basic muffins, though I personally prefer to slather my warm cornbread with butter and honey, and couldn’t bring myself to do it thanks to the green onions. Nolan was a big fan of the entire meal, but he particularly liked the muffins. The next day I started breaking one up into bite-sized pieces for him at lunchtime and had to run out of the room for a moment to help Jeremy; when I came back not 30 seconds later, Nolan had ditched the little bites and was happily noshing on the entire muffin like a big boy, buried in crumbs. Now I just break them into halves or quarters for him instead.
We also got some pretty fantastic leftovers out of the pork, which was good because there was just over a whole tenderloin left. I made my homemade tortillas, upping the quantity slightly because we go through them pretty quickly; sauteed some peppers and onions; and added thin slices of pork just to heat it through. Add some cheese, sour cream, what have you, and you’ve got some darn good pork fajitas. I should also note that Penzey’s is really onto something with those little samples they send along with their online orders. It can be a little hard to imagine how a particular spice blend will smell and taste over the internet, and those samples really help. I find myself reaching for the sample jar of southwestern spices almost every time I make Mexican food now, and I strongly suspect that when I run out, I will be adding it to the next order.
Spice-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Carrots
Please note that I adjusted the cooking method on the carrots here, due to timing and a few cautionary reviews about mushy carrots.
1 pound carrots, peeled, halved or quartered, cut into 5″ sections
2 T water
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 T butter, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp ancho chile powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp coarse kosher salt
2 1-to 1 1/4-pound pork tenderloins
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ancho chile powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp coarse kosher salt
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
For carrots: Arrange carrots on a large rimmed baking sheet. Whisk water and all remaining ingredients in small bowl; pour over carrots and toss to coat. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Toss to coat before continuing.
For pork: Preheat oven to 400°F. Roast carrot mixture for about 10 minutes while cooking off the pork. Meanwhile, stir oregano, cumin, chile powder, smoked paprika, and 1 teaspoon coarse salt in small bowl; rub mixture all over tenderloins. Heat oil in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork to skillet and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes.
Remove tray from oven and place pork with the carrots in a single layer around it. Roast uncovered until instant-read thermometer inserted into center of pork registers 145°F, stirring carrots occasionally if beginning to caramelize, about 18 minutes. Remove pork from the oven and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes; meanwhile, check carrots for doneness and return to the oven while the meat rests if not yet tender.
Transfer pork to work surface. Cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Arrange carrots on platter. Top with pork slices, drizzling any pan juices over.
Source: Slightly adapted from Epicurious.
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04.08.09
Posted in Dinner, Leftovers, Pastas, Seafood, Shellfish at 11:51 pm by julie
While my mom was in town for Nolan’s birthday, my aunt and uncle invited us to stay the night at the beach house they have spent the past five years renovating in Rockaway Beach. Jeremy stayed behind and had some much-needed baby-free time, I got to go farther away from Salem than I have in well over a year, and Nolan got to spend the night away from home for the first time. My aunt and uncle have a crabbing license, so they hauled out their crab pot and we took a stab at catching some fresh Dungeness. The tides weren’t with us, and it was a little cool out for the baby, so we only spent 45 minutes or so at it. In the end, we purchased two freshly caught crabs from a fishmonger at the beach, and shared half a crab cracked and dipped in butter. Nolan, the boy who ate everything, liked it almost as much as his great-aunt Stacy’s home-canned pears. The rest of the crab came home with me, and I used it in a quick, creamy pasta dish made with leftover spinach lasagna noodles.
I highly recommend having a crab cracker to shell your Dungeness crab if you don’t buy it in lump form. (Mine is called Jeremy.) Once the crab was de-shelled, this meal came together in a flash since most of it was already cooked. I had tons of lasagna noodles left from my Daring Bakers challenge, even after eating some of them for lunches simply dressed with leftover ragu and Parmesan. For this dish, I just ran a knife through them to make ribbons that I would call maltagliatelle—they were pretty ugly looking. (Real maltagliatelle is sort of triangular in shape, but it means bady cut pasta.) The original recipe called for shallot and dill, which I didn’t have on hand, but it sounds lovely.
Creamy Crab Pasta
1 lb fresh spinach pasta, cut into tagliatelle
1/2 lb lump dungeness crabmeat
1/4 C shallot, minced (I substituted onion)
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 T butter
2 C heavy whipping cream
1/4 C white wine
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly grated
1 pinch cayenne
Fresh dill weed, chopped
1/4 C parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Cook the pasta just until done in salted water (if fresh, it should only take a few minutes), then drain and set aside. (Mine was cooked previously for the lasagna, so I just removed it from the fridge and cut it in ribbons.)
Saute the shallots (or onion) and garlic in the butter over med-low heat until softened, about 1 to 2 minutes. Increase heat to high and add the heavy cream and boil to reduce for 1 minute. Add the white wine, sugar, salt and pepper, and pinch of cayenne and reduce heat to low heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes more.
Add the crabmeat, pasta, and Parmesan cheese and gently toss together until the noodles and crab warm up and marry with the sauce. Transfer to a serving platter and sprinkle with fresh dill and extra Parmesan.
Source: Adapted from RecipeZaar.
(Nolan’s first visit to the beach. In true Oregon fashion, it was cool and misting, but he fell asleep in the stroller before we even got there.)
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03.13.09
Posted in Baby Food, Cuisines, Dinner, Fish, Italian, Leftovers, Pastas, Seafood, Soups at 10:16 pm by julie
It is pretty much a given that, living in the Pacific Northwest, we eat a lot of salmon. Even this time of year, when there isn’t anything available in the stores except farm-raised, color-added salmon, we can only go so long before giving in and buying some, usually in enormous fillet form from Costco. Nolan loves salmon, and for the most part it makes for a quick-fix dinner, both marks in the plus column for us. So this post is a melange of salmon recipes we’ve made in the past month or two, with a big finale to keep you tuned in.
This was an easy miso-glazed salmon, based on this recipe from Cooking Light. It was tasty, but quite a bit sweeter than I had anticipated, so if I make it again, I will definitely hold back on the brown sugar, or maybe add a balancing acidic component.
The next recipe, for poached salmon with a creamy mustard sauce, was a greater success, although it might not be as pretty to look at. I adapted the easy sauce to my ingredients with great success: shallots for green onions, and a good dose of dried dill added in because it sounded good to me.
I used the remaining salmon the next day to make a chowder that was, frankly, so good I’m tempted to make the poached salmon again just for the leftovers. It was completely improvised, but here is the gist of what I did: I chopped and sauteed two handfuls of onions with some garlic, and then added 1/4 C white wine and 2 cups of water mixed with a teaspoon each of Better Than Bouillon chicken and clam base (mostly because I was running out of the chicken base). I chunked up some red potato and boiled that in the broth for 10 minutes or so, until it was tender, and used a masher to smush them a little and thicken the sauce while still leaving lots of chunks for texture. I wanted to underline the flavors of the original meal, so I added a cup of cream, threw in some dill, a teaspoon or two of mustard, and then broke up the leftover salmon into the chowder, sauce and all. It was fantastic, and stretched the salmon out for an extra day or two.
This was a smoky salmon bisque I made last week when I had about 3/4 lb of salmon scraps leftover from another meal. I wanted to try something new, so I adapted a recipe for smoked salmon bisque. I had to leave out the cilantro and leek and use rehydrated wild mushrooms; I used homemade shrimp stock and only fresh salmon, injecting a smoky flavor with smoked salt and a bit of smoked Spanish paprika instead. It turned out alright, but I think the main problem is just that I don’t actually care for seafood bisques all that much, no matter how much I tell myself otherwise. There is something about pureeing fish that just doesn’t sit right with me. I left my bisque on the chunky side, but the texture still bothered me because it seemed gritty. It did taste good, though, and I served it with homemade Parmesan focaccia, which made Jeremy’s day.
The focaccia used an olive oil dough recipe from Artisan Bread Baking in 5 Minutes a Day. I topped it with fleur de sel, coarse pepper, sprinkles of thyme and garlic powder, and freshly grated Parmesan, plus a generous drizzle of olive oil. I was able to make two focaccias and a large pizza with the dough over several days, all of which were very tasty and prompted me to immediately make another batch of dough.
You may be picking up on the pattern here: I tend to pick out really easy salmon recipes with just a few ingredients, and use any leftovers for some sort of chowder. It fits the bill on most occasions, but I wanted to make something more interesting this time. I started looking into Italian recipes to marry with the focaccia, and a unique recipe for salmon cannelloni in a lemon cream sauce. Rather than using fresh pasta wrapped around ground meat, this recipe calls for homemade crespelle (Italian crepes, essentially) wrapped around narrow strips of salmon fillet. I was a little skeptical, but it suited my needs, and I had nearly all the ingredients for it on hand, so I gave it a shot.
I’ve made crepes before and they don’t pose too much of a problem. For these, I used dried dill instead of the tarragon called for, purely from personal preference: we aren’t big on licorice-y flavors. The recipe called for a 10″ nonstick skillet, though, and I have just 8″ and 12″ ones, so I slightly adapted the method of spreading the batter. Rather than pouring in too much, swirling the pan, and pouring off the excess, I used my 12″ skillet, poured batter into a 1/4 C measuring cup then into the hot skillet, and gently used the back of the cup to spread the batter, using the lightest touch I could and stopping the moment I felt it start to set up. I was quite pleased with the size and thickness of the resulting crespelle. Nolan thought they weren’t half-bad, and the little one I made for him and tore up into bite-sized pieces kept him occupied while I continued working.
I made some minor adjustments to the lemon cream sauce, and in place of the shallot butter, I took advantage of a lone leek, sautéing it with a little butter and garlic. It ended up being a bit skimpy for me, so I’ve adjusted the recipe to call for 2 leeks instead. Nolan did great watching me run around the kitchen working…until I had to stand still and wrap up the cannellonis, then he decided he was dome being patient. I had just enough time to grate some fresh Parmesan over the dish and shove it in the oven before his tantrum picked up steam.
These were delicious, and one of the most impressive looking meals I’ve made in quite some time—it would be a good one to make for guests.
Salmon Cannelloni with Dill Crespelle and Lemon Cream
For crespelle:
2 large eggs
2/3 C water
1/2 C all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried dill
3 T unsalted butter, melted
For sauce:
2 T unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 T all-purpose flour
1 (8-ounce) bottle clam juice
1/6 C water
1/6 C lemon juice
1/3 C heavy cream
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
For salmon cannelloni:
1 T unsalted butter
2 medium leeks, rinsed and chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
6 pieces salmon fillet (about 1×1x8), skin and little bones discarded
Parmesan cheese
Blend together eggs, water, flour, dill and salt in a blender until smooth. Lightly brush a 10- or 12-inch nonstick skillet with a film of melted butter and heat over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Ladle about 1/4 cup batter into skillet, tilting and rotating skillet to coat bottom, or use the back of the measuring cup to very gently spread batter. (If batter sets before skillet is coated, reduce heat slightly for next crespella.) Cook until just set and underside is lightly browned, about 30 seconds, then invert crespella onto a clean kitchen towel in one layer to cool. (It will be cooked on one side only.) Make 5 more crespelle with remaining batter in same manner, brushing skillet with butter as needed and transferring to towel as cooked, arranging them in one layer.
Heat butter in a 1- to 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat until foam subsides. Add flour and cook, whisking, 2 minutes. Add clam juice, water and lemon juice in a slow stream, whisking, then bring to a boil, whisking. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Stir in cream, zest, and pepper, then remove from heat.
In a small skillet over medium heat, melt 1 T butter and saute leek and garlic until softened. Season with salt and pepper, remove from heat and set aside.
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 425°F. Butter a 13- by 9-inch or other 3-quart glass or ceramic baking dish and spread half of sauce in dish.
Put 1 crespella, pale side down, on a work surface. Spread a layer of leek in a line across the center of the crespella, cover it with a salmon fillet, season fish lightly with salt and pepper, and fold crespella around salmon, leaving ends open. Transfer to baking dish, arranging, seam side down, in sauce. Make 5 more cannelloni with remaining salmon and crespelle in same manner, arranging in baking dish. Spoon remaining sauce over cannelloni. Grate a light layer of Parmesan cheese over the surface of the crespelle.
Bake until salmon is just cooked through, sauce is bubbling, and Parmesan is beginning to brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Allow to settle for several minutes before serving.
Source: Adapted from Epicurious.
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