Amuse Bouche

Beluga (black) Lentils - Poor man's caviar

Just look at that pile of little black pearls under that barramundi.  Are they not gorgeous?

I had picked up a bag of these black beluga lentils at Trader Joe's a few weeks ago and they have been hanging around in my pantry waiting to make their debut. I put them right on the front of the shelf at eye level so that I wouldn't forget that I had them, incidentally they taunted me each time I walked past the glass doors. I thought these might make a great introduction to lentils around here as they were quick to use because they are already cooked.  I am never sure about getting lentils to the exact consistency so they maintain their shape and pop in the mouth without getting all mushy in the pan. I'm far better wih pea soup where you cook the crap out of the split peas just so they make a lovely mush.

These lovely, little pearls however are a whole different story.  They literally pop in your mouth almost exactly like little pearls of caviar.  They taste earthy, without being overwhelming, and they are a great vehicle for other flavours.  These lentils are from Syria and like all lentils, they only lack one of the essential amino acids methionine which can be provided by adding a grain or a nut in order to make it a complete source of amino acids. 

There was the big question of what I would do with them until Saturday night.  I needed a side for my Barramundi filet and I started tearing through the fridge for ideas.

I had a bit of guanciale left over so I chopped that fine and sauteed it until the pieces were crispy.  Pull them from the pan with a slotted spoon and let them hang out on a paper towel.
Then I tossed in a few slices of red onion diced small and sauteed them gently until they were translucent. I minced a garlic clove fine and tossed that in as well. There were a few crimini left over from a stir fry so they were sliced up and tossed in.  Now the package of lentils tells you to boil water and drop in the whole package to warm the lentils.  I couldn't be bothered.  I tipped them in with the onions and mushrooms, seasoned everything with salt an pepper and when they were heated through I turned off the heat an drizzled on some good extra virgin olive oil and tossed on the reserved guanciale.

These gems are really worth seeking out and trying.  Please, report back on any other ways you might have used these.  I would love to work them into my regular dish rotation.

Chicken Tandoor with Butter Sauce and Bengali style mixed veg

My first attempt at chicken Tandoori without a Tandoor and without the food colouring. 
My oven may not hit 900F, but I did get it to a respectable 550F according to Taylor.
Verdict?
Amazingly good, easy to do, will be repeated.
The side dish was purple carrots, potatoes and peas cooked dry with cumin seeds.  Seriously good.
Both of these are going straight into rotation.
Recipe coming later in the extended post.

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

You seriously wish you had smell-o-vision at this moment.

My cherry plum tomato plants decided to give up their harvest in one fell swoop.  Following along Kalyn's idea I roasted away.

Cut in half, tossed with EVOO, fresh rosemary and oregano and roasted in a low, low oven for 5 hours, skins pulled off, these are officially tomato candy, tomato leather, tomato heaven, essence of tomato.  Frozen for later delectation when the winds blow and the snow is knee high to a beagle's ear.

I urge you to try it.

Potato and Leek braise

Last night in my Kitchen basics class at create a cook we were working on moist heat cooking.
We made a Cajun Maque Choux stew with chicken and sausage and a steamed Sticky Toffee pudding for dessert but the surprise hit of the night was a vegetable dish I'd adapted from the wonderful book All About Braising by Molly Stevens.  Parents wandered in to pick up their kids and they were stunned to find them scarfing down a vegetable dish rather than the sweet brown sugar coated dessert in front of them.

This really is a very simple dish to make, a few minutes prep and then bung it into the oven for an hour and a half. It also incorporates one of my favourite vegetables, the leek.  I think many people ignore using leeks because they really aren't sure what to do with them.  One of my favourite methods to treat leeks is over here, but I am sure this recipe is going to soon become a favourite in this house as well.

Heat your oven to 325.
Heat up some chicken stock until just before it boils.
Cut the leek where the pale green meets the dark green tops.  Discard the tops or save them for stock. Run your knife gently down the length of the leek through 1 layer and peel and discard that outer layer.  Slice the leek into 3 inch lengths.  Take each 3 inch piece and slice through it lengthwise.  Lay each half down and cut half moons about a half of an inch wide.

Scatter all of these pieces in a bowl filled with cold water and slosh them around.  Lift out the pieces of leek leaving any sand or grit behind in the bottom of the bowl. 

Toss the leeks into a baking dish.

Peel a potato, Yukon gold preferred, but not required.  Cut the potato into half inch chunks.  Toss these in with with the leeks.

Grab a few thyme sprigs and holding them over the potato and leeks, strip off the tiny leaves by running your thumb and forefinger up the sprig against the leaves.  Don't worry if you get a few bits of stem in there as long as they are then tender tops of the sprig and not the tough woody bottoms.  Make sure you have at least 2 teaspoons of thyme leaves scattered about.

Season everything generously with kosher salt and back pepper.

Dot the top with 1 - 2 TBS of butter, unsalted preferred, but again not required.

Now depending on how much volume you have of potato and leeks, add about 5 ounces of chicken stock per 3/4 pound potato.  You just want some liquid in the baking dish, the vegetables will not be covered just gently swimming in a little puddle.

Cover your baking dish tightly with foil and toss it in the oven.

After an hour and a half, take off the foil and add a splash of cream to the baking dish, if the dish looks very dry, add a tiny bit more chicken stock.  Put it back in the oven, uncovered for another 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, check that the potato can be gently pierced with a knife.  If the potato are done, take it out, give it a little stir and serve.

Smoky Corn Chowder

Ahhhhh corn season.  That time of the year for those of us living in an urban environ to wake early and race to the farmer's market as SOON as it opens lest we be left with the poor pickin's.
When I grew up my Grandma had a huge garden and I was always instructed to "not pick the corn until the water was boiling", but as we all know, unless you have 40 acres or a really good sunny yard with nary a raccoon in sight you too will have to get your corn the same way as the rest of us.
Frozen from the Green Giant, trucked in from Florida or Californian or from your local farm or farmer's market. 

When I arrived at the Waltham market at 10:00 on a gorgeous, breezy, and cool Saturday morning toting my grandmother's harvest basket and some green in my wallet, it was obvious that this was not a good year for corn.  There were barely two baskets worth on the table and people were standing like linebackers hunched over as much space as they could occupy, ripping each ear open and in most cases, discarding them to the side with a hearty huff or tssssk. I sidled alongside and began my single minded pursuit of obtaining 6 ears of corn. Hopefully not worm eaten, not with kernels the size of cow corn, and certainly not shucked on site and shoved in a bag.  I quickly tore down the husk an inch or two on a few ears and noticed that the top inch of most of this corn hadn't formed any kernels or perhaps a few scattered on the top, but these certainly weren't stellar examples.  This Spring must have done a real number on corn farmers.  I know of many whose first planting simply rotted in the ground and they had to waste time waiting for the ground to dry out before they could plant a second round.  This meant a shorter growing season.  Perhaps more glorious corn is to come a little later, but for now I laid 6 of the most perfect ears that I could find in my basket.  I stopped at a few more stands and picked up some green beans and fingerlings for later in the week.

As I wandered back to my truck I started debating what I would make tonight.  Husband would be having his version of tuna salad which is more like a composed variation of a Nicoise with no dressing, not even a drop of lemon juice or extra virgin, no thanks. While on my other errands I gathered two poblano chilies and some crema from the Spanish markets.  Each time I got back in the truck the smell of the corn would taunt me so I decided than and there that I would make some sort of corn chowder.

In the end I lit the grill and started the poblano roasting.  Then I took each ear of corn, tore the husk down, but not off, cleaned out the silk and pulled the husk back up and dabbed some butter on each ear.  I laid these on the grill, with the poblano and a few slices of vidalia onion, and kept turning them as the husks roasted and imparted a smoky smell and the corn heated inside.  I pulled them off the heat, let them cool and sliced the kernels off each cob, going back over the cob a second time with the back of my knife to let out the milk on each cob.  I peeled and seeded the poblano and sliced it into strips and then across into small chunks.

During my journey, I had stopped at John Dewar and picked up a gorgeous chunk of pancetta.  I chopped the pancetta into chunks and rendered it in a pan.  When they were crisp I pulled them to a paper towel and tossed in the grilled vidalia, a few cloves of pan roasted garlic and sauteed it until it was translucent, then I sprinkled on 2 TBS of flour and stirred it for a minute.  In another pan I had heated some cream, some milk and a little chicken stock.  This was poured over the roux in the pan and stirred scraping up any bits.  Once this got thick I tossed in the grilled corn and the roasted poblano and stirred until it became thick. Some smoked salt and some pepper.  It cooked for maybe 5 more minutes and then into a bowl it went, topped with a scoop of crema (to guild the lily), sprinkled with some reserved corn and the crisp pancetta.

That was some seriously good chowder.  The corn had picked up some smoky flavour and the poblano gave it the right kick of heat, the corn was so sweet and so fresh everything stood out on its own, but worked so well together.  Next time I may even replace the pancetta with chorizo to make it even more Mexican. However it happens, this chowder will be a definite repeat.

Potstickers (Vegetarian and Carnivorous)

I love potstickers. 

They are ravioli under another guise.
Agnolotti without the cheese. 
Pierogi without the potato.
Shui mai sealed with a kiss.

I imagine if I spent some time wandering through centuries of recipes from various countries every one of them would have a simple dough filled with meat or vegetable filling that are then either fried or steamed. Such a simple way to stretch a small amount of protein or vegetable, perhaps even leftovers into something worthy of its own title and status. 

Sure I have a recipe for dough and yes, I could have spent time making my own potsticker dough and rolling it out ultra thin, making perfect squares to fill, but in the interest of time and keeping 14 year old girls happy and busy we used the perfectly acceptable alternative; store-bought wonton wrappers. 
We didn't even bother pleating the edges.  Nope.  Just filled and folded, filled and folded.
We made a nice dipping sauce of soy, mirin, sesame oil and sliced scallion and cooked both the vegetarian version and the pork version in both the bamboo steamer, on layers of lettuce so they would not stick, as well as in a large frying pan with a lid. Just keep the amount of filling you use to a reasonable amount so they won't burst, perhaps 1 TBS per wrapper and be sure to seal your edges very well.  We used water, but you could also use an egg wash as well.

Again I apologise for the lack of photos here, but these girls were hungry!  As fast as I could get them steamed fried and steamed the plates were cleaned out.

Coming Attractions

Coming Soon:
Aromatic Vegetarian Fried Rice
Mango Chicken
Asian flavoured Eggplant crostini
Asparagus and Coconut Quiche
Thai Meatballs and Peanut Sauce

Been UNBELIEVABLY busy.  Tales coming soon.  Be patient.

IMBB24 - Make it in 30 minutes

It's been quite awhile since I last participated in an Is My Blog Burning (IMBB) event but the intrigue of creating a meal from scratch in 30 minutes really appealed to my crazy lifestyle these days.
Tuesday through Thursday I teach a kids cooking class until 6:30.  By the time my class is cleaned, everything put away and I get home it is about 7:30. 
I will admit to opting for the truly banal some nights, but most weeks I try to plan ahead for the week on Sunday.  I will thaw things out of the freezer, keep a  well stocked pantry and write down a few ideas for things I can make on short notice.  First it keeps the spending down by not buying take-out or stopping at Whole Foods for the quick but expensive piece of $17.00 per pound tuna steak and second it keeps me looking for new dishes to create.

Last weekend husband and I had thawed out the chest freezer in the garage.  When everything was placed back in I realised that we were out of pork tenderloin.  I consider that a crime in this house as it is one of the quickest and most adaptable cuts of meat to cook.  I had to stop in to Costco to pick some items for a catering event and I picked up one of their packages of tenderloins.  These are not marinated, all natural, non injected tenderloins.  The cryo package you see above contains 2 tenderloins.  We only use one and will freeze the other.  At Costco they come 2 packs of two tenderloins each.  My package was $15.14, that works out to $3.75 per meal.  Not too shabby. The bundle of asparagus above was also a Costco grab.  I think it was under $5.00 and we used half of it for dinner and the other half will get used up tonight.

Shall we begin?

A package of baby red potatoes was washed, dumped in a pan and water was added.

 

Some salt was added to the water and I popped a lid on, slightly ajar.  It hit the front right burner and went on. In a small pan I melted butter and using scissors I snipped in a bunch of fresh chives. This went on burner 2.

The grill was warmed up and the oven turned on to 350 with the convection fan on. I snapped the asparagus at their natural point and discarded the woody stems.

They then went on a sheet pan.  I put a bit of extra virgin oil on the bottom, tossed on the asparagus, drizzled on a bit more oil.  Smeared them around the pan, lined them up and sprinkled them with Fleur de Sel salt and cracked black pepper.

The pork was cleaned up of any prevalent silver skin and fat.

I then butterflied it so that it would cook quicker and more evenly as one end always tapers to a thin point.

Then in another small pan I tossed in a few tablespoons of hot red pepper jelly and a few glugs of molasses with a teaspoon of butter.  I heated this until everything melted nicely. mmm Spicy and sweet a favourite combo of mine.

I brushed this on one side of the pork and then sprinkled on a spice mix that I make up and always have a jar of it on-hand in my cupboard.  It's a mix of onion and garlic powder, thyme, oregano, cayenne, black pepper, salt and paprika.

Once the grill was ready and the oven heated, the asparagus went in to the oven and the pork went on the grill.  I brushed the other side of the pork with the pepper molasses jelly and sprinkled on more of the spice mix.

When the potatoes were finished I drained them, tossed them back in the pan and dumped on the chive butter, the cover went back on and these would hold until we were ready to eat.  Any potatoes we don't eat tonight will go in the fridge with he leftover chive butter.  Another night I will cut them and saute them until they are brown with the rest of the chive butter.

 

After about 7 to 8 minutes I opened the oven and shook the asparagus spears around.  Back in to the oven they went.  The pork was flipped and more of the pepper jelly glaze was put on the other side. 5 - 7 minutes later I pulled out the nicely roasted asparagus, I drizzled on a bit more extra virgin and squeezed on a half of a lemon.

Husband set the table and the plates were warmed.  Hot plates/Hot Food:Cold Plates/Cold Food.

After about 15 - 17 minutes total cooking time the pork was cooked to 135 to 140 degrees internal temp.  I removed it to the cutting board to rest. After everything else was plated the pork had rested and I carved it on a slight angle into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick slices.

I drizzled a bit more of the pepper molasses jelly on the pork slices and voila(!) dinner in 30 minutes.

Good Food Fast!!

Tagged with: IMBB24 + 30Minutes

Green Beans with Black mustard seed and garlic - Gujerati sem

This is a very quick and easy way to cook green beans. Whenever I ask husband what he wants as a vegetable with Indian dishes he chooses this. This could be served with any Western food as well. You can adjust the heat with the amount of chilli pepper that you use.
I have used both Haricot Vert as well as regular green beans. They are equally good. This is adapted from a Madhur Jaffrey recipe.

Green beans with Black mustard seed and garlic
Gujerati sem

1 pound (450g) fresh green beans. Trimmed, cut into 1 inch lengths. Blanched in a pan of boiling water for 3 - 4 minutes and then rinsed under cold water.

4 TBS vegetable oil
1 TBS black mustard seeds
4 cloves of garlic peeled and very finely chopped
1/2 - 1 hot, dried red chilli, coarsely crushed in a mortar. (we often use 2 or 3)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
fresh ground black pepper

Put the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is very hot, add the mustard seeds, as soon as they begin to pop, put in the garlic. Stir the garlic until it begins to brown.

Add the crushed chilli pepper and stir. Carefully add the green beans (if they are still damp they will spatter a bit), add the salt and sugar and stir. Put heat on medium-low and cook for 7 or 8 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the black pepper and serve.

The Famous Bonica Carrot Cake

Alright, maybe not world famous, but famous amongst my inner circle. The Bonica's were the family across the street when I was living in Chelmsford. There were 5 kids and Mr and Mrs B and the house was always full of noise and sibling fighting and Mrs B's politics and a whole host of things that were not happening directly across the street at my house of me the only child. I spent a LOT of time there.
I don't remember the first occasion we had this carrot cake, but I still have the recipe written in Karen's school girl handwriting. I've made a few changes to it over the years and I made it recently for the family reunion out in Deerfield.

A perfect excuse to eat your carrots.

Spiced carrot cake with Grand Marnier cream cheese frosting

2 cups of sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups sifted flour
2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp clove
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3 cups of coarsely grated carrots
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup hazelnuts

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F

Grease and flour a 13 X 9 X 2 pan.

Combine sugar, oil and eggs beat at medium speed about 2 mins. Sift and measure the flour, on top of the flour sift on the salt, baking soda and spices. Add this to the liquid batter. Beat at low speed for 1 minute. Add the carrots and nuts.

Pour batter in pan and bake for 1 hour or until done.

Grand Marnier Frosting
2 softened 8 oz. packages of cream cheese (you know the drill, Phili all the way)
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp Orange oil
1 TBS Grand Marnier

Beat Cream cheese with sugar until smooth, add vanilla, orange oil and Grand Marnier.
Frost the cake when it is cool.

Creamed leeks with horseradish

Ew! You're thinking, horseradish and leeks! You couldn't be more wrong. The sweet leeks and cream in this recipe need the tang of the horseradish to give it more depth. This is heavenly with steaks or a roast beef. I would usually have horseradish sauce with a beef roast anyway, so this just wraps a little veggie in with it.

Creamed leeks with horseradish

4 Leeks white and pale green parts
2 TBSunsalted butter
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 TBS horesradish
3 TBS gruyere cheese grated

In a large bowl of cold water fan out the leaves of the leaks and rinse them well until there is no grit. Slice them lengthwise into long strips. In a large skillet heat the butter over moderate heat until the foam begins to subside, add the leeks, patted dry, and toss them to coat them with the butter. Add the broth and the cream, bring the liquid to a boil, and simmer the mixture, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the leeks are very tender. Transfer the leeks with a slotted spatula to a gratin dish. Stir the horseradish into the liquid remaining in the skillet and season the sauce with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce over the leeks, sprinkle it with Gruyère, and broil the leeks under a preheated broiler about 4 inches from the heat for 2 minutes, or until the cheese is golden.

Brussels Sprout Gratin

Husband is a huge fan of Brussel sprouts* as am I and at the Farmer's market this Saturday I couldn't resist buying them still on the stalk. What I found sad were the people coming up to me and asking what they were. When I told one woman that they were Brussel sprouts she said, 'Oh, you mean those things that come in a package at the grocery store.' with a full dead pan expression on her face.
People are too far removed from their food sources. Sad. Anyway, this recipe was one I adapted from a Fine Cooking article. It is rather close to the Creamed Horseradish Leeks that I make and I will put that recipe up as well.

Brussel Sprouts Gratin
3 servings

1 pound Brussel sprouts, stem ends trimmed and outer leaves removed. Cut the sprouts in half through the stem end.
3 TBS unsalted butter, melted
Olive oil
kosher or sea salt and fresh pepper
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated gruyere or emmentaler
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. horseradish

Heat the oven to 425 F. Put the sprouts in a shallow baking dish in one layer. Toss with 1 TBS butter, 1 TBS olive oil and some salt and pepper. Place in the oven to roast and stir them once or twice. This takes 20 - 25 minutes. You want them to be browned a bit and tender when pierced with a knife.
Meanwhile combine the breadcrumbs with the remaining melted butter and a bit more salt and pepper. Add the grated cheese.
Mix the horseradish in with the cream.
When the Brussel sprouts are tender, pour the cream over them and continue baking until the cream thickens a bit approx 5 - 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, turn the broiler on, sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over and press it down a bit into the liquid.
Place under broiler until crust is browned and cheese melted, about 5 minutes.

*I found the sprouts spelled both ways (Brussels Sprouts, Brussel Sprouts) and I'm not sure if both are correct or if one has a more common usage so to mix it up, I've used both.

Chinese Yard Long Beans with Garlic

Every once in a blue moon my local grocery store gets yard long beans. They sell them wrapped up like fresh spagetti in a bundle. Almost all of the recipes I have seen for these beans include some ground pork. I was already making a chicken dish and didn't have any pork in the house so I just omitted it. I will include it here in the recipe and you can decide for yourself whether or not to use it.

Yard Long Beans with Garlic

1 pd (500g) Long Beans, washed and cut into 2" long pieces
1/4 tsp (1ml) salt
1/2 tsp (2ml) sugar
1 TBS (15ml) dark soy sauce
1 TBS (15ml) Chinese RIce Wine like Shaoxing or dry sherry
2 TBS (30ml) water
2 TBS (30ml) peanut or canola oil
2 medium scallion or green onion cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 medium cloves of garlic, minced
2 oz (56g) ground pork

Bring water to boil in a large saucepan. Add the beans and cook for approx 1 minute, drain and rinse with cold water.

IN a small bowl combine the salt, sugar, soy sauce, rice wine.

Heat wok or large saute pan to high and ad the oil. Add the scallion/green onion and the garlic and stir fry for 5 seconds, add the ground pork (if using) and fry for 1 - 2 minutes. Pour the sauce into the pan. add the beans and cook for 2 minutes more until heated.

Artichoke Pate

I was pining to make my favourite summertime sandwich for dinner one night.
I'd purchased tissue paper thin slices of imported Prosciutto.
I had a crusty baguette.
I had a perfect spherical red onion.
I had a small container of soft Buffalo mozzerella.
I had some beautiful green, sediment filled, unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
I had some 30 year old carmel thick Balsamic.

What was missing?
Artichoke Pate.  I had this for the first time when I bought some at the gourmet shop in the airport in Milan as a last minute spend my lire before you leave the country frenzy about 10 years ago.  It was heaven in a very tiny, very expensive jar.  Every once in a while I'll bump into some on a dusty shelf in a gourmet shop. 
As I walked past the jar of marinated artichoke hearts I thought...Why the hell not?

In the food Processor.
Drain the contents of a jar of marinated artichoke hearts, toss them in.
Finely grate a good amount of fresh parmesan.
Drizzle in some very, very good extra virgin olive oil.
Sprinkle on a bit of sea salt or kosher salt.
Grind in a bit of fresh black pepper.

Whirrrrrrr....taste, reason or add more cheese or oil if required...whirrrrrr.

Spread on bread or anything else you can find.

Feel like gilding the lily?  Add some truffle oil as well.......

Mushroom Foraging

I have discovered at our house in Maine that the camp road that leads us in from the main road is lined with glorious fungi. More importantly, expensive fungi that costs me absolutely NOTHING to pick and eat.
I discovered this about 3 years ago (of course we've been at this summer house for 17 years, so obviously I'm a little slow on the uptake) and I plucked some of what I deemed to be edible mushrooms and brought them for identification to 'The Mushroom Lady' at our local Farmer's market. Thankfully for all concerned, I was right! I only pick these two out of the dozens of types I've seen as they are some of the most easiely identified.
The plate on the left are commonly called Lobster mushrooms and the plate on the right are the glorious Chanterelle.
The lobster mushroom is meaty mushroom, meatier in fact than most portabello (Large Crimini).
I bring a basket with me and a small clean paint brush. Since these mushrooms tend to grow in Hemlock woods or pine forests you will need to brush them off before you put them in your basket so they don't get completely messy with needles and some dirt.

After cleaning I chop the Lobster Mushroom and tear the Chanterelle. I saute them in butter in which a bit of minced shallot has been added. I then add a little salt to cause them to extrude their juices, sprinkle in a bit of Sherry or Cognac and then add some heavy or double cream.

Very, very good.

As always though be extremely careful when mushroom hunting and ONLY pick what you know.

More zucchini/courgette solutions

Little did I know whilst I was sauteeing up my zucchini, Imogene over at Cooking with the Mental Office girl was posting up a great list of how to get rid of your zucchini. Who knew about number 11??

Sautéed Zucchini (Courgette)

We hit the Farmer's market in Waltham this morning and one of my treasured finds was a mondo zucchini. In this day and age of baby vegetables it is getting harder and harder to find these big ones, the beasts that lie hidden under a giant zucchini plant leaf until one day you lift one up and BAM(!) a 2 pound zucchini.
My Mom is the person who got me addicted to cooking zucchini this way. Sometimes in the heat of the summer I will make this and have it for dinner with a glass of rose, no sides, no decoration, no sauce, just sautéed zucchini. I consider it better than chocolate cake or candy, really.
Now as big zucchinis go, this one isn't really like some of the mother's we get later in the season. Up in Maine at the farmer's market mom and I always have a laugh. The tiny teeny baby ones will be selling for 1.50 or 2.00 per pound and then we will pick up a beast. The farmer will apologise and say how sorry he is and we could have it for oh, 1 dollar. We keep our faces down, eyes averted, pay our dollar and walk away laughing hysterically. A buck! And the Brit? He wouldn't touch this with a ten foot barge pole.

Sautéed zucchini (Courgette)
Mondo Zucchini, rinsed and cut into discs about 1/2 inch thick.
All-purp flour
salt and freshly ground pepper
paprika
vegetable, canola or olive oil

Mix spices(quantities to your liking) into flour in a wide bowl, cut zucchini disks and wait a few minutes. It will ooze a bit of liquid that helps the flour to adhere.
I tend to use an electric frying pan for this since I can maintain the temp better as well as do a large quantity at once. If you don't have one a good heavy bottomed skillet will do.
I set the skillet between 300 and 350. Add oil. When it gets shimmery hot add the disks.

Each side takes about 8 minutes. You want brown spots and the center of the zucchini to get soft.
Remove the slices and place on a warmed platter. When they are all done I sprinkle them with some sea salt. Mmmmmmm.

Peas with scallion and wine

One of my favourite veggies I wait for each year with great anticipation are the first peas of the season.
Sometimes I just blanch them and toss them with butter, but this is my other favourite way to have them. It works nicely when the peas start to get a bit larger as well.

1 - 2 pounds of shelling peas (believe me you don't end up with much)
2 bunches of spring onions or scallions
1 glass of good white wine
knob of butter

Shell peas. Chop spring onions/scallions including white and green parts.
In a saute pan with a lid melt butter, saute the onions gently until they are getting soft, add peas and wine.
Cover. Simmer for 4 - 8 minutes (less time for smaller, more time for larger).
My gradndmother would have added a handful of shredded lettuce to this as well. I like it without.
Season with salt and pepper.

Baby bok choy stir fry

This is a great quick evening vegetable. You can really mess around and add whatever you like.

3 baby bok choy (washed and separate the leaves)
12 oz. shitake mushrooms
1 large potabello chopped
1 bunch sping onion/scallions chopped (Use white and green parts)
2 inch piece of ginger diced fine
1 - 2 cloves of garlic chopped fine
1 - 2 TBS reduced sodium soy sauce
1 - 2 TBS tamari
splash of rice wine vinegar
sesame oil
hot chili oil
black or white sesame seeds

Chop the leaf part from the stalk of the bok choy. Chop the stalks into 1 inch pieces. Slice the leaves into 1 inch pieces and keep separate. Steam the stalks for 1 - 2 minutes to soften slightly.
Heat wok on high heat. When up to temperature, add sesame oil and some chili oil. Add the bok choy stalks. Stir for 1 minute, add mushrooms and spring onion/scallions, stir for one minute. Add ginger and garlic. Stir for 1 minute add leaves of bok choy and then add the soy sauce and the tamari. Stir until vegetables are coated and mushrooms are cooked. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

*All liquid measurements are based on your taste preferences. Add more of one and less of another if you wish. Sometimes I add some ponzu others some sake. Jest depends on the cooking mood and what I grab from the fridge.

Marlin Italian/Greek style

I picked up a nice piece of Marlin last night and looked through a few recipes on fish for ideas on which way I wanted to lean for flavor. I decided on making this Greek/Italian style dish. I served it with Canneloni beans sauteed with Pancetta and Sage leaves.

Marlin
1 Pd. Marlin Steak
2 TBS. butter
2 cloves garlic minced
Salt and Pepper

Sauce for fish:
1 Tin diced tomatoes (Of course if it is the season, use fresh - right now they are still like baseballs here)
2 cloves garlic minced
1 Tbs. butter
Fresh basil leaves
Juice of half of a lime (or whole depending on taste and how juicy they are)
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Canneloni Beans with Pancetta and Sage leaves
1 tin canneloni beans - rinsed well (if you wish you can use dried but you really need to plan ahead)
8 or 9 fresh sage leaves
3 TBS chicken stock
The pancetta I had on hand was sliced thin so I used about 4 slices, If it is thicker, maybe 2.
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

For Fish:
Preheat oven to 400
Saute the minced garlic in butter until soft, not brown. Using a glass baking dish, drizzle a little bit of olive oil on the bottom, drizzle some of the butter and garlic mixture, place fish on top of this. Salt and Pepper the fish and drizzle remaining butter and garlic on top. Cook for approx 6 - 7 minutes per side. When you flip, salt and pepper the second side.

The sauce:
Saute the minced garlic in butter and a little olive oil until soft, not brown. Add tomatoes, some of the basil leaves cut with scissors of chiffonade with knife, salt and pepper. Cook over medium to medium low heat for 5 - 8 minutes. Shut off heat, add lime juice to taste and add more of the fresh basil leaves. Cover and let it rest while fish cooks.

The beans:
Rinse the beans well. In saute pan, add Olive oil, when hot, toss in 4 of the sage leaves and flip once or twice. Drain on paper towels, these will become crisp. Add Pancetta to pan and saute until crisp, drain on paper towel. Toss the beans into the pan and add chicken stock, 3 sage leaves cut thin with scissors or chopped. Season with salt and pepper.

Plating:

Put fish on plate, top with some of the sauce. Put beans on plate, sprinkle with pancetta, garnish with crispy sage leaves. Drizzle a bit of very good Extra Virgin Olive Oil over entire dish.

Belgian Endives Flemish Style

This is the first time I made this recipe and it will not be the last. Since sweet and sour, bitter and sweet is one of my favourite combos, this was just the thing. You may think the recipe looks fussy, it isn't really once you shove everything in the pot it leaves you free to finish other things.

This comes from a great cookbook called 'Everybody eats well in Belgium Cookbook' by Ruth Van Waerebeek

6 to 8 Belgian Endives, cored
5 TBS unsalted butter, at room temperature
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 TBS confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup water, plus additional if needed
1/2 tsp salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
3 TBS finely chopped fresh parsley for garnish

1. Choose a stainless steel or enameled pot large enough to hold the endives in a single layer (I stacked them and it worked fine). Smear most of the butter on the bottom of the pot. Cut out a round of parchment paper to fit inside, butter the parchment paper on one side and set aside.

2. Arrange the endives in the pot and add the lemon juice, sugar, water, salt and pepper. Cover the endives with the parchment paper, buttered side down. Place a plate on top of the paper and cover the pot with a lid. The paper helps the endive to steam better and the weight of the plate gently presses them down into their own juices. Cook over medium heat until very tender, 30 - 45 minutes. (Tender as butter, my mother says.) Check the water once in a while and add a little more if necessary to avoid burning the endives. Turn the endives over once halfway through the cooking process.

3. Carefully remove the plate and parchment paper. Place the pot uncoverd over high heat and cook to reduce the buttery sauce to a dark syrup. Tuen the endives over as you are doing this to brown and caramalize them on all sides. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve.

Cauliflower mash

In the interest of lowering our carb intake we've stopped having mashed potato and baked potato, but sometimes you just need to have something to create a well in to fill up with gravy, this is the answer.
Very easy and quite adaptable, I'll put some mix in's after basic recipe.

1 head cauliflower. Cleaned of leaves and broken into florets.
Butter
salt
pepper

Don't boil them, they must be steamed otherwise they will be too wet for the consistancy you are looking for. Every cook has their own way of steaming things (microwave, steamer insert, bamboo steamer etc) so just steam the florets until a knife goes in easily.

Toss the florets, knob of butter and salt and pepper into food processor. Whir until mashie consistency. Voila!

Some mix ins:
Roasted garlic
Brie
Parmesan
Boursin
cream cheese
cheddar
goat cheese (chevre)
minced chive

Leeks

I tend to use these often as a bed for grilled chicken or steak. VERY easy and yummy.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or 180C.

Bunch of leeks. All of the white and only an inch or so of the green. Remove the rest.

With a knife put a slit all the way up the outside first layer, peel off and remove. Make an X in the green part where you cut the top off. Fill a large bowl with cold water. Drop in leeks. The cold water should loosen the layers and any accumulated sand should drop to the bottom of the bowl. Rinse.

Slice in half lengthwise.

Using a gratin dish (or similar)drizzle in good olive oil. Drop in leeks and drizzle a bit more on top. Toss leeks to coat. Salt and pepper. Into oven. Checking every 5 - 8 minutes to toss again, cook until leeks are soft and some of the bits are brown and caramalized. usually about 20 minutes or so.

Just like candy. yum.

Sometimes I also add some spring onions (Scallions) as well.