Fruit

Blueberry and Artic Char Tartare

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The dog days of Texas’ summer are rough. Texans are now virtually either confined to our air conditioned houses or a body of water for the next six to seven months.  In my kitchen, I am noticing a trend towards raw, cold, crunchy dishes to offset the sweat I worked up walking from my car to the front door. Apart from the eggs the kiddos are cooking on the concrete, I really do not have much of a desire to be near my stove or oven for very long. This Tartare uses Arctic Char,  quite similar to salmon boasting a nice firm texture and is a bit more mild salmon taste. It also generally comes with a cheaper price Fresh Wild Coho Salmon (which is the only Salmon you should buy in stores). I picked some up because it was beautiful and the Coho was a little less than stellar that day. I needed to use up some fruit, green onion, and avocado. Given my love of all things raw, it really is not shocking that I threw fruit together with fish (particularly since I routinely eat salmon with apples and kale). This salad is light, refreshing, healthy, full of antioxidants, and – most importantly – stove-free.  I served this with Kale Avocado Salad and was a supremely happy and sweat-free girl.

Blueberry and Artic Char Tartare 

Serves One (or two smaller portions)

Four ounces Fresh Arctic Char, skinned and cut into dice
Half cup blueberries
One cup papaya, cut into small dice
One quarter avocado, cut into dice
Two green onions, diced
Two tablespoons Lars Crispy Onions
One tablespoon Ginger People Ginger Lime Sauce
Juice of One-Half Lime or Lemon
Pinch of Salt

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Adjust sauce and seasoning according to taste preference and serve immediately.

Red Wine Spritzer

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Can you think of something better than a lovely glass of red wine or champagne? Besides winning the lottery, I am stumped. So can you imagine the euphoria of mixing the two? Quite stellar. This adult-swim concoction is the wonderful by-product of Red-Wine Soaked Strawberries and Brinner Brunch. It was superb and I plan to make this every time I have a reason to make dessert (or maybe just a cocktail). Salud!

Red Wine Spritzer

Fill have a champagne flute with the strained liquid from the strawberries. Then pour champagne to fill. Feel free to add some fresh basil or mint and enjoy!

 

Apple-Avocado Relish

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I wanted to top a spicy pulled pork dish with something crisp, bright, sweet and acidic. After looking through my fridge, I had my solution. You can whip this up in no time to had contrast to tons of things!

Apple-Avocado Relish

One green apple, cut into small dice
Three-Fourths avocado, diced
Six green onions, small dice
Pinch of Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Fresh squeezed lemon juice, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Voila!

Meaty Porcini Marinara

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This week’s cooking spree continued with homemade “meaty marinara.” I call it this because marinara is traditionally a tomato sauce and a Bolognese is a meaty version of marinara in a round-about-way. But, to the dismay of Italian cooks everywhere, I made a bastardized version of both and have chosen to call it meaty marinara. It was my first ever attempt at making either marinara (not surprising since I do not eat marinara) or meat sauce, and it was really – ummm -incredible. This accompanied turkey and arugula pizza pockets, but it would be wonderful tossed with fresh pasta and a bit of cheese, tossed with gnocchi, or made into a pizza sauce. If you choose to use Porcini, you will need to be dried as they only grow in Italy and must be imported. You can either grind them or you can reconstitute them in liquid before adding them to the sauce. This is a great sauce to make and then let hang out on the stove whilst you turn your attention to something else. Additionally, it gets better the longer it sits and this includes fridge time. Make a big batch and freeze it or use it to make three different dishes over a three or four day span.

I fear I must apologize as this “recipe” was concocted in true Andiland style. I threw stuff in a pan (without measuring as always) and then adjusted as necessary. The measurements I provide below are guesses at best, feel free to adjust to your preferences.

Note: I did not add celery to my Soffrito, only garlic, onions, and carrot. I did use celery seed in the sauce as a replacement. You can use whichever you like.

Meaty Porcini Marinara

Two slices Bacon
1/3 pound of Hot Italian Pork Sausage (bulk)
Four Large Shallots, sliced
12 Cloves Garlic, whole and slightly crushed (skin removed)
3/4 Tube of Good Quality Tomato Paste
Two Tablespoons Butter
Red Wine (I used a Malbec), about a half a cup
Beef Broth, about 2 and a half cups
Chicken Broth, about a half cup (this was added to thin the sauce out some and is optional)
About a quarter cup of porcini mushrooms, either ground or reconstituted
Three tablespoons Herbs de Provence and Italian Seasoning, split
A couple good pinches of salt
Three tablespoons black pepper
One large carrot, diced
One tablespoon celery seed (or a few stalks of celery cut into large dice)
One tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes (adjust according to preferences)
12 campari tomatoes on the vine, halved and gently squeezed of seeds
Fresh torn basil for garnish

In a large dutch oven, heat a couple glugs of olive oil over a medium heat high. Once fat is smoking, add bacon (or its porky sub) and all to crisp. Then add hot Italian sausage and brown slightly. Push meat to the side and add the soffrito (carrot, onion, garlic, celery seed) with a touch of salt. Once the onions turn glassy, add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, HDP and Italian Seasoning, Crushed Red Pepper, Tomato Paste, Ground Mushroom, and give a good stir to mix everything well. Then add in wine and broth (in 1:2 ratio), reduce heat and cover. Allow to simmer for a few hours (I cooked it for about four hours). Adjust seasoning as necessary. Once you are ready to serve, use an immersion blender to partially puree the mixture. Top with basil and serve or reserve for use with pasta else.

A few ideas of uses for this sauce:

Dipping Sauce for Pizza Pockets
Sauce for pasta and veggies
Lasagnameat sauce
Served individually with a little bit of cheese and fresh basil
Pizza sauce

Seared Scallop with Sweet Corn Puree and Avocado-Watermelon Relish

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With the week off of work, I really should be gracing the gym with my presence for seven hours a day. Instead, I am cooking amazingness and not helping my clothes fit better. This lovely little plate of pure delight was my lunch yesterday. Yes, I spoiled myself and it was incredible. The summer melon and corn sing sweetly and are the perfect complement to the subtly sweet scallop. The jalapeno gives it that little kick that takes your mind away from the sweetness and the avocado lends a richness and all together…well…you know where this goes. It was fantastic; a light, crisp, perfect lunch. I wish I could cook lunch at home every day! If you have the time to make fried leeks or fried shallots, I would highly suggest it so that you have a nice textural contrast. Though I made this for lunch, it would be a perfect dinner as well. From start to finish it takes about 15 minutes or less (less if the puree has been made in advance).

Note: Scallops can be tricky to cook – you want to make sure that they are translucent inside (without ever looking inside) so that they are not rubbery. They are sensitive to different stove tops, different pan types and obtaining the perfect sear can be difficult with too much or too little oil or butter. As you can tell from the picture, my scallops this time were almost perfectly cooked. They were perfect inside, but I did not achieve the nice sear I was looking for. I was a bit heavy handed with the oil.

Seared Scallop with Sweet Corn Puree and Avocado-Watermelon Relish

Serves Two (One scallop per person)

Two U-10 count Scallops, patted very dry
Salt
Pepper
Two inch chunk of watermelon, cut into a rectangle
One-Third of a Jalapeno, Minced
Juice of one-third whole lime
One third avocado, small dice
Small amount of Fried Shallots (optional)
One Third Cup Sweet Corn Puree

Make the Corn Puree first and set aside. Next make the relish by cutting the watermelon and avocado into very small, uniform dice. When cutting the avocado, it is easiest to cut it in the skin then remove all at once with a large spoon. Gently toss the watermelon and avocado with the minced jalapeno, salt, fresh cracked pepper, and lime juice. Set aside.

Heat a small amount of oil or butter in a heavy skillet on a high heat. Make sure the scallop’s abductor muscle has been removed and that the scallops have been patted dry. Season each side with salt and pepper. Once the fat is smoking, add the scallops, ensuring that they are not touching. Sear on each side for about a minute and a half (adjust for thinner scallops) then remove and serve promptly.

To assemble the dish, place the desired amount of corn puree on the bottom of a plate or bowl. Top puree with the scallop. Then top everything with the watermelon mixture. If using fried shallots, sprinkle those around the plate (can also use dried onion for a bit of crunch).

Arugula Panzanella Salad

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The only redeeming quality about having 100 plus degree temperatures for forty straight days is knowing it is officially summer. Summer produces tomatoes that are to die for, no pun intended in this heat. Farmers come to market boasting the seasons best attribute – these red globes of sweet, sweet pleasure. Every time I leave the market, I find myself worrying about hurting my precious bounty as if were my own child I were protecting from bruising. Just looking at an heirloom tomato on my kitchen counter makes me want to call off whatever obligations I had and make a plate of food deserving of its glory. This is a lovely way to let summer ingredients shine and satisfy your urge to fill your mouth with one of the best natural flavors on earth – the perfectly ripe, sweet, succulent, juicy tomato. Needless to say summer heirlooms can turn even the most avid tomato-hater into a convert in no time (and if they cannot turn you, I highly suspect that you club baby seals or hate puppies). Kidding aside, I almost missed my work out class on Friday because I could not stop eating this ridiculously amazing salad.

Panzanella is a salad that is quite common throughout Italy. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of versions but it traditionally is a method for using up old bread. If you do not have any day old bread, you can either buy some or omit it (though then the name changes “pane” being Italian for bread). It is perfect for a light dinner or lunch or served as a salad along side a more substantial main or as a stand alone appetizer. I used what I had, but feel free to play around with it and add items like red onions or fresh mozzarella cheese.

Arugula Panzanella Salad

Serves Four

One recipe Simple Arugula Salad
Two or Three large Summer Heirloom tomatoes (gauge number on size of tomato), cut into one inch pieces
Day old Italian Country Bread or similar, cut into half-inch pieces
One tablespoon olive oil (or flavored of choice)
Salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Extra shaved cheese such as Pecorino Romano if desired
Spoonful of Caramelized Onions, minced red onion, or thinly sliced shallot (Optional)

On a baking sheet, combine olive oil and bread and toss to coat. Toast in an oven for about 5 minutes, then toss and continue toasting until the outside is crunchy and the inside remains soft. Whilst the bread is toasting, combine the arugula salad and tomatoes in a large bowl. Gently toss with Salt and Pepper to taste and drizzle just a touch of good olive oil and toss once more. Once bread is toasted, combine into salad mixture and add additional cheese tossing, gently, one more time.  Enjoy the simple pleasure of summer tomatoes and forget about the ridiculous heat for a few minutes!

Beautiful market heirloom

Smoked Tortilla Soup

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You know those days that you just cannot decide what you want to eat? The days when nothing sounds good, but you have 95 percent of the components of four different dishes that desperately need to be used up. Yesterday was one of those days in Andiland. I finally decided that I would get the remaining 3 elements that I needed for a stir fry (basically just needed a protein) and to make tortilla soup, thinking that if I made both I could have the soup for lunch or just freeze it. Fast forward to actually getting home and cooking dinner and I was just too tired to cook both – so soup was on the menu. I have always thought that the name of tortilla soup is funny. For starters, I do not eat tortilla chips with my tortilla soup – at this point does it just become Mexican tomato soup with chicken? I guess tortilla soup stills sounds better. Then you have people claiming to have roasted tortilla soup. What is roasted? The tomatoes? The Chicken? Could be anything or nothing really. Then you have smoked tortilla soup – when can also be chicken or the peppers. In my case I suppose I made Smoked non-tortilla tortilla soup because I used smoked chipotle peppers in adobo. Good enough for me! The beauty of this soup is that it is flavorful, can be adapted any which way, is healthy (go light on the cheese), and can easily be a pantry meal when you cannot get to the store. Additionally, you can make this in 30 minutes or let it slow cook. It is also adaptable for vegetarian diets (leave out the chicken) and has no gluten or dairy (omit cheese) so it can be great for those sensitivities.

Note: I would have rather used fresh, roasted tomatoes but I only had one and a can of fire-roasted crushed tomatoes – so that is what went in. I think I should have used a little less as the end result was a bit too tomatoey (though I could have added more stock – just did not want to make a HUGE portion). Additionally, I used chipotle peppers in adobo as my main source of spice – feel free to use dried chipotle peppers, cayenne, jalapeno, or whatever your pleasure is. I used a little more than half a can, I think I could have used a bit less. The end result was quite spicy and smoky, not necessarily a bad thing as D and I like both elements very much, but cooking for others I would have reduced it.Also, I hate bell peppers. Normally you would put some in a tortilla soup, but given my aversion, I could only manage to put maybe a quarter in (it was pre-diced as well because I cannot stand the smell of bell peppers at any stage of their journey).

Tortilla Soup, Serves 3-4

One can Muir Glen Organic Fire-Roasted Tomatoes (Crushed, Diced, or Whole)
One Medium Tomato, roughly chopped
Four cups chicken broth
One White Onion, diced
Six cloves garlic, minced
Two tablespoons Cumin Seeds
One tablespoon Adobo
Two tablespoons Oregano
One Tablespoon Ground Coriander
One Tablespoon Tumeric powder
One Tablespoon Garlic powder (optional)
Nine Sprigs Fresh Thyme
One cup frozen sweet corn (optional)
One quarter green bell pepper, diced (use more if desired)
One Chicken breast, shredded (pre-cooked or cooked in soup, can also use dark meat with same method)
Juice of one lime
Salt and Pepper to taste

Garnish

Avocado Slices
Chopped Fresh Cilantro
Shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
Fresh Fried Corn Tostadas
Lime Wedges

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a stock pot. Once heated, add the onions, cumin seeds, and garlic to the pan with a pinch of salt. If using chicken, place that in pan as well to brown the outsides.* Stir and allow to cook for a couple of minutes then add all ground spices. Add broth and tomatoes to pan, stir well. Add bell peppers (this should be done with the onions, but I cannot stand the smell of them cooking so I added them to the liquid) and thyme sprigs. Let the mixture simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes – you can actually make this a very quick meal or a slow-cooked meal if you prefer. The flavors will be more developed the longer it cooks so if you have the time to start it and let it sit for about two or three hours that will be fine. After about 30 minutes, add the lime juice and about a half cup to a cup of fresh chopped cilantro. Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a small garnish bowl of avocado, fresh cilantro, a lime wedge, shredded cheese and a freshly fried whole tortilla (heat a small amount of oil in a pan and fry corn tortilla one each side until it bubbles and curls).

*If using pre-cooked chicken, shred and add in about 10 minutes from when you will ladle soup out so that chicken does not over-cook. If using raw chicken, brown on all sides with onions, then allow chicken to slowly cook with the simmering stew (about 40 minutes). Remove from pan and shred if necessary, if using wings, legs, and thighs then remove bones from soup before serving.

Pico de Gallo

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Pico is one of the easiest things to make. I am not sure why anyone buys the store bought stuff – I guess there is an argument for time-savings, but the flavor, cost, and satisfaction is just so much better with homemade (and buying store bought really only saves you about ten minutes). Pico – at its best in the summer with the amazing summer tomatoes – is fast, fresh, healthy, and versatile.

Serves 8

Four large tomatoes, seeded and diced
3/4 to one whole white onion (to taste); small dice
Salt
Pepper
Juice of one to two limes depending on taste
Two Jalapenos, seeded and finely diced
1.5 cups fresh cilantro

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix gently. Flavors will develop more over time or serve immediately. That simple.