Clare's Cooking Blog

Serves four (but you’ll have leftovers of the pistachio topping).

Bon Appetit published this recipe in its October 2011 issue.  The recipe comes from Chef Daniel Patterson of Coi in San Francisco.  

• 1/2 cup raw unsalted pistachios
• 1 1/2 tsp matcha powder
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp dry breadcrumbs
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, plus more for parchment paper
• 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• sea or other natural salt, freshly ground pepper
• 4 5oz skinless halibut fillets or other firm-fleshed white fish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Scatter pistachios on a small rimmed baking sheet; toast until browned in spots, about 3 minutes.  Let cool.

Grind pistachios, matcha and sugar in a food processor until nuts are coarsely chopped, about 15 seconds.  Add bread crumbs, melted butter and lemon zest.  Process until combined (but not a paste) - about 10 seconds.  Season topping to taste with salt and pepper.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; grease lightly with butter.  Lightly season fish all over with salt and pepper.  Pat the nut mixture evenly on top of each fillet. Place fillets on prepared sheet, and bake until just opaque in center - 8 to 10 minutes.

The disadvantage of cutting the fish into separate fillets before baking is that it’s harder to balance the topping on each piece.  But the advantages are that the fish cooks more evenly and quickly, and that each will reach its customer looking more elegant!  The purpose of the parchment is to make it easier to lift each fillet off the baking sheet and plate it without sticking, breaking, etc ….

If you have to buy more pistachios than the 1/2 cup you need for the topping, I’d recommend toasting the rest as well.  You could use a few as extra garnish, or throw them in with an accompanying vegetable - like green beans - or salad - or just enjoy them in your oatmeal in mornings to come.

Red rice is a relatively new discovery for me - and SUCH a welcome one!  It’s nutty, colorful, flavorful, nutritious … what more could one ask for?  Sometimes it’s just called red rice, sometimes red jasmine rice, and sometimes Red Thai Jasmine Rice.  I’ve found that in our area it’s not so readily available - even Whole Foods doesn’t reliably stock it. I can get it down in Truro at Atlantic Spice Company, and they also do mail order, but rice is heavy, and shipping therefore a bit expensive.  Probably best just to keep a look out, and snap up a couple of bags whenever you find it!

If you do decide to mail order, it might be worth getting some purple sticky rice at the same time (Atlantic Spice stocks this one), along with Red Bhutanese Rice (shorter grain), and Black Forbidden Rice, often from China. Lotus Foods is one company that stocks both of the latter.  All of them really expand the vegetarian repertoire in interesting ways!  

Often you cook the rice first, and then stir fry it up - as in this recipe - with the other ingredients.  Variations on risotto, in some ways, although usually a less creamy final product.  An advantage to cooking this way is that you can cook the rice ahead of time, and then the final preparation takes less than half an hour.

This recipe, as I borrowed it from the New York Times, calls for shrimp.  But it’s not shrimp season up here in Maine, whereas lobsters are plentiful, and relatively inexpensive.  So we’ve been cooking up a couple of shedders, extracting the meat, cutting it up, and using that in lieu of the shrimp.  The lobster holds its own, in texture and flavor.  I wondered about scallops as another alternative - but their more subtle flavor might get a bit lost.

SERVES FOUR AS ONE-DISH MEAL:

• 5 or 6 cups cooked Thai red rice (that’s 1 1/2 or 2 uncooked)
• 2 tablespoons canola, peanut or olive oil
• 8 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut in 1” julienne
• 8 medium or large shrimp (about 6 ounces), peeled, deveined and chopped
• 1 bunch scallions, trimmed, cut in half lengthwise and then into 1” lengths
• 2 tablespoons Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce (NB: high sodium content!)
• 2-4 tablespoons chopped cilantro (or more - how can you ever overdo?)

FOR GARNISH- OPTIONAL:

• cilantro leaves
• thinly sliced cucumber (use the long skinny English kind, or if you have to use the other, cut it in half lengthwise and de-seed it before slicing)
• lime wedges
• scallions

PREPARATION:

Heat wok or large heavy non-stick skillet over medium high heat until drop of water evaporates on contact.  Add the oil, tilt to spread across the pan, and add the carrot and shrimp.*  Stir fry until the shrimp is pink and opaque, about two minutes.  Add the garlic, and stir fry until just golden, 15-30 seconds.  Add the rice.  Stir fry for about two minutes by scooping the rice up, then pressing it into the pan and scooping it up again.  The rice should have a seared taste.  Add the scallions and fish sauce, stir together for half a minute to a minute and transfer to a large bowl. Sprinkle the cilantro over the top, and serve, passing the garnishes of your choice. Each person should squeeze lime juice on to their rice as they eat.

* If using cooked seafood instead of raw shrimp, add it after the garlic rather than before, and fry, stirring, for just about a minute before adding the rice.

If you want to add a salad, one that uses mango, papaya or melon, with cilantro or even mint, and lemon or lime juice in the dressing, would be a good accompaniment.

We were introduced to these Thai Crab Cakes in England.  My sister made them, hors d’oeuvre size, for my mom’s garden party, with their Chili Lime Mayo dip.  Delicious!

On Islesford there’s always freshly frozen crabmeat available in David Thomas’s freezer. He ships seafood all over the country, but if you’re local you just call ahead, and then leave your $16.00 in the freezer when you take your pint container.

We made them lunch size, and ate them with a green salad made interesting with fresh herbs - cilantro, basil and dill - and sliced (local) strawberries, and an olive oil dressing that also used a dash of chili sauce and lime.  Such a good summer lunch, or dinner, come to that ….

THAI CRAB CAKES - Manda’s version

• 1 cup cooked white crabmeat
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 scallions, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley
• 1 egg beaten
• 2 handfuls fresh breadcrumbs
• butter
• cilantro leaves to decorate (optional)

Mix crab, mayo, onion and parsley.  Divide into 16, shape into balls, then dip in egg and coat in breadcrumbs.  Firm up in fridge for 30 minutes.

Heat a knob of butter in a non-stick frying pan.  Fry the cakes in batches until golden.

CHILI LIME MAYO - Manda’s version

• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 lime, juiced and zested
• 2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce

Mix the mayo and lime juice and swirl in the sweet chili sauce.

Top the cakes with a cilantro leaf, and use the chili lime mayo for dipping.

OUR VARIATIONS

• First of all, our crabmeat was raw, not cooked.  The frying until golden cooked it up just fine.
• Second, we went for 8 larger, and flattened them a little so they would cook all the way through.
• Third, the mixture with the raw crabmeat was a little wet, so we added a handful of bread crumbs - fresh - to help the cakes hold together, and then used panko for the coating before frying them.
• Fourth, we were too hungry to wait 30 minutes for them to firm up in the fridge, so 15 minutes in the freezer gave them enough solidity to get them coated and into the pan in one piece, and they held together well.
• Finally, we didn’t have sweet chili sauce, so we used a few drops of hot sauce, and some strawberry balsamic relish that someone had given us.  It tasted great, which leads me to think that any sweet something - red currant jelly, strawberry jam - would add the necessary counterpart to the zap of the chili.  Probably somewhere between a teaspoon and a tablespoon - but taste will tell.

6-8 servings

The Poached Salmon

• 3 cups Chardonnay
• 3 cups water
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 12 juniper berries, crushed (the hardest ingredient to find, but I DID find them at Whole Foods, in the spice section)
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 stem fresh basil
• 3 fronds fennel
• 1 (2 1/2 to 3 pound) salmon fillet, skin on
• olive oil
• 2 lemons, sliced, for garnish
• 1 bunch dill, for garnish, and/or
• thin slices of cucumber, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Put the Chardonnay, water, lemon, peppercorns, juniper berries, bay leaves, basil and 2 of the fennel fronds into a large saucepan.  Put the pan over high heat and bring the liquid to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low and simmer for ten minutes.  Remove from heat, discard fennel and basil, and let the liquid cool.

Line a large pan (a roasting pan, or even a foil pan) with a double layer of foil.  Lay the salmon in, top it with the remaining fennel frond, and pour the poaching liquid over it.  Cover the pan with foil and seal it as tightly as you can.  Place the pan in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.  At 10 minutes, remove the foil and baste the salmon, reseal, and finish poaching (I confess I didn’t do this - the liquid level was high enough that it didn’t seem necessary, and nothing bad happened!).  Remove the pan for the oven, remove the foil and brush the top of the salmon with the poaching liquid to remove any white bits.

When the pan is cool enough, carefully lift the salmon out on the lining foil, and drain off any remaining liquid.  Drain the pan as well, then put the salmon back, brush it with olive oil, cover it with foil again, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours - or even overnight.

To serve, slide the salmon from its foil onto a platter (yes, easier said than done, but possible), fan the lemon slices out along the top and garnish the sides with fronds of dill, thin cucumber slices, or both.  Serve with Dill Dijon whipped cream on the side:

Dill Dijon Whipped Cream:

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 3 teaspoons chopped dill (or more, to taste)
• salt and pepper

Pour the cream into a large bowl and, using an electric mixer on high, beat until soft peaks form.  Add the mustard and continue to beat until it is just blended in (don’t let it get too hard).  Fold in the dill and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Scallop ceviche

This is a great hors d’oeuvre or starter for the summer.  The combination of textures is interesting, and the flavor is tart and sweet and intense.  Serve with tortilla chips - personally I love the blue corn ones, both for the color contrast, and because I harbor the hope that the blue ancestral corn has a lower glycemic index than yellow - American yellow corn has been bred for additional sweetness, which is not necessary, at least in a chip, and not as good for us!

• 1 pound scallops, cut into pieces roughly 1/2 inch cubed
• juice of 2 limes, 3 lemons and 1 orange
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1/2 to 1 tsp soft brown sugar (to balance the flavor of the acid juices)
• pinch of salt
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons fresh coriander (cilantro) rough chopped
• mango, if in season, diced
• avocado, diced if for hors d’oeuvre, sliced if for starter

For an hors d’oeuvre, combine all the ingredients in a ceramic dish or plastic tub (not a metal container).  If you are going to serve as a starter, do the same, BUT don’t include the avocado.  Instead, you’ll serve the ceviche on small plates, artfully decorated with thin slices of avocado!

Make sure that the scallops are fully submerged in the liquid.  Put the container in the fridge for at least 1 hour, and up to 12 hours.  3 to 4 hours is perfect.  The scallop flesh will whiten and become opaque as the citrus juice cooks it. 

Before you serve it, taste the ceviche and adjust the seasonings - does it need a little more hot pepper, sugar or salt?  

Garnish each plate or the bowl with fresh coriander (cilantro) sprigs.

This one is for anyone who loves the ‘southwestern’ combination of cilantro, lime juice and jalapeno pepper.  It’s hard for me to imagine anyone NOT loving it - but I do know there are folk for whom cilantro, just about my favorite herb in the world, doesn’t work….

Dressing

• 4 small green onions (scallions), chopped           
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro                                   
• 1 cup fresh lime juice                                               
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 jalapeno pepper, halved, pith and seeds removed
• 1 tsp salt

Blend dressing ingredients in blender or processor until dressing is as smooth as possible.  Dressing can be prepared one day ahead.

Salad

• 1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels or canned or frozen, thawed                                   
• 1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed, drained                                                          
• 1 medium zucchini, diced                                     
• 1 avocado, peeled, pitted, diced
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced
• 3/4 cup diced red onion 

Combine all ingredients in large bowl.  Toss with enough dressing to season to taste.

• 1 3/4 pounds medium, peeled, deveined cooked shrimp

In a pinch you could buy ready-cooked shrimp.  Better, if you can, to give them two or three minutes in boiling water seasoned with Old Bay Seasoning with their shells still on, and then throw them into cold water to stop them overcooking and make them cool enough to peel.  OR, another good alternative, do the peeling and deveining, and then sauté them in a little olive oil and a sprinkle (1 tsp) of cumin for flavor – again 2 to 3 minutes should be enough.  Add the cooked shrimp to the other ingredients, toss again, and add a little more dressing if needed.

Cover and refrigerate at least 1 and up to 6 hours.

Pasta

• 1 box gemelli or cavatappi or fusilli or rotini pasta.

Cook al dente, drain.

Assembly

In large salad or pasta bowl combine still warm pasta with salad, tossing to mix thoroughly.  Add more dressing to taste.  Garnish with whole shrimp, cilantro sprigs and lime wedges.

**  You can vary this recipe according to what’s available, and it will still be wonderful!  I’ve often done it with quinoa instead of pasta, for instance, and I’ve used different vegetables or peppers without regretting it.

We’ve been experimenting with recipes from Michel Montignac’s “SLIM FOREVER, THE FRENCH WAY” lately.  I begin to understand better why he hasn’t become an American favorite.  Even though his recipes in this book are less obviously French in inspiration, they are still decidedly French in their assumption that you would like to eat three courses for lunch and dinner, and won’t mind spending a couple of hours preparing each meal!  Maybe I’m exaggerating, but not by much.

HOWEVER, this recipe is an exception, and a winner.  The prosciutto wrapped around the cod (or other white fish) is a wonderful blend of textures and tastes - crispy and flaky, mild and sharp.  You could decide on completely different accompanying vegetables, but we used the savoy cabbage, and liked it a lot.  The one change we made to the recipe was to ‘fry up’ the cabbage with its seasonings at the end, so that the flavors had more of a chance to penetrate and blend, and the dish came to the table hotter than Michel planned to serve it.

One final note: Michel adds white wine vinegar to the cabbage.  In no small part, that’s because vinegar slows down the body’s absorption of sugar into the bloodstream - so the addition of vinegar lowers the glycemic index of the dish.  But if you’re focused on just having a tasty dish, and don’t relish the tartness of the vinegar, leave it out, or reduce the amount.

Read more …

Back in action, I hope ….

First, a couple of fish recipes …  beginning with this one, which is an old favorite, but got itself a new twist when I made it again recently.  Like the green lentil soup, it’s very simple, but full of flavor, and interest.

Why the new twist?  Because it calls for black beans, and couldn’t properly call itself Caribbean without them, but Miklos doesn’t much like black beans.  He wanted to use cannellini instead, but cannellini to me read Tuscan, not Caribbean ….  So, in the spirit of compromise, we used both, with really good results. The cannellini just blend into the background, and add body, while the black beans add their color and flavor.  And they’re distinctive enough that anyone who REALLY doesn’t want to eat them can leave them behind in the bowl!

Read more …