Pecan-crusted halibut with dijon cream sauce

This recipe came from my proto-sister-in-law, Merissa, who I’ve blogged about before.

This one is made with halibut, which is normally very expensive, unless you go to Costco. I found this for $10 per pound, a far cry from the $24 per pound I’ve seen at the local market.

Not fishy at all, this dish smells as good as it tastes. Pecans roasting in butter? Dijon whipped with cream? Yum! I made my classic couscous along with it (cook according to directions, except use chicken stock for water and add golden raisins, toasted pine nuts and herbs – this time, I used cilantro. Add the herbs and nuts last. Almonds are also good.).

Ingredients for fish:

1 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp pepper

2 tsp dijon mustard (coarse or regular, who cares?)

2 large eggs

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup breadcrumps, fresh or dry (I always use dry)

Eight 6-oz. halibut fillets (or however much you want to cook, no matter. I used 1 lb. of halibut cut into smaller portions)

2 T butter

Method:

Heat oven at 350. Combine flour, salt, pepper in a shallow bowl. In another bowl, whisk mustard and eggs. In a third bowl, combine bread crumbs and pecans.

Dredge each halibut piece first in the flour mixture, shake, then egg, let drip, then pecan crumbs, pressing to get more pecans to stick. Repeat with all pieces.

Meanwhile, melt 2 T of butter over medium heat (I recommend a nonstick skillet). Add fillets, in batches if you have to, and cook 2 minutes per side, or until lightly browned. Add additional butter, as needed.

When all the fillets are done, place them on a foil-lined baking pan and pop in the oven for 10 minutes or until the fish is pretty firm to the touch and easily flakes.

Now, make the couscous and the cream sauce:

Whisk 1 c. heavy cream with 1/2 c. dijon mustard and a dash of salt and pepper in a small saucepan. Whisk over low heat for three minutes, or until heated.

To serve, put some couscous on the plate, then a fillet of fish, then a few spoonfuls of the sauce. Enjoy, friends!

Asian chicken with basil, chilies and garlic

Healthy, spicy summer weeknight meal

We all know about my obsession with glass noodles. My boyfriend hates them, preferring big, thick, hearty noodles instead. But for this dish, the sauce was so tasty that he had to admit it was fabulous.

I thought up this recipe to use my leftover basil from the pasta al pomodoro.

This dish is SPICY, so adjust the red pepper to your personal tastes. I like spice, but even this made me run for the milk. Also, resist the urge to add salt and pepper – the soy sauce, fish sauce and red pepper flakes render all other seasonings useless. I’ve adapted the recipe from Miss Rachael Ray…it makes about four servings.

Ingredients:

1.5 pounds chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 c. torn fresh basil

8 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 thinly sliced spring onion (or 4 green onions or 1.5 cups yellow onion)

3 T canola oil

1/2 lb. glass noodles, or your favorite noodle or pasta

2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (or just add 1 tsp. and add more later, to taste)

4 tsp. sugar

2 T soy sauce

2 T fish sauce (invest in this – it will last you years)

Method:

In a small bowl, combine 1/2 c. water with fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar and red pepper. Stir and set aside.

Meanwhile, boil a pot of water and add the pasta and cook until just al dente – the glass noodles literally take seconds! Drain and set aside with the lid on to keep warm.

While you boil the pasta water, heat a large, deep skillet over high heat and add the canola oil. Brown the chicken pieces on both sides, then set aside. Reduce the pan to medium and add the chopped onion and then garlic. Saute until softened. Add the chicken back in. Add the sauce and stir to combine. Cook until evenly coated, about 3 minutes. Take off the heat and add the basil, tossing until wilted.

Plate up – serve a bed of noodles, then the chicken mixture. Enjoy, friends!

Pasta al pomodoro

I could probably just Twitter this recipe – it’s that simple:

Saute four cloves of minced garlic with a pinch of pepper flakes in 1 T olive oil. Add a handful of cherry tomatoes (mine were golden) or chopped tomato. When the tomatoes are broken down, toss in the cooked pasta (we used whole-wheat linguine), season to taste and add 1 cup torn basil leaves.

Finish with a dusting of fresh Parm-Reg. Done.

Spiced nectarine cake

I found this recipe the same time I found the strawberry-rhubarb and thyme shortcakes. And I’m happy to say that I’m 2-2 on good recipes! It’s from Bon Appetit, via Epicurious.com. And it is G-O-O-D. Something about it tasted … southern, or something.

I had saved this recipe until nectarines are in season, but then they went on sale at Albertson’s for 99 cents per pound, and I couldn’t resist. The cake sort of has the consistency of a coffee cake, and the cinnamon-spice adds to that similarity. Still, the cake is unlike any I’ve had. It would work well with any stone fruit – plum, peach, pluot, etc.

Ingredients:

1 stick of unsalted butter at room temperature

3/4 c. sugar

2 large eggs

1 T fresh lemon juice (about half a lemon)

1.5 tsp lemon zest (1 lemon)

1 1/4 c. self-rising flour

5 medium nectarines (about 1 3/4 lbs) – I actually only used two – cut into eight slices, or sliced medium. Don’t worry if they are not ripe – I had to carve the pit out of mine and they softened up perfectly once baked.

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

3 T sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter a spring-form 9-inch pan.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until fluffy, then add 3/4 c. sugar until blended. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then lemon juice and zest. Beat in flour until smooth. Spread batter into the prepared pan, you’ll have to help it cover the whole area. It will look too thin, but remember it has self-rising flour.

Arrange nectarine slices on the batter in a pattern (I just spiraled them out until there was no more room on top). Lightly press the slices into the batter.

Mix the cinnamon and remaining sugar and sprinkle it over the top. Bake on a sheet pan until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cut around the cake to loosen and remove the sides.

The cinnamon-sugar will have caramelized on top and your house will smell spicy and delicious. Let the cake cool a bit and serve warm or at room temperature.

I whipped up some sweet cream to serve along with it, but ice cream would also be good. Enjoy, friends!

Strawberry-rhubarb and thyme shortcakes(gah!)

Lemon, thyme, rhubarb, oh my!

Elle and I took a bite, looked at each other and said, “I can’t believe WE made this!”

Strawberry shortcake says summer like a pair of flip-flops and capri pants. That hand-whipped sweet cream is pillowy heaven over the tart strawberries. And the simple shortcake provides an element of stability to the dish.

When I saw this recipe on Baking and Books, I instantly knew that I had to make it. Strawberry and rhubarb are two of my favorite flavor combinations. And the addition of citrus zest and the lemony thyme sounded interesting … I needed to find out how all that worked together.

It.was.awesome. The shortcakes were airy and buttery, even though they had no butter in them. I love the buttermilk in the dough – what a difference it made. And the lemon zest and thyme weren’t so strong that you instantly tasted them. Instead, they were more like another layer of flavor that added to the magic of the dish.

Try these for breakfast with your favorite jam on top!

It was like you could smell the aromatics, but not necessarily get a big bit of them. Perfection.

The rhubarb compote was sweet and soft, too, and the uncooked strawberries stirred in at the end made the textures perfect.

I can’t even bring myself to copy and paste the recipe - just check it out for yourself. The only ingredients I had to buy that I didn’t have on hand were strawberries, rhubarb, self-rising flour, heavy cream and buttermilk.

The Web site is also a good reference because she shows pictures of all the baking steps. That way, you know that the dough is SUPPOSED to look like cottage cheese and no, you didn’t cook that rhubarb too long.

I highly recommend this dish for a Summer Solstice party or Fourth of July. Enjoy, friends!

An open-faced shortcake sandwich

Chicken with rosemary, lemon, garlic and wine, plus pesto potatoes!

Yum-O, y’all! That’s right, this is a Rachael Ray recipe that I first made years ago and then basically forgot about because I moved on to more gourmet things…ha!

But I made it again last night and it got rave reviews. The chicken is roasted, so it is tender, juicy and tangy from the lemony seasonings. And the pesto-smashed potatoes are a nice side dish, even if I did use jarred pesto (hey, it was $2.50 at Trader Joe’s, leave me alone!).

Ready for roasting!

So. For the chicken:

3-4 boneless chicken breasts (or one per person), cut into large chunks (2-3 cuts per breast, depending on size)

1 T grill seasoning (I used McCormick Montreal Steak seasoning)

3 T EVOO

zest and juice of one lemon

1/2 c. dry white wine (try the $4.99 pinot grigio from TJ’s)

4 sprigs of rosemary leaves

3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed

Preheat oven to 450. In a baking dish, add the chicken and coat with the olive oil, grill seasoning, lemon zest, garlic and rosemary.  Now, you can marinate this while you prepare the potatoes or…Roast for 20 minutes. Chicken will be just perfectly done, you can easily cut them with a fork. Pour over the lemon juice and the wine, then place in the hot oven with the heat turned OFF. Leave them in there for 5 minutes, or while you set the table.

For the potatoes:

1-2 lbs. red potatoes, cut in half

salt

1/2 c. chicken stock

1/2 c. store-bought pesto (or you could make it yourself!)

In a pot of boiling water, add a handful of salt. Then, the potatoes. Cook for 10-15 min. or until tender. Drain them and add the stock, then start smashing. Add the pesto and smash to your desired consistency (I like them chunky).

To serve, plate yourself some potatoes and then add the chicken, spooning the juices over everything.

This is a truly yummy dish that is great for entertaining or if some friends suddenly decide to come over. Enjoy, friends!

Family dinners: pot roast

Pot roast is one of those meals that I remember loving when my mom made it growing up. It’s the perfect poor cook’s meal because it’s cheap to make and the yield is high. And if you live with any meat-lovers (hello, boys), this will definitely satisfy them.

I started with my Cook’s Illustrated recipe (sorry, you have to pay to view it), which made sure to write a pot roast recipe that is distinct from beef stew, which has lots of root vegetables. I think that next time, I’ll add more veggies just to beef up the dish even more. CI also has some pot roast recipes with root veggies, which I recommend.

I got my chuck roast at Safeway’s discount meat bin for 30 percent off. I started by searing it with a little S&P and olive oil in my Dutch oven.

Then I let it rest while I cooked some chopped carrots, onion and celery (the trinity). I may have added some garlic in there, but you can basically do whatever you have on hand.

Then, I put the roast back in and filled the Dutch oven with beef and chicken stocks until it reached halfway up the roast. Add a bay leaf, parsley and thyme. I popped it into a 350 degree oven and cooked it for almost four hours, turning it every 30 minutes (now you see why this is a good Sunday night dinner – you need five hours to cook!).

When the meat is done (a knife inserted comes out easily, showing you that the tendons and fat have broken down), take it out to rest while you jazz up the sauce. I added a half a cup of red wine and simmered the liquid until it reduced a bit. Don’t reduce it all the way, you want a lot of gravy. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Finally, I sliced the meat and served it over rosemary mashed red potatoes (that I made during the meat-cooking time) and spooned the sauce over the top.

Enjoy, friends!

New name, same most everything else

Champagne cocktail - yum!

A friend and I dined at 900 Wall last week, the former Merenda Restaurant & Wine Bar. I was so happy they reopened this restaurant because I love the outdoor seating. Makes for great people watching (and vice versa – who wouldn’t notice two blondes eating on a street corner with four glasses of wine in front of them?).

Here’s the view of Wall Street from our table. We live in such a cute town!

Downtown Bend

I have one complaint, residents. If you are going to leave your dog in a hot car for two hours while you have dinner, better not leave that car alarm on. This happened right next to us and this dog was freaking out, barking, whining and set the car alarm off nine times. NINE TIMES! And we just knew the owners were nearby because they kept turning it off. I’ve never been closer to giving the finger in public than when the middle-aged couple returned to their car, in front of a full restaurant staring at them increduously. Whatever, people.

Anyhow. Our overall dining experience was great and definitely expensive (this is relative)…so I won’t be returning for a while (need to save up!). We started with the wine flights. My friend got the chardonnay flight and I got the rose flight. It was fabulous.

Then, we ordered the fritters, which were not risotto fritters as Merenda was famous for. These were potato and chorizo fritters and they were delicious.

Then, of course, we ordered some oyster shooters – my favorite warm weather appetizer.

$2 a pop

Later, another friend showed up and a very rude hostess informed us that due to OLCC regulations, they couldn’t seat him with us. I understood that and would have been happy to move inside, but the rude hostess just gave me a look up and down and an expression like, “So THERE.” We eventually moved inside, which caused our pizza order to get messed up and it took 50 minutes to get to us, and they brought the wrong one, which cost $4 more (I was pissed! Shouldn’t they have comped it?). But we didn’t care at that point, it was fun just hanging out.

Multiple people have asked me if it was still “loud” in there. I had never noticed that it was exceptionally loud in Merenda. And 900 Wall seemed the same, so take that as you will. Note on our waiters: they had really great personalities, very notable.

I really hope 900 Wall survives, I think that corner spot is critical in maintaining a vibrant aesthetic to downtown Bend.

Hammy sammy

Nom nom nom

If you saw my post on the Venetian panini, then you know that I love anything that includes Gruyere cheese, Dijon mustard and meat. Preferably fried.

I saw Ina Garten of “Barefoot Contessa” make this appetizer, which she called Ham and Chesse in Puff Pastry. We call it the Hammy sammy. ‘Cause that’s what it is.

I jotted the recipe down to make for a party later on, but I just couldn’t resist a little preview. After all, it’s never good to entertain with a dish you’ve never made before. I warn you – this is disturbingly good. I brought a few squares as snacks for my friends at work and I “think” they both enjoyed it….I think one friend drooled on me a little.

Ingredients:

1 package frozen puff pastry (2 pieces), defrosted

2 T Dijon mustard

1/4 lb. black forest ham, sliced

1/2 lb. Swiss Gruyere cheese, sliced (I shredded it and only bought 6 oz. – SO expensive!)

1 egg, beaten with 1 T water, for egg wash

Method:

Preheat oven to 450. Place a piece of parchment paper on a sheet pan.

On a floured surface, roll out 1 sheet of puff pastry until it is 10×12. Place it on the sheet pan and brush the center with the mustard, leaving a 1-inch border. Cover the mustard evenly with the ham slices and then the cheese – it will look like way too much cheese, but leave a 1-inch border again. Brush the border with egg wash.

Roll out the second sheet of puff pastry to fit over the first one. Cut the edges to make them straight, then crimp the edges together with a fork or your fingers. Brush the top with egg wash and cut a few slices to let the steam escape.

Pop it in the oven and bake for 20-25 min., until puffed and golden brown.

Let it cool a few minutes, then serve hot or warm. You will not believe how yummy this is – perfect for a party because you can assemble it ahead of time and just bake it the day-of. Enjoy, friends!

Rhubarb grunt

I have no idea why this is called a grunt. Maybe because it’s so good, it makes you grunt afterwards? Either way, I’m not one to argue with Nigella Lawson and her “How to be a Domestic Goddess: Baking and the Art of Comfort Cooking.” Could you resist those doe eyes and well-bred British accent?

Many of you know my affection for rhubarb – that tart bite of wonderful flavor cooked into pies, bars and…grunts, apparently. I love the beautiful pink and green color of the rhubarb stems and the crunch it makes when I chop it. Mmm!

This dessert is inexpensive and easy to make – I encourage everyone to try it, especially beginners.

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs. rhubarb, cut into 1-inch pieces

3/4 c. white sugar

4 T unsalted butter, cubed

1 c. flour

3 T sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. plus 2 T heavy cream, whipped lightly (buy 2 pints)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375 and grease a 12-inch shallow baking dish (glass is good).

Spread the chopped rhubarb over the dish…

Do not attempt to eat raw.

Then sprinkle in the sugar and toss to coat (a lot of the sugar will stay at the bottom – that’s what makes it gooey!). Dot the surface with the butter.

Sift the flour, sugar and salt into a mixing bowl, then stir in the whipped cream until you have a really sticky dough. Spread the dough over the rhubarb – it’s more like dropping spoonfulls and then spreading it with clean fingers. Cover it as well as you can…

Kind of cobbled

Put the dish on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the top is golden.

Bubbly and delicious!

I used an electric mixer to whip the rest of the cream with a splash of vanilla extract and about 1 T sugar until soft peaks formed. It was heaven, melting over the steaming grunt.

This is also good with vanilla ice cream, or cold straight out of the fridge. Enjoy, friends!