Fish For Dinner

I suppose it's cheating but around here a fish dinner goes down a bit easier with a little pig for flavor. Tasty but not pretty this is pan seared fresh halibut with a chorizo butter vinaigrette of sorts. Usually I prefer the Spanish style dried chorizo but in a pinch the fresh sausage more Mexican style can really make a dish sing. Simple. Two pans no waiting. In a large non stick skillet I sautéed the fillets until cooked through and golden on each side along with some precooked flattened baby potatoes for crisp golden skin. In a second skillet I fried the chorizo in a mix of olive oil and melted butter until cooked through and then splashed in a couple TB of sherry vinegar (off heat). The fish layered onto of the potato and the chorizo flavored it all raining down messily overtop. Not pretty but this plate was clean soon enough.

For The Halibut

I don't make fish very often. But, I found this lovely recipe in Food and Wine for Thyme Crusted Buttery Halibut with Parsley Sauce. And, the author suggested serving the delicately pan fried fish with mashed potatoes. I knew that would be a winner with James -- and I have freshly harvested potatoes from our garden. Shallots, lemon juice and olive oil are mixed in the food processor to form a simple sauce. The fish is coated in thyme and seasoned Wondra flour and pan fried in, you guessed it, butter.

The result is a crisp fillet nestled in fluffy mashed potatoes and brightened by the colorful parsley oil.

Fish for dinner. Not so bad.

Baked in Butter

I constantly hear people say that in Italy diners never have cheese with fish or seafood. Spaghetti with clam sauce in authentic restaurants is more likely to be topped with toasted breadcrumbs. To some extent it's true. In some traditionally poorer regions (Sicily and Puglia for example) cheese was just too expensive and less available than fish. But on the small island of Sardinia where sheep are nearly as plentiful as treats from the ocean (and preferred among the locals), traditional dishes -- like the one that inspired James' dinner tonight -- combine the fruits of the sea with the rustic products of the rugged terrain, wild herbs, butter, and tangy, strong, almost funky pecorino cheese.

In a buttered baking dish I lay filets of sole, each one folded over a nice big pink shrimp. I scattered a few extra shrimp around the dish and covered everything with slices of butter (about 3 TB all together), leaves of thyme (about 2 tsp), 1 TB chopped parsley, S&P, and drizzled it all with about 2 TB of olive oil. I baked the dish for 10 minutes at 350º until the fish was just cooked through, scattered the top with about 1/3 cup of shredded pecorino cheese (I had pecorino Romano instead of pecorino Sardo as this dish would authentically used have but the end result is just as delicious) and placed it under the broiler for 2 minutes until the cheese was just toasted. The success of a dish this simple relies solely on quality of ingredients used, use good oil, good cheese, nice sweet butter.

"This is really good, just perfect," James muttered between bites. It's the first time I've ever heard that for a fish dinner -- it must be the cheese.

Speedy Spanish Style

I'm always looking for new way to serve clams -- they are one of James' favorite things -- and ways to make fish (healthy and a calorie win but just not one of my favorites) more of a treat. This Spanish style recipe from Anya Von Bremzen's The New Spanish Table seemed just right. I heated some olive oil (about 1/4 cup) in a pan with a cover and laid in two fish filets (halibut instead of Spain's more common hake) that were seasoned and lightly dusted with flour. I browned the fish on all sides and set it aside for just a minute. Next I tossed in about 3/4 cup chopped parsley and almost a TB of minced garlic and stirred them around for a bit, just until fragrant -- not browned. Then I added 1 TB of flour and whisked that to make sure there were no lumps and poured in 1/4 cup of white wine and 1 cup of clam juice. I brought the juices to a simmer and carefully laid the fish filets back in along with about 1 cup of semi thawed frozen peas and 1 pound of Manilla clams. I covered the pot and let everything bubble over medium heat until the clams were all opened and the fish was cooked through, about 6 minutes total.

Dinner in 15 minutes brought to the table with plenty of warm bread for dipping in the delicious sauce -- and only one pot to wash.

Grilled Halibut with Smashed Potates

I'm trying to get back on the diet -- I have been pretty lax lately. And so I plunged head first with the dieter's stand-by -- grilled fish. For me I coated halibut filets with a mixture of chopped parsley, oregano, and basil and grilled them over high heat for about 3-4 minutes a side. For James I took a grilled, herb-coated filet and served it over smashed potatoes (boiled potatoes cooked in a skillet with olive oil, sliced shallots, garlic, crushed red chiles and smashed down into the hot oil to make brown and crispy bits) with a drizzle of brown butter and fried basil leaves.

Diet dinner does double duty.

Easy Summer Dinner

I'm getting used to fish for dinner, although it's still not my favorite. But, following the new theme of our healthy dinner summer I am trying to make fish (not seafood which James and I both love and prefer) at least twice a week.

Tonight I took a clue from the fishermen and fishermen's wives of Nantucket who, rumor is, spread a coating of seasoned (salt and pepper) mayonnaise on filets before cooking them on the grill. I took that idea just a bit further by adding chopped basil, garlic, capers, and lemon juice to the mayo and blending it in the food processor. After about six minute on each side the fish was tender and super moist with just a hint of appealing golden brown.

And yet, healthy summer or not, man can't live by grilled fish alone. Earlier this afternoon I had some girlfriends (hi cousin Randy) to lunch and made a quick pasta with sautéed zucchini, garlic, chiles, chopped mint, and cubed fresh mozzarella. To keep it a bit light, and because I wasn't ready for a whole new stack of dirty dishes, instead of a heavy cream sauce I whisked together milk, one egg, and 1 TB of cornstarch and poured it over the pasta leftovers sprinkled in some grated parmesan cheese and baked the mini casserole for 20 minutes at 350º.

Super easy, super fast, and even used up some leftovers. The perfect summer dinner.

Fish for Dinner

Once again the diet called for a fish dinner. Pacific halibut is in season these days, and since it's best choice on my Monterey Bay Aquarium sustainable seafood guide, we've been eating a lot of it this year while trying to make lighter meals. For something just a little different I chopped eggplant, zucchini, red peppers, and for a change -- shallots, and mixed them up with a little olive oil, oregano, S&P, and thyme. I laid the vegetables on a baking tray and popped them, along with some sliced potatoes for James into a 450º oven for about 10 - 15 minutes. When the vegetables were getting tender I added a seasoned halibut file, drizzled with a bit of olive oil, to the tray and returned it to the oven for 10 minutes. I turned the fist over and cooked for 8 minutes ore (this was a pretty thick filet). For a little flavor punch and to play up the Provencal style I already had going I whipped up a basil vinaigrette (1 bunch basil, 1 clove garlic, 1/3 cup olive oil, 2 TB white balsamic vinegar, S&P, and a pinch of crushed red peppers) for a quick topping/ sauce.

My Problem With Descoware

I have a pretty good sized collection of Le Creuset enamel dutch ovens. I love the way the heavy pots heat evenly and slowly so stews simmer and conduct heat as effectively as cast iron without the extra care worries of the black frying pans (I have a few of those too). Besides, I liked that Julia and I have the same pots, the signature flame orange.

I've always thought Julia loved Le Creuset best.

Not too long ago James told me about a friend who had been collecting Descoware, gathering up little treasures on ebay. Descoware, I found after a little on-line investigation, is the American brand name for Bruxelles Ware the Belgian version of the heavy enamel cookware. Descoware, the online histories claim, was actually Julia's choice.

Although it does seems Julia used Descoware on her TV show (and it's on her stove in the Smithsonian), I do wonder which she chose first since Julia and Paul Child lived in France before Descoware was imported to the US and it seems just as likely that she could have happened onto Le Crueset, the cookware company started by two Belgian inventors. Which company had flame first, we may never know. I do know that the heavy enameled pots are unsurpassed for slow cooking of stews and braises and make me happy every time I see them.

I guess all new collectors, here in the digital age, have gotten into a little bidding trouble on ebay. It's way to easy to bid on too many things and win too many pieces. There was a pretty steady stream of boxes coming into the house for quite a while. I learned to look at all the pictures before bidding -- we got one with a pretty big chip inside. I learned that Descoware had more than one yellow. I learned there are many sizes of small covered casseroles and it's rarely the individual size I'm trying to gather. even after we had a few more bright orange pots than any normal cook would need (doesn't mean I've stopped looking at the listings mind you) I couldn't resist this strange and oblong fish cooker. I had to bid and I had to win.

Then once I had it what to do with it?

I cut some fingerling potatoes from our garden in half and tossed them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano and popped them , in a a single layer, in a 400º oven for 15 minutes. When the potatoes were tender I moved them to the sides and laid in cubes of halibut I'd mixed with a zesty charmoula sauce (the same one I use on kebabs) and baked for 15 minutes more. A one dish dinner for my new dish.

"What came first," James asked. "The dish or the recipe?"

Hmm, he may never know for sure.

I Really Don't Like Fish

I know it's good for me. It's every dieter's best friend. But, other than the occasional tuna fish sandwich, ahi poke, or sushi night I just can't get excited about it. I rarely cook fish and never order it.

But, I have a little (more than a little) work to do losing the pounds of "enchantment" (more like carnitas, tortillas, and sopapillas) I brought home from New Mexico and so I am trying to add the occasional fish dish into our dinner menus.

I've made this recipe before and -- with the fish hiding beneath a version of the spicy Moroccan marinade known as Charmoula -- found it pretty tasty. With Pacific halibut in season and, therefore, a pretty affordable and as a bonus locavore/environmentally sound/ Monterey Aquarium approved (blah blah blah) choice, Suzanne Goin's (one of my favorite LA chefs) kebabs seemed like the way to go, and another chance to subtly showcase some back yard produce.

1 1/2 inch cubes of fish are tossed in a marinade made of cilantro (1 bunch), parsley (1 cup of leaves), 3 garlic cloves, sweet paprika (1 TB), cayenne pepper (1 tsp), kosher salt (1 tsp) olive oil ( 1 1/4 cups), lemon juice (1 TB) and rice wine vinegar ( 1 1/2 tsp) whirled together in the food processor. Goin takes out 6 TBs for the fish and then adds the acid to the sauce readied to be served alongside the kebabs but I just throw it all in at once.

The coated fish is threaded onto skewers alternating with a fresh lemon slice (about 1/4 inch thick) and a fresh bay leaf -- for our recipe both came off our backyard trees. Using some delicious sheep's milk yogurt (my favorite) I mixed up Goin's cucumber mint sauce to use as a salad dressing and extra sauce for the fish and set out a platter with butter lettuce, oven roasted tomatoes, home-grown pickled peppers while the fish cooked on the grill and cous cous steamed in the kitchen. About 8 minutes had everything finished.

Fish for dinner . . . a summery California dinner.