Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[lizma2]

“Fish every Friday.”

And I didn’t eat fish for 20 years after Vatican II. Now I love it.

Salmon with Dill Sauce is yummy.

Dill sauce

3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 teaspoon Beau Monde seasoning
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 teaspoon dried parsley

Combine sour cream, mayonnaise, onion, Beau Monde seasoning, dill, and dried parsley. Chill before serving.

I do miss Mrs. Paul’s frog legs.

[miss marmelstein]

Looks like scallops on top of cauliflower “steaks”. For some reason, cauliflower has gotten hot, I don't know why. I prefer broccoli. The scallops look amazingly seared - somewhat hard to do if you are a nervous chef. I think meat was considered a luxury for many hundreds of years long before widespread husbandry. Deer and other game were only for the rich or noble class and the most you could expect to find was rabbit and other critters. So people depended on fish as a staple and not the luxury it is today. Role reversal! We sear off the scallops in a cast iron pan and generally serve it with pasta and maybe a sauce or cheese on top. We don't subscribe to the Italian no-cheese-with-fish idee fixe! Parmesan simply replaces the salt and is delicious with shrimp or scallops.

[miss marmelstein]

Maybe our parents didn’t know how to serve fish. My mom insisted on flounder with ketchup (to cover the taste?) every Friday night. Yuck!

[mylife]

The slaw and sauce (Crema) is the secret

[Liz]

This is usually an appy---but could be a filling Lenten dish served with a hefty salad or another vegetable dish.
A baked crusty baguette filled with spinach, sauteed mushrooms, minced garlic chp sun-dried tomatoes, shredded mozz.

Spinach Stuffed Bread

PREP Saute sliced mushrooms, crushed garlic, bit ol/oil til mushrooms start to wilt.
Mix w/ chp fresh, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, shredded mozzarella.

ASSEMBLY Cut inch thick bread slices part-way through. Stuff between each buttered slice.

Bake tightly in foil 375 deg 25 min.

[miss marmelstein]

That looks amazing.

[Liz]

Makes a pretty presentation-----we dont give up beauty for Lent.
Of course, you have all the ing necessary. Check your cupboards.

MIXED ITALIAN BRUSCHETTA

ING long thin French baton bread •400 g tin butter beans, drained •Small handful of fresh mint, shredded •Zest and juice of ½ lemon •2tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to garnish •Seeds from ½ pomegranate •150 g (5oz) cherry tomatoes, quartered •200 g (7oz) mozzarella bocconcini, halved •1 tbsp fresh basil pesto •2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped, plus extra leaves to garnish •Small handful arugala •15 g (½oz) freshly shaved Parmesan •75 g (3oz) roasted red pepper, sliced •2 tbsp black olive tapenade

PREP Cut bread in 24 diagonal slices; toast in batches.

TOPPING Mash mint, zested/juiced lemon, olive oil. Season/stir in pomegranate seeds (in produce section). Set aside. Stir cherry tomatoes, mozzarella bocconcini, pesto and basil.

ASSEMBLY spoon Topping on six toasts; garnish w/ pomegranate seeds. Top six w/ mozzarella mixture; top six with rocket, bresaola and Parm. Drizzle / evo.

FINAL six bruschetta get slices of roasted pepper, bit tapenade, basil leaf.

[CottonBall]

I love fish! But don’t know how to cook it.

[CottonBall]

Oh that looks good!

Perfect timing Liz - I have 4 French loaves sitting on the counter and need to bring snacks to game night tonight:)

[CottonBall]

I love N .CA and the coastal redwoods, the coast, the fog, and the moderate year-round temps.

We tried to fig9out how to move there, but never did find a workable plan.

Oh and the salmon fishing in the numerous rivers. And English being spoken! You have a lot of great things there. Whenever I see your posts, I have fond memories of many vacations there.

[CottonBall]

Thanks Yaelle, I am happy with the results. Just hope I can recreate it! Bread is so temperamental..

[Liz]

Mmmmmmm.....4 loaves of bruschetta..... spectacular.

[miss marmelstein]

I guess the only way to do it is not to overcook it - although I like my fish fairly well-done. I mean, how do you get a crispy skin if you don’t put it in a really hot pan where it will cook through?

I made salmon last night with something called Turkish spices, lol. I seared it in a hot pan and when it looked “done”, I slapped it on a plate. My husband loved it. Served with easy-peasy couscous.

[Jamestown1630]

When you slightly caramelize the little cauliflower slices, they get sort of sweet/nutty.

[miss marmelstein]

I haven’t tried to cut it into steak slices ‘cause I think I’ll do it badly and it’ll fall apart. Also, my husband just won’t eat it. He loves broccoli but hates cauliflower.

I may try to do it like you suggest and the HELL with the consequences!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jamestown1630]

It’s a fussy recipe, but very surprising.

[miss marmelstein]

Delicious! Bruschetta always turns up on the tv show Chopped as an appetizer. I make bread but haven’t conquered baguettes. We have a small bakery in Princeton that makes very good baguettes. Terra, something or other on Witherspoon Street, it is connected to a restaurant by the same name.

[KC Burke]

I am going to show my favorite salmon dish from Jacque Pepin.

It is Poached Salmon in Ravigote Sauce. The dish is simple but it takes some prep time for the Ravigote Sauce but I PROMISE that it is worth it.

http://blogs.kqed.org/essentialpepin/2011/09/11/poached-salmon-in-ravigote-sauce/

[miss marmelstein]

Thank you for the recipe. I’m going to print it out.

[Liz]

My foolproof way of poaching salmon. Always comes out moist and delicious ready for any sauce you could come up with.

Bring large skillet of water w/ sliced lemons to a rolling vigorous boil. Leave on burner and turn off flame.

Add salmon-—make sure its submerged. Cover. I sometimes foil over to get an airtight seal.

Then forget about it til needed.

---

COOK’S NOTES You could add other flavorings to the water.....depending on the sauce you’re planning.

I once had a carton of Haagen Dazs mango sorbet in my freezer and was inspired to use that. It was delicious-—just melted into a sauce on the hot salmon. The H/D is pure mango w/ a bit of sweetener, then frozen.