recipe: tomatillo salsa

Ingredients:
1 pound tomatillos, quartered
1 jalapeno – halved (not seeded)
2-3 cloves of garlic (whole)
½ cup of cilantro (add more to taste)
Juice of one lime
Olive oil
Salt
Method:
Place tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno on a baking pan. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Cook at 375-400F degrees for 45 minutes or until everything is soft and starts to brown.

Place cooked mixture into a blender or food processor and add cilantro, lime juice and salt to taste. Add more jalapeno for spicier salsa.

recipe: sticky lemon rolls with lemon cream cheese glaze



Photo by The Kitchn

Need some sweet inspiration for your mama this weekend? Look no further than this tart twist on your usual cinnamon suspects.  The smarty pants at The Kitchn came up with this variation: Sticky Lemon Rolls with Lemon Cream Cheese Glaze.  Get your stand mixers ready! This recipe is a keeper.

recipe: pacific halibut ceviche

 

 

It's my last day in Lima, Peru. Since it's all about ceviche here (and countless other tasty culinary delights), I thought I'd share my Pacific Northwest version, made with sustainable Pacific halibut. It's quick and easy to make and packs a kick of heat from the jalapeno. Buen provecho!

 

2 lbs. Pacific halibut, cut into ½” pieces
½ cup fresh squeezed lime juice
½ cup fresh squeezed grapefruit juice
1 small jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
2 teaspoons of sea salt
½ red onion, finely diced
1 grapefruit, cut into segments and halved, the long way
4 small tomatillos, finely diced
¼ cup cilantro, finely chopped

 

Method:

• In a glass bowl, combine fish and lime and grapefruit juices.
• Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for one hour.
• When ready to serve, add red onion, jalapeno, tomatillos and grapefruit segments. Toss gently and season with sea salt. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
• Serve immediately with tortilla chips.

Optional: Can use farmed bay scallops as a substitute for some of the fish as a substitute for some of the fish.

 

recipe: toasted hazelnut romesco dip

Everytime I make this simple dip, it garners recipe requests and tasty praise (like last night at Amanda's dinner soiree), so I thought I'd pass it along. It's kinda like a cross between hummus and a pesto, but far more flavorful, especially if you increase the amounts of cayenne and vinegar added. I like to smear this dip on crusty bread, but it's also delish with carrots, cherry tomatoes and baby radishes.

Toasted Hazelnut Romesco Dip

1 medium-size dried ancho chile, stemmed, seeded, torn into small pieces
2/3 cup hazelnuts, toasted and skinned
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
1 ½ tablespoons toasted bread crumbs
1 small ripe plum tomato, chopped
1 tablespoon sweet (not smoked) paprika
1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or more to taste
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Coarse salt (kosher or sea)

1. Place the ancho pepper in a small bowl, add ½ cup very hot water and soak until softened (about 30 minutes). Drain.
2. Place the hazelnuts in a food processor and pulse until they are ground medium-fine. Add the ancho pepper, garlic, bread crumbs, tomato, paprika, and cayenne, and process until fairly smooth (but still has some texture from the nuts). Drizzle in the olive oil until it’s completely incorporated.
3. Scrape the sauce into a bowl, stir in the vinegar, season with salt to taste. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let flavors meld, at least 30 minutes. Taste sauce before serving and add more vinegar and cayenne to taste. The dip will keep, covered in the refrigerator, for up to one week. Makes about ½ cups.

Note: For stronger hazelnut flavor, you can fry the toasted/skinned nuts in 2 tablespoons of olive oil until golden.

Recipe adapted from The New Spanish Table by Anya von Bremzen

recipe: black cod with miso

Tonight, inspired by Monica Bhide's post on iSPICE, I found the perfect storm of ingredients in my fridge to make Black Cod with Miso. I also had wasabi on hand, so I accompanied this buttery fish dish with wasabi mashed potatoes and garlicky snap peas. My apologies for not snapping a photo -- we devoured it before my social media insincts kicked in. I can assure you, it was an easy meal to make and absolutely delicious.

Here's how you can make Black Cod with Miso at home:

Ingredients

Saké
3/4 cup mirin
2 cups white miso paste
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
4 black cod fillets, about 1/2 pound each

Preparation

1. Bring the saké and the mirin to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Boil for 20 seconds to evaporate the alcohol.
2. Turn the heat down to low and add the miso paste, mixing with a wooden spoon. When the miso has dissolved completely, turn the heat up to high again and add the sugar, stirring constantly with the wooden spoon to ensure that the bottom of the pan doesn’t burn. Remove from heat once the sugar is fully dissolved. Cool to room temperature.
3. Pat cod fillets thoroughly dry with paper towels. Slather the fish with miso mixture and place in a non-reactive dish or bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Leave to steep in refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.
4. Preheat oven to 400°F. Preheat a grill or broiler. Lightly wipe off any excess miso clinging to the fillets but don't rinse it off. Place the fish on the grill, or in a broiler pan, and grill or broil until the surface of the fish turns brown. Then bake for 10 to 15 minutes.