Rub with Love

More catching up to do. A while back, sometime last summer, I was cut down to 32 hours a week (precursor to the approaching lay-off). I had more time on my hands and started preparing menus for the week - mostly in order to try new recipes. For whatever reason, none of them made it onto the blog. This was more out of laziness or distraction than lack of success because looking back I found a lot of winners. The following recipe for Fennel and Dill Rubbed Salmon, I found on Epicurious and have now tried three times. The first time I followed the recipe precisely, on a grill outdoors (it was September which is still summer here in Seattle). The second time it was fully fall so I moved the dish indoors and utilized a broiler. In a lot of ways this was easier (didn't involve the flipping) and since its still winter (technically) I will go ahead and post it that way. If you would like to attempt the grill method (which worked well!) see the Epicurious post. The third time I prepared it, I substituted a plain white fish for the salmon which i would NOT recommend. Something about the density of the salmon holds up really well and is not matched by a flaky white fish. The recipe calls for using fennel seeds and grinding them, but it really does work just as well using already ground fennel. If you have a spice grinder, or LOVE using your mortar and pestle, go ahead. The original recipe also makes a big deal about using Spanish smoked paprika... I have to admit, I used a bright red sweet Hungarian paprika. Regardless, this recipe is really one of my favorites. I served it at a small dinner party with some sauteed Brussels sprouts and it was a total hit.


Fennel and Dill Rubbed Grilled Salmon

Serves 8-10

1 tbsp ground fennel

1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar

3 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp salt

2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp dried dill weed
3 lbs sockeye salmon with skin

Olive oil
Mix first 6 ingredients in a small bowl. Preheat your oven's broiler.

Brush the salmon with olive oil and rub spice mixture generously over flesh side of salmon. Place salmon, skin side down on a lined deep dish baking dish. Place about 6 inches below the broiler for 3-4 minutes, or until the sugar of the rub has fully caramelized. Remove the fish from the oven and cover with aluminum foil. Heat oven to 400 degrees and return the fish to the oven. Cook until the fish is flaky and fully cooked.

Feeling FAT

It's Fat Tuesday (Marti Gras!) and you know what that means: indulgence! Seemed like the perfect excuse to try making gumbo - that Creole (or Cajun) classic. I have never had gumbo and was excited to give it a whirl. After a few days of research I set forth to prepare a "light" gumbo. What basically makes a gumbo light or heavy is the amount of fat you use in your roux. Roux, apparently the essence of a good gumbo, basically consists of fat and flour, cooked slowly to a nutty brown. Apparently the more fat in your roux the easier it is to cook. The more roux in the gumbo, the thicker the stew. There are other ways to thicken your gumbo. Okra thickens a gumbo, so I decided to include okra and try to cut down on the roux a little. Additionally, a gumbo can be either Creole or Cajun style: a Creole style gumbo is made with a lighter roux and includes tomatoes, whereas Cajun gumbo (Cajun being of French Canadian descent rather than the European Creoles) uses a darker roux and no tomatoes. The last variation in gumbo is of course the meat. Traditionally gumbo includes a combination of shellfish and sausage or chicken. Seemed to me that, like minestrone or tortilla soup, it pretty much can be whatever you have on hand. So, (sigh) given all the options I opted for a gumbo with okra, Creole style, with shrimp and chicken. I generally followed this lowfat gumbo recipe from the New York Times' Mark Bittman with a little help from Paula Deen (of course). I opted for a simple 1 to 1 ratio for my roux, but tried to keep the oil content as low as possible. Because I am a meat cooking novice I went ahead and cooked the meat before hand. The chicken I bought whole and roasted (plan to use the carcass for chicken broth for French Onion soup later this week), and the shrimp I bought fresh and sauteed in a non stick skillet and cut into thirds (they were jumbo prawns). You can use the chicken fat to cook the roux, and cook the shrimp in the gumbo itself, but I opted for a more straightforward cooking method that assured thoroughly cooked meat.

Gumbo

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 lb shrimp, peeled, deveined, and cooked

1/4 cup canola oil

2 tbsp butter

1/2 cup flour

1 onion, diced

3 celery stalks, diced

2 bell peppers (I used 1 green and 1 orange), diced

4 scallions, whiles and greens, diced and separated

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp red pepper flakes

2 bay leaves

1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, with juice

4 cups vegetable broth (chicken would work well too)

1/4 bunch parsley, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

In a cast iron skillet heat canola oil and butter over medium low heat until butter melts. Add flour and stir thoroughly. Cook over medium low heat, stirring often with a rubber spatula, 10 minutes or more, until the roux is darker andfragrant (smells like nuts). Set aside to cool, stirring occasionally. Heat 1/4 cup broth over medium heat and add onions, celery, scallion whites, and peppers. Cook for 5 minutes until vegetables are softened. Add garlic, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and cook 2 minutes more. Add roux and mix thoroughly. Cook for 5 more minutes, stirring often until all the vegetables are soft. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, and remaining broth and bring to a slow simmer. Cook for 20 minutes until all the flavors are melded. Add chicken and shrimp and cook for a few minutes more. Add parsley and scallion greens and salt and pepper to taste. Serve over rice.

This is what you get for working out

The last time I made chowder (corn chowder) I was very impressed/alarmed. The recipe literally started with cooking bacon in butter, and ended with adding cream and cheese. Needless to say I have severely limited my consumption of anything attached to the label of "chowder" ever since. That said, I knew I needed to pay homage to this classic soup at some point in my 31 days so I waited till I felt like Jay and I fully deserved this decadence. Last night we participated in our first boxing fitness class at a local boxing gym frequented by our (apparently very in shape) friend. It pretty much kicked our butts, but on the plus side it opened up a window of gluttony on the weekly soup sched. We don't live in the Northeast anymore though both of us have payed our dues there, so I wanted to try something that pays homage to both maritime traditions. I found my answer in a lovely cookbook that encourages locovorism here in the Northwest, The Farm to the Table Cookbook. I altered the recipe slightly, omitting the bacon, increasing the smoked salmon, and replacing parsley with scallions; but on the whole the recipe and instructions remained largely the same. I have to say this has been one of my favorites. As it turns out animal fat tastes good. I mean really good. Thank god I worked my butt off (literally) to deserve it...

Clam and Smoked Salmon Chowder

25 manila clams, in shell

2 cups dry white wine

2 cups good quality broth

3 tbsp butter

1 medium onion, diced

4 scallions, chopped

3 stalks celery, diced

4 tbsp flour

2 cups half and half

2 dried bay leaves

2 tsp dried sage

3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, diced (about 3 cups)

5 oz smoked keta salmon, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Tabasco (optional)

Rinse clams thoroughly in cold water. In a soup pot heat white wine to a boil. Place clams in the boiling wine and cover. Cook until the clams have fully opened and remove. Set aside to cool. Let the wine and clam juice boil a few minutes more and add broth. Boil for 4-5 minutes more and then pass through a fine stainer two or three times until free of sand. Set aside. Remove clam meat from shells and chop. Set aside with chopped salmon. In a clean pot melt butter on medium heat and cook onions, celery, and the whites of the green onions until the onions are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add flour and stir thoroughly. Whisk in half and half and then the reserved clam stock and bring to a slow simmer, whisking constantly. Add sage, bay leaf, and potatoes and simmer, stirring often until potatoes are soft, about 20 minutes. Once potatoes are cooked add the clams and salmon. Cook 1 or 2 minutes more and salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a garnish of the scallion greens and a dash of hot sauce if desired (I prefer it without).

Salmon Goodness

So I made this meal a few weekends ago and it turned out really well. It took some time and planning but it was certainly worth it in the end. Each piece is easy to assemble and most can be made ahead of time if desired. Its a wonderful use of medium grade salmon (such as the Alaskan sockeye available frozen at Trader Joe's). Enjoy for a special, but laid back, occasion.

Asian Style Salmon burgers with Wasabi Mayonnaise, Pickled Cucumbers and Sesame Soy Dressing

Pickled Cucumbers

1 large cucumber

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt to taste

Slice cucumber into very thin slices. In a bowl toss cucumber with vinegar, sugar, red pepper flakes, and salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Wasabi Ginger Mayonnaise

1/4 cup light canola mayonnaise

2 tsp wasabi (to taste)

2 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt to taste

In a small bowl whisk together. Cover and refrigerate.

Sesame Soy Dressing

1/2 small red pepper, sliced

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/8 cup sesame oil

1 garlic cloves, finely minced

1/2 tsp fresh ginger, finely minced

In a bowl whisk together soy sauce, oil, garlic and ginger. Place red pepper slices in sauce and let marinate for 1-2 hours.

Salmon Burgers

1 pound salmon fillet, skin discarded and fish cut into 1/4-inch cubes

1/2 cup panko style bread crumbs

1 large egg

1 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 scallions, minced

1/2 small red pepper, minced

4 Ciabatta Rolls

In a bowl mash the salmon cubes with a fork into a paste. Add egg, soy sauce, and garlic until combined well. Add bread crumbs, scallions and red pepper. Stir mixture to combine and if too wet add additional bread crumbs. Form into four 3/4-inch-thick patties.

In a large non-stick skillet cook patties until golden, about 2 minutes on each side. Cover and cook over moderate heat until just cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Assemble each burger with a healthy dose of Wasabi Ginger Mayonnaise, a few Pickled Cucumbers, and a few slices of the marinated red peppers. Serve with salad greens drizzled with Seasame Soy dressing.

Fish Cake!

I have, especially since moving to Seattle, been trying to increase the amount of fish in my diet. This is partially out of concern that I am eating too much soy, which is very high in fat. Being a household of a pescetarian and an almost vegetarian we try to be careful about where our fish comes from and thus are very sensitive to good fishing practices. I carry around a little cheat sheet in my wallet created by the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program. Its a great guide for anyone concerned about fishing practices and their effects on the environment. Using it we discovered that Tilapia from the US is farmed in systems that don't taint the natural fish stock and therefor A-OK! This is great because Tilapia is a really low fat and flexible fish. One 4 oz serving is only 93 calories and 1 g of fat but 21 g of protein.

I have cooked Tilapia in a few ways: baked whole and fish tacos, but tonight's fish cakes proved one of the most successful. A light and fresh cilantro lime sauce compliments the spicy flavor of the chipotle in the cakes. When using chipotle in adobo (you can find these in a can in the ethnic food aisle of most grocery stores) know that they can pack a lot of spice. The bulk of the spice is found in the chipotles, but the sauce itself is quite spicy as well. We like a lot of spice (so much so that the guy at our local Thai place is constantly questioning our 3 1/2 star request) so the following recipe is based on that. If you are sensitive to spice I recommend cutting both the chipotle and the adobe quantities in half.

Chipotle Fish Cakes with Lime Cilantro dressing

Lime Cilantro Dressing

1 cup nonfat plain yogurt

2 tbsp well chopped cilantro

1 1/2 tbsp diced red onion

juice of one lime

1 garlic clove minced

1 tsp sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. Add water to achieve desired consistency: I use a dense yogurt and thus added about 2 tbsp of water. Cover and refrigerate while you make the cakes.

Chipotle Fish Cakes

2 4-5 oz tilapia fillets

1/2 medium red onion finely minced

2-3 garlic cloves finely minced

1/2 red pepper finely minced

2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

one chipotle in adobo finely minced (adjust for spice level)

3-4 tbsp adobo sauce

1/4 cup course cornmeal or bread crumbs

2 tbsp cornstarch

salt and pepper to taste

Chop tilapia in a blender or food processor until blended but still chunky. Set aside. Mix onion, garlic, pepper, cilantro, chipotle and adobo in a separate bowl and salt and pepper to taste. You will want to moderately over salt and pepper at this point as the fish and bread crumbs will balance out the flavor. Combine fish and onion - chipotle mixture thouroughly and add cornstarch and cornmeal or bread crumbs. Form into 8 patties roughly 3" in diameter and 3/4" thick. Heat a nonstick saucepan over medium high heat and cook each patty for 2 1/2 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Serve on a bed of greens with spicy black beans for a low fat and satisfying meal. Drizzle with Cilantro Lime Sauce and garnish with avocado and loosely chopped cilantro.