Dover Sole

Time for a little seafood.

We definitely don't eat enough fish. We all like it, but I never seem to buy it when I'm out grocery shopping. It's habit. Not a good one, either.

I did pick up some dover sole last week, though, and tonight was the perfect opportunity to cook it up. I did a really - really - simple preparation; dredged in a bit of searing flour and then sauteed in a drizzle of olive oil and butter. A squeeze of lemon on top. That was it. It took all of three and a half minutes.

Nonna was busy eating hers when she looked up and asked if her peas were different from ours. I simply said "yes."  She then asked why... I said "Because you like yours mushy and we like ours crisp." She said "Oh. These are really good" and continued to clean her plate. Most of the veggies she eats are canned. It's what she likes and at 87 she's not going to change. At least she's eating them. She has her quarterly Dr appt on Monday. We'll see how she's faring, then...Methinks the Dr will be pleased with her health.

The rice was a side dish I found in a Celtic cook book a few years ago. What's Celtic about it, I don't know, but it is good - and can be a main course during the cold winter months. I had chicken left over from a beer can chicken I made last night, so I used it - along with broth I made boiling down the carcass.

Chicken With Almond Rice

• 1 cup uncooked rice
• 1 cup cooked chicken, diced
• 1/2 cup ground blanched almonds
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/4 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp cardamom
• 3 tbsp slivered almonds lightly browned in butter

Bring 3 cups of chicken broth to a boil. Add the ground almonds and let steep about 10 to 15 minutes.  Add the rice and cook until tender.  Add chicken to the rice mixture along with the butter, ginger, salt, and cardamom. Cover and cook over low heat about 15 minutes, or until meat is thoroughly heated.  To serve, garnish with the slivered almonds.

I always have a bag of almond meal in the cupboard, so I use it rather than grinding blanched almonds. To make this into an entree, use a whole chicken, cook it, and pull the meat from the bones and add to the rice.

by Tim Dineen

Wolffish

There's a new fish in the neighborhood - wolffish! It is not bad.

Firm-flesh and buttery, it has characteristics of lobster - not surprising since it eats lobsters and mollusks... It holds together well and can be broiled, baked, grilled, or fried.

Tonight, I opted for a simple baking with panko breadcrumbs. I mixed the crumbs with olive oil and a pinch of garlic powder, salt, and pepper - I wanted to taste the fish. It went into a 350° oven for about 20 minutes and then under the broiled for another 2 or so. I probably could have let it go just a few minutes longer before turning on the broiler, but it came out great. I drizzled a bit of lemon butter on top just because...

Corn on the cob and scalloped potatoes finished it off.

Nonna ate every bite! I wasn't sure about this one so I didn't say anything. I just let her sit down. She literally ate every bite, so seafood will be on the menu a bit more often! I am pleased.

Later tonight we're going to be working on a dessert concept for Wednesday. We have a great idea but have two different ways of going about it...  Both involve homemade ricotta.

Film at 11...

by Tim Dineen

Lobster & Artichoke Risotto

All day yesterday I was talking about making Lobster Mac & Cheese for dinner tonight. I woke up this morning thinking I was going to make Lobster Mac & Cheese tonight. I made Lobster and Artichoke Risotto, instead.

This is a classic example of why I can't plan a weeks worth of menus. What sounds good one day doesn't necessarily sound good another. Heck, in this case, it sounded good up until the moment I went into the kitchen. Victor asked what I had planned for the lobster and Lobster Risotto came out of my mouth. I had seen a recipe for Lobster and Artichoke Risotto in La Cucina Italiana magazine and somehow it manifested itself at that moment.

Go figure.

I do have to admit it was a pretty good choice. I read through the magazine recipe and decided I liked my risotto recipe better. For instance, as much as I like butter, I couldn't see myself stirring a cube of it into the finished product. But the concept was sound. I went to work.

Lobster and Artichoke Risotto

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups Arborio rice
• 1 cup white  wine
• 5 cups broth
• 1/2 lb lobster meat
• 1/2 lb langostino
• 1 can artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
• 1 cup shredded grana padano or parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper, to taste

Heat oil and butter in risotto pan. Roughly chop lobster and add to pan, cooking quickly. Remove when just barely done and set aside. Add langiostino and also cook until barely done.  Remove and set aside.

Saute onion and garlic in same pan until translucent. Add rice and saute about 2 minutes or until translucent.

Add wine and cook until it is nearly gone. Begin adding broth 1 ladle at a time, stirring until it is almost completely absorbed. Continue adding broth and stirring until most of the broth has been added and rice is almost tender.

Stir in artichoke hearts and heat through.

Stir in lobster and langostino and heat through.

Add grated cheese and stir to completely mix.

Taste for seasoning and add S&P as desired.

If I had thought of it I probably would have added a bit of freshly-chopped parsley at the last moment.

Next time.

It really did hit the spot. It was rich and creamy, had a good contrast of textures and flavors, and took less than 30 minutes start-to-finish to get on the table.

Now I'm going to have to go back and think about lobster mac and cheese, again...

Maybe next week.

by Tim Dineen

Shrimp & Peppers with Lentils

One of the fun things I like about cooking is taking parts of different recipes and combining them into one.  There are just so many things to do and so few meals in a day.  And there are other things one must do - like earn the money to buy the food to combine...

I had a recipe for peppers and shrimp served over grits that I hadn't made in years and the scallops and lentils I made back in August.  I wanted the shrimp and I wanted the lentils.  A recipe was born.

Actually, the recipe was born because Victor brought in the last of the peppers from the garden.  Nice, spicy longhorns...  I really wanted to use them up and since shrimp really has very little flavor of its own, it's the perfect foil for spicy ingredients.  And the lentils just go with everything.

I used a large peeled shrimp because I didn't feel like dealing with shells, but use whatever you like in whatever size you like.  They will all work.

Shrimp and Peppers with Lentils

For the Lentils:

• 3 oz minced ham
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 stalk celery
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup French green lentils (lentilles du Puy)
• 5 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups water
• salt and pepper

Mince carrot, celery, garlic, and onion, and saute in 2-quart saucepan.  Cook until vegetables are wilted.  Add minced ham.

Add lentils, tomatoes, water, and a pinch of S&P.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 35 minutes – or until lentils are tender.  Check water and add more, as necessary.

For the Shrimp:

• 4 bacon slices, chopped
• 2 cups chopped baby bella mushrooms
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 2 hot peppers, chopped
• 5 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 1 pound uncooked large shrimp
• splash Tabasco
• S&P to taste

Sauté bacon in skillet until crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels. Add mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, and half the tomatoes to drippings in skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté  until vegetables are tender and sauce is thick, about 10 minutes. Add shrimp, Tabasco, and remaining tomatoes to skillet. Sauté until shrimp are done, about 5 minutes.

Plate lentils and serve shrimp on top. Top with reserved bacon.

It's a rather easy dish to pull off and tastes good enough for company.

by Tim Dineen

Scallops and Lentils

I really wasn't planning to make scallops tonight.

I had seen a recipe for scallops in the aforementioned copy of La Cucina Italiana Magazine and thought it sounded good, but that was about as far as I had gotten with it.  However, walking through the local Wegman's this morning, I spied a pile of fresh scallops that immediately called my name.  Within moments, I had 8 U-10 scallops in my cart. U-10 refers to the size - U stands for under and the ten is the number per pound - so they are ten or less per pound by weight.  Big scallops.

I came home, made my rolls, and then glanced at the scallop recipe.  Ooops!  The recipe called for them to be atop a celery root puree.  And wouldn't you know it - I was fresh out of celery root.  But I had lentils.  A recipe was born!

Scallops and Lentils

The Lentils:

• 4 slices bacon
• 1/2 cup onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 stalk celery
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup French green lentils (lentilles du Puy)
• 5 plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups water
• salt and pepper

The Scallops:

• fresh scallops
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

The Crumbs:

• Fresh bread crumbs
• walnuts
• butter

To make the lentils:

Mince bacon in a food processor.  Place in 2-quart saucepan and cook until nicely browned.  Mince carrot, celery, garlic, and onion, and add to bacon and cook until vegetables are wilted.

Add lentils, tomatoes, water, and a pinch of S&P.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 35 minutes - or until lentils are tender.  Check water and add more, as necessary.

To make the scallops:

Heat large skillet with a small amount of olive oil.  Pat scallops dry and add to skillet.  Cook over fairly high heat about 3 minutes per side.

To make the crumbs:

Blend walnuts and bread in food processor until chopped but still with some texture. Melt butter in a small skillet and brown bread and walnut mixture.

To assemble:

Ladle lentils into a shallow bowl, add scallops and top with crumbs.

I was really happy with how this came out.  The scallops were perfectly tender, the lentils were really flavorful, and the crumbs added a perfect crunch.  It seems like a lot of work, but it really took no time, at all.

I can see a lot of variations on this one - including the celery root!

by Tim Dineen

Unusual Meals

Around here, "unusual meals" are more the norm than the exception.  It's great to be able to play and not worry about finicky eaters.  We both can just go for it, knowing that something may not always work as planned, but no matter what, it's only one meal.  Worst case scenario is toss it out and call for pizza.  In all of these years, we've never called for pizza.

So I had taken some Alaskan Cod out of the freezer Thursday night to thaw for a Friday dinner with no clear idea of what it was going to be.  I had a few ideas floating around, breading it with almond meal, making a picatta, but I came across a recipe for making potato pockets and knew I had found my dish!

The recipe I found was a bit convoluted, so while it gave me the idea, the concept I came up with was based more upon a classic Pommes Anna.

Using my trusty mandoline, I thin-sliced potatoes and layered them in 6" skillets. I then thin-sliced carrots and added a layer atop the potatoes, drizzled them with butter and placed them on the stove over medium heat.  I added the cod fillets, sprinkled them with salt, pepper, and just a wee bit of French herbs, and added another layer of potatoes.  I drizzled a bit more butter over the tops, covered them and placed them in a 400° oven for about 20 minutes.

Oh my goodness gracious!  These came out great!  The potatoes were crunchy-crispy tender, the carrots, perfectly cooked, and the fish perfectly tender and flaky.  Who knew a carrot, a potato, and a piece of fish could come together so well in one pan?

Of course, there was homemade bread to go along with it...

And last night, I had a rope of sweet Italian sausage I wanted to do something different with.  I came up with a baked-in-the-oven Italian Sausage Paella.

I chopped a medium yellow onion and sauteed it in a bit of olive oil.  I added about 3/4 pound of Italian sausage that I took out of the casing.  When it was fairly well cooked, I added a cup of arborio rice and stirred it around.

Next went in a half-cup of white wine.  I scraped up all the good bits in the pan and added a jar of artichoke and red pepper tapenade.  Into that went 2 cups of beef broth.  i stirred it all together, covered it, and placed it into a 375° oven for 20 minutes.

I pulled it out of the oven and topped it with a sliced non-Florida tomato and a handful of shredded cheese.  Back into the oven it went for another 5 minutes.

Another winner! Creamy rice, sausage, tomatoes, red peppers... cheese...  The flavors all came together really well in another non-traditional way.

Today I'm cleaning out the freezer and reclaiming tupperware.  I had 3 containers of turkey stock and 1 turkey gravy that are now simmering to become turkey soup.  There was also plenty of turkey meat and other odds and ends.

It's gonna be good.

I'm also trying my hand at some knotted egg rolls.  I haven't made them in years - and years.  If they come out well I may make them for Easter.

by Tim Dineen