It's Picnic Time and I'm bringing Halibut and Salsa Verde

Every year my friend Louise has a picnic. What's so extraordinary about this? It's a virtual picnic, so many friends in different locales can come together for this event. Check it out at Months of Edible Celebrations HERE




We all pick a letter (A through Z) and bring our best to party. I selected the letter H and will provide Grilled Halibut and Salsa Verde.

Here is the start of the picnic......Fun stuff!

A - Artichokes Steamed and dressed in Mayonnaise

B- Baked Beans

C - Cauliflower Tabbouleh

D - Dunkin Donuts

E - Eggplant Casserole

F - Frosty Summer Salad with Cranberry, Pineapple and Beets

G - Goat Cheese with Mixed Green Salad

And I brought Halibut Steaks with Salsa Verde




Ingredients you need............

2 cups packed parsley (fresh flat-leaf Italian variety)
2 garlic cloves
½ cup coarsely chopped bread cubes
4 anchovy fillets
2 TB capers
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 to 2 TB fresh lemon juice
Sea salt
4 halibut fillets
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

I don’t know about you but I love an excuse to use my food processor. Here is the simple steps you take to make the salsa verde:

Place the parsley, garlic, bread crumbs, anchovy fillets and capers in the processor. Blend well and then slowly stream the 2/3 cup of olive oil into the mix while it’s still on. This will blend quite smoothly.



Blend in the lemon juice and a bit of sea salt. Now just let it sit for one hour at room temperature. During this hour you could read a bit, throw the ball for the dog, set the table for dinner and start on a cool dessert, ….whatever you fancy.

When you are ready for the halibut just brush the fillets with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Get that charcoal grill going (or use a gas grill or grill pan inside). I think Doug grilled these fillets for about 10 minutes. They came out perfectly and had the cool grill marks and everything. I love it when we combine forces on meals.



Come join in Virtual Picnic at Months of Celebration.

Crispy Potato & Garlic Cake (Please don't judge it's shape)

What a surprise – Gwyneth Paltrow is in the kitchen with me this evening.

Again.



Well, in spirit…………. (I'd love to have that kitchen...we can dream, right?)

Tonight I am making her version of the Paris restaurant L'Ami Louis dish Crispy Potato & Garlic Cake.

There must be some Irish in me somewhere because I LOVE potatoes. Politically incorrect statement, yes….but I am about as un pc as you'll meet. Probably.

THIS did not turn out as aesthetically pleasing as the photo in her book. Nor in anyone elses photos who have made this dish. I did not press down hard enough with that wooden spoon.



The taste was excellent though, in spite of not being able to cut a slice as you would a pie. Very garlicy, quite pleasing.

Here we go...even without duck fat, I made the effort.

Crispy Potato & Garlic Cake
Adapted from My Father's Daughter, by Gwyneth Paltrow
Ingredients:
2 large baking potatoes (each about 2/3 pound), peeled
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon duck fat (or butter is a substitute)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves peeled garlic, 2 crushed, 1 very finely minced
Coarse salt
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley




Directions:
The recipe states you ought to preheat the broiler. As a first step. But it’s too early for that. Just keep it in mind…..you will be firing up the broiler.

Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes and let them cool before slicing them into 1/8-inch-thick slices. Heat a spoonful each of the duck fat (or butter) and olive oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add 1 of the crushed garlic cloves and as many potato slices as can fit in one layer. Cook for about 3 minutes a side, or until lightly browned. Remove to a paper-towel-lined pate and repeat with the remaining fat and potatoes, switching out the garlic cloves when they get too brown.

Coat a small (6-8-inch) cast-iron skillet with the tablespoon of duck fat. Line the bottom with a single layer of potato slices, sprinkle with salt, and add another layer. Repeat this process, pressing each layer down hard with the back of a wooden spoon and lightly salting as you go until you've layered all your potatoes. Pressing them down is what will keep the cake together, so don't be too gentle. Stick the cake under the broiler until really browned and crispy, about 5 minutes. Invert it onto a plate and scatter with the 1 clove of finely minced garlic, parsley, and bit more salt if you like. Cut into wedges and serve.


Alas……..no duck fat in the house (shocking, I know) so I used butter. It was not only fine, it was wonderful. So, if I find duck fat in the market I will give it a whirl using that instead.

Anyone else a fan of this cookbook? I am enjoying it immensely.

That's about it for now. See ya later..........

Mini weekend wine review: Bolla Bardolino 2010

First off, thank you to Shari at The Saucy Gourmet for becoming a follower of my site!

Just another weekend wine review today........

Bolla Bardolino 2010 (Italy)



I remember other Bardolinos being bolder. We've had other wines with the Bollo label that are spot on delicious. This one started off with a pale and faded impression but I was happy with the second glass. Served it with Rapid Ragu, Nigella’s delicious lamb dish.



I’d buy it again but prefer other Italian wines to this one.

Salute!

Visiting Italy through a cookbook: Balsamic-Braised Chicken

What's new? Well.....we are on vacation. We always take the week of our anniversary off. Sometimes we spend time at the shore, sometimes just stay home and have many bike excursions to look for BBQ.....or just plain ride and enjoy. This year we are home....eating and drinking what we please :-0 Honestly, we need to win lottery to do this more often.

So, today I wanted to share this new cookbook I have with you.

Soon.......this Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Italian Cookbook will sadly lose its shiny new look. The luster of the cover, the rigid unbroken spine will revert to a much used and loved go-to book. The sort we pull off the shelves with a natural smile, anticipating the luscious meals to come. All inspired by a favorite cookbook.



My very thoughtful husband gave me this as a birthday gift and I can tell you, he will reap the benefits of the lovely recipes contained within this gem. You just can not go wrong with Williams-Sonoma.

The red wine and balsamic vinegar work in tandem to color and flavor this chicken. The color has been described as mahogany and the flavor...well, molto delizioso!



The taste is not too strong, just enough of the melding of balsamic and wine seeping into the chicken. When I saw the photo of this chicken paired up with risotto, well...had to have them both.



Recipes follow for both dishes.

Balsamic-Braised Chicken

Ingredients:

. 1 chicken, about 3 lb., preferably free range, cut into 8 serving pieces (I used 8 chicken thighs)
. Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
. 2 Tbs. olive oil
. 2 garlic cloves, unpeeled
. 1 fresh rosemary sprig
. 1 cup dry red wine
. 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Directions:
Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels and sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a large fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the chicken and garlic and cook the chicken, turning as needed, until well browned on both sides, about 20 minutes total. Adjust the heat as needed to prevent the garlic from burning.

Tip the pan and spoon off the excess fat. Add the rosemary sprig, wine and vinegar and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium, cover and cook, turning the chicken pieces occasionally, until the chicken is opaque throughout when tested with a knife, about 15 minutes. Transfer the chicken pieces to a warmed platter, cover and keep warm.

Raise the heat to high, bring the liquid to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced and has thickened, creating a flavorful pan sauce. Remove and discard the garlic cloves and the rosemary sprig. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately. I served with risotto.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Italian by Michele Scicolone

For the Risotto, I want to direct you HERE for a recipe I modified. This is from the Essentials of Italian Cooking, I just modified it a bit but assure you, the fat juicy Arborio rice is luscious and perfect pairing with the balsamic chicken.

I know I am not in the minority when it comes to Williams-Sonoma products....I bet many of you enjoy the cookbooks, stores and culinary delectables they sell as well.

Hope you enjoyed this sampling as much as I enjoyed preparing it.

Buon Appetito!

A Father's Day Wish

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there. You are in our hearts more than you know. Some of us will be celebrating with our fathers with a dinner, or cake or just a visit. For those of us who have lost our fathers...well, we think of you year round .... but today - we miss you very much.

What better dish to highlight now than one from Gwyneth Paltrow's book My Father's Daughter.

Slow-Roasted Tomato Soup
from My Father’s Daughter by Gwyneth Paltrow



Ingredients...........

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or more, as desired)
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 fresh, large basil leaves
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, with juices
16 pieces slow roasted tomatoes (8 whole tomatoes), roughly chopped
Sea salt and ground black pepper

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until soft – be careful not to burn. I actually let my garlic bur because I thought I would look away for just a moment and yeah…next thing you know I am tossing out burnt garlic and slicing more cloves.

Anyway, add the basil leaves, tomatoes and juice, and 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer it uncovered for 40 minutes.




If you are making version #1 of Gwyneth’s recipe then you ought to break some of the tomatoes with a wooden spoon. (I made version #2…more on that in a minute) Add the slow-roasted tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.

Now, on to version two which is to say, do all the steps above but add milk.
Tip into food processor and blend.



You may need to heat it up a bit more. I happened to have made a loaf of buttery white bread that morning so what a perfect companion to this soup.



Linking this to Kahakai Kitchen and Souper Sunday event




Absolutely loving this book.



Happy Father's Day. I miss you Dad.

Wahoo: A new experience. Served with Black Beans with lime and garlic + corn on the cob.

Wahoo is not necessarily a hillbilly shout out. The wahoo I am talking about is a fish. They probably sound alike, the phonetic pronunciation, but perhaps spelled differently.

I don’t know………I didn’t grow up around here.

My former co worker Chris mentioned he likes swordfish and also the wahoo fish best of all. (Chris writes a fitness blog, by the way. Check that out HERE)

As we are big fans of the swordfish, and Chris is an avid fisherman and consumer of sea creatures, we decided to take his suggestion and grill a big hunk of Wahoo.



I’ve recently read they have sharp teeth, thus confirming my belief that fish do, in fact, bite. Not a fishing kinda gal.

As with most of the family I grew up with, I am a non-swimmer. Never learned to swim and have had the notion fish can and will bite. So the water doesn’t hold a spellbinding appeal for me. I like to look at it and would consider having a Mojito poolside (if we had a pool).
But I do like to eat fish. I like grilled fish very much and I am a fan of Bonefish Grill.



So, It was brushed with olive oil and sea salt used liberally before plopping it on the charcoal grill.

Served here with black beans with lime and garlic, corn on the cob.



Leftovers mean fish tacos….or stew. We’ll see.

My personal verdict on this fish is that it’s quite dense and you do not need a large quantity of it. Swordfish is also dense and between the two, I like the swordfish more. But this was good and quite solid for grilling.

Thanks for the suggestion Chris.

Thinking of redesigning the site here......but I will be back in a few days regardless.

Hope you all are having good weather - someone please take some of our rain!!

Camenbert Stuffed Mushrooms - Big Fat Buttery Appetizers!

First off, welcome and thank you to Chef Lippe for becoming a follower of my site!

What do I want to share with you today? The humble mushroom. Stuffed with Camenbert cheese, garlic and parsley.



Sometimes you get home from work and you are hungry. But you don't want to spoil your appetite for dinner. This can be made in under 20 minutes, and that's not hands on time either. Takes about 8 minutes to put this together for the oven. That's it.

You'll need the following..........

1 package white mushrooms,
4 or 5 cloves of garlic, minced
Roughly a 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
4 whole (to 5) Green Onions, Sliced
About 1 tablespoon white wine
1 slice of Camembert cheese

Easy Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash the mushrooms and pull out stems.
Melt butter in saucepan large enough to accommodate the mushroom caps, then add mushrooms and sauté in the butter.

Remove mushrooms from pan and place upside down in a baking dish.

You can use the same pan (fewer dishes to do later) and add the rest of the ingredients except the cheese. Just gently stir the herbs, onion and wine….get it soft. And buttery ooey.
This will be a minute, maybe two, for it to blend together. Take that pan off the heat!

Now, cut the Camembert into small enough pieces to fit inside the mushroom. Once you have the cheese stuffed inside, dribble the garlic herb mixture over the top.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes. This will be hard but….let them cool a few moments or seriously, you WILL burn your mouth!

Simple, right? And pretty appetizers as well………..you could get carried away. I almost did. Goes well with a white wine ….cools your burning tongue.

What is your favorite appie? I think brushetta is one of my top favs but these mushrooms....they have a place in the top five.

Hope you all in the northern hemisphere are not blistering with these hot temperatures we've been getting already.

Enjoy!

Celebrating, Plus Spaghetti Limone Parmeggiano and Slow Roasted Tomatoes

First, I have to show you this photo. These slow roasted tomatoes get an A+
Now....on to my ramblings.......



Some people dread birthdays…worry about getting older. Worry about wrinkles and inevitable gray hair.

I have never felt that way. Never have been one of those silly girls at work, running around clasping their flawlessly wrinkle-free foreheads, exclaiming they are old now that they hit 29…or 30. (OMG! They fake cry.)

Naaah…..Me,……I celebrate the fact that I am here to enjoy another milestone. My father-in-law called me and summed it up – You made it longer than you thought you would. That’s just about true. I have celebrated more birthdays than my mother, my sister or niece. I have great faith in modern medicine and early diagnosis. Due to that, I am very fortunate in so many aspects of my life. I celebrate my current state of health, a happy and fun marriage, a son I am proud of………what more could a girl ask for?!!



Cookbooks!….that’s my answer. (But I am indeed happy with all the aforementioned, without a doubt)

My very thoughtful husband bought me two cookbooks I had my eye on for a while. What was funny about the Gwyneth Paltrow book was him watching me write down recipes I wanted to try when he had this book all wrapped up for me. He also has powerful skills of observation. He watched me check out the Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Italian Cooking book time after time from the library. So now, look out – I WILL be updating that Italian tab on this site!

To start off, let me share two dishes from My Father’s Daughter. The pasta dish, Spaghetti Limone Parmeggiano. This was incredibly easy and is a breeze even for a budget restricted grocery list.






Spaghetti Limone Parmeggiano

Here is the recipe. Truly, you will be amazed how quick and easy this is……..beautiful dish, lemony pasta at its best.


3/4 pound (3/4 box) spaghetti
Coarse salt
1 lemon
1 1/2 cups finely grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3–5 tablespoons of pasta water, to thin
Handful fresh basil leaves (I shredded mine)

Preparation

Cook the spaghetti in salted boiling water, according to the package directions.

Grate the zest from the lemon into a large bowl. The bowl must be large enough to accommodate the pasta. Cut the lemon in half, squeeze the juice into the bowl amnd strain or scoop out seeds. Add the 1 1/2 cups Parmesan, pepper, and a pinch of salt, and mix in the olive oil to form a wet paste.

When the spaghetti is cooked, add 2 or 3 tablespoons of the cooking water to the lemon and cheese mixture. Add the spaghetti to the bowl and toss thoroughly, adding another tablespoon or 2 of pasta water if necessary so that the sauce coats each strand. Roughly tear in the basil leaves.

Serve gratings of extra Parmesan.

I added the slow cooked tomatoes on the side but ate a bit of both, pasta and tomato, together. Great combination.




My adaption of Gwyneth’s Slow Roasted Tomatoes





Vine-ripened tomatoes
Olive oil
Salt
Springs of thyme, oregano and chopped basil

~Preheat the oven to 350°F.

~Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally, rub with a tiny bit of olive oil and a pinch of salt, toss herbs on top and bake, seed side up, in a 350°F oven for 3 hours. I started them this way and then turned the oven off, went and watched a movie. Next time I will be baking longer to get the curled up sun-dried tomato result.




~These keep, well refrigerated in an airtight container with a bit of olive oil, for at least a week, so make a whole bunch at once.



Thank you to all who sent me birthday wishes!! Life is so good, especially now that the hangover is a faint memory :-)


Cheers!!

Sideways Roundup

What a turnout! Including my own submission we have eight people at the Sideways Party!! Thanks ladies! There's nothing like opening a bottle of wine to get people interested in joining the festivities.




Without further ado....let's see what Sideways inspired in kitchens far and wide.

HEATHER weighed in with a Proscuitto, Arugula and Parmesan Sandwich (which had truffle oil…mmmm). She summed up the theme here:

“You will find humor, friendship, love, sex, wine, food...basically the things that make up life...in abundance throughout the film. It makes me want to head out to wine country with a full picnic basket and a wine key.”

A fine looking picnic here. Count me in!



ELIZABETH at The Law Student's Cookbook prepared a delicious Mushroom Broccolini Risotto
She says, "Risotto isn’t the easiest dish to make, but I think I pulled it off pretty well for this meal. Overall I was satisfied." I sure would be satisfied, you did a magnificent job!




CAMILLA at Culinary Adventures with Camilla prepared a cake called Chocolate Scream which, you can see, looks decadently delicious. A very cool thing about this is, Camilla recreated this cake after dining at Los Olivos Café...yes, the very place Jack, Stephanie, Miles and Maya ate. What a nice trip, Camilla! Thanks for sharing.




DEB at Kahakai Kitchen
made a Corn and Cheese Chowder which, despite the heat right now, I need to try.

From Deb's site:
Corn chowder isn't a central character in this wine-filled comedy, but it does have a small walk-on part..... On a double date between wine-loving sad sack Miles and intelligent waitress and horticultural student Maya, along with randy actor and soon to be married Jack paired with sassy winery employee Stephanie, the waitress mentions that corn chowder is the soup of the day. I heard that and thought, "I want some corn chowder..." and there was my inspiration. ;-)



GLENNIS at Can'tbelieveweate's made Basil Accented Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp
She says, "My dish is a Spring standard…a strawberry-rhubarb crisp, with the exception that mine is kissed with fresh basil." You are lucky, Glennis to live in an area prolific with strawberries. Yum!



DEBRA at Eliot's Eats prepared White Wine and Dijon Braised Chicken with Tarragon. We are big fans of chicken dishes in our home and this looks like a keeper to me.

From Debra's post:
I knew I had to cook with wine and I was inspired by Jack’s comment at the awkward meal with Miles’ mother: “Is this chicken?” (I am assuming he was being served leftover mystery meat.)
You are a fine cook and story teller, Debra. And I love what you made.




SARAH at Well Dined tempts us with Foccacia with Grapes and Rosemary plus homemade ricotta.

"I wanted to make something that would feel like it belonged in Napa Valley, and that would pair well with wine." You did it, Kate! And thanks for that link on how to make your own ricotta in this post.




I made a Crab Mushroom Pasta dish with Artichoke Tomato added. My post and review may be found HERE



That was fun.

Do I need to call anyone a cab? Good time? Yes, I had a good time. Thank you all for coming and sharing such mouth watering dishes.

June's Food 'n Flix selection is The Mistress of Spices hosted by Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla. Check it out.



Salute!!

An Award ...plus a post on White Bread and Upcoming Post Preview

To start, I would like to thank CJ at Food Stories and Debra at Eliot's Eats for nominating me for the Food Stories Award. I honestly appreciate this gesture very much indeed!




For several reasons, I don't pass these awards on anymore but I suppose the biggest reason, and one I would like to share with you, is.....I know so many food bloggers who are sensationally inspiring that it would be extremely difficult to select only five (as the rules state). I just can't do it. I just can not.

There are so many great sites out there and so many I visit (sometimes quietly) on a regular basis. So - I would like to gracefully thank you very much for this award. I feel honored.

Part Two - White Loaf Bread



You may think I abandoned bread making as I have not been an active participant in Bake Your Own Bread (BYOB) hosted by Girlchef. Thing is, we are loving the baguettes and French loaves I make several times a week so…..nothing new to report.

This (below) is the most popular at our place. Not saying I don't make other types, but this one reigns supreme. Perfect for toast and tapanade, cheese course, etc.



Anyhoo.... I had been looking for the perfect white bread loaf for when that type was required. I think I found it. After trying several versions involving powdered milk or powdered potato flakes or potato flour – this one rocks my boat. Perhaps it’s the use of actual milk. And butter. Moist yet holds up well to spreads and grilling.

As always, I let the machine do the kneading part so I can attend to other things – chores or fun stuff – either way, I am not kneading the dough for the initial stage.

You’ll need:

1 cup milk
¼ cup water
4 teaspoons butter or olive oil (I used unsalted butter)
3 cups bread flour
4 teaspoons sugar
¾ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon bread machine yeast.

Then you will do the following:

Place your ingredients into the bread machine in the order your machine requires. For mine it’s the wet ingredients first. Set for Dough and an hour and a half later, you are ready to shape the loaf and place in a bread pan. Let rise 40 minutes. Then bake at 375 F for 25 to 30 minutes.


Hooking this up to Heather's site for the BYOB (Bake Your Own Bread).



Thank you to all who read and comment...it's much appreciated. Next up I have a fish post, Wahoo fish, something I had not tried before.
Also, I hosted the movie Sideways last month and my roundup will be up any day!

Cheers!!