Couscous Cakes

This recipe for Spinach and Artichoke Salad with Couscous Cakes and Feta is from Fine Cooking #99. I do love couscous; so what could be bad about shaping it into a patty and frying it in a little oil? Plus lately I think this blog could use a post of some substance, like a recipe from a magazine tried and reviewed. My reports on our daily meals tend not to be not so very interesting.

These little couscous cakes are a tasty and substantial accompaniment to a salad for dinner.. They are basically a cake of ground garbanzo beans and grain that's formed into a patty and pan-fried in just a little oil to give the cake a crunchy outer coating. The middle is chewy. Both the crunchy and the chewy textures go well against a fluffy tart salad. When I read the recipe's reviews, the flavor of the cakes was described as a little bland. So I took some liberties and doctored them a bit by adding finely chopped dried cherries and pine nuts to the mixture of couscous, garbanzo beans, garlic and herbs. All in effort to make a really flavorful couscous. Taste the mixture BEFORE you add the egg and make sure that it tastes good to you and is seasoned to your liking.

Also, I halved the recipe for the cakes (and the dressing.) It made exactly 4 (1/4 cup) cakes, 2 per serving. Next time, I would like leftovers so I'll make the whole thing . But just to try it, I would recommend starting with half. Sure, you're stuck with half a can of beans but you can use them on salad.

The salad in the recipe served alongside the cakes is just spinach, canned artichokes, tomatoes and a tart dressing of sour cream, lemon juice and olive oil. Reviewers didn't like the dressing but I thought it was ok on the completed dish. You need that acid next to the bean and couscous cakes, which actually ends up tasting a lot like falafel. And of course you could use any dressing you like. A yogurt based one is what I'm going to try next time I make it.

A good suggestion I saw in the reviewer's comments was to use quinoa instead of couscous and I will try that next time as well. Making these cakes would also be a good way to use up leftover couscous or quinoa. And don't forget you could also take the salad in different directions too, depending on the flavors in the couscous bean mixture. I was thinking with the cherries and nuts in my version of the cakes, I could have used some julienned apple on the salad and skipped the artichokes and tomato. But then I would have had to adjust the dressing too. Well as you can see, there is a lot of room for creativity here. Good choice for a Meatless Monday.

I also wanted to mention that this month's Body and Soul magazine has a great article on salads with some fresh ideas and recipes. Take a look.

Spicy Shrimp with Ginger-Garlic Long Beans

From wikipedia: "The yardlong bean is also known as the long-podded cowpea, asparagus bean, snake bean, or Chinese long bean." Contrary to the description, the long beans I buy are usually only a foot-long. They can be found at markets specializing in asian produce. I'm lucky to have one of these down the block from my house. (You can find them at Fresh Farms on Touhy too.) These beans may look exotic, but in flavor they're really just like a slender green bean. Fine Cooking (issue 99) recently had a recipe using them and I was excited to give it a try. The spicy shrimp and long bean dish is incredibly simple to put together. The beans are cut into 4 inch pieces so they are easier to toss in the pan and eat. We really liked it this dish. The sauce is simple and light. The mirin gives it some sweetness which compliments the shrimp. I could see adding another veg to the beans, maybe some shiitake mushrooms or some fine-cut strips of red bell pepper, or better yet, a red chile.

Halibut with Blood Orange Salsa

This little number, Sear-Roasted Halibut with Blood Orange Salsa, from Joanne Weir, is from last month's issue of Fine Cooking magazine. It appealed to me because Halibut is just about our favorite fish and I was sure a citrus salsa would be good with the fish. Unfortunately, I used a piece of frozen halibut from Trader Joes and the fish component of this dish was lacking. Fortunately, halibut season is just beginning, so if you make this dish, you can do it with fresh halibut and it will surely be infinitely better. But beware, blood oranges are on their way out of season. So act quickly! The salsa is nice. At this point in my life, I'm convinced that adding cilantro to any fruit and calling it salsa is a good thing and compliments most seafood. Specifically, the citrus is bright against the rich fish, and the color from the blood oranges, gorgeous. Mahi Mahi would be nice here too. I served this with some grilled asparagus - sort of a bringing together of winter and spring...

It Was Just OK For Me

That was dear husband's review of this dish, Sear-Roasted Halibut with Tomatoes and Capers from Fine Cooking 93. You basically sear your fish, flip it in the pan, and toss in a tomato salad made with capers and fresh oregano. (The salad actually tasted better before it had been roasted.) As the fish roasts, the tomatoes break down a little. You drizzle in a little balsamic vinegar and spoon it over your fish. The tomatoes are sweet, the balsamic provides richness and tang, the capers are a salty bite. I liked the completed dish. Dear husband didn't. There you go.

Brochettes of Salmon & Mushrooms in a Velvety Asian Marinade

Since dinner was running late, I decided to skip the brochette aspect of this recipe from FC 57. Instead I just marinated the salmon fillets and the mushrooms and roasted them together in a really hot oven. At the end, I stuck them under the broiler for a couple of minutes to finish things off. Reviews of this recipe said the marinade was really good. We thought it was pretty much just your average asian marinade, nothing special. I did like the way the mushrooms absorbed the marinade flavor though. Mushrooms, vinegar and high heat are a match made in heaven. (think: portabellas, balsamic and the grill.)

Brochettes of Salmon & Mushrooms in a Velvety Asian Marinade

1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs. granulated sugar
1 Tbs. seeded and minced fresh jalapeño
1/3 cup fruity olive oil
2 Tbs. toasted sesame oil
3 to 6 drops Tabasco sauce
2-1/2 lb. skinless salmon fillets, cut into 1-1/4-inch cubes
48 small shiitake or cremini mushroom caps
1/2 medium white onion, peeled and cut into 1-1/4-inch squares
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Roughly chopped cilantro for garnish

Combine the vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sugar, and jalapeño in a medium bowl. Whisk in the olive oil, sesame oil, and Tabasco. Add the salmon cubes and mushroom caps. Toss to coat evenly, cover with plastic wrap, and marinate for 1-hour in-the refrigerator, tossing occasionally.

While the salmon is marinating, soak a dozen 12-inch wooden skewers in water.
Prepare a medium-hot charcoal fire or heat a gas grill to medium high. (If your grill tends to be very hot, use medium heat, as the brochettes will cook unevenly if the heat is too high.) Remove the salmon from the marinade and loosely thread four salmon cubes alternating with four mushroom caps and four thin pieces of onion on each skewer. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and grill or broil in batches until browned and the salmon is almost opaque throughout, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Test by removing one piece of salmon and checking it for doneness; it should still be somewhat translucent in the center. Transfer the brochettes to warm dinner plates and garnish with cilantro.

Roasted Trout with Lemon & Walnut-Browned Butter

Steelhead has been frequenting the Whole Foods fish counter lately. It looks exactly like salmon. I asked the fish guy about it: "Steelhead is trout, right?" He gave me this vague answer that in 48 of the 50 states it is considered a salmon and that it tastes like salmon. "But it's trout, isn't it" He couldn't give me a definitive answer. Since I like both salmon and trout, I decided to give it a try, whatever it was. When I got home, a quick google told me a little more. Steelhead Trout is closely related to a Rainbow Trout. The difference is that Steelhead is born in a stream but makes its way to the ocean for its adult life (there's a fancy term for this fishy behavior: anadromous) whereas Rainbow Trout stays in the fresh water stream. Steelhead, Rainbow, Salmon and Char (as in Arctic Char) and all part of the Salmonidea family and closely related in texture, flavor and nutritional qualities. These aren't those little, whole lake trout (or as Jack calls them the gray ones with the heads) that you often see in the fish counter. This is a big, meaty pink-fleshed fillet and it would substitute nicely in any salmon recipe. In terms of flavor, you might describe it as salmon-light. Some people (not me) object to the oily, strong flavor of salmon compared to other fish. Rainbow and Steelhead Trout are a little less like that, but yet retain some salmon-like flavor. They're delicious.

That said, I decided to work with a Rainbow Trout recipe from the Fine Cooking database, one from issue 78. The fish gets a very simple treatment roasted in the oven with some herbs and lemon slices. As it cooks, you prepare a brown butter sauce with walnuts to drizzle over the cooked fish. This is a classy recipe and you get to practice your butter browning skills, which is always good. Don't walk away from your butter.

Roasted Trout with Lemon & Walnut-Browned Butter

by Molly Stevens (Fine Cooking 78)

This recipe serves 4-6. You can easily scale it down for 2. To lighten it up a little, you can brush the uncooked fish with olive oil (instead of butter) and then just finish with the butter sauce.

8 rainbow trout fillets (2 to 2-1/2 lb.)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh tarragon

24 1/8-inch-thick lemon slices (2 to 3 lemons)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 450ºF.

Arrange the trout skin side down on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle 2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper evenly over the trout. In a small saucepan, melt the butter and drizzle 4 Tbs. of it evenly over the fillets. Sprinkle the trout evenly with the parsley and the tarragon. Arrange 3 lemon slices over each fillet. Roast until the fillets flake easily when pricked with a fork, 10 to 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, set the saucepan with the remaining melted butter over medium heat. Cook until lightly browned and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat and stir in the walnuts; keep warm.

When the trout is done, use a large spatula to transfer the fillets to dinner plates—if the skin sticks to the foil, lift up only the flesh. Swirl the walnut butter around and then spoon it over the trout.

serving suggestions: Serve with buttered baby red potatoes tossed with chopped fresh dill.

I served mine with roasted brussels sprouts. The walnut butter sauce drizzled over them as well. Yum.

Glazed Goodness

Hoisin, like ginger or ancho or southwestern, is one of my trigger words. The presence of any those words in a title is enough for me to perk up and take a serious look at the recipe in front of me. In the past week I made two different recipes that use hoisin and I even didn't realize it until I downloaded the photos from my camera. The first is from Rick Moonen (that's him with me at the Chicago Gourmet Event) and his book Fish Without a Doubt. It is a simple hoisin glaze that has some lime juice and garlic in it. This is a no-cook sauce that you can just easily mix up and use on a variety of fish. Above I used it on Rainbow Trout with great results. I served it with a slaw dressed with his asian vinaigrette and the obligatory spinach sauteed with garlic. This is a good one to brush on your salmon, folks.

Rick Moonen's Hoisin Glaze.

2 T hoisin sauce

juice 1/2 lime

1t honey

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 T fresh minced cilantro

coarse salt

Mix first 5 ingredients together. Taste and season with salt. Brush it on after your fish is cooked. Can be halved.

Below you'll find Hoisin-glazed Scallops with Spinach from the current issue (96) of Fine Cooking magazine. These are too simple to be true. The seared scallops are just brushed with some hoisin right from the jar, no mixing at all. This time the spinach is a little special though. You saute spinach with some cilantro and green onions and drizzle the wilted greens with toasted sesame oil. (I took the liberty of adding garlic and using mature, not baby, spinach.) Its asian flare compliments the scallops very well. This makes a flavorful little dinner, and healthy too. I got unsolicited compliments from Dear Husband for this one.

And finally one thing I wanted to say is that I really recommend Kikkoman's Hoisin sauce. I read somewhere, (it probably the Cook's Illustrated people,) that, after taste-testing, it was the best one. So I gave it a try. And I really do find it more delicious than the others. However, I was never unhappy with the other brands I tried either. So use what you can find.

Fancy Pants Salmon

Fine Cooking magazine offers many recipes, most from the editors and writers on staff and sometimes from chefs. The chefs recipes tend to be a little "fancier," maybe with an extra garnish or sauce to embellish the plate. I like to try the chef's recipes because, as a cook, I tend to pick up something new from preparing these dishes. Sometimes it is a cooking technique; other times it might be a new flavor combination. The chef's recipes tend to push me a little out of my cooking comfort zone and that's good because I want to keep learning. So tonight with a little extra time on my hands, a breather from the dreaded 6th grade homework, the laundry done, and dear husband home at a reasonable hour, I ventured upon a recipe from Tom Douglas, a chef and frequent contributor to FC. I've made his recipes before and I knew I could expect some big flavors.

This one is Spice-Rubbed and Sear-Roasted Salmon with Honey-Glazed Fennel. It's from an article from FC 92 on the technique of searing fish and then finishing it in a really hot oven. I'm happy to report that I have now made all the recipes from this article. And they're all very good and worth making. In fact, I have to say that there's really no better way to cook a fish fillet in the house. You get a nice crust from the sear and then flip and put it in the oven to finish.

For the rub in this recipe, I was introduced to a new spice called Sumac, often used in middle eastern cooking. The taste is not too strong. It has a sweet spiciness to it with a bit of musky cumin scent. You could substitute sweet paprika if you can't find it. Many Thanks to my blogger friend Amy for sending me some because I couldn't find it that easily.

Ok, so the salmon is rubbed with a spice mix and it gets sear-roasted with some sliced fennel in the pan. And when the salmon is done, you remove it, and glaze the roasted fennel with a honey lemon sauce. Here's where the chef stuff comes in. I've had fennel paired with sweet things, like orange. But mostly this has been raw fennel. I had never had fennel cooked tender and then glazed with a sweet/sour taste. The licorice taste of the fennel is still there. But the fennel gets all melty textured and when glazed with the melty sweetness of honey and you get a soft, sweet, savory taste. You top the cooked salmon with the this fennel and THEN you top the fennel with a salad of matchstick apples and fennel fronds tossed with lemon, salt and pepper. Pepper on apples was a revelation. If you haven't tried it, you must. Now.

So here's your fancy pants dish: a rich piece of spicy salmon topped with melty sweet soft fennel and garnished with a crunchy tart apple salad. It is a tasty and unique combination of flavors that really isn't too much trouble and is a restaurant-caliber dish you can make at home.

I won't bother to type this one out. If you can't get the recipe through the link but would like to try it, you can drop me a line and I'll be glad to send it to you.

Turkey Tacos

This is another recipe from the current issue (95) of Fine Cooking. These are the Turkey Tacos from the Quick and Delicious section at the back of the mag. And they are indeed, Q & D. Almost as easy as opening a packet of Old El Paso or Lawry's Taco seasoning and sprinkling it on - and they're way better because they're made with real stuff. These aren't authentic mexican tacos, these are classic american tacos. The kind your mom made, though she probably used the packet and made them with beef. (And let's not forget those hard u-shaped shells.) Not to slight those, they are still good. These are a little fresher and lighter and you still get that taste you remember.

To make this recipe, you would need to invest in some Chipotle Tabasco sauce, but that lasts forever in the fridge and you'll use it again (or you could experiment using some chopped chipotles and some vinegar.) We topped our tacos with some cilantro and salsa. I made some beans and roasted veg on the side. I also made a cabbage slaw dressed with cilantro lime yogurt (with a dash of green Tabasco,) but failed to take a picture of that. We liked the slaw as a topping for our tacos.

Turkey Tacos

2 Tbs. Tabasco chipotle pepper sauce

1 Tbs. tomato paste

2 Tbs. vegetable oil

1 medium yellow onion, finely diced

2 medium cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbs. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

1 to 1-1/4 lb. ground turkey (not ground turkey breast)

Kosher salt

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

12 taco-size (6-inch) flour tortillas, heated

In a small dish, whisk the chipotle Tabasco, tomato paste, and 2 Tbs. water. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring very frequently, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the turkey and sprinkle with 1 tsp. salt. Cook, using a wooden spoon to break the meat into small pieces, until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste mixture and let cook until the liquid is almost absorbed, 1 to 2 minutes.

Off the heat, stir in the cilantro and season to taste with more salt if needed. Serve folded in the tortillas with your favorite taco toppings.

From Fine Cooking 95, pp. 94a
September 1, 2008

Swordfish "alla ghiotta"

From the Fine Cooking (90) notes on this recipe: seafood "alla ghiotta" means glutton's style. It is a savory side dish/sauce made with fennel, tomatoes, olives and capers all simmered together. I wonder if the name means that that the sauce has some of everything, like a glutton might want. The editors suggest you serve this dish with fish or you could just serve it as a side on its own, like as part of an italian buffet. But then I would add an extra fennel bulb.

I'm going through a thing with fennel at the moment and, when I was searching on Fine Cooking's website for something to do with my swordfish, this popped up as the ideal candidate. I know many of you will read swordfish and think mercury. And that's true, you shouldn't eat a lot of swordfish and we don't. But once a month or so, I can't resist. Whole Foods has had some great swordfish in the case lately. I love its clean taste and meaty, juicy texture. And It can hold its own next to big flavors so it is fun to work with in the kitchen. Meditteranean flavors like tomato, olive, lemon, rosemary are all natural pairings. And there's just nothing like swordfish on the grill, except maybe a steak.

This sauce is outstanding. The fennel browns and then is cooked slowly in a braise of tomatoes, olives and capers. The tomatoes soften their flavor after some cooking with onions, but the olives and capers are sharp and acidy. If you like Pasta Puttanesca, you will like this sauce. And I could almost see using this on pasta, but you would have to cut up the fennel smaller, here it is in wedges. There's one thing missing in the recipe below. Can you find it? ......... Garlic. I would add garlic next time. I was nearly through with cooking it when I realized I hadn't chopped any garlic. I don't care what a recipe says, if I'm going to make a sauce like this, I'm going to add garlic. Any glutton I know would want garlic, I'm pretty much sure of that.

Braised Fennel with Tomato, Green Olives & Capers

by Janet Fletcher, Rosetta Costantino

Seafood prepared alla ghiotta (“glutton’s style”)—with tomatoes, olives, and capers—is common in Calabria and Sicily, but the same flavors are compatible with fennel. Serves four.

1 large fennel bulb, trimmed (3/4 to 1 lb. after trimming)
8 large green Sicilian or Cerignola olives
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1-1/2 cups peeled, seeded, and diced fresh tomato (2 or 3 small tomatoes) OR a 28-oz. can whole tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), drained, seeded, and diced
3 Tbs. capers, drained and rinsed
1-1/2 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Cut the fennel bulb in half lengthwise and then cut each half lengthwise into four 1-1/2-inch-thick wedges. Trim a little of the core but leave enough to hold the layers together.
With a pairing knife, slice the olive flesh off the pits lengthwise.

In a 12-inch skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the fennel, one cut side down, and reduce the heat to medium. Cook, turning once with tongs, until the wedges are lightly browned on both cut sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Add the onion and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally and gently so as not to break up the fennel wedges, until the onions are slightly softened and browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, capers, and olives to the pan along with 1 cup water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and reduce the heat to medium low or low, to maintain a steady simmer. Cook until the fennel wedges are fork tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Uncover, raise the heat to high, and simmer briskly until most of the liquid evaporates, leaving a thick sauce, 3 to 5 minutes. Gently stir in the parsley. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

serving suggestions:
Serve with grilled swordfish or tuna, roast chicken, or grilled sausages.

From Fine Cooking 90, pp. 50
December 4, 2007

Salmon/Salad

Salmon and salad is a frequent summer dinner at the Donahue household. Dear husband grills up some salmon fillets and I toss together some salad stuff and we call it dinner. It is a great way to accomplish dinner on a summer night when there's more important things to do, like catching fireflies or riding bicycles. So when I received the current issue of Fine Cooking (95), I was happy to see a salmon/salad dish on the back cover. The interesting take on this recipe is that it nudges the salmon/salad into fall. Here salmon, rubbed with lemon zest, is roasted with mushrooms and leeks. The vegetables are then tossed with arugula to make an earthy salad to serve alongside your fish. A squeeze of lemon brightens everything and essentially becomes the dressing, (there's also some oil from when you roast the mushrooms and leeks.) It is a simple, light dish that speaks of the warm days and cool nights leading into fall.

Wrinkled Green Beans

I haven't shared a recipe with you for a few posts, so here's a really good one to make up for it. Green beans are great right now. They're in season so they are at their lowest price, plus they are probably the freshest you'll get all year. This is a recipe for those wrinkled green beans commonly found in Chinese restaurants. They're sauteed over a med-high heat with some garlic and finished with a simple sauce of honey, soy sauce and a little water. The beans get shriveled from direct contact with the hot oil and the sauce makes a nice glaze for them. I think most of us keep soy sauce, honey and garlic in our kitchens, so this can be put together without much advance thought. If you like a little heat, you can toss in a few red pepper flakes and stir for 30 seconds before adding the sauce.

You could serve these with grilled anything (chicken, fish, steak, pork.) If you like teriyaki sauce, you might consider brushing your grilled meat with this teriyaki sauce, available in most supermarkets. It is really good, almost as good as my own homemade. I buy it because I use teriyaki often. It is nice to just quickly pull out a bottle from the fridge rather than make a sauce from scratch each time. Salmon and teriyaki sauce are great together. Just remember to brush the teriyaki sauce on toward the end of cooking so it doesn't burn. You can brush it on roasted salmon too, if you're not in the mood to grill. And serve it with these green beans and some rice. Oh, and be careful with the heat on the green beans. There's butter in the recipe and you don't want it to burn.

(In my picture, the teriyaki salmon is garnished with some peach salsa.)

Chinese Restaurant-Style Sautéed Green Beans
by Susie Middleton

To learn more, read the article:Fast & Flavorful Vegetable Sautés

Choose young, fresh green beans that are all about the same size for this dish. I think it’s easiest to start out stirring the beans with tongs and then switch to a heatproof spatula to add the garlic and sauce.Serves two to three as a side dish.
ingredients

1 Tbs. less-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbs. honey
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
12 oz. green beans, trimmed
Kosher salt
1 Tbs. minced garlic

Combine the soy sauce, honey, and 1 Tbs. water in a small dish and set near the stove. Set a shallow serving dish near the stove, too.

In a 10-inch straight-sided sauté pan, heat the butter with the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the butter is melted, add the green beans and 1/2 tsp. salt and toss with tongs to coat well. Cook, turning the beans occasionally, until most are well browned, shrunken, and tender, 7 to 8 minutes. (The butter in the pan will have turned dark brown.)

Reduce the heat to low, add the garlic, and cook, stirring constantly with a heatproof rubber spatula, until the garlic is softened and fragrant, 15 to 20 seconds. Carefully add the soy mixture (you’ll need to scrape the honey into the pan). Cook, stirring, until the liquid reduces to a glazey consistency that coats the beans, 30 to 45 seconds.

Immediately transfer the beans to the serving dish, scraping the pan with the spatula to get all of the garlicky sauce. Let sit for a few minutes and then serve warm.
serving suggestions:Serve these with roast pork or even as a substantial part of a vegetarian meal.

From Fine Cooking 91, pp. 45

Shanghai Stir-fried Beef and Broccoli

Stir-frying beef is not one of my favorite things to do, I just enjoy chicken or shrimp more. However, this Fine Cooking (63) recipe had a certain appeal (i.e. I had everything to make it without going to the store.) So I decided to give it a try, but with a New York Strip instead. The recipe calls for flank steak. As thin as I slice it, flank steak always comes out on the chewy side when I stir-fry. But the very thinly sliced strip steak came out nice and tender, and very flavorful. It is a good way to use just a plain, not very thick, (from your basic supermarket) steak, not a great one. Save that for the grill. Take your time, use a sharp knife and slice thinly because meat tightens up and thickens as it cooks. (Hear the word of the butcher's daughter!) Also, as the recipe instructs, pull the steak out before it is entirely cooked through. The strip steak I used was about 8 ounces (and the recipe calls for more than double that amount of meat,) but I didn't want to reduce the sauce ingredients because I was afraid it would be too dry. This amount of steak served two very nicely. (You'll also notice I used bok choy and red peppers instead of broccoli.) The sauce here is really tasty. We liked this dish so much that I made it again the following week with the broccoli (and peppers.) Watch the salt though, especially if you are playing around with amounts and not using 1 1/2 pounds of meat. I don't think you need the salt in the marinade, soy sauce is enough.

Shanghai Stir-Fried Beef & Broccoli

by Tony Rosenfeld

Serves four.

1 small flank steak (1-1/4 to 1-1/2 lb.)

3 Tbs. soy sauce

1 Tbs. dry sherry

1 Tbs. cornstarch

Kosher salt

3/4 lb. broccoli crowns, cut into 2-inch florets (to yield about 4 heaping cups)

1/4 cup canola or peanut oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

2-inch piece ginger, peeled and cut into thin matchsticks

1/4 tsp. red chile flakes

2 Tbs. oyster sauce

Bring 2 quarts water with 2 tsp. kosher salt to a boil.

Slice the steak in half lengthwise and then cut crosswise into thin slices. In a medium bowl, stir 1 Tbs. of the soy sauce with the sherry, cornstarch, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Add the steak, toss to coat, and let sit for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, blanch the broccoli in the boiling water until it softens to a tender crunch, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain in a colander and then rinse under cold water until the broccoli cools.

Set a large, heavy skillet or a large wok over high heat for 1 minute.

Pour in 2 Tbs. of the oil and, when it starts to shimmer, add the beef. Cook the beef, stirring frequently, until it loses most but not all of its raw color, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a large plate.

Add the remaining 2 Tbs. oil and the garlic, ginger, chile flakes, and 1/4 tsp. salt. Stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the broccoli and 3 Tbs. water and cook, stirring to incorporate any browned bits on the bottom of the pan, until the broccoli warms through, about 1 minute. Stir in the beef, the oyster sauce, and the remaining 2 Tbs. soy sauce; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Serve immediately.

From Fine Cooking 63, pp. 86c

Chocolate Pecan Squares

I've had this recipe for Chocolate Pecan Squares in the back of my mind for a while (oh, since about issue 70.) I just needed the right occasion to make them. The kids don't eat cookies with nuts in them and I didn't want make a whole tray of cookies, especially rich ones like these, for just me and dear husband.

A request for cookies for a school event arrived in my son's backpack one afternoon and I knew immediately that I would give these a try. This way I could make them, taste them and send them away for others to enjoy (far, far away from my snacking hands.) These cookies have just about everything going for them: a buttery crumb crust, a layer of bittersweet chocolate and a sticky pecan topping. I thought they were fantastic. I made them in a quarter sheet pan instead of a 9 by 9. The topping came up to the rim and I was scared it might bubble over but it worked out fine. It gave me a bigger yield of cookies but a little thinner of a crust.

When I make them again, I will decrease the honey a little because I think the topping could be a little less sweet. If you make them in a slightly bigger pan, you might want a little more grated chocolate, maybe an ounce more. Also, my mom thought I could decrease the cinnamon, but that is a matter of taste. I believe this recipe was originally part of a mexican menu, and cinnamon/chocolate is a classic Mexican combination. You might have to run a thin knife around the edge to loosen the sticky topping, but the crust comes out of the bottom very easily. So don't worry about using parchment or greasing the pan. There's plenty o' butter in the crust to take care of that.

Pecan-Chocolate Squares

by Paula Disbrowe, David Norman

Yields sixteen 2-1/2 inch squares.

ingredients

For the cookie base:
6 oz. (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
9 oz. (2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. table salt
2 oz. finely grated bittersweet chocolate (a scant 1/2 cup)

For the pecan topping:
10 oz. pecans (3 cups), toasted
1/4 lb. (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
2 Tbs. heavy cream
1/2 tsp. table salt

how to make

Make the cookie base: Position a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350ºF. Put the butter in a food processor, along with the flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Pulse until the mixture is well combined (about 20 pulses). Scatter the dough into a 9x9-inch baking pan and press it evenly over the bottom. (Wipe out the processor bowl but don’t bother washing it.) Bake the base until firm and lightly browned, about 25 min. When the cookie base comes out of the oven, sprinkle the grated chocolate evenly over the top. (Don’t turn off the oven.) Set the pan aside.

Make the pecan topping: As the cookie base bakes, pulse the pecans in the food processor until coarsely chopped. In a medium-size heavy saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in the dark brown sugar, honey, cream, and salt. Simmer for 1 min., stirring occasionally. Stir in the pecans. Pour the pecan mixture over the chocolate-sprinkled cookie base, spreading evenly. Bake until much of the filling is bubbling (not just the edges), 16 to 18 min. Let cool completely in the pan. When ready to serve, cut into 16 squares. Tightly covered, these bars will keep for about five days (though they never last that long).
From Fine Cooking 70, pp. 34-39

Soup: The Series

I thought it might be fun to do a weekly installment on soup. Planning to make a soup each week will give me the opportunity to try some new recipes that are piling up and revisit some favorites too. It all started with this yoga class I signed up for. Dinner is tough on yoga night (Wed.) I want to eat early so I don't have to come home and eat late after class. Dear husband doesn't like to eat the minute he gets home from work. Soup proved to be the solution. I can make the soup in the daytime and eat when I want. Dear husband can reheat the soup when he's ready for dinner (and supplement with cheese as he is known to do.)

This is a great one to start with. It's a little different tasting than regular chicken soup, but still comforting and familiar. I like that it uses leftover chicken because we regularly have that around our house. Saffron is the only unusual ingredient and I really think you could leave it out. The lemon and thyme flavors are what stand out in this soup. The lemon is the best part. It gives it sort of a Meditteranean taste. And I think it would be wonderful if you weren't feeling so good. I halved this entire recipe because I only had a cup of leftover chicken and because I was trying it for the first time. Also I used fresh corn, cut from the cob, and I simmered it in the broth for the last 10 minutes with the vegetables. I will definitely make this one again and I might consider adding another veg, like spinach toward the end. I highly recommend this one. It's even better the next day.

Golden Chicken, Corn & Orzo Soup

by Jennifer Armentrout

To learn more, read the article:Quick & Delicious: Weeknight Comfort Food
Serves five to six as a main course.

ingredients

2 Tbs. olive oil

2 large ribs celery, finely diced

1 medium onion, finely diced

1 pinch saffron threads

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

2 qt. homemade or low-salt chicken broth

2 cups finely diced or shredded cooked chicken (such as leftover roast chicken)

1/2 cup orzo

1 cup frozen corn

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

3 Tbs. fresh lemon juice; more to taste

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

how to make

tip: You might wonder why the orzo is cooked separately. There are two reasons. If you boiled the orzo directly in the soup, the starch from the pasta would cloud the soup broth, and the orzo would also suck up too much of the soup broth as it cooked. Boiling the pasta separately solves both of these problems.

Bring a medium saucepan of well-salted water to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the celery, onion, saffron, and thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables start to soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer, add the chicken and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. While the soup simmers, cook the orzo in the boiling salted water until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain.

Add the drained orzo, corn, and parsley to the soup and cook just until the corn is heated through, about 2 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and season to taste with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if needed.

From Fine Cooking 74, pp. 90c

Garlic Shrimp

This recipe is from the current issue of Fine Cooking. I think the official name is Garlic Shrimp with Lemon Zest and Basil. It's from an article on garlic where the different facets of garlic flavor are explored. As you know, garlic can be mellow, like when it is roasted, or sharp when used raw. The garlic shrimp is supposed to be an example of a dish with sharp garlic flavor and is intended to be a starter course. I think an appetizer should be incredibly savory. One delicious bite to make your wine taste even better. Unfortunately, this dish really fell short. I think it was too oily and the oil didn't take on as much garlic flavor as I would have liked (although I was careful to slowly toast the garlic in it.) The lemon and basil didn't really help to brighten things either.

To prepare it, you make a garlic oil (then separate the garlic chips from the oil) and bake the shrimp in the flavored oil. The cooked shrimp are then garnished with lemon zest, basil and the garlic chips. I was expecting a more intense "scampi-like" garlic flavor but it just was too heavy.

On the plus side, I think cooking a bunch of shrimp this way is great to do for a party. It is easy to have everything prepped and you can just put it together and pop it in the oven. I just would adjust the amount of oil to only barely coat the shrimp and I might increase the garlic, add some chopped parsley and figure out a way to get more lemon flavor in there. Like perhaps, cooking the lemon zest in the oil to infuse it. And it is hard to resist adding some breadcrumbs. In my opinion, breadcrumbs make everything taste better. All I know for sure is there is a better way.

Oh, and did you notice I made them with the spinach catalan. Raisins are so good in savory dishes!

A Mom Moment

Some time ago, Fine Cooking (issue 56) did an article on Chocolate Chip cookies. They played around with the Toll House Cookie recipe to adjust for a personal preference of crispy or chewy cookies. The ingredients are the same, but some changes in the amount of butter and flour and also the temperature of the butter and eggs were made. Ever since, I have made the recipe for the Crispy cookies instead of the Toll House recipe. I just think it tastes better than the original. But last night I decided to make the Chewy Chocolate Chip cookie recipe because I know the boys like a chewier cookie (and I like trying new things.) While they were out playing after dinner, I quickly put the batch of cookies together. And just as they were just coming in, the first tray of cookies was coming out of the oven. I had freshly baked cookies to offer as dessert. Warm cookies will stop them in their tracks everytime. It was a triumphant Mom moment.

The cookies themselves was good. But they didn't turn out as chewy as I expected. As you can see in the picture they are still a little flat and crispy (and I made an effort to keep the dough cold.) Maybe if I made them bigger they would have stayed thicker, but I followed the directions exactly since it was my first time with the recipe. They are a little softer than my regular ones. But if you like the big monster soft cookies, these aren't it. (That recipe - I'm still looking for.) These are however very tasty. They have more butter than the original Toll House and notice how much vanilla - 3 times as much! Good stuff.

Chewy Chocolate-Chip Cookies

by Bonnie Jean Gorder-Hinchey

To learn more, read the article: Baking Chocolate-Chip Cookies Two Ways

I use butter and eggs right out of the refrigerator so the dough stays cool and the cookies maintain their thickness during baking; I also use ungreased cookie sheets. To keep the cookies soft and chewy, store them in an airtight container along with a slice of bread.

Yields about 9 dozen 2-1/2-inch cookies.

ingredients

10-3/4 oz. (1-1/3 cups) unsalted butter, cold

1-1/2 cups packed light brown-sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, cold

1 Tbs. pure vanilla extract

17 oz. (3-3/4 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour

1-1/4 tsp. table salt

1 tsp. baking soda

12 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

how to make

Arrange oven racks in the upper and middle positions of the oven. Heat the oven to 375°F.
Using a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar, starting on low speed and gradually working your way up to high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 min. once you reach high speed. Scrape the bowl and beater. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on low until blended. Beat on high until light and fluffy, about 1 min. Scrape the bowl and beater.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Add this to the butter mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just blended; the dough will be stiff. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop rounded measuring teaspoons of dough about 2 inches apart onto two ungreased baking sheets. Refrigerate any unused dough. Bake until the bottoms are golden brown, 8 to 10 min., rotating the sheets halfway through for even results. Remove the sheets from the oven, let sit for 3 to 5 min., and then transfer the cookies with a spatula to a wire rack to cool completely. Let the baking sheets cool completely before baking the remaining dough.

From Fine Cooking 56, pp. 55

Sake et al.

When I first read this recipe, Salmon in Crisp Rice Paper with Sweet & Spicy Sake Essence (FC 57), I was intrigued by the idea of wrapping rice paper around fish and pan-frying it crisp. Up till now, my only experience with rice paper has been wrapped around fresh cold ingredients for spring rolls. I had to see what the rice paper did for the fish because, you know, anything that promises added crunch is a must-try. I didn't consider the sake essence until I was elbows deep into the recipe. And that's funny to me now because really, it is the sake essence and not the rice paper that makes this recipe quite good.

The essence is comprised of sake, mirin, rice vinegar and some aromatics like ginger, garlic and green chile. You boil it down to its "essence" and then add some soy sauce and tiny diced veggies for a beautiful sauce. I don't know the first thing about Sake, a Japanese rice wine. I used Trader Joe's brand - hoping, at least, they picked a decent one to put their name on. Mirin is a sweet Japanese wine. Here I was stuck with the only brand available from Jewel, Kikkoman's. I'm sure connoisseurs would frown upon these choices; but everything worked out just fine, so relax. I included the spring roll package in the picture, just for reference.

So you prepare this sauce and then move on to the fish. The rice paper is not difficult to work with. You moisten it very briefly (2 sec.) in water, give it a moment to soften out of the water and then wrap your seasoned salmon fillet up in it like a burrito. These little packets are then pan-fried in a med. hot non-stick skillet to which you've added a little canola oil. By the time both sides are browned, the salmon is cooked through. You can then plate the salmon in a pool of sauce. For the best presentation, a white plate would be best. My Fiestaware did not compliment this dish in the least bit.

The rice paper-wrapped salmon does get a little crispy, especially on the edges. But I really prefer the fish itself to be browned, not the coating. So that part ended up not being all that exciting. But the sauce... the sauce is amazing. It gets sweet from the reduced mirin, and there's some heat from the chile. The little diced veg. makes it gorgeous. I didn't use a yellow pepper in mine but that would've made it even more attractive. There is no detectable booziness to the sauce, although it is comprised mostly of strong wine. I will be making this sauce again, but just serving it with pan-fried or grilled salmon. It is great for guests because it can be make in advance and held warm.

Salmon in Crisp Rice Paper with Sweet & Spicy Sake Essence

Serves four.

For the sake essence:
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. sake
1 cup mirin
1 Tbs. rice vinegar
2 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. seeded and minced fresh serrano chile
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 Tbs. finely diced red bell pepper
2 Tbs. finely diced yellow bell pepper
2 Tbs. finely diced zucchini (skin side only)
2 Tbs. finely diced carrot
1 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. chopped fresh cilantro; more sprigs for garnish

For the salmon:

4 skinless salmon fillets (about 6 oz. each)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup canola oil
4 rounds rice paper (8 to 10 inches in diameter)
how to make
To make the sake essence:
In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, combine the sake, mirin, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, and serrano. Bring to a boil over high heat, and reduce to about 1/2 cup, 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the peppers, zucchini, and carrot until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce and vegetables to the sake essence; set aside and keep warm.

To prepare the salmon:

Sprinkle both sides of each salmon fillet with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little of the vegetable oil, using 1 Tbs. total for the four fillets. Completely immerse one round of rice paper in a bowl of warm water for a few seconds. Transfer to a work surface and let stand until pliable, about 30 seconds. Set a salmon fillet in the center of the softened rice paper. Fold the paper over one long side of the fillet, and then fold the paper in over the two short sides. Roll the fillet over until it’s completely enclosed by the rice paper. Set it aside with the seam side down. Repeat with the remaining fillets.

Heat the remaining 3 Tbs. oil in a heavy 12-inch skillet over medium to medium-high heat until it’s hot and shimmering but not smoking. Put the wrapped fillets in the skillet without touching and sauté, turning to brown top and bottom, until the rice paper is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side; don’t overcook. (If the fillets are very thick, you can also brown the sides for 1 minute each, but most fillets will be cooked through—just barely opaque—if just the top and bottom are seared.) Transfer to paper towels and let drain.
Stir the chopped cilantro into the sake essence and spoon some onto each of four warm dinner plates. Put a salmon fillet in the center of each plate, top with a cilantro sprig, and serve at once.

Make Ahead Tips

The sake essence can be made several hours ahead and kept covered at room temperature. Wait to sauté and add the vegetables until just before serving. The fillets can be wrapped in rice paper up to two hours ahead. Put them on a plate in a single layer without touching. Drape with a damp paper towel, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until ready to cook.

drink suggestions
This recipe calls for sake, which would make for delicious sipping with the finished dish, as well. Try Ginyushizuku Samurai Shion or Nigori Takara.

From Fine Cooking 57, pp. 42

I've been enjoying the new and improved Fine Cooking web site. The site offers access (with a subscription) to the recipes from all the issues. There's a fee but it's not bad. And, if you really enjoy Fine Cooking magazine, being able to search and sort through the recipes makes it worth it. That's how this recipe turned up. I had wild mushrooms and salmon and was looking for something interesting to do with them. A quick search gave me Asian-Style Glazed Salmon with Roasted Mushroom Salad from issue 76. (I'm providing the link but I'm not sure if it will work for everybody.)

The glaze for the salmon was OK, but I've had better sweet asian glazes. What was really outstanding about this dinner was the roasted mushroom salad. It has a little asian vinaigrette and a fresh crunch from red bell pepper and scallion. I will definitely make it again. I also like recipes that are a complete composed dish; so that made this salmon prep good too. I served some sauteed baby bok choy on the side. Gotta have the greens.

Have a Bite's Been Busy

Which is not to say Have a Bite has not been cooking, just that I've been too busy to write about it. So to summarize my recent activites... Firstly, from Simple to Spectacular, I made the Spinach Cannelloni. A cannelloni is an egg noodle pasta sheet rolled around a filling topped with cheese and baked. Sounds good, doesn't it? Truth be told, this recipe was neither simple nor spectacular. I bought the pasta sheets and they were delicious. The cannelloni rolls got slightly crispy on top as they baked but still stayed tender and soft inside. Unfortunately this spinach filling was really dull (pretty much, just seasoned spinach.) I will, however, experiment with the genre of cannelloni again because the dish holds promise. I know I could improve on that spinach filling, it was screaming for some ricotta cheese. This recipe was one of the first major disappointments that I've had with Jean Georges Vongerichten's book.

Another fun thing I've made a whole bunch of times lately is this little portabella number.

All credit goes to Whole Foods for this idea. I saw this simple creation in the deli case for something outrageous like $9.99 lb. The portabella mushroom is roasted or grilled, then topped with goat cheese. The cheese is allowed to warm up (in the oven, or briefly on the grill). Before serving, the mushroom is topped with slow-roasted cherry tomatoes and some garden basil that is still holding strong, thanks to global warming. It is really delicious and makes a lovely presentation when served over a plate of baby spinach dressed with a vinaigrette.

For the brief time that the weather hinted toward fall, I snuck in a chance to braise some Short Ribs with Asian Flavors . The recipe is from issue 77. Molly Stevens of Fine Cooking is the author. It uses a double flavor treatment of a rub and an intense braising liquid (that includes beer) that infuses the ribs with asian flavors and aroma. If you cook this with the windows open, your neighbors will be snooping around trying to find out where that wonderful smell is coming from! I hope the link to the recipe works. Fine Cooking has started a subscription service for access to their complete library of recipes. Some are still free though. Dear husband loves this dish and I do too. The rich meaty short ribs meld with the soy and ginger/garlic flavors. It is a luscious combination. I love to serve sauteed baby bok choy with these tender ribs. If you've never had beef short ribs, they're nothing like other ribs. These are more rich and soft tender like a pot roast, with meat falling off the bone.

Also of late, I've become quite enamored with my panini maker, which I got for a certain, ahem, significant birthday. I'm not much for appliances that take up room on a counter, but this panini maker is worth it. It can transform the most mundane of leftovers and it inspires creativity. Here's a leftover chicken breast transformed into a crusty panini with slow-roasted cherry tomatoes, spinach and provolone (aka the Chicken Pomodori Panini from Corner Bakery)


That will have to be all for now. Have a Bite still has more to catch up on, but this was a good start.