Super Snapper

At least once a year a group of my college friends converge on my house for a get-together.  As the only one without a husband and kids, I've got the quiet zone (until they all get here, of course).... and it's pretty much a guarantee that there'll be good food, and lots of it!

It was a gorgeous Northern California day, so they arrived at 3PM, champagne in hand, and we sat in the backyard, sipping and noshing on sourdough, cheeses, fresh fruit, pistachios, and hot smoked salmon....

I don't recommend testing recipes out on company, but I can suffer from "culinary cockiness" from time to time.  So I tried out a couple new things.  I don't venture too far from my wheelhouse when I do this, so I felt pretty comfortable that I could pull it off.  I would never try cooking a cut of meat that I'm unfamiliar with or use ingredients I've never used before, but this day I tried out a couple dishes that let me remain in my comfort zone and branch out all at the same time.


I turned to one of my favorite new cookbooks, Fresh, Happy, Tasty, by Jane Coxwell.  I hadn't made any of the recipes in it yet, but they all look so tasty and fresh that I knew this was my go-to book for my girlfriends.  I coupled my tried and true Green Papaya Salad and Citrus Roasted Asparagus with Coxwell's Tamarind & Coconut Lentils and Green Quinoa-Crusted Bass (but I used snapper - it's in the bass family and was the freshest fish at the market that morning).


The snapper recipe is my new favorite..... you essentially mix a pesto with cooked quinoa, put it in the fridge for a half hour to firm up, top the fish with it and bake it for just 5-6 minutes.  That's my kind of dinner: fast, easy, and delicious.

Jane's recipe calls for toasted pine nuts, but I used walnuts (like I do in most of my pesto recipes).  You pop those in a blender or mini chopper along with a clove of garlic (use a big, fat one!), lemon zest, olive oil, 2 cups of fresh herbs (I used basil, mint and cilantro) and cooked quinoa.  This makes a lovely "paste."

Spread that onto a board covered with plastic wrap, keeping it about 1/4" thick.  Top it with another sheet of plastic wrap and chill it in the fridge for 30 minutes to get nice and firm.

After a half hour in the fridge, it will be easy to cut into pieces and top the fish.  To give a little seasoning to the other side of the fillet, drizzle olive oil on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  This goes into a 450 degree oven for only 5-6 minutes (love that.... cuz there was a lot of laughing an storytelling on the back deck, and I hate missing out!)

Give this one a try, peeps.  It's a keeper.  Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner for the family or to impress your friends at your next dinner party.  The crust will keep in the fridge for a good 24 hours, so you can always make that ahead, and then you've got a healthy 5 minute dinner!  I busted out my new spiralizer (it did take 3 of us to figure it out - thanks Renee and Tish for having more patience than me!) to make noodles out of a daikon radish, to give a nice crunchy addition to the tender snapper.

Here's Jane's recipe from her book:

Green Quinoa-Crusted Bass
Serves 4

1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 garlic clove, minced
Zest of 1/2  lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
2 cups tightly packed fresh green herbs ( a mix of parsley, dill, mint, cilantro and basil)
Maldon or other flaky salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Four 4-ounce boneless, skinless pieces of bass

• Toast the pine nuts in a small dry skillet over low heat for about 2 minutes, until lightly browned. 
• Cook the quinoa in boiling water for about 15 minutes and drain.  Place it back in the dry saucepan over low heat and stir for 1 minute to remove excess water.  Remove from heat and let cool.
• Add the quinoa to a blender with the garlic, pine nuts, lemon zest, 1/4 cup olive oil, herbs and salt & pepper to taste.  Blend until it forms a smooth paste.  Check the seasoning and adjust as necessary.
• Lay some plastic wrap flat on a clean work surface and spoon the mixture onto the plastic wrap.  Top with another layer of plastic wrap.  Using a rolling pin, roll the mixture into a rough rectangle that's about 1/4" thick.  This will be your crust.  Place it on a plate in the fridge to stiffen up for about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Remove the crust from the fridge and place it on the work surface again.  Peel off the top layer of plastic and discard.  Them using a knife, cut out 4 pieces of the crust to match the size of you fish.  Rub the fish in a bit of olive oil.  Use a spatula to pick up the crust pieces and place them on top of the fish.
• Season the bottom of a baking sheet with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil and place the fish on the sheet.
• Bake the fish for about 5 minutes until cooked to your liking.

Cook Happy!

Meatless Meatloaf

I really dig cooking outside the box.... taking something familiar and flipping it on its ear. I get so tickled when I make something like pasta sauce out of cantaloupe, "ravioli" from globe zucchini, and pie crust with just nuts and dates.  It's really fun to look at food in a new, different way.

I'm lucky to spend one day a week with my friend Francesca, who is a fellow graduate of Bauman College's Natural Chef Program - where I learned all about cooking outside the box.  Francesca runs one of the Ceres projects where they teach teens how to cook, and the meals they make are then delivered free of charge to people suffering from life-threatening diseases in the county.  I'm always inspired by the creative dishes we prepare and love the fact that they are both health supportive and out-of-this-world delicious.  Last week we made a walnut loaf for one of the vegetarian clients, and as expected, the kids thought it sounded "weird" and therefore wouldn't be tasty.  Boy, were they wrong! And you KNOW I made them admit it!

 

Instead of ground meat, the base of this loaf is made from whole grain bread and walnuts.  Pulse them up in a food processor and transfer to a large bowl.  Then add onions, tomatoes, carrots, celery, and lots of herbs and spices.  Once it's well blended, mix in a couple eggs to bind the loaf and you're done (well except for cooking it - don't eat it yet!)

If you've got a loaf pan, lightly grease it with oil and press the mixture into it.  If you don't have a loaf pan (or if you're like me and just don't want to wash one more thing), you can easily form the mixture into a loaf on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.  Don't make it too thin, be sure to build it up as if it were in a loaf pan.  If you're not sure how big to make it, you can trace the size of a loaf pan on the parchment paper - most are 8" X 4" or so - then flip the parchment over, so the pencil in on the reverse, and mold the loaf into that size.

Pop that into a preheated 375⁰ oven for an hour until the loaf is lightly browned and set.  While it's baking, you can whip up a savory sauce to drizzle (or pour!) on top.  Start with a roux....

A roux is simply equal parts fat and flour, and is used to thicken sauces.  For this sauce, start by melting 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (I like unsalted, so I can control my own level of salt).  When butter is melted, whisk in the flour, stirring constantly until it begins to bubble and thicken, just a couple minutes.

Next, add the broth, wine and tamari.  be sure to stir or whisk constantly when adding the liquid to prevent any flour lumps from forming.  Let it come to a gentle boil, and simmer if for about 3-5 minutes continuing to stir to keep the sauce smooth and creamy.  The sauce should reduce slightly and thicken beautifully. 

You can do this when you pull the loaf out of the oven, because you want the loaf to rest for about 15 minutes before cutting into it.  Plenty of time to make your sauce.  The sauce will coagulate as it cools, so making it right before serving is best.  For leftovers (if there are any!) you can reheat the sauce to loosen it up again.

This is such a tasty treat that I ended up eating the whole thing myself over two days...for breakfast, lunch and dinner!  Trust me..... you want to give this a try.

Walnut Loaf

Serves 6

8 oz. whole wheat bread

8 oz. walnuts

2 cups minced onion

10 oz. canned tomatoes in juice

2/3 cup grated carrot

¼ cup chopped parsley

1 rib celery, minced

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

¾ teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon sea salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons flour

1 ¾ cup vegetable broth

¼ cup red wine

2 ½ tablespoons tamari

Sea salt and pepper to taste

·         Preheat oven to 375⁰ and grease a loaf pan.

·         Place bread in a food processor and pulse until consistency of bread crumbs.  Place in a large bowl.

·         Place walnuts in food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped.  Add to bread in bowl.

·         Add onion, tomatoes, carrot, parsley, celery, poultry seasoning, thyme and salt.  Mix to combine then blend in the eggs, incorporating them into the mixture.

·         Pack mixture into loaf pan (or form into a loaf on a parchment paper lined baking sheet) and bake 1 hour, until lightly browned and cooked through.  Cool 15 minutes before slicing.

·         Meanwhile, melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour and cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently.

·         Add wine, tamari and stock and bring to a low boil, stirring frequently.  Simmer 3-5 minutes until thick and creamy.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

·         Plate loaf slices and top with sauce.

Cook Happy!