The Barefoot Kitchen Witch

First Harvest, Two Ways

All of our gardens this year seem, at this point, to be more lush and productive than they were at this time last year.  Maybe it's the weather.  Maybe it's the super awesome compost we put down.  Maybe my husband's green thumb grew THREE SIZES that day.  I don't know.  But we've got a lot of green stuff out there.

We've been picking asparagus for several weeks now, and here and there a leaf of something, but yesterday, we actually harvested some things.  In a collander (so you know we mean business).

Here's the take:

Four pak choi, two more asparagus, and about 6 broccoli rabe plants.  Part of the reason we pulled these (except the asparagus) was because they had grown so tall they were blocking light from some smaller plants behind them.  The broccoli rabe can really go a bit longer, but, again, they were blocking light, and I was hungry.

My initial plan was to cook all the greens together, probably in some kind of pasta dish.  But something in me resisted that plan and so I figured, okay, I'll make two dishes.  I thought it would be fun to make these two dishes kind of similar, but with different ethnic influences.

No real recipe - I didn't measure things - but here's what I did:

Spaghetti with Broccoli Rabe and Asparagus

I poured some olive oil in a pan, added two crushed, sliced cloves of garlic, and about two tablespoons of tomato paste.

To that I added a good slug of Blueberry Wine (yes, blueberry) from Cellardoor Vineyard in Lincolnville, ME (not far from Camden).  Why Blueberry Wine?  The bottle was already uncorked.  And it's red.

I whisked all that together and let it simmer for a bit, and sprinkled some oregano in there, too.  While all that was going on, I also had a big pot of water on the stove, coming to a boil, for the spaghetti.

I rinsed the rabe (and trimmed off the roots) and the asparagus...

I also thawed some shrimp and sliced them in half, lengthwise.

Once the spaghetti was cooking, I sliced the rabe, broke the asparagus into pieces, and added them to the tomato paste and garlic mixture.  When that had cooked down, I added the shrimp pieces, and then, when the spaghetti was cooked, I combined the spaghetti with the sauce/shrimp/greens mixture and served.

A little freshly grated parmesan on top, and my kids were both quite happy to eat this for dinner.

While I was doing all that, I was also concocting this:

Thai Style Rice Noodles with Baby Pac Choi

 

First up, I trimmed the roots from the pak choi leaves.

And then I rinsed the dirt off...

And sliced the leaves cross-wise, about an inch wide, and set them aside while I assembled some other ingredients...

And they are:  ban pho (rice noodles about half an ince wide), zest and eventually juice of one lime, 3 dried thai chilis (sliced later), sliced fresh ginger, two cloves of garlic, and some shrimp. 

I also had on hand some fish sauce (nuoc mam) and soy sauce.  I think that was everything.

I immersed the noodles in a large bowl of boiling water to soak for about ten minutes.

Once the spaghetti had been added to the sauce in the first recipe, I had my power burner free and set the wok above that.  I poured some vegetable oil in the wok and heated it until it started to smoke.

To that I added the garlic and ginger, sauteed them briefly, then added the chopped chilis, and the lime zest, and the fish and soy sauces.  I'd say to taste, but it was more to see and to smell.

Next in went the shrimp, and on top of that, the sliced pak choi, and the lime juice.

After the pak choi was wilted, I drained the rice noodles and added them into the wok and tossed the mixture together. 

Because of the heat from the thai chilis, Bill and I ate this and didn't give any to the kids.

Both dishes were good, though there is certainly room for improvement.  But for a quick, impromptu pair of noodle and fresh greens dishes, they were pretty tasty.

I love spring.

   

Opening Day Salmon Cakes

They're named "Opening Day Salmon Cakes" because they were made with the last of the salmon that Bill and Joe caught on Opening Day of Trout Season in RI. 

We had most of the 21" salmon left, and I carefully picked all the flesh off the bones (and picked the smaller bones out of the flesh) and broke it into smallish pieces.

All told, there were about two cups of fish to work with.

We also had leftover wild rice from the previous night, so I mixed that in with the fish.  There was about a cup and a half of the rice.

I also used a shallot, the juice of one lemon, and some Ritz crackers (about 8-10) that Julia helpfully smashed up for me with a meat tenderizer.  I worked all of that together and then melted about 5 T butter and mixed that in to help moisten the crackers and add a little more flavor.  Then I tasted it, added some ground black pepper, and finally, added in two eggs to help bind it all together.  I let the mixture sit for about five minutes to let the crackers finish absorbing the liquids, and then I rolled the mixture into balls roughly the size of small lemons (only round). 

**If you find that the mixture is too goopy and can't be rolled, add a little more cracker crumbs or bread crumbs.  If the mixture is too dry and crumbly, add some more liquid - lemon juice, melted butter, another egg, water - it's up to you.

I rolled the balls in flour and set them aside while I heated about a half inch of vegetable oil in a large pan.  When the oil was hot enough (flick some water into the oil - if the oil sizzles immediately, it's ready) I put some of the balls in the pan, leaving plenty of space around them, and pressed them down a bit to form patties (or cakes).  After a few minutes, once the undersides were nicely golden brown, I carefully turned the fish cakes over to finish cooking on the other side. 

Once they were cooked through, I transferred them to a plate with several layers of paper towel to drain, and kept the plate in the warming drawer of my oven until all the fish cakes had been cooked.

I have to say these were really tasty.  The smoky flavor from the grilled salmon and the bite of the minced shallot worked nicely together.  The kids ate them dunked in ketchup, or with a dollop of guacamole on top.  I also made a little spicy sauce for Bill and I, which consisted of some mayo, lime juice, sriracha, minced basil in olive oil (from my freezer, from last year's garden), salt, and pepper. 

 

The heat from the sriracha, sweetness from the basil, the smokiness of the fish, chewy texture of the rice, and the creamy, mild flavor of the guacamole... 

...it was divine.

Risotto with Artichoke Hearts, Crabmeat and Shrimp

I made this last night.  I first made risotto about 4 years ago, I think, and kicked myself for not making it sooner.  It's ultimate soft starchy comfort food, and once you've got the basic procedure down, you can be as creative as you want.

My favorite risotto is with mushrooms.  But Alex doesn't like mushrooms, and I was trying to make something he would like.  (It didn't work.  He's not big on starchy comfort food.)  So I thought he'd like something with seafood.  I also had a can of artichoke hearts and thought they'd go nicely with the seafood.  They did, and would have gone even better if I'd used fresh.  Same with the crabmeat.  Ah well.  It was still pretty yummy.

Here's what I did...

I got 3 cloves of garlic

and cut them into skinny slivers.

And I cut a chunk of red onion

into small pieces, but not too small.

I got the rest of the fresh basil that was in the fridge

And gave it a rough chop.  And I opened a can of artichokes - plain, not marinated -

rinsed them,

and quartered them.

Next up - two cans of lump crab meat. 

I dumped the meat and the liquid in a measuring cup.  Next time I think I'll leave out the liquid - it tasted of can.

I also got out some chicken stock and put it in a pot on the stove over a medium flame to keep it warm.  I used about 6 cups of the chicken stock (roughly)

and 2-3 cups of dry white wine (just grabbed something I had on the rack)

and - no, this is not traditional, but I had some left and wanted to use it up - some of this (inexpensive) caviar spread -

it's got a nice mild salty fish taste.  I had about 2-3 tablespoons of the stuff, and I used all of it.  Obviously this isn't required.

I used two types of cheese - asiago and aged parmesan.

some butter (which I didn't photograph), and, of course, olive oil.  Extra virgin.

2 cups of Arborio rice

salt and pepper (to taste)

and about a pound of shrimp - 51/60 size.

I put the shrimp in some water to thaw (so I could peel them)...

Then I got out my big 14 inch saute pan, put it on the power burner on my stovetop, on medium high, and drizzled on some olive oil.

Once the oil was hot, the first thing I did was partially cook the shrimp.  I wanted some of the shrimp flavor to infuse the oil.  I didn't want to cook it all the way, because I wanted it to finish cooking in the risotto, but I also didn't want to leave the shrimp in there for the whole cooking process, because it would get tough.  So I went the half now/half later route.

I cooked the shrimp until they were just pink on both sides (I'm about halfway there in this picture)

Once the shrimp were where I wanted them, I removed them from the oil and set aside in a bowl.  Then I added my onion and garlic to the oil and sauteed til they were soft.

Next, I poured in the rice

And stirred it around in the oil until the rice was translucent.  (Below - almost there!)

Next up - a ladle of the chicken stock, that has been warming in a pot on another burner.

And I stirred and stirred until the liquid was just about absorbed.  Next up - a cup of the wine:

And more stirring. 

(Making risotto (at least, this way) is kind of like that song

"To ev'ry thing (turn, turn, turn)

There is a season (turn, turn, turn)"

Only the Making Risotto song would be more like this:

"Pour in your stock (stir, stir, stir)

Then add some wine and (stir, stir, stir)")

Um, yeah.  Anyway...

Next, I thought I'd add my artichokes.  I wanted them to absorb flavor from the wine and onion and garlic.  So I moved the rice to the edges of the pan and sauteed the artichokes in the middle for a little bit. 

I'm not sure if I'd do the same thing next time.  For one thing, I'd go with fresh artichokes or leave them out.  For another, maybe I'd sautee the artichokes with some onion in a separate pan and add it in later.  Just some thoughts.

I stirred the artichokes into the rice and then, what the hey, I thought, I added another cup of wine.

More stirring until the liquid was just about absorbed...

And I took a look at the rice to see how it was coming along. 

You can see the rice is still partly translucent in the above picture.  I chewed a few grains, just to see how far along things were, and the rice was still pretty crunchy.  So - more chicken stock and more stirring.

It's a slow process; a labor of love.  It really doesn't take an eternity, and to me, there's something meditative about stirring the rice and watching (and feeling) it change.

Here it is a little later - very little translucency at this point.  It's still not finished, but it's more than halfway there.  Oh, and I added in the basil, too.

I figured this was a good time to stir in the caviar spread.

Once the rice is al dente - or softer if you prefer - it's time to finish things up.  Turn the heat off and stir in some butter (I used 3 tablespoons) (the butter is optional)...

 

And finally, the cheeses.  I didn't measure. 

I'm guessing I used about half a cup each of shredded asiago

and parmesan.

And that was it.

Next time - nothing canned.  Or I'll find a way to rid the canned items of their canned taste.  But otherwise the risotto came out just fine - creamy and comforting.

So We Bought a Whole Frozen Octopus

Every year when we get our taxes done by the same man who's been doing Bill's family's taxes since who knows when, we stop at this seafood place as we're leaving (it's in Massachusetts) and splurge on something (or several somethings) for dinner.

I think we started doing this in defiance the first year we were married - when we found out we had to PAY a couple thousand dollars in taxes that year.  We were stunned, to say the least, and then figured what the hell, we'll pay it in installments over a few months.  In the meantime, dammit, we need to eat.

This year we noticed that the name had changed.  Originally "Ocean Fresh Seafood," the name had now changed to "Fresh Catch Seafood & Butcher."  (I just looked all this up online and found out that Ocean Fresh is no more.  Aha.  Well that explains things.)

But regardless of the name above the door, tradition dictated that we stop there after taxes and get some goodies.  I also wanted to get something to bring to my sister, who looked after my kids while Bill and I had our Taxes and Seafood date. 

We went in and while the layout is pretty much the same, it wasn't the same.  First of all, it's not just seafood - it's "Seafood & Butcher."  So over where all the shellfish and smoked fish used to be, it's now assorted cuts of beef and pork and lamb.  (Didn't see the "Butcher" himself - guess we missed him.)  It all looked good, but in my opinion it was space that could have been better used for shellfish.  The lobster tanks were over in the far corner, just like they used to be.  And the main strip of display area, which used to be filled with ready-to-cook things like baked stuffed shrimp and the like, and fresh fish in a multitude of cuts and sizes, was all in the same place, but now the shellfish was crammed in, too, so overall there was less variety. 

Ultimately, we were disappointed.  Not with all of it - the steamers were great, the mussels I got for my sister looked good - she said she's cooking them tonight, so I'll find out tomorrow - the stuffed clams (frozen) were fine, and - hey, cool!, whole frozen octopus!

We also got a dozen oysters and they were a waste of money.  Bill shucked them all and I served up a warm half of a baguette and some cheeses to round out the snack.  The oysters were...flat.  They SHOULD taste of the sea, briney and fresh.  These were...lackluster.  Blah.  They did not dazzle.  We each ate two and gave up.  They weren't going to give us food poisoning - they just weren't worth eating raw.  I ended up frying the remaining eight the following night, and that was a much better use for them.

The other thing we were not happy about - and this is probably the biggest reason why we won't go back - was the response we got when Bill asked if the tuna was sushi grade.  First of all, it's not a far out question to ask in a seafood place.  But the guy behind the counter looked around and bounced a bit on his feet, like he'd been called up to the blackboard to solve an algebra problem and he was thinking maybe he'd wandered into the wrong classroom.  He had no idea.  Maybe he'd heard wrong.  "What?"  So Bill repeated the question.  Still no idea.  So he asked another guy who looked older and had, perhaps, worked there a bit longer than the first guy.  Second guy's face tightened into a no-nonsense and no-sushi frown and he started shaking his head.  First guy felt better - he relaxed a bit and bounced some more on his toes and said "Management might say it's sushi-grade, but it isn't."heh heh. Thanks.  Really.

Just the fact that the question had to be taken up in committee was enough of an answer, really.  But what spoke louder was the smirky "us against the boss" attitude of those guys behind the counter.  Back when the place was Ocean Fresh Seafood - same ownership for 30 years - I don't think we ever got the feeling that the guys behind the counter were just showing up so they could get paid.  Maybe they were, but IF they were, they hid it behind knowledge and professionalism - at least on the one day a year that we showed up.

So next year we'll go someplace else for our celebratory seafood purchases.

But at least this year we got an octopus.

I didn't get a picture of it when it was frozen, but the whole thing was smushed together in one hard lump about the size of a bowling ball. 

When we got it home, Bill put it in a big bowl of water to start it thawing.

He consulted a couple of books about Japanese methods of cooking a whole octopus and settled on bringing a big pot of water to boil and slowly lowering the octopus, tentacles first, into the pot.

(If you're easily creeped out by such things as whole dead octopi, you might want to just stop reading now.  The upcoming pictures are not pretty.)

Octopus Ceviche, Nobu Style

We used the recipe for "Seafood Ceviche, Nobu Style" from Nobu the Cookbook.  You don't have to use only octopus - you can use it in combination with other fish or shellfish, or not at all.  But we had that whole octopus, so that's what we went with.

Ceviche is basically seafood and citrus in combination with other salad elements - onions, tomatoes, herbs, etc.  But the citrus is important - it's what cures or cooks any raw seafood you might be using, and it's also bright and refreshing.  This is a great summer dish.

There are two components to this dish - the dressing, and the salad ingredients.

Here's how you make the dressing.

Nobu's words are in bold, my notes are in italics.

Ceviche Sauce

4 T lemon juice

2 teaspoons yuzu juice (yuzu is Japanese citron - I didn't have any.  I used pink grapefruit juice, though yuzu is actually LESS sweet than lemon.)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp finely grated garlic

1/2 tsp finely grated ginger

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp aji amarillo paste (a fruity, dried chili, orange in color.  We had a dried habanero from the garden - I used that, minced, and without the seeds.  I didn't make a paste - I just added the minced pepper to the rest of the sauce.)

Combine all the ingredients. 

Yield:  5 Tablespoons and 1 tsp.

Pretty simple, right?  Let me tell you - it's a bright, intense, delicious powerhouse of a sauce.

Now, on to the salad...

Seafood Ceviche, Nobu Style

6  1/2 ounces of seafood (delicate-flavored varieties such as fresh white fish and shellfish, boiled octopus, boiled shrimp), cut into bite-size pieces

4 tsp finely chopped cilantro

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cucumber, peeled (if necessary) and cut into thin round slices

4 each red, yellow and orange mini tomatoes, halved (I just used red grape tomatoes - it's not tomato season at the moment)

5 T plus 1 tsp Ceviche Sauce (see above)

Mix all the seafood and vegetables together well.  Combine with Ceviche Sauce and transfer to a serving dish.  Top with a cilantro sprig.

And that's all you do.  We made it this evening after the kids' swim class and I think, working together, Bill and I had it done in less than fifteen minutes.

We did a less intense version for the kids, because they wanted octopus and I thought the Ceviche sauce would be too spicy for them. 

I was wrong.  They both ate the less spicy version Bill put together, and then wanted more octopus.  They were told that all we had left was the spicier stuff - didn't matter.  Alex ate some of the octopus in the ceviche, and Julia went all out and had a piece of the red onion, too.

And they liked it.  Which is why we keep telling them - all we ask is that you TRY it. 

So go ahead - you try it, too!

Broiled Salmon with Honey-Mustard-Almond Topping

This is what I made for my husband's birthday earlier this week.

We had gone in search of whole snapper, but no luck there, so Bill picked out a nice piece of Wild Caught Alaskan Salmon and a dozen oysters, and I took it from there.

For the salmon - I combined the last of some nice grainy mustard, several generous spoons of Gray Poupon, and a bunch of honey.  Pretty easy.  Just tasted it as I went along to make sure the ratio of honey to mustard was good.

Later on a also added some crushed sliced almonds, because I thought they'd add a nice crunch.  They did.

Next, I measured out some black rice into a pot and added water according to the package directions. 

Here's what it looks like - it's pretty cool.

And here's how it looks while it's cooking -

While that was simmering (the rice took the longest to prepare - bring to a boil then simmer 30 minutes), I put together a simple salad of mixed lettuces and crumbled bleu cheese and raisins.

Then it was time to cook the salmon.

I got my honey/mustard/almonds mixture...

And slathered it on top of the salmon.

 

I cooked it on a grill pan on top of the stove for a few minutes while the oven heated up, and then I put it under the broiler for about 5 minutes at the most.  When it came out, it looked like this.

Pretty soon the rice was ready, too...

As were the oysters Bill shucked while I was cooking the other food.

And then it was time to eat.

A pretty simple meal, but quite good.  The thickest part of the salmon was medium-rare, and the rest of the fish was moist and tasty.  Try it!   

 

Valentine's Day Ideas: Littlenecks and Lobsters

I think this is my personal favorite of all the meals.  I love seafood, first of all, and as far as preparation goes, a boiled lobster is pretty easy. 

Littlenecks on the half-shell are easy too - especially if you're not the one shucking them.  Bill usually does that here, which is good because I can't take pictures and shuck a clam at the same time.

Anyway - get nice-sized lobsters - the ones above were a pound and three quarters - plenty of meat per person.  We had two dozen littlenecks, but we also had to share with Alex.  Julia doesn't like them yet.

As far as side dishes, well, we didn't have any.  Bill and I had some cheese and a baguette after the meal, but if you require a vegetable, I'd suggest something else easily eaten with your hands - corn on the cob, while ideal, isn't as readily available in the winter.  Edamame would be my choice.  Or you could start things off with a salad.  But really, it's okay to just have an entire meal of seafood once in a while. 

Oh, and why littlenecks?  Why not the obvious choice - oysters?  In this case - because the place we buy our seafood from was out of them, oddly enough.  But I actually think I prefer littlenecks anyway.  Keep them cold until you're ready to shuck them, and don't shuck them too far ahead of time, either. 

 

Once shucked, keep them on ice.

Here's how you do it -

Hold the clam in one hand, your clam knife in the other.  Insert the knife right near the hinge of the clam and gently but firmly and with authority, twist the knife until the shells separate.  Hold the clam level, so all the liquid doesn't spill out, and scrape the meat from one shell into the other.  Discard the empty shell, and run your knife under the meat in the other shell so you don't have to fight with it when you try to eat.

If you don't like the briney, oceany taste, you can squirt with lemon juice or top with a bit of hot sauce or cocktail sauce...but if you have to cover up the taste, why are you eating them at all?

Okay.  For the lobsters.  Half fill a pot (large enough for however many lobsters you have) with water and bring it to a boil.  Add salt, and then put your lobsters in.  Some people don't like this part, and yes, it's a little unpleasant, but hey, guess what, if you're going to eat fish or meat or chicken - anything that was alive, well, guess what - it had to die before it was cooked.  Sorry to sound harsh, but, well, that's reality.

So, remove a lobster from the bag it came home in.  Hold it by the carapace, or body.  It will probably arch and splay out all its claws and legs and tail - basically to intimidate you - but it will relax this pose in a moment and then you plunge it into the water, head first (somehow that seems more humane to me - I don't know) and get the next lobster.  Get them in quickly and put the lid on.  Cook them for about 15 minutes.  This may sound pompous, but I can usually tell if they're cooked enough by the smell.  Keep in mind that the more lobsters you have, the longer it will take for the water to come back up to temperature, and therefore the longer you will need to cook them.  I cooked these 4 lobsters for