4 posts from December 2008

Stuffed Mushrooms

 

 

Twinnie and I stuffed these bad boys after we had broccoli and watercress soup for breakfast, mmmm.  Merry Christmas everyone!  Happy cooking!

Endive with Gorgonzola, Pear, and Walnuts
(from Williams Sonoma I think?)

 

Ingredients:
1/3 cup walnuts
Approx. 30 Belgian endive leaves
1 Bosc pear
5 oz. Gorgonzola cheese, at room temperature

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Place the walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake, stirring once or twice, until fragrant and lightly toasted, 10 to 12 minutes. Pour the walnuts onto a plate and let cool, then chop coarsely.

Separate the leaves of the endives. Choose about 40 of the pale ivory to light green inner leaves (reserve the others for another use).

Halve and core the pears, then finely chop. Spread a teaspoonful of the cheese on the base of each endive leaf. Top with pear and a sprinkle of nuts. Serve immediately.

 

 

Hope everyone has a great day filled with family, friends, and food.

It's been so long since I've posted here and for that, I sincerely apologize.  I just finished up my busy season at work and I finally have my nights and weekends back... sort of.  Now I'm studying all the time for my CPA, but I'm trying to balance a normal life while doing so. 

The boyfriend and I were in the mood for salmon last night, so I went to my go to recipe box and pulled out one special salmon recipe from Ina Garten.  I love that beesch, she's fabulous.  She always has the most intense sauses and marinades, usually which are so simple to make!  Last time I used one of her recipes, I was salivating before I even put the sauce on the country ribs.  It was so delicious. 

Today, I used her Asian Grilled Salmon marinade.  I altered my way of cooking since I didn't feel like having my apartment fill with smoke like the last time I used my grill pan.  Instead, I just used a plain old frying pan and seared my fish the old fashion way. 

Asian Pan Seared Salmon - Ina Garten

1 side fresh salmon, boned but skin on (about 3 pounds) -- I used about 2 lbs.

For the marinade:

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons good soy sauce
6 tablespoons good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic 

 

 

Lay the salmon skin side down on a cutting board and cut it crosswise into 4 equal pieces. ** REMOVE ALL THE SCALES!  This was something I had to do for the first time ever.  It was snowing scales all over my kitchen, but I got the job done.  Woot!  Whisk together the mustard, soy sauce, olive oil, and garlic in a small bowl. Drizzle half of the marinade onto the salmon and allow it to sit for 10 minutes.  I think letting the fish marinade overnight would make a world of difference as far as flavor intensity goes. 

 

Place the salmon skin side down on the hot oiled pan; discard the marinade the fish was sitting in. Pan fry for 4 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Turn carefully with a wide spatula and grill for another 4 to 5 minutes. The salmon will be slightly raw in the center, but don't worry; it will keep cooking as it sits.  ** IF you cook it beyond this point, you'll end up with dry salmon. 

 

Transfer the fish to a flat plate, skin side down, and spoon the reserved marinade on top.  Allow the fish to
rest for 10 minutes. Remove the skin and serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

 

 

I served the salmon on top of asparagus and sugar snap peas sauteed in a little bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and lemon juice.  I thought the extra crunch was a nice addition to the salmon.