Salmon in Parchment

I love salmon. It works so well with almost any type of cuisine and cooking method. Terrific in the summer on the grill with veggies or in a Cioppino stew in winter. Plain and simple or all jazzed up its a champ!
One of my favorite methods of cooking fish is in parchment. It's pretty easy, but looks impressive. Below is a recipe I adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe. I substituted broccoli for the cabbage and scaled it down to two servings. Enjoy!

Salmon in Parchment

Ingredients
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
3 large carrots, julienned
1/2 head Napa cabbage, shredded
4 salmon fillets (1 1/2 pounds)

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2) In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon coarse salt, and 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper. Add 3 large julienned carrots and 1/2 head shredded Napa cabbage; toss to combine.
3) Set four 15-inch squares of parchment on work surface. Use a slotted spoon to mound carrot mixture on one side of each sheet; reserve liquid in bowl. Roll 4 salmon fillets (1 1/2 pounds total) in reserved liquid. Place a fillet on each pile of vegetables; season with salt and pepper.

4) Fold parchment over contents; pleat edge to seal, forming a half-moon. Bake on a baking sheet 20 minutes. To serve, cut paper with kitchen scissors to open.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Brunch at the Yellow Door: Ruffly Eggs (with Dorie)

I first read about "ruffly eggs" on Dorie Greenspan's web page at http://doriegreenspan.com/ and immediately wanted to try them. It's basically a egg poached in a little plastic wrap bag. The ringer is that you can add just about anything you want to the bag to flavor the eggs. My favorite is a big pinch of chopped herbs and a drizzle of truffle oil. I've also made them with a little salsa and shredded cheese (sort of a poached huevos rancheros) and with leftover chana masala with Sriracha sauce for added kick. They are not much more complicated then making a soft boiled egg and as Dorie puts it, they're endlessly play-aroundable.

The delicious croissant is from Le Caprice, a new French bakery, at 3460 14th Street, NW.

Ruffly Eggs with Herbs and Truffle Oil

This recipe is for one serving, but it's easy to scale up to more. Dorie says her chef friend prepares them Saturday night, puts them in the fridge, then cooks them for Sunday brunch at his restaurant.

2 large eggs

Olive oil or butter

2 teaspoons finely chopped, fresh, mixed herbs (basil, chives, parsley, rosemary, whatever you have)

1 teaspoon white or black truffle oil (more or less to taste)

Salt and pepper

Additionally you'll need plastic wrap, kitchen string, and a small bowl.

1) Put a medium size saucepan of water to boil (a 2 quart is more than enough for 2 - 4 eggs)

2) Cut two pieces of plastic wrap, each large enough to generously wrap around each egg. Very lightly coat the the top of each piece of plastic with oil or butter, and then fit one wrap into the small bowl.

3) Add one teaspoon of the herbs sprinkled evenly in the button of the bowl. Drizzle a 1/2 teaspoon of truffle oil over the herbs. Gently crack an egg and into the cup, taking care not to break the yolk. Add salt and pepper to taste.

4) Draw up the corners and sides of the plastic, getting as close as you can to the top of the egg, and twist to tighten the plastic. Tie the string around the neck of the plastic to secure it. Repeat with the other egg.

5) Lower the heat under the pan to a light simmer and gently drop in the eggs (...not fear, the plastic won’t melt). Poach the eggs for about 5 minutes, then carefully lift them out of the water with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel to briefly drain. (If the white doesn’t look set, poach a few seconds longer.)

6) The easiest way to unpack the eggs is to put them on the plate and to snip the plastic just under the string almost all the way around the bag. Gently lift the plastic wrap by the neck, coaxing the egg out a small spatula if necessary. Dorie says, it’s not a problem if it’s upside-down, it’s just that the ruffles are prettier on the top. Serve immediately.

Cook's Note: I love these for brunch with toast or a croissant, but they can be used in the same way as poached eggs; great served on a salad or as Eggs Benedict. They really are endlessly play-aroundable!

About: “I’m giving ‘er all she’s got, Captain!”

This Christmas my partner gave me what I first thought was a model of the USS Enterprise. I ooo’ed and aaa’ed in all the right places as I opened the box and saw the gleaming chrome miniature starship. But at the same time, I thought this is an odd gift; while I am big fan of Star Trek, I don’t have models and such sitting around the house. Then I took it out of the box and laughed hysterically! It’s a pizza cutter in the shape of the USS Enterprise!

From www.ThinkGeek.com, it’s the perfect gift for that special someone who is a foodie freak and a scifi geek!

Tunisia

Our little caravan hugs the beaches along Tunisia’s coastline. Though hot, the sea breezes are magnificent and the Camels seem to prefer the sand. We are in the tiny beach town of Plage de es Chaffar on the Gulf of Gabès. A town of only a fewer than 2000 people but has plan for expanding its tourism. It is known by the locals (and bargain-hunting French students) for its fine sand beaches and excellent kite-surfing.

Like every evening of our trek, Mr. Chebba has coordinated a rendezvous with the two small trucks carrying the bulk of our supplies and luggage. When we arrive in camp each evening, the workers have already erected the bedroom tents and are working on the main pavilion. They are breezy structures of creamy canvas and white linen. At the end of a long day of camelback riding a cool shower and clean dishdasha are heaven. Now it’s off to the pavilion for drinks and dinner.

Speaking of dinner… tonight is Makhouda D'aubergine, a Tunisian style frittata with eggplants, onions, and parsley from the Yellow Door garden. This is an easy recipe great for dinner or brunch. I found it at www.food.com.

Makhouda D'aubergine (Tunisian Eggplant Frittata)

Ingredients:

1 large globe eggplants

1 tblsp salt, for sprinkling

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium onions, finely chopped

1 red bell peppers, seeded, deribbed and diced

8 large eggs

1 handful chopped fresh parsley (about 1/2 cup packed) or cilantro

4 garlic cloves, minced

6 ounce gruyere cheese, shredded

1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs

2 teaspoons harissa or hot pepper paste or ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, to taste

1-2 teaspoons Tunisian spice blend (bharat) (or a mixture of 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon rosewater, and 1/4 teaspoon fine salt)

lemon wedges for garnish

Serves: 6

Prep Time: 45 mins

Total Time: 2 hrs

Directions:

1. Peel and cut the eggplant into 1/2-inch dice. Sprinkle generously with salt and place the cubes in a colander to drain for about 20 minutes.
2. Rinse eggplant and pat dry with paper towels.
3. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil and cook the eggplant, onion, and pepper, stirring occasionally until golden and soft, about 20-25 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400ºF
4. Transfer this mixture to a colander to drain off as much of the oil as possible.
5. In a large bowl, mix the eggs and add the herbs, garlic, cheese and bread crumbs.
6. Add the eggplant mixture.
7. Season with the bharat, salt, and a small spoonful of the optional harissa or cayenne pepper.
8. Grease a 2-quart soufflé dish.
9. Pour the egg mixture into the dish and bake in the middle of the oven until golden brown and puffed in the center, 40-45 minutes (a knife inserted into the center should come out clean).
10. Let cool for 10 minutes before unmolding onto a serving platter (you can also just leave it in the dish).
11. Cut into wedges or squares to serve.
12. Serve hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges on the side.

Algeria – Spicy, salty, and delicious!

We’re traversing the Tell Atlas Mountains in northern Algeria now. This vast range stretches from Morocco to Tunisia. Unlike the empty expanses of sand in southern Algeria, this is beautiful mountain country with a Mediterranean climate. Our camels look out of place in this almost-Alpine-like setting, but they are sure footed and reliable (but also perpetually grumpy).

We’ve been eating well of the local foods; more tagines and plenty of grilled vegetables, meats, and fish. Almost every meal is accompanied by a fiery, salty condiment called harissa. It is a mixture of fresh hot peppers, roasted red peppers, cilantro, garlic, olive oil, and spices. It’s used as an ingredient in sauces and marinades and as a relish along side meat or fish; it’s sort of North Africa’s version of pesto. Depending on how hot your peppers are a little can go a long way, but be fearless!

This harissa recipe comes form my Modern Moroccan cookbook by Hassan M’Souli. I only made about a quarter of a batch. You’ll notice in the picture of the ingredients, that my cilantro looks a little odd. ...that’s because its basil. I forgot to buy cilantro, so I used basil from my garden; it worked fine. Also, the recipe has you roast and peel your own red peppers. I used jarred roasted peppers. Lastly, I did not have a preserved lemon, so I used the juice and zest from a fresh one.

Harissa

Yields 4 cups

1 lb small hot red chili peppers, stems removed

2 large red pepper, roasted, peeled, and seeded

1 preserved lemon

3 cloves garlic

½ bunch cilantro, chopped

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon salt

Olive oil, to cover

Mince the chilis, roasted peppers, preserved lemon and garlic by hand or in a food processor. Mix in the cilantro, cumin, and salt. Transfer to a storage jar and let stand for one hour. Then add enough olive oil to cover the mixture. It will keep nearly indefinitely in the refrigerator.

Morocco: Chickpea Tagine with Chicken and Apricots

We landed in Tangier, Morocco, on North African coast. This is the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic. While most tourist head south to the ancient cities of Rabat, Casablanca, and Marrakesh, our destiny lies in the East, across the Mediterranean Maghreb; eating. We were met by our guide, Mr. Chebba, a Berber caravanner, who whisked us to the train station for a five hour train ride to Fnideq, a frontier town where we will meet our caravan. As the train passes the ancient coastal fortress of Ceuta we gaze north across the waves toward Spain for a glimpse the lights of Gibraltar, which we will see many months from now. We will travel by (a more or less authentic) caravan through Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya. Mr. Chebba will get us safely to the Suez in Egypt where we will begin the next leg of our journey.

The food in Fnideq, like Morocco itself, is a mix of is Berber, Arab, and Moorish styles, and heavily influenced by French and Spanish cuisines. Our one night in Fnideq we…

Ok, ok, this is a food blog! What did we eat? A tagine of course! A traditional stew of vegetables and meat, slow cooked and served over couscous. The recipe is by Mark Bittman in a recent NYTimes article. I changed it up slightly, skinning bone-in legs and thighs and using the dry spices as a rub on the meat prior to browning. Also, rather that bulgur, I added couscous to mine toward the end of cooking. As a result, I used a little less broth than Mr. Bittman suggests. The follow in my version of the recipe. The URL for his original recipe is at the bottom of the page.

Chickpea Tagine with Chicken and Apricots
Time: About 45 minutes

3 tablespoons olive oil
4 chicken thighs and 4 chicken legs, skinned
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 dried hot red chili pepper
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1 14-oz can of chopped tomato (with juice)
1 14-oz can of chickpeas, drained, with the liquid reserved
1 cup chicken stock, bean liquid or water, or more as needed
1/2 cup couscous
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley and 1/2 cup slivered almonds, for garnish.

1. Mix together coriander, cumin, cinnamon in as small bowl. Place chicken pieces in a large bowl, add about a tablespoon of olive oil over the chicken and stir to coat all pieces well. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the chicken and mix to evenly coat all the chicken pieces with spices. Let sit for one-half hour or refrigerate overnight.

2. Put remaining oil in a large, deep pot over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add chicken and brown well on both sides; remove from pan and set aside. Reduce heat to medium, add onion to the pan and cook until soft, about 5 minutes; add chili pepper, garlic, ginger, dried apricots and tomatoes. Cook and stir just enough to loosen any brown bits from bottom of pan.

3. Add chickpeas and 1 cup of stock or bean liquid to the pan and turn heat back to medium-high. When mixture reaches a gentle bubble, return chicken and accumulated juices to the pan. Cover pot, turn heat to low and cook, checking occasionally to make sure the mixture is bubbling gently, for about 30-minutes stirring occasionally. Stir in couscous, adding more stock if necessary so that the mixture is barely covered with liquid. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Cover and turn off the heat and let stand for about 5-minutes or until the couscous tender. Taste, adjust the seasonings and serve in bowls garnished with parsley and slivered almonds.
Yield: 4 servings.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/14/dining/14minirex.html?ref=dining.

“A Summer of Mediterranean Living”

So I came up with what I think, is a wonderfully creative culinary adventure for the Yellow Door. Earlier this spring, I was transplanting some of my perennial herbs out of my raised beds and to a new bed in the yard. When I was done, I realized almost all of these herbs (rosemary, sage, tarragon, oregano, marjoram) are from the Mediterranean. The idea sparked; we’ll have “A Summer of Mediterranean Living”. An entire summer filled with lemons and oranges, capers and olives, basil, Campari, calamari, garlic/rosemary/basil/oregano, olives, sparkling wine and sunshine, lamb, lavender, beaches, family, friends, flowers, fast ferries to Ptown, sea salt, pink salt, black salt, Chardonnay-smoked salt, sweet peppers in red, orange, yellow and green, kebabs, anchovies, olive oil, tomatoes, Tunisian spices, Spanish sausage, Israeli couscous... Well you get the idea; it will be fabulous!

As a cooking challenge, I will research traditional and gastro-nouveau recipes that will take the Yellow Door on a culinary tour around the entire Mediterranean basin; starting in Morocco and caravanning east across the wild Maghreb of northern Africa, cooking all the way. In Egypt, we’ll cross the Suez into the Sinai and (ignoring politics and boarders) sweep north into Israel and eat our way though the coastal Levant region and finally into Turkey and Greece. Our feasting will continue following the coast up through the Balkan states whose beaches touch the Adriatic, finally turning south down the coast of western Italy. From here we’ll board our chartered yacht and do some island hopping; exploring the major islands of the Mediterranean in random order. Landing back in Calabria, the toe of Italy, we head north up the western coast and into the glory of southern Europe; devouring everything from Monaco and Provence to the Cote d’Azur and Costa Brava. Finally ending our summer long fling with Mediterranean in the south of Spain, Gibraltar of course!


I hope you will join Gene and me on this gastronomic adventure! I promise to post often!!!