Crispy Cod and Warm Romaine Salad + Mayu

After weeks of triple digits, it seems Texas has jumped from the depths of summer straight in to fall.  I love the triple digits, but I’m not complaining about a bit of a reprieve from the heat.  Summer may be winding down, but fall in Texas doesn’t start off cool and crisp. 

My gin and red wine loving self is not looking for a sugar filled moscato when it’s this hot.  While the temps have dropped, it’s still a bit warm to enjoy a red during the early evening, in my opinion.  Enter my new summer obsession – the Mayu from Pedro Ximenez.  It has a subtle floral flavor, but it’s uniquely crisp with a pleasant minerality. To be honest, it’s so refreshing you may find yourself finishing the bottle in an evening. 

Pairing this wine with dinner requires an entree equally light and refreshing.  Naturally, I wanted some fish as the protein for this dish.  Cod is the perfect combination of lightly fishy but complimentary to a host of other bold flavors. I breaded it in panko crumbs to give it a satisfying, crunchy texture. 

To finish the fish, I broiled both it and the romaine hearts.  It’s cool enough I pickled my own corn, as well.  If you’ve never pickled before, it’s an easy process that can extend the shelf life of summer produce well beyond the summer.

Crispy Cod and Warm Romaine Salad

Serves 2

• 2 cod fillets
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 egg white
• 2 romaine hearts
• Ear of corn
• 2-3 habanero peppers 
• 1/2 cup vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 3-5 cloves of garlic

1. Bring vinegar, water, and sugar to a boil.  While waiting on it to boil, rough chop garlic, slice kernels off the ear of corn, and dice habaneros.
2. Place garlic, corn, and peppers in a glass jar, pour in boiling mixture, and secure lid tightly.  Let cool on counter for about an hour, then refrigerate.
3. Pat cod fillets dry, then coat with egg white and panko.
4. Use an oven proof rack, place cod on rack and rack on cookie sheet.  Bake cod at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until nearly done.
5. While cod bakes, slice each heart in half.  Brush tops with oil.
6. When cod is nearly done, add the romaine hearts, cut side up, to the pan with the cod.  Turn oven to broil, and let broil until both start to brown.
7. Sprinkle corn and habanero peppers on romaine, and serve with cod. 

Steak Cauliflower Tacos Paired with Carménère

Mondays around my house have become a night we lovingly refer to as ‘Sorority night.’  The girls come over for dinner, wine, and to watch fellow Dallasite, JoJo, date many men.   Nothing says girls night like (lots) of red wine.  Andddd well, let’s  be honest, some nights it is more wine for dinner instead of real food.

Generally though, I try to throw together an actual dinner.  One crowd pleasing option in Texas is always tacos!   Pairing red wine and tacos isn’t the first pairing that comes to mind, but these tacos take a spicy and savory route that pairs well with the Carménère.

Recently, I was introduced to the Falernia Carménère at one of the weekly wine tastings at 1001 Wine & Spirits.  I paired it with a health conscious taco – giving you less guilt for finishing that bottle.  (Just kidding. I have no guilt in finishing the bottle.)

Not only are ingredients in season, it’s best made with a budget friendly aged cut of steak.  I buy mine in the “Manager’s Special” section, #noshame. A well aged steak tastes bests for these tacos.  Don’t fret about the mayo part of this recipe, these is a very small amount that blends with the adobo sauce for a spicy finish.

Ingredients

• 1 lb steak
• 8-10 whole wheat taco shells
• 1 head cauliflower
• 2 ears corn
• 2 tbsp mayo
• 1 can adobo chilies in sauce
• 1/4 onion, diced
• cilantro, chopped
• cumin
• salt
• pepper

Method

1. Bring steak out of fridge, and generously season one side with salt and pepper.  I prefer coarse salt.  Let sit 5-7 minutes, then flip and repeat.
2. While steak marinades, heat oven to 400 degrees.  Break down cauliflower into small florets, and slice corn off the cob.
3. Line baking sheet with foil, add cauliflower and corn.  Sprinkle both with salt, and cauliflower with cumin.  Roast until cauliflower begins to soften.
4. Heat a pan to medium high heat and grease with a touch of olive oil.  Sear each side of steak, then remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes.  Slice into thin strips.
5. Dice onions and cilantro.
6. Mix mayo with sauce from the adobo chilies, tasting as you go to your desired level of heat.
7. Layer cauliflower, corn, steak, onion, cilantro and add sauce to the taco shell. Beware, the sauce can get spicy!

Chorizo Stuffed Poblanos + Tequila

A little heat never hurt… Unless you’re talking about the Texas summer.  Now I’m rarely opposed to hot weather, but hot and humid? Not my favorite.  North Texas is currently roasting, but all the more excuse to go to the pool.

What’s better at the pool than a cool drink and friends? Really, nothing.  I love having friends over for drinks, pool, and food.  Beer and margs by the pool can really make people hungry! 

Sunday I usually take a few hours to prep food for the week ahead.  I love cooking, but every cook has their limits.  One Sunday staple in my house is this recipe for stuffed poblano peppers.  It’s an easy recipe that is sure to please. 

Serving a variety of friends means serving a variety of dietary requests.  Vegetarian, high protein, calorie sensitive, gluten free… The list goes on and on.  This recipe (generally) serves the common requests.  Someone is reading this and questioning this, because chorizo=meat, duh. BUT.  I have found the most delicious soy chorizo at Trader Joe’s. 

You can prep the ingredients (and the peppers!) beforehand, just cover tightly with tin foil in the tray you’ll be baking them in.  With it being summer, you could totally pop these babies on the grilled, too!

Serve them stand alone, or with some corn on the cob. Look for a grilled corn on the cob recipe coming soon! I’m getting ready to host a Game of Thrones themed party, so that means fun food sure to please even a White Walker! 

Grill the peppers and a little corn for a whole meal!

Chorizo Stuffed Poblanos + Tequila

• 5-6 poblanos
• 1 tube Trader Joe’s soy chorizo
• 1 cup dry rice
• 2 1/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup tequila
• Juice from one lime 
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can black beans 
• Goat cheese

Method

1. Combine water, tequila, and lime juice. Bring to a boil, add rice. 
2. Brown chorizo in a pan. (You can brown all of it at once and use the leftover for scrambled eggs in the morning 😉 ) 
3. Cut each pepper in half, remove seeds and ribs.
4. When rice is fully cooked, layer evenly across each pepper. 
5. Combine chorizo, drained tomatoes, and drained beans, then heap on top of poblanos.
6. Sprinkle goat cheese (as liberally as you’d like!) across peppers.
7. Bake at 350 (or grill) until top of peppers brown and goat cheese starts to melt and brown. 

Vodka Shrimp Cocktail Sauce

Canning – does anything scream old cat lady more than canning?  Probably not, but while everyone was Pinteresting mason jars for weddings, I was more worried about what those mason jars could have been storing.  Flowers? Beer? More like pickles.   The thoughts of canning and pickling led me down another path, infusing alcohol.  I’m not a real big sweet drink kind of person.  I love savory and spicy, so naturally I added some horseradish to my vodka.

My non-drinking had led to a non-need for spicy Bloody Mary elixirs, so I made the next best combination of tomatoes, vodka, and horseradish:

Shrimp Cocktail Sauce. (What do you mean your cocktail sauce isn’t normally alcoholic??)

It was timely, with the Super Bowl just a few days before Mardi Gras.  The plump Roma’s looked just perfect for roasting to add a bit of the smoky flavor to the sauce.

The Cajun themed watch party started off with a zing!

 

Vodka Shrimp Cocktail Sauce

• 8 Roma tomatoes
• 4 sticks of horseradish, soaked in vodka (about 3 tbsp prepared horseradish)
• 1 tbsp horseradish vodka
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• Juice from half medium lemon
• 1 tsp salt, plus more
• pepper
• olive oil

Method

1. Slice tomatoes in half, brush with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Roast at 450 degrees until tomatoes have a touch of brown.
2. Cool tomatoes until room temperature.
3. Add all ingredients but tomatoes to food processor or blender, and blend until horseradish is in very small pieces.
4. Add tomatoes, blend briefly.
5. Chill before serving.

Stuffed Portabellas + Chardonnay

For an entire month, I’ve been staring at my January wines from 1001 Wine & Spirits’ wine club. Unopened.  Just two lonely bottles of wine, begging me to open them.  I gave up drinking for the month of January, trying to make up for the overindulgence of the holidays.

It.

Was.

Rough.

But here we are, and what a better way to celebrate then to crack open one of those bottles I have been staring at all month. The lucky bottle I started with first was a 2014 Chardonnay from Tarrica Wine Cellars in Monterey.  Clean, fresh but a touch tropical, this Chardonnay will be stocked in my bar for both cooking and sipping.

The Cali wine and Dallas sunshine inspired a brighter, chunky red sauce for these pretty portabellas.  Normally, I throw something stout and dark in my red sauce, but I wanted to mix things up.  I offset that bright taste by seasoning my ground turkey with a traditional Italian spicy zing – red pepper flakes.  You could make this a vegetarian dish, too, instead of turkey, roughly chop some spinach and season like the turkey.   To finish the dish, I sprinkled the tops with creamy goat cheese crumbles.

Stuffed Portabellas + Chardonnay

Serves 4

• 10-12 good sized roma tomatoes, blanched, peeled, and cut in to large chunks
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp chopped basil
• 1 shallot, minced
• 3/4 cup Chardonnay (recommendation above)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust to your taste)
• 4 good sized portabellas, stems removed and cleaned
• goat cheese

Method

1. Add tomatoes through salt to pan, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and simmer uncovered.  Simmer for 2-3 hours, until liquid is generally evaporated, stirring occasionally.
2. Brown turkey in a skillet, adding oregano and red pepper flakes.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Brush the mushrooms with oil, and then layer first the ground turkey, then tomato sauce, and top with goat cheese.  Place on parchment on a baking sheet.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until goat cheese is beginning to brown.

 

Cuban Black Beans + White Wine

Vegan is not a word that often describes the food coming out of my kitchen.  Both me and my usual taste tester were raised meat and potatoes style, so meat shows up in dinner most nights.  However, this recipe will make even the most ardent carnivore forget about meat for awhile. That being said, there’s no reason you couldn’t throw some shredded pork on top, or use this as a side with some pork loin.

When selecting your plantains, make sure to get them as ripe as possible, or let them sit on the counter long enough to get very ripe.  Like, black. The more ripe they are, the more flavor they have.

Confession – this is not a new creation.  I’ve made Cuban black beans many, many times, tweaking and adjusting as I went.  There hasn’t been a ‘recipe’ really, I’ve just cooked by taste.  Below you’ll find a written down version of the one in my head.  Feel free to make it your own – change up the wine you use, serve without rice as a side to pork loin, or make in a crock pot during the day to come home to a warm dinner on a cold night.

Cuban Black Beans + Wine

Serves 4-6

• 2 cans black beans
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 large red pepper, diced
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, plus more for the plantain
• 1 cup white wine (I use Savignon Blanc)
• 1 packet Goya seasoning
• 1 heaping tbsp cumin
• 1 heaping tbsp oregano
• Plantain
• Lime
• Rice

Method

1. In a cast iron skillet (or other oven safe pan), heat the coconut oil over medium heat, and add in the garlic, onion, and red pepper.  Saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Pour white wine in cast iron skillet, increase heat to high.
3. Add beans, Goya, cumin, and oregano.  Bring to a gentle simmer.
4. Heat oven to 300 degrees, and bake, stirring occasionally to prevent burnt beans, for 2-3 hours, or until most of the liquid has boiled off and the beans are soft.
5. While cooking, slice plantains in to coins, about 1/2 inch thick.  Heat skillet to medium high with coconut oil.  Add plantains, flipping to ensure each side is browned.
6. Serve over rice with fried plantains.

Mexican Style Seafood Stew + Tequila

Living in Texas, the first thing I think of when it comes to Mexican is the Tex Mex style that all great happy hours are made of – queso and margaritas.  I love queso and margaritas.  LOVE.  EL. OH. VEE. EEE.  Howeverrr…..  I’m trying to clean up the way I eat in the new year.   I have an entire summer’s worth of queso and margs (and pool beers and patio happy hours) ahead to redo the damage, anyhow.

Part of the cleaned up eating involves  A LOT of vegetables.  Sometimes, you just can’t fit all of those veggies in your stomach or into recipes. I hate throwing them away.  For awhile, I had been considering making my own stock.  What a better opportunity than when I had lots of veggie ‘scraps’ around?

The shells from the shrimp give the stock a subtle, fishy taste.

While I used homemade stock as a base for this soup, there’s no reason you couldn’t use store bought stock.  Just throw some jalapenos in for a bit of spice.

A mug of warm stew – good for the soul, and good for the body.

In the recipe below, it says to marinate the fish and shrimp for 30 minutes – be careful, any longer and you’ll end up with ceviche.  In place of an actual margarita to drink, I marinated the fish in some tequila and lime.

 

Mexican Style Seafood Stew + Tequila

Serves ~4

• ~1 lbs white fish (I used tilapia)
• 1/2 lb shrimp
• 6 cups shrimp or vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup rice (dry)
• 2 medium zucchini, diced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 3 medium tomatoes, chunked
• 2 medium limes, juiced
• 3 tbsp cilantro
• 4 tbsp tequila
• Jalapenos (optional)
• Avocado (optional, but suggested because, well, avocado)

Method

1. Marinate shrimp and fish in lime juice and tequila for no more than 30 minutes.
2. Bring stock to a gentle boil and add rice.  Cover and boil 3/4 of the time suggested.
3. Add zucchini through cilantro, and bring to a light simmer.
4. Cook shrimp and fish until barely done.  Add to the stock and vegetables.
5. Serve topped with avocados and jalapenos.

 

Gin Basil Black Pepper Salad

This past weekend, I took a road trip to Memphis to watch my alma mater play.  Don’t ask about it. I’m still a little salty. While there, I managed to not try Memphis BBQ.  Not like, intentionally, I just didn’t get around to it.  I guess I will be headed back eventually to try.

I did venture beyond the complimentary breakfast and stadium food, though, and took the suggestion of a friend of mine to check out a place named Local.  If you find yourself in Memphis, I highly recommend stopping by.  Be prepared to gorge yourself on food and drinks, though.  So. Good.  A few (too many) bites of food and a few more happy hour gin and tonics later, one of the house special drinks caught my eye.

Hi, yes I’m a gin addict.

It really was everything I was hoping it would be.  Maybe it was the combination of the food coma, the booze, and the lack of exciting football games, but my mind got to wandering.  This drink was delicious, and naturally, I wanted to turn it in to a meal .  I was fully taking advantage of my last glutenous days before attempting to make amends to my poor jeans for the holidays, but I wanted to turn this drink in to a meal that was a bit more virtuous.

I tore some basil up to toss with the spinach, a smidge of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, and a healthy shake of pepper. I roasted the eggplant with some lemon.  And all day, I marinated the chicken in gin and honey – this was a bit more virtuous, not a total saint.

Gin Basil Black Pepper Salad

Serves 2

• 2 cups spinich
• 6-8 large leaves basil, torn
• 1/4 cup egg plant, cubed
• 1 lemon (or lemon juice, if preferred)
• 1 medium chicken breast, cut in strips
• 2 tbsp gin
• 2 tbsp honey
• 2 tsp olive oil
• Pepper, to taste

Method

1. Whisk together gin and honey, shake with chicken.  Cover and chill.  Marinate chicken 30 + minutes – 8 hours.
2. Cook chicken in pan on stove until cooked through.
3. While chicken is cooking, coat eggplant with lemon juice, roast in oven on 350 degrees until just soft.
4. In individual bowls, mix together spinach, basil, olive oil, squeeze of lemon, and pepper.
5. Top with eggplant and chicken.

 

New Year Black Eyed Peas + Champagne

Whoa. Champagne for a New Year’s post. Original, I know! Ok, it’s not and neither is eating black eyed peas in the south, but trying out the old wives tale of bringing good luck is worth a shot.  And champagne. Champagne is the reason I love New  Year’s… and brunch… and birthdays.

Cheers to the new year!

 

Since blacked eyed peas are a southern tradition, I wanted to bring a southern influence to this dish.   A little shrimp, some Cajun spices, and bacon are sure to bring some good flavor to that good luck in the new year.  Yes, the shrimp is cooked in bacon fat as well.  Resolutions can start after the weekend.

Shrimp, bacon, collard greens bring delicious flavor and texture to the black eyed peas.

Southern Style Black Eyed Peas

Serves 6

• 12 oz black eyed peas, fresh
• 2 cups dry champagne, plus more to drink
• 1 large tomato, diced in large chunks
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• 2 tbsp parsley, diced
• 3 cups water
• 4 sliced thick cut bacon
• 1 lb shrimp
• 1 small bunch collard greens, rough chopped
• Cajun seasoning, to taste
• 6 cups rice, cooked

Method

1. Add 1 cup champagne, 1 1/2 cups water, and rinsed black eyed peas to a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and cover and simmer.
2. After 30 minutes, add tomatoes through parsley and 1 cup water, continue to simmer.  Season with Cajun spice as desired.
3. Meanwhile, cook bacon until just before crispy.
4. Remove bacon, roughly chop, and add to pot.  Add shrimp to same pan, using bacon grease to cook shrimp just until done on each side.
5. Pour off excess grease, and add 1 cup champagne to pan on medium low heat to deglaze the pan.
6. Add shrimp and deglaze liquid to black eyed pea pot.
7. Simmer for 45 minutes, then add collard greens and simmer for 15 more minutes.
8. Serve over rice.

Christmas Brunch Lamb with Sweet Potato Hash + Witbier

Christmas, if you didn’t know, is just days away. It really does seem that just days ago, the Halloween and Christmas decs overlapped in all places retail.  Nothing like witches and skulls and jolly old Saint Nick.

I guess that makes me sound like a Christmas hater (only slightly true). Really though, the only parts of me hating the holiday are my liver and my pants. The most important meal or food of this holiday of feasting and presents is overlooked, in my opinion.  Peppermint is fine, gingerbread should be for decoration only, ham is standard for dinner, and the ever important delivery Chinese are all great traditions.  But what about brunch? How shall I open presents at the crack of noon without sustenance???? A light Christmas fare will not do, but neither will a carb loaded nap inducer. I braised this beautiful lamb in herbs and the Witbier from a local brewer – Community Beer Co.  My cast iron skillet has to be one of my favorite tools for the kitchen – I seared the lamb on all sides, then added the beer and herbs and popped in the oven.

Just the lamb will not do, though.  A roasted sweet potato has made the perfect complement to the sweet, tender lamb.  To the hash I added fresh minced rosemary and onions. The great part about braising and roasting is that it requires one oven, one temperature. Pop it in, let it go. Fill your home with wonderful scents.

Key to a fried egg? Heat, technique, and butter.

To ensure I kept the breakfast-y feel to this savory dish, I added a fried egg.  The warm, runny egg yolk covers the hash when it’s cut and adds the perfect sauce to the dish.

Christmas Brunch Lamb with Sweet Potato Hash + Witbier

Serves 2

• 2 Lamb rib chops
• 2 Sweet potatoes, cubed
• 1/2 Small yellow onion
• 2 Large eggs
• 1 Bottle witbier
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 Tbsp butter
• Paprika
• Parsley
• Garlic, chopped
• Rosemary
• Salt

Method

1. Heat the coconut oil in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat
2. Sear lamb on all sides
3. Remove from heat, add beer, garlic, some parsley and some rosemary
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes
5. While lamb is baking, cube sweet potatoes and dice onion
6. Toss with olive oil and rosemary
7. Spread in even layer on baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and paprika
8. After lamb has baked 45 minutes, flip pieces over and add sweet potato to oven
9. Bake both for 45 minutes
10. Fry egg, and top bowl of sweet potatoes with egg and lamb