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Chopped Strikes Again…Mahi Mahi Style

Another episode of Chopped occurred at my house tonight.  I worked late, two jobs actually, starving hungry by time I drove to my house.  So there wasn’t much time for messing around in the kitchen when I got home after 8.  I had defrosted a fillet of mahi mahi.  I like its firm texture and meaty flavor.  My other required “Chopped” ingredients were a zucchini which had been languishing in my fridge veggie bin for more than a few days, a just barely sprouting yellow potato, and some garlic chives growing lush in my herb garden.   Image  Image The second picture is of them blooming, best used before they bloom.

Ingredients (for one)

1 4-6 oz. mahi mahi fillet

¼-½ tsp Cajun seasoning

2 tsp sweet rice flour

1 tbsp olive oil (I prefer EVOL but use what you have)

1-2 tbsp chopped shallot (or onion)

½ cup zucchini cut in ¼ inch half rounds

1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

½ small lemon; zest and juice

1-2 tbsp. snipped leaves of garlic chives

1 potato

1-2 tsp butter

Directions

Place the mahi mahi fillet on a sheet of wax paper; sprinkle it with some Cajun seasoning; about ¼ tsp.  Sprinkle with 1 tsp sweet rice flour, spread it around with your fingers.  Flip it and do the same thing on the other side of the fillet.   Image

Heat a small to medium Teflon frying pan and add the olive oil.  Slide in the fillet.  Cook for 5 minutes on med high heat.  I used half a shallot, just cutting the peeled bulb into thin half rounds.  As the fish cooks sprinkle the chopped shallots around the fillet and then the zucchini rounds. Stir them often. Keep them moving but not on top of the fish.  Carefully turn the fillet after 5 minutes and cook 4-5 more minutes until it is firm and opaque.  Do not let it burn or overcook. Poke the potato in two places and put in the microwave, cook until done.  Let rest while you finish the fish. At the end of the second cooking place the fish on top of the zucchini and zest the lemon peel on top. I used a zester that makes long skinny strands but you can grate it if you don’t have a zester like mine.  Squeeze the lemon juice all over the fish, add the thyme leaves.  Then add 1-2 tbsp. dry white wine; I used some Italian Bollo pinot grigio I had left in the fridge.  Sometimes I make do with the vermouth I keep in the fridge for cooking purposes.  After the mixture cooks for 10-20 seconds add 2 tbsp water and stir up the zuke.  Sprinkle the pan with the garlic chives; I just snip them with a scissors into the pan.  If you don’t have garlic chives you can use regular chives.  Put a tsp of butter in the pan and allow to melt before serving, Gently stir the veggie mixture to coat it with the melted butter.  Taste the mix and add some sea salt and freshly cracked pepper.

Place the fish on a plate, spoon the zuke and shallot mixture next to it; be sure to get all the pan juices. I put some of the veggie mixture on my baked potatoes which I had split and seasoned with salt/pepper and 1 tsp. fresh butter.  Dive in to this healthy and GF meal.  The fresh herbs and lemon juice add a lot of flavor and seasoning.  You might add a side salad to round out the meal.  It took me about 14 minutes to pull it together.

You can sub other herbs as long as they are fresh.  Don’t use too much or you will overwhelm the delicate flavor of your fish.  And yes, you can use any fish you like if you don’t have mahi mahi or dislike it for some reason.  I have begun to love shallots as they have a delicate flavor that does not intrude or cover over the other ingredients but if you only have yellow onion that will work fine. Other veggies might work as well but I do suggest you try the recipe unchanged before you start mixing things up!  Image

My camera is missing in action and my tablet camera seems out of order today.  Phone not available either so no picture of this lovely meal.  I will toss up some photos of the ingredients. 

Of course you can make this for 2-4 people; just increase your ingredients accordingly. It is definitely going to be a go to recipe of mine for busy summer evenings particularly when the zucchini crop come in!

An Amazing Book on Making Great Food

Eating fresh fruits and vegetables is like second nature to me.  I grew up on a small farm and my parents were crazy gardeners.  When the green beans were ready we would eat gigantic bowls of them and nothing else! When it was strawberry season my mom would make a huge shortcake with an enormous biscuit that filled a turkey platter and was piled nearly a foot high with a second biscuit and hundreds of juice homegrown berries.  Don’t even get me started on the asparagus she served in a cream sauce made with raw milk from our own cows.

So when I saw this book at the library with a bag of veggies and fruits on the cover that talked about reclaiming the nutrients and flavors that have been lost in today’s meals I was hooked before I opened the cover.  It is “Eating on the Wild Side…The Missing Link to Optimum Health” by Jo Robinson.   Image

I read it in about 3 days, couldn’t put it down.  It covers a wide array of fresh produce and categorizes them by plant family; melons, alliums (onions), stone fruits, lettuces and so on.  There is a summary at the end of each section that gives the reader the most salient facts necessary to make good food choices.   This book tells you which varieties have the most nutrients and minerals in them, which to grow in your home garden and how to prepare them to get the most out of your produce, both in flavor and nutrition.  Image

If you are serious about your health and eating right it is incredibly informative.  If you are a vegetarian it ought to be required by law.  I highly recommend it even if you just borrow it at the library like I did and read about the best ways to store, cook and grow vegetables and fruits you will be glad for the great details on what is more nutritious  and why.

There are a few recipes sprinkled through out this volume but it truly is a great reference on getting the most nutrition and eating to feed your body to a new healthier you.  The color of veggies and fruits can be a clue as to what is healthier, how you cook your carrots matters and she tells the best way to freeze foods for enjoying off season.  artichoke

This is such an amazing book, I had to write about it.  It is chock full of surprising plant facts and helpful hints on how to store produce better, prepare it healthier and make better choices in the store.  I promise you will be inspired by it!

Gluten Free Dog Treats…Yummy for Him and Safe for Me!

For a long time I have debated about feeding my dog wheat dog treats. I used to occasionally buy them and I used to make several kinds of homemade dog cookies. Chesse loved them all.

But I worried about contaminating my hands and touching my lips which would be not good at all. I also was uncomfortable with baking wheat products in my kitchen. I had to clean up (a lot!) after each time I made wheat based dog cookies last year.

After much thought I decided to change what snacks I fed him as his dog cookies are held in my hand, unlike they dry dog food which I use a scoop to gather the appropriate amount.  Image

Gluten Free Dog Biscuits

Ingredients:
• 2-3/4 to 3 1/2 cups of wheat and gluten free flour (I use a mixture like this: 1 cup sorghum flour, ½ cup cornmeal, 1 cup white or brown rice flour and 2/3 to 1 cup gf old fashioned oatmeal. You can use whatever flours you prefer

1/2 tsp xanthan gum (optional)
• ½ to 3/4 cup of milk, 1-2 percent
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup of mild olive oil or canola oil
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar (Optional, I have made it both ways)
• 2 gf stock cubes (any flavor you chose) dissolved in
• 3/4 cup of boiling hot water
• 1/2 cup of grated or finely chopped carrots (1 medium carrot)
• 1 egg

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 300 F
2. Combine all dry ingredients and add the rest of the ingredients and mix them well either by hand or in a mixer. If it is really sticky add up to ½ cup more of any gf flours you have.
3. Using a large spoon scoop out cookies; approximately 1-2 tbsp.
4. Place onto non-stick baking sheets, smooth the tops with damp fingers and bake for 30 minutes. This recipe usually fills 3 cookie sheets for a total of 38-40 cookies.  I generally leave them in the oven for 30 minutes more after I turn the oven off and crack the door to release some of the heat.Image

Let cool before storing in an airtight container. I like to freeze most of the cookies; leaving out a 4 day supply. The will otherwise spoil before my doggie can eat them.

Now I can serve dog cookies without worrying I will be contaminated while making or handling them. No preservatives and healthy ingredients for your favorite pooch!

Gluten Free Granola to Grin Over!

I recently purchased some gluten free granola that Aldi’s sells; their own brand.  It had freeze dried bits of strawberries and raspberries in it.  I ate some last night as a snack, covered with milk.  It was okay but really kinda pale and bland.  I had not planned to re-post my granola recipe so soon but I really think you can make your own gf granola so easily that it is almost criminal to buy the blah, teeth breaking stuff that stores carry for a premium price.  So I am reposting my recipe.  I myself seldom add much fruit to it; it has so much flavor and crunch just as it is that it rarely occurs to me to throw in the dried fruit.  If you are a dried fruit lover; by all means, add it in!  Image

Finding decently tasty and safe-for-me granola seemed impossible once I went gluten free. I have tried a few gf kinds and they were all less than impressive: tough, lacking in flavor and devoid of any fruit. So, in desperation, I took the recipe that my sister makes all the time and modified it slightly. You can change it to suit your pantry and your tastes. It is lovely with milk and frankly divine sprinkled on Greek yogurt or over unsweetened applesauce!

Homemade GF Granola

4 cups old fashioned GF rolled oats

2 cups shredded coconut, (the sweetened kind that comes in a bag)

1 cup sliced almonds or broken pecans/walnuts

1 cup raw sunflower seeds

¾ cup canola oil

½ cup good quality honey

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the oil and honey in a small bowl. Mix the four other ingredients in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer. Pour over the oil/honey and mix well. Pour onto a full size sheet cookie tray (one that has sides). Spread out to fill the sheet. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, stirring it up a few times, until it is an even golden brown. Remove tray from oven and cool, stirring it occasionally. Store in an airtight container. Note: if you don’t care for sunflower seeds use 2 cups of nuts in any proportion you like.  Be sure to get decent quality honey, I like to get mine at Bechdolt’s Orchard just south of Hellertown on Route 412.  Great flavor and it is the real deal, not watered down or adulterated.

Fruit Additives:

Any combination of the following in these or your own proportions:

1 cup each, diced dried apricots, raisins, dried cherries, dried cranberries, roasted unsalted cashews or any other dried fruit (figs and dates come to mind) totaling about 4 cups. I like to store it without fruit and add them when I am eating it. This way it stays crunchy. I had some this morning with sliced bananas and milk, just a bit of dried cherries added: fabulous flavor.  This batch was made with pecans but any nuts would work well.

I made a batch early this week and put some in a sturdy Tupperware container and froze it. I am not sure how many weeks it will keep on the counter without preservatives but honestly, if real deal granola is sitting around I will be compelled to munch it so I felt it best to store half safely in the freezer out of easy reach! It is rather addictive even all by itself.

Of course, you who can eat gluten just use any old fashioned oatmeal and you will have a fantastic granola for your family to crunch on. Far better than any you can buy and not that expensive compared to store granola especially if you leave off some of the added fruits and nuts. So whip up some granola, it is easy and wickedly tasty.

I found that it kept well in a sealed jar and the rest of it froze fantastically. After my original posting I read somewhere that freezing half your batch is a good idea as it will go stale even stored in a lidded jar.

Originally posted January 2014 on Patch. 

Pear Split….the New Fruity Ice Creamy Dessert

Who doesn’t love a banana split? I remember when we were first dating Joe and I would often share one for dessert.  I like them not too gunked up with sprinkles and the like but hot fudge is a must on my banana split.  

Sometimes I am not in the mood for bananas and I looked for other fruit to make into an ice cream duet.  One that seems to pair well is the pear! I think a ripe bosc pear is fantastic split in half and made into a modified banana split, sans the banana of course.  Other types of pears would work, just make sure they are at the peak of their flavor and texture.  Image

Here is how I do it.  Take one large ripe pear, cut it in half and then into quarters.  Remove the hard seed area in the fat part of your pear.   You can use a melon baller for this process or a sharp paring knife.  I lay the pear wedges in my chosen dish.  I happen to have a couple of elongated frosted glass dishes with low sides that were made for banana splits. 

Top with 2-3 balls of ice cream.  I like to use vanilla or vanilla fudge but strawberry is also a great choice and if you are a chocoholic, indulge by all means!  Friendly’s makes a fantastic ice cream called “Banana Split” which is three flavors: banana with fudge ripple, chocolate with walnuts folded in and strawberry with flecks of crushed pineapple.  I am guessing it would go rather well in my pear split.

I heat up some hot fudge; there are a number of good jarred hot fudges out there.  Read the label if you are concerned about GF issues.  It would be sad to get sick from such a fantastic dessert.  Put a couple of dollops of it on there.  I also like a delicate stream of Hershey’s chocolate syrup poured over the top.  Image

If you are a lover of nuts; throw on some lightly salted peanuts or what ever floats your boat! Again, check the label for GF safety.

I don’t generally put whipped cream on it anymore, counting my calories but if you must: whip up some heavy cream, add a spoonful of powdered sugar and a dash of vanilla extract (GF of course) and spoon it on top.  I am not a fan of maraschino cherries but put one on if it is important to you! 

Note: if your pear is kinda firm you can poach it in some liquid; cider or wine, even cranberry juice; just until soft.  Cut in half and remove core and slice and use as the recipe suggests.

The quality of your fruit really matters.  Don’t use mushy or hard fruit and if it looks sub par, cut up, cook it and use as a sauce on your ice cream or make it into a cobbler.  I wouldn’t use it in this recipe. Same goes for ice cream.  Don’t use less than the best.  I personally love Turkey Hill, great mouth feel, the sweetness level is where I like it and the flavors are perfect.  Image

I couldn’t take a picture of my first pear split as my camera is missing in action and I didn’t think of using my cell until I had devoured the whole split!  This second split (one day later) is okay, it is missing the wonder of hot fudge…I am all out.  Bummer, although it was still tasty.

The beauty of this dessert is that you can enjoy some ice cream relatively guilt free as you are having fruit too! Plus, if you are not a banana lover this is a great option for a split.  I have even made it with peaches or nectarines in the summertime. Give my pear split a try, why should bananas have all the fun? Image