Friday, November 7, 2008

What's Shakin', Home Fries?


5-6 medium round red potatoes
2-3 tbsp olive oil
seasonings (see below)
Wash the potatoes and slice each into 8 wedges. Place in a large bowl. Sprinkle oil and seasonings; toss to coat (It helps to add 1/2 of the oil and spices at a time). Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet with one of the cut sides down. Bake 30-35 minutes at 375º, turning midway through.
Seasonings: For this batch, I used seasoned salt, along with some cumin, paprika, cracked pepper, and a dash of cayenne to give them more "seasoned" and less "salt." Other combinations that might be good would be sea salt and ground pepper or rosemary, or maybe some curry, turmeric, nutmeg and ginger; onion and garlic powder could be good with a sour cream-based dipping sauce...
NOTE: To reheat leftovers, I sauteed them in just a dash of oil, rather than microwaving, to avoid sogginess.

Fish in Coconut Sauce

1 tbsp oil
2 onions, sliced
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp garlic
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp turmeric
4 whole cloves
4 cardamom pods, slightly crushed
1 tsp curry
3 cups coconut milk
2lb white fish (we used turbot)

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottom sauce pan. Add the onions and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until golden. Stir in the cumin, garlic, coriander, turmeric, cloves, and cardamoms and cook, stirring constantly, for 1-2 minutes, or until the spices give off their aroma. Add the curry and coconut milk, then stir well and simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, using a sharp knife, debone fish if necessary and cut each fillet in half along the center, then slice in half horizontally. Roll up each piece of fish as tightly as possible and secure with a toothpick.

Gently add the fish rolls to the coconut sauce. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. Serve over rice.

NOTES: I really enjoyed this; it was very mild-flavored and not fishy tasting at all. Don't defrost the fish in the microwave; it will cook partially and be too flaky to roll up.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

D'Amico & Sons Turkey with Dried Cherries Pasta Salad

Salad:
1 pound rotini
1 1/2-2 cups cooked, diced turkey breast
1 c dried cherries
1 medium yellow onion, diced
4 diced celery stalks
1 c whole toasted almonds

Poppy-seed dressing:
1/4 c powdered sugar
2 tbls. champagne vinegar
2 c real mayonnaise
2 tbls. poppy seeds
2 tbls. cold water
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp pepper

To make salad:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water. Chill. Combine with turkey, cherries, onion, celery, and almonds.

To make dressing: Combine powdered sugar and vinegar. Add mayo, water, poppy seeds, salt and pepper. Whisk to combine. Add to pasta and toss to combine.

Servings: 6-8 (I'd say more. It was a pretty big salad with a full pound of pasta.)

SOURCE: I got this from Val Hix who got it from the Pioneer Press.

NOTES: I've eaten this recipe almost as written and it was excellent! I did make a few changes when I made it yesterday though:
  • I used a 12.5 ounce can of chicken instead of the turkey
  • I used 1/2 mayo and 1/2 miracle whip for the dressing. In addition, I didn't have champagne vinegar so I used balsamic vinegar instead. Val made it with a raspberry blush vinegar and it worked well.
  • I don't think whole almonds would be pleasant to bite into in a salad, so I would recommend slivered. Actually, I used pecans instead of the almonds and it was very good.
  • I didn't have more than 1/4 c dried cherries so I filled in with craisins. It was great!