Chilli Grilled Kingfish

Kingfish, or Yellowtail Kingfish, is found off the south east coast of Australia.  It may be served cooked or raw if proper care is taken, but the most popular preparation method is probably on the barbeque.  Because the flesh tends to dry out a bit, be careful not to overcook it.  I made sure to use citrus and garlic in my marinade to help retain as much moisture as possible while it cooked.  This is a very simple recipe but the results are fantastic. 

Chilli Grilled Kingfish

Ingredients

4 kingfish fillets
3 chillis, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 small bunch flat leaf parsley, minced
1/4 cup oregano, minced
salt and pepper
olive oil

Directions

1. For marinade, add chillis, garlic, zest, herbs, and seasoning to a mortar and mash with pestle.  Add just enough olive oil to make a liquidy paste.

2. Marinate the fillets in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

3. Prepare grill for cooking over medium high heat.  Grill fish for 3 minutes on each side or until almost cooked through.  Serve immediately.

Roasted Zucchini & Eggplant Lasagna

Obviously fresh pasta is best, but when you're looking to throw a dinner together quickly, oven-ready lasagna noodles can be a godsend.  There is no pre-cooking required AT ALL!  They will absorb the tomato sauce as the lasagna bakes and soften. 

As an added bonus, you can also prepare this ahead of time and store in the fridge until you are ready to bake.  Feel free to use your favorite sauces and and fillings - cheese?  meat?  vegetables?  Just make sure to start with sauce, top with lasagna, alternate layers of filling and lasagna, finish off with a layer of sauce, then top with cheese.

Roasted Zucchini & Eggplant Lasagna

Ingredients

1 eggplant, cut crosswise into 1/4" rounds

2 zucchini, cut crosswise into 1/4" rounds
3 tbsp olive oil

1/2 carrot, diced

1 onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 24oz bottle of tomato passata

pinch of dried chilli flakes

1 1b ricotta

1 egg

3/4 cup parmesan, grated

2 tsp parsley, chopped

2 tsp basil, chopped

1 package pre-cooked lasagna noodles

1/2 cup  mozzarella, grated

salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Season eggplant and zucchini and toss with 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil.  Transfer eggplant to baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes, add zucchini and roast for 20 more minutes, stirring occasionally.  Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat and saute carrot, onion, and garlic until tender.  Add passata and and chilli flakes.  Season and simmer for 15 minutes. 

3. In a large bowl, mix ricotta, egg, 1/2 cup parmesan, and herbs. Season with salt and pepper.

4. In glass baking dish, spread thin layer of tomato sauce.  Arrange lasagna noodles over sauce.  Spread half of ricotta mixture and arrange half of vegetables over ricotta.  Spread with layer of tomato sauce.  Repeat layering and top with lasagna noodles.  Spread with tomato sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella and remaining parmesan. 

5. Bake covered for 40 minutes.  Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes until cheese begins to brown.  Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Happy Birthday!!!

Around this house, there is one kind of cake that is always requested come birthday time, a plain vanilla cake...  I had yet to deliver until now.  I always want to experiment with a new technique, ingredient or a recipe that is a bit more exciting.  And he wants plain old boring vanilla cake?  Against my own desires, I decided to surprise him with this ongoing request.  It pains me to say it, but it was definitely the right decision.  There will always be an appeal to this simple dessert.  It was perfectly moist but firm and relatively easy to frost.   

The recipe is very easy and I used a Rachel Ray recipe for vanilla frosting, but feel free to use your favorite (suggestions are welcome!).  Since I can never get the icing perfectly smooth and beautiful, I went for a swirly messy look and I think it turned out great!

Simple Vanilla Cake

Ingredients

4 eggs, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C).  Thorougly grease 2 round cake pans. 

2. Beat sugar and eggs in a large mixing bowl for 1 minute until thickened.   Beat in flour, milk, oil, baking powder, and vanilla until thoroughy combined and creamy, but do not overbeat as this will cause a very 'heavy' cake.

3. Pour batter into greased cake pans and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden and cooked through.  Use the toothpick test, if it does not come out clean, put it back into the oven and check every 5 minutes. 

4. Cool for 5 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.  Frost  the top of the first layer, top with the second layer, and frost completely. 

Happy Birthday!

A Not-so Traditional Osso Bucco

I had a recent request for Osso Bucco, I've never made this before and I'm not totally sure that I've even eaten it, so I had to do a bit of research.  In a nutshell, this is an Italian recipe for braised veal shanks.  I love making braised dishes, they are surprisingly easy and almost all of the work is done hours before serving allowing you to enjoy yourself and throw together any side dishes, and maybe a glass of wine, while your main is cooking away.

From what I read, Osso Buco originated in Milan. The name means “bone with a hole” which is a reference to the veal shank bone and marrow filling which undoubtedly contributes to the flavor of this dish.  The veal shanks are braised with vegetables, white wine, and stock.  Gremolata, a mixture of Italian parsley, zested lemon peel, and garlic is added to the sauce at the end of cooking or used as a garnish.  It is traditionally served over saffron risotto.

I decided to branch out a bit from your typical Osso Bucco, maybe it's just personal preference, but I thought my version was fantastic and so did two hungry mouths at the table.  Originally this dish was not made with tomatoes, but they were a must for me.  I assume the only reason they were not added is that they were undiscovered in Milan at the time.  Instead of white wine, I used a combination of balsamic vinegar, dry sherry, and a splash of brandy to add a bit of tanginess.  I also decided to be easy on myself, skip the risotto, and serve it over mashed potatoes.  I like this rendition as the potatoes soaked up all of that delicious gravy!

I feel like I got the most out of this dish by really concentrating on the layers of flavor.  In any braised dish, rich and savory is easy to achieve, but I loved the added tanginess from the brandy, the hint of balsamic vinegar that gets very syrupy and sweet when it reduces, and the zesty hit of the gremalata when used as a garnish.

Osso Bucco

Ingredients

4 pieces veal shank, bone-in, cut 2 inches thick

all-purpose flour, for dredging

4 tbsp olive oil

2 carrots, diced

1 red onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1/2 green pepper, diced

1/2 red pepper diced

5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 cup dry sherry

1/4 cup brandy

1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 can diced tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 sprig rosemary

2 sprigs thyme

1 bay leaf

2 1/2 cups chicken broth

salt and pepper

For gremolata:

2 tbsp parsley, minced

1 tbsp lemon zest

1 garlic clove, minced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 C).  Ensure shanks are completely dry and secure the meat to the bone if desired using cooking string. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper. Dredge the shanks in flour and shake off excess

2. In a Dutch oven with a tight fitting lid, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat. Brown shanks all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove and set aside to be added later.

3. Reduce heat to medium, add remaining olive oil.  Add the carrot onions, celery, peppers, and garlic.  Season and cook until soft, about 8 minutes.

4. Increase heat a bit and add sherry, brandy, and vinegar to deglaze.  Make sure to scrape up any brown bits using a wooden spoon.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer until reduced by almost half.

5. Tie herbs together and add to pot with diced tomatoes and tomato paste.  Mix well and return shanks to pot.  Add broth slowly so that it reaches about 3/4 the height of the shanks.  Add more or less as required. 

6.  Bring to a boil then place in the oven.  Cook for about 1 1/2 hours until tender and pretty much falling off the bone.

7. Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for gremolata.

8. Take pot out of the oven, remove the shanks and cover to keep warm.  Heat pot over medium heat to reduce sauce to desired consistency.

9. Serve over mashed potatoes, drizzle with sauce, and garnish with gremolata.  Serve immediately.

A Traditional Gazpacho

I recently posted a recipe for Spiced Pumpkin Soup, a perfect remedy for the early autumn weather.  Being that it's spring in North America and they've already had some ridiculously hot days in Virginia, my favorite pregnant sister requested something a bit more appropriate for the temperature, a cool and refreshing gazpacho.  When a pregnant woman has a request regarding food, you must oblige right?

It actually worked out for me as well.  We have reverted back to summer this past week in Melbourne so a gazpacho was just what I needed.  In addition, any food that can bring me back to the days of living in southern Spain, I will gladly take on!

I kept the recipe pretty traditional.  There are a myriad of varieties, but I suggest starting out with the basic recipe then getting creative and adding different vegetables, herbs, possibly grilled shrimp, but it's going to be hard to beat the classic version!  Oh yeah, do NOT skip the olive oil-soaked croutons, they are a must to get the full effect!

Gazpacho

Ingredients

6 tomatoes

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped *

1 green pepper, roughly chopped *

1 onion, roughly chopped *

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup EVOO, plus 1 tbsp (use a good one, it's worth it!)

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

salt and pepper

3-4 slices day old french bread

*If desired, reserve just a bit to mince and use as garnish

Directions

1. To peel tomatoes, prepare a large bowl of ice water.  Cut a small cross in the bottom of each tomato and add tomatoes to boiling water for 30 seconds.  Refresh in ice water and peel immediately.  Cut the tomatoes in half crosswise to squeeze out the seeds.  Roughly chop 3 tomatoes and set aside.  Puree remaining tomatoes and transfer to a large bowl.

2. Add chopped tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, onion and garlic to a food processor and pulse until they are finely minced.  Add to bowl.

3. Add 1/2 cup olive oil and vinegar to bowl and season with salt and pepper.  Stir to thoroughly combine.  Refrigerate atleast 2 hours.

4.  Before serving, cut bread into cubes then heat remaining tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat.  Toss bread cubes in pan until golden. 

5. Ladle gazpacho into bowls and garnish with minced veggies and olive oil 'croutons.'  Head out to your back deck and enjoy.

Why buy?

As I mentioned in a previous post, lately I've been all about making my own sauces, condiments, etc.  With minimal effort, I'm happy to say I have a fridge stocked with homemade jams, barbeque sauce, sweet chilli sauce, preserved lemons, homemade vinaigrettes, and a couple of marinades.  I love knowing exactly what's in my food and that is made with wholesome, fresh ingredients. 

I threw a bit of the sweet chilli sauce from last week into a stir-fry that I made last night, so much better than using store-bought!  You can use it as an accompaniment to barbecued chicken or shrimp, use it in a stir fry sauce, or as-is as a dipping sauce for spring rolls or dumplings.  Mine came out pretty spicy for a sweet chilli sauce so next time I might deseed a few more of the chilis to remove some of the heat. Either way, it's super easy, will last for months, and tastes great.

Sweet Chilli Sauce

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups caster sugar

2 cups white wine vinegar

2 cups water

3 lemongrass stems, peeled and sliced very thin

8 garlic cloves, peeled

15 long red chillies, 10 seeded, all chopped *

1/2 tsp salt

* The more chillies that you deseed, the less heat will be in the sauce

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, vinegar, and water.  Bring to a boil

2. Meanwhile, puree lemongrass, garlic, chillies and salt in a food processor

3. Add to saucepan and simmer until reduced by half and thickened.

4. Cool and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 months.