Pan Sauteed Fluke

We are really fortunate to have terrific access to the wholesale fruit and food markets as well as plenty of farmer's markets here in Chicago.

One such place is Isaacson and Stein Fish Company - located on the corner of Fulton and Halsted.  They supply fish to many restaurants in the city and have a retail store open to the public.  The prices are terrific - the fish is beautiful - and for me, at least, it is on the way from my office to my car - so I pass by it every day!

So yesterday I went in, got my plastic gloves and a bag, and started looking to see what they had for dinner that evening.  And what did I find?  Fluke. Fresh.  Wild Caught in the Atlantic.  Whole and/or Filleted (their staff does an amazing job cleaning the fish - so for me, it is worth the extra money).  I bought 3 lovely fillets (a little over 1 lb.) for $8.00.  Enough to feed the family, plus maybe a little left over depending if the kids and Jay liked it.

Fluke (aka Flounder) is something we used to eat a lot when we lived in New York - it is mostly found in the Northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and is a "flat" fish - so the fillets are relatively thin, but still meaty enough to not fall apart when cooking.

Fish like this just needs to be simply prepared, so I just sprinkled it on both sides with salt and pepper, then took about 1 tablespoon of butter, melted that in a saute pan and quickly browned the fish on either side (about 2 minutes on the first then 1 minute on the other side).  So easy to do.  You know the fish is done when it is just opaque and flakes a bit.

Just wonderful!  Buttery, flakey - even Jay (husband) loved it - and he doesn't like fish!

I served this with a crisp salad of bok choy, napa cabbage, sliced carrots, sliced scallions, watercress, sliced cucumbers and fresh parsley, mint and basil.  The dressing was asian inspired (see previous posts) but you could do anything.

Here is the link to Isaacson and Stein Fish Company - check it out if you haven't gone!

http://www.isaacsonandsteinfishcompany.com/

Enjoy!

Pan Roasted Chicken with Fresh Parsley and Lemon

I used to spend lots of time creating very elaborate meals.  They were wonderful - and are wonderful (when I have the time.)

But for daily cooking, I still think simple is best.  With a few techniques it is easy to create a wonderful meal.  Pan roasting is a good example of this.

Here is a basic recipe for pan-roasted chicken.  You can vary the flavorings, use the juices from the pan and add a few fresh herbs and some lemon zest to liven things up.  But, for terrific chicken flavor - easy - this one can't be beat.

1 chicken cut up into 6 or 8 pieces (you can also split a small chicken in half and "flatten it").
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Olive Oil (enough to coat bottom of heavy oven-safe frying pan)
Chopped fresh parsley and lemon slices for serving

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Dry off chicken parts and sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika.  Let stand for about 15 minutes to "marinate." 
2.  Heat olive oil in heavy bottomed frying pan that is large enough to fit all the pieces of chicken without crowding.  Make sure the oil and pan are REALLY hot so the chicken doesn't stick and you get a good sear on the skin. (Note: If the chicken is really close together, it will steam instead of crisping.)
3.  Place chicken skin side down into hot oil.  Be careful!!
4.  Let brown in frying pan for about 5-7 minutes or until really golden brown (take the time to make sure it really crisps and looks browned!)
5.  Flip chicken over and put pan into oven. 
6.  Roast chicken for another 10-11 minutes until juices run clear and chicken is done. 
7.  Transfer to platter and sprinkle with fresh parsley and lemon!

Enjoy!!

My first pressure cooker brisket

The pressure cooker was an absolute revelation to me (thanks DAD!)

I cooked a brisket in under 1 hour in the cooker - and it was delicious!   Tender, flavorful - and on a weeknight - unbelievable!  The kids loved it, and I look forward to many happy meals together!

So - here is the recipe.

4-5 lb. brisket
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions chopped
3 carrots chopped
3 stalks celery chopped
4-5 whole garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup red wine
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper

1.  In the pressure cooker, heat the olive oil and brown the brisket on all sides.  Remove brisket.
2. Put carrots, onions, celery, garlic and bay leaf in the oil/fat and saute quickly until starting to brown a bit. Season with salt and pepper
3. Put brisket back in the cooker.  Cover with liquid.  Bring to a boil.  Put cover on the cooker and lock it.  Cook at 15 lbs of pressure (setting 2 on my Fagor) for 50 minutes.  Cool down the cooker under cool water. 
4. Slice and enjoy!!

For those that don't have a pressure cooker - this can be made (of course) the same way - set oven to 300 degrees - brown brisket/saute veggies/cover with liquid and braise in oven (covered) for about 3 1/2 hours or until tender.

Serve over noodles, with a salad, etc.

Pressure Cooker

I did it.

I bought one. 

6 quart Fagor Pressure Cooker. 

I will be making brisket in it tonight. 

I will let you know how it goes.

If you hear a really large explosion coming from a house near Bell School on Chicago's North Side - and the smell of brisket fills the air - you know what happened.  

Carmelized Apples, Onions and Leeks

Last night I had bigger plans for dinner than I was able to pull off.  I had originally thought I would have time to make a brisket, etc. etc...  As it turns out, the kids had bagels and cream cheese, yogurt, bananas, etc.

But! I did have time to make a quick salad for me and Jay.   I roasted some cored and quartered apples with quartered onions and leeks (cut into about 1/2 inch coins) for 40 minutes at 400 degrees.  They were tossed with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, salt and pepper.  Then I scraped all the carmelized onions and apples and put it on top of a salad of frisee, baby greens and chopped romaine for some crunch.  A bit of vinagrette - and sliced baguette and voila! Light dinner.

This would also be terrific with some crumbled goat cheese for a more substantial salad - or as a side dish. 

Have fun! 

Crunchy Asian Salad

We eat  lots of salad.  But sometimes you get into a salad rut.  Yes.  Even if you use "fancy" lettuces - and make your own salad dressing.  So - here is a great crunchy salad that has boatloads of flavor (I adapted from a recipe by Lee Goss.)  You can adapt this in a number of ways because it holds up really well.  The first night I served this, I did an Asian theme - dressing, marinated some red snapper fillets in ginger, lime and olive oil, etc...  The second night I added romaine lettuce to whatever was left (I typically do not dress the salad - the kids prefer to dress it themselves) and made a basic balsamic vinagrette. 

So here you go- adapt/add/modify as you will!

1 cup arugula or other spicy type of lettuce
1 head of bok choy - chop into pieces including the green leafy part
1/2 savoy cabbage, shredded
1 cup of julienned carrots (I just use a cup from a bag of shredded carrots)
1 bunch arugula
1 bunch of basil leaves chopped
1 bunch of mint leaves chopped
1 bunch of italian parley chopped
1 English cucumber (seedless), sliced thinly into rounds (do not peel)
3/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts (you can omit these if you want)

Some things to consider adding:  thin sliced chili, 1-2 scallions cut on a diagonal, chopped watercress, chopped cilantro

Toss everything together with the Asian dressing below or your favorite dressing!

Asian Dressing

1 whole shallot - minced
1 clove of garlic - chopped finely
1 teaspoon of minced fresh ginger
Zest and juice of 2 limes
Zest and juice of 1 lemon or orange
1 tablespoon of rice vinegar
3 teaspoons tamari or soy sauce
2 tablespoons of fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon of hot pepper sesame oil
2-3 tablespoons of honey (check for balance of sweet and sour at the end - add more honey if you like)

Mix everything together.

By the way - the kids loved the crunchiness of the salad (I served the peanuts on the side for them to sprinkle over) and they also tried the dressing - which they then proceeded to dip their veggies in!

Have fun and enjoy!!

Easy peanut butter cookies

So a couple of things.

First of all - Happy New Year!  I hope that everyone's year is filled with health, happiness, peace and good eating!

Second - I apologize for not keeping up with the blog.  I have been doing lots of cooking, but life has interfered with my writing stuff down.  My goal for this year is to put a new recipe/post up at least once a week.

Third - for those that have been reading and commenting on my blog - Thank You!  I am supposed to receive notification when someone e-mails and for some reason have not been notified.  I realized just the other day as  I was going through past posts that people other than my dad are reading this blog!

So - welcome to all!

Back to the post at hand.  I am not much of a baker, as many of you are aware.  However, I was recently provided with a wonderful peanut butter cookie recipe that is so easy I had to share.  The kids helped make the cookies and decorated them with sprinkles.  You can certainly add a cup of chocolate chips/chopped nuts/ etc.  The recipe will hold up.

Are you ready?

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup of peanut butter
1 cup of sugar
1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Mix everything together until blended well (if you are adding chocolate chips/etc. do it now)
3. Drop in one teaspoon balls onto cookie/baking sheet (you do not need to butter the sheet)
2. Bake for 30 minutes.

Yes.  That easy - and they are pretty tasty too.  Very peanuty!  Enjoy!