Oven Roasted Cod with Bok Choy, Cilantro & Lime

I wasn’t planning on blogging again so soon (it being finals and all)- but my current procrastination is a testament to how amazing this is.  You should probably make it for dinner right now.  The recipe is from the latest Bon Appétit, but I’ve made a few minor changes: I added mushrooms and onions and I omitted the sake (didn’t want to make an extra stop at the liquor store- stupid Massachusetts laws).  But I think the sake would be very delicious- will try next time.

This is actually an ideal dinner for finals because it is very quick!  Minimal prep, and then the fish cooks very quickly.  The sauce forms a sort of vinaigrette.  I’m thinking it would probably also be yummy spooned over grilled fish. 

OVEN ROASTED COD WITH BOK CHOY, CILANTRO & LIME
serves 4
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Serve with steamed brown or white rice

1 scallion, thinly sliced
¼ cup coarsely chopped cilantro
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice (I used two limes)
3 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons minced peeled ginger
3 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 cup sliced assorted mushrooms
1 lb baby bok choy, cut in half lengthwise
½ cup sake (I subbed 3 tablespoons mirin)
4 4-ounce fillets of cod, flounder, or other delicate white fish

Arrange a rack in upper third of oven; preheat to 400 degrees.  Combine scallions, cilantro and next 4 ingredients in a small bowl.  Whisk in 1 ½ tablespoon oil.  Set aside.

Heat remaining oil in an oven-proof skillet until shimmering.  Throw in mushrooms and cook for roughly one minute, until browned.  Move mushrooms to side of pan, then add bok choy, cut side down, and sear until golden brown, 2-4 minutes.  Turn bok choy cut side up and remove pan from heat.  Add sake (or mirin).  Arrange the fish over the bok choy and sprinkle with yellow onion.  Roast in oven until fish is just cooked through, 10-12 minutes.

Serve fish with bok choy and mushrooms over the rice.  Spoon some cilantro-lime sauce over the fish, serve with additional sauce for drizzling. 

Dungeness Crab and Shrimp Salad with Avocado

Ohh helloooo.  Where have I been??  I promised you posts as soon as finals ended.  And finals ended six weeks ago!  Terribly sorry.  In that time, I moved from Boston to Seattle (just for the summer- stay posted for permanent relocation), got my wisdom teeth out, and started my summer job.  I have been doing plenty of cooking, we’ve just been missing that integral step of actually posting.  But I am jumping back on the bandwagon (I hope). 

One of the benefits of moving to Seattle for the summer is that I moved from my tiny studio apartment kitchen to my parents’ GIANT kitchen.  And their giant beautiful grill.  Did I mention that it is a gas grill?  You just turn on the knobs and it magically heats up.  This eliminates the chance that I will have a repeat of the drama/tragedy I experienced with my charcoal grill last summer.  Plus it has a super-hot burner for searing meat AND a rotisserie attachment.  Endless possibilities.

But tonight’s dinner involved zero cooking.  Another benefit of moving to Seattle for the summer is that mom and I can eat salads for dinner!  If I tried to make this for Addison, he would inhale it and then ask me what I made for the main course.  It would also be a pretty pricey meal because the fresh Dungeness crab that we bought was $38 a pound!  I made this a bit more affordable by incorporating [cheaper] shrimp as well.  Mom and I got a half pound of each and it was more than enough.  Our fishmonger advised us that some duplicitous fish markets will try to sell you Dungeness crab meat that has been pulled from previously frozen legs.  Do not settle for this!  It would break our fishmonger’s heart.  Fresh/never frozen meat is the only way to go.

If you are looking for a wine to accompany this (or any other) summer meal, might I suggest a vihno verde?  I think I’ve mentioned it before- it was my drink of choice at Jazz in the Sculpture Garden in my DC days.  It is a Portuguese white wine that is dry and zingy.  Delicious. 

Mom's lettuce garden

DUNGENESS CRAB AND SHRIMP SALAD WITH AVOCADO
serves 2
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½ lb fresh Dungeness crab meat, cooked
½ lb bay shrimp, cooked
1 avocado
1 head red leaf lettuce, washed and torn
1 head butter lettuce, washed and torn
¼ cup scallions, chopped
1 lemon, quartered
Basil vinaigrette (see below)
Creamy Louis dressing (see below)
Black pepper

In a large bowl, toss the greens with some of the basil vinaigrette.  Arrange the lettuce on plates and top with crab, shrimp, avocado, and scallions.  Serve with the creamy Louis dressing, lemon wedges, and freshly ground black pepper.


BASIL VINAIGRETTE
This makes enough dressing for about 6 salads.  Leftovers are delicious on grilled meats, pasta, etc.
1 shallot, roughly chopped
¾ cup tightly packed basil leaves
1 clove garlic
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons champagne or white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and mix until smooth.  Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.

CREAMY LOUIS DRESSING
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon ketchup
1 teaspoon lemon
¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Add ingredients to a small bowl and stir to combine. 

Broiled Salmon with Ginger Scallion Soba

What if I blog about a recipe that doesn’t completely revolve around carbs and Italian cuisine? (read: my last four posts...)  I guess my finals comfort food habits have taken over.  At least I’m not relying solely on take-out like I do at the end of most semesters.  Instead I am making brain healthy food to supplement my amazing study habits (read: finding new ways to procrastinate productively).  So let’s have some omega-3s and proteins that stimulate brain activity.  Even if you are not in finals mode, you have plenty of reasons to eat salmon.  According to a recent email from Mom (she likes to send health reminders every so often), salmon is particularly good for your skin (in addition to kale, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes) and will help you keep from aging!   Side note- make sure you get wild salmon- farmed doesn’t contain nearly as many nutrients and it has harmful environmental effects. 

In other news, have you thought ahead to Cinco de Mayo plans??  I had an idea to make churros this year but Addison received it with less than stellar excitement.  I will therefore reserve for another time when I can find people who will exhibit the appropriate level of enthusiasm when faced with deep fried dough rolled in cinnamon and sugar.  I have some other yummy recipes I’m hoping to post before the weekend, but in the meantime, might I suggests some of these options?

BROILED SALMON WITH GINGER SCALLION SOBA
serves 2
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1 ½ cups thinly sliced scallions
1 tablespoon minced ginger
¼ cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons sriracha
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin (rice wine vinegar)
2 tablespoons honey
2 Wild Salmon Filets
1 package soba noodles
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, lightly toasted

Preheat the broiler and cover a baking sheet with foil.  Combine first 8 ingredients and stir together.  Place the salmon filets on the baking sheet and spoon some of the ginger scallion sauce over them.  Broil for 10-12 minutes (depending on salmon thickness) until opaque. 

Meanwhile, cook the soba noodles in a large pot of boiling water, drain and rinse with cold water.  Return to the pot and combine with the remaining ginger scallion sauce.  Serve the salmon over the noodles and top with toasted sesame seeds!

O'o Farm

My post today is a bit different.  This is kind of like the travel edition of Navy Blue Kitchen.  As I mentioned in my most recent post, I was on vacation in Maui last week and I have to tell you about O’o Farm.  Also, I am back in Boston now and missing warmth so this is my way of continuing to live in fantasy vacation world (also an excellent diversion from the piles of reading I have ALREADY been assigned). 

The owner of Pacific’O and I’O (two gourmet restaurants in Lahaina) started O’o Farm in 2000 in an effort to increase the restaurants’ supply of local produce.  A few years ago, the farm started hosting tours of their eco-friendly, organic, and sustainable setting.  This intrigued me- and when I found out the whole excursion culminated in a farm fresh lunch prepared by a gourmet chef I was completely sold. 

The tour was fascinating and the lunch was incredible.  The chef served roasted root vegetables with seared tofu, Mahi Mahi with sweet Maui onions and spinach, and a mixed greens salad (picked by us!).  Oh and the most amazing part of the meal was her sea salt and rosemary focaccia bread- especially delicious for sopping up olive oil.  Dessert was biscotti and French press coffee (from the farm’s freshly roasted beans!). 

I befriended the chef and she gave me an overview of how she prepared everything.  The recipe below is my best attempt (with a few changes).  I didn’t make the focaccia this time but I promise to take on the endeavor this summer!  The root vegetables are generously seasoned with rosemary and thyme- a truly delicious combo.  I have actually been avoiding rosemary recently because it can be so overpowering, but now it has won me back over.  The other big surprise for me was rutabaga!  It adds a mild sweetness that balances out the earthiness of the beets.  


A portable chicken coop that naturally fertalizes the land.  Just like Polyface Farm in Omnivore's Dilemma!

Now for the most exciting part- I am going back to Maui in March (best part of law school = spring break) and the chef said that I can come shadow her while she prepares lunch for a tour group!  I’m so excited!! Maybe I will stay on permanently as her assistant…I think Maui is a better fit for me than Boston.

ROASTED ROOT VEGETABLES & KALE  WITH ROSEMARY & THYMEmakes 4 servings
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3 beets, peeled and chopped into ¼ inch pieces
2 sweet carrots (preferably multi-colored), peeled and chopped into ¼ inch pieces
1 rutabaga , peeled and chopped into ¼ inch pieces
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, minced
1 tablespoon sea salt
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 bunch kale, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 bunch rainbow chard, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Toss the beets, carrots, and rutabaga with about a tablespoon of olive oil, sea salt, and half of the thyme and rosemary.  Spread on a large baking sheet and roast for about an hour, tossing every fifteen minutes or so. 

Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat.  Add the garlic and stir.  Add the greens and toss until they wilt.  The greens will need to braise for about a half hour- check on it occasionally and water (about a ½ cup at a time) to keep it from burning.  When they soften, add the lemon zest and a quick squeeze of lemon juice. 

Remove the root vegetables from the oven and toss with the greens and the remaining tablespoons of thyme and rosemary.  Season generously with sea salt- don’t skimp. 

Freshly picked salad

MAHI MAHI WITH SPINACH AND MAUI SWEET ONIONSmakes 4 servings
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4 filets of Mahi Mahi (or other white fish)
1 lb spinach
2 sweet onions
Juice from 1 lemon
1 tablespoon lemon zest
½ cup basil, cut in chiffonade

Preheat the oven to 350.  Place the spinach in the bottom of the pan with onions, toss with olive oil, lemon zest, and sea salt.  Place the filets on top of the vegetables and bake for approximately 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with lemon juice and basil.

Coffee Beans

Coffee Bean Roaster

Adorable turtle (this was not at the farm, but he is just so cute I had to include it)