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10 Legs in the Kitchen

~ Food. Dogs. Life!

10 Legs in the Kitchen

Tag Archives: dinner

Please Remove Your Shoes

31 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by Stacey Bender in From the journals, Ginger + Buddy, the kitchen

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Buddy & Ginger, cabbage, crispy halibut, dinner, house rules, raw beets, remove your shoes

20140331-195149.jpgCrispy halibut with raw beet, apple, cabbage slaw

When Buddy came to visit us with his Foster Mom, Michelle, three years ago, he walked right in as if he had always lived here. He came in the door, alongside Sophie (a shitzu who was also sadly looking for a home), said his proper hello then proceeded to make a beeline straight to the living room where he confidently climbed into Gingers “raft” (code name for her living room bed). Ginger, had no reaction. This was a strong indication that he may, in fact, be here to stay.

To give a little context to the significance of this move, I need to let you know that Ginger was not on board with our decision to provide her with a little brother. In fact, she had no idea that this was a real consideration. Ginger was ten years old at the time and had always been the center of attention. Ginger is far more interested in the people we meet than their dogs and through her actions around the other dogs, she was very clear about her desire to be an only child. Ginger is a little territorial. She also doesn’t like to share.

So when Buddy made himself at home in her very special bed, Tom and I both looked at each other with wide eyes and took a deep breath. Then… nothing happened. We were elated and at the same time, quite surprised.

Our next step, as Michelle suggested, was to take them for a walk together. Buddy plowed forward like a bull dog, hind feet propelling so fast I thought he might do a summersault. Ginger competitively tried to get ahead but they both ended up strolling together, side-by-side. They tromped through the wet grass at the park and sniffed everything along the way, including each other. It was still wet out from the rain and the mud coated their little paws making patterns on the sidewalk as they marched onward.

When we returned home, Tom took Buddy and I took Ginger, into our arms and carried them to the back door to wipe their feet with the paw towel. Michelle was puzzled by this and said, “Oh, they have to wipe their feet?”, as if this might break the deal.

We don’t have many rules in this house, but one that we make everyone abide by is, “please remove your shoes”. We even provide guest slippers in a bin next to our door, yet they rarely ever get worn. Most people don’t have a problem with this rule, but it is obvious that not all people have this one. Buddy doesn’t like the rule. He likes everything about living here but continues to try and wear his dirty shoes in the house. When I open the door from the backyard to let him in, he sheepishly looks up at me and hesitates when he sees the towel in my hand. I can see his eyes darting to and fro, looking for an alternate route. He usually takes two steps back and requires a little coaxing to come inside (screen door practically shutting closed and thwacking him on the butt).

I take his tiny paws, one at a time and gently brush the towel back and forth to remove the dirt then give a little squeeze to dry the moisture. The second I release his fourth paw, he catapults out of my hands as if he were a wind-up toy, heading toward the treat jar.

Balanced nutrition and healthy foods are a key to building a stronger body. The first time I took Buddy’s little paws in my hands, they were so thin and frail, I feared I would snap them in two. Just this morning, I couldn’t help but notice that his feet felt big and his legs felt sturdy. The little twigs that used to be in their place have grown strong and healthy and a diet rich in nutrients, devoid of chemicals and fillers have played a big part.

Needless to say, he did stay and even Ginger thinks he is kind of swell (although won’t admit it). So with a spring in their step and all shoes removed, Buddy and Ginger join us at the table for our family dinner, halibut tonight.

Crisp halibut over raw beet, apple, cabbage & blue cheese slaw with mint aioli
Serves 2 plus enough for two small pups

As usual, Buddy and Ginger get their fish cooked in foil, sans seasoning and they take their slaw undressed, minus onion. You can use any dense white fish, or even salmon, instead of halibut. I like using golden beets in the Springtime and red beets closer to Fall.

INGREDIENTS (for slaw)

2 cups shredded napa cabbage
2 small or 1 medium golden beet, cleaned & peeled
1/2 red apple, cored, sliced and julienned (squeeze lemon juice over to keep them from turning color)
2 green onions, sliced
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 TB mint aioli (recipe to follow)
1 oz. good quality blue cheese, crumbled (I used Rogue Creamery Reserve)
Sea salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

PREPARE (the slaw)

Parboil the peeled beet. Slice the beet very thin (helps to use a mandolin). Set aside six slices for garnish.

Mix together the cabbage, beets and onion in a medium bowl. Squeeze in the lemon juice and sprinkle over a pinch or two of sea salt

Toss in the aioli and mix well. Add the blue cheese, carefully mixing it in.

Season to taste and let rest at room temperature as you cook the fish.

INGREDIENTS (for the mint aioli)

1 TB rice wine vinegar
1 TB lime juice
1/2 tsp Thai hot sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
Pinch of sea salt
1 TB chopped shallot
1 egg yolk
6 TB peanut oil
1 TB hazelnut oil
1/4 cup packed fresh mint

PREPARE

Process the the vinegar, lime juice, hot sauce, sugar, shallot and yolk in a food processor. Slowly add in the oil until emulsified. Add the fresh mint and process until smooth.

INGREDIENTS (for the fish)

3/4 – 1 lb fresh halibut fillet, skin removed and cut into 2 pieces
Sea salt and pepper to season
1/4 cup white whole wheat flour (or all purpose)
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1 egg, lightly beaten (or spanked ever-so slightly)
1/2 cup panko

COOK (the fish)

I don’t typically measure out the flour or panko, so don’t get too hung up on the quantities listed above.

In addition to lightly seasoning the halibut with salt & pepper, I also lightly season the flour with the addition of smoked paprika.

Rinse and pat dry the fish (friendly-like). If you have a small dog(s), consider trimming the ends of the fish off to cook in foil for them (trust me, they will love you even more if that’s possible).

Dust the fish (no feathers necessary) with the seasoned flour then dip it into the egg letting the excess drip off. Press the fish into the panko on each side.

Heat a pan until hot and add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan. Add the fish and let cook, undisturbed until it has formed a nice brown crust. Flip it over and cook through a few minutes more, depending on it’s thickness. If you like, you can transfer the pan to a 375 degree oven once it is flipped and continue cooking it in the oven.

TO SERVE

Put three beet slices down on each plate. Put a mound of slaw in the center and top with a fillet of halibut. Serve with a small bowl of aioli alongside. Alternately, you could drizzle some sauce on the plate before you put down the beets. A sprig of mint makes a nice garnish.

20140331-204953.jpgFriends without dirty shoes (on a clean-ish floor); paws washed for dinner.

47.535698-122.05484

One fish, red fish, fresh fish, delish

15 Saturday Mar 2014

Posted by Stacey Bender in the kitchen

≈ 32 Comments

Tags

dinner, fiesta Friday, food, King salmon enchiladas

20140315-120700.jpgBack to this later after a word from last week.

LAST FRIDAY…
To prove that I am moving back toward a healthier menu, I give you salmon, and a title fit for Dr. Suess. Why you might ask? Because, I will be crashing a party this weekend and the hostess of the party is “Suessing-out”, so I thought, “when in Rome” (or Whoville).

This is not just any salmon, by the way. This is king salmon, “Springer” salmon actually; caught fresh from the Columbia River and available for the first time this season, last Friday, at Gemini. That’s right, Friday. Once again, as the weekend began, I shed my usual habit of steak night in lieu of Fish Friday.

Usually, this salmon would find it’s way to the grill via a wooden plank, which would impart smokiness and inherently steamed in moistness. Instead, as I stood at the cash register, seconds before the numbers on my card cyber-netted their way into (and out of) my bank account, I grabbed a box of cleverly packaged parchment bags from the stand, conveniently located less than an arms length away (heck, it only increased the order by less than 5 dollars). I was tired. It was an extraordinarily long week and, although it was sunny (yep), and warm (in the sun anyways), it was still Winter. In a few short hours, when the sun had retired, I knew that a simple dinner would make much more traction than one that I wouldn’t be able, or happy, to finish. So the parchment bags seemed like a good idea. Never used them before. Well, maybe once, I think? I had a crisper drawer full of aspiring extras and pulled them together quickly to accompany the salmon in it’s bag.

20140315-113752.jpgKind of fun, and easy!

20140315-113704.jpgA happy, healthy start to a weekend.

ENTER “FIESTA FRIDAY”

20140315-122459.jpg
However, I still prefer the grill, or pan (seared). Tonight for my party crash, over to the Novice Gardener’s “Fiesta Friday” I thought I would go back for seconds, of salmon, not parchment, and cook it up with a little Mexican flare. Maybe they’ll like my recipe and they won’t throw me out…just yet.

King Salmon Green Enchiladas with pickled poblano and fennel relish
Serves 2

MASTER INGREDIENT LIST

1/2 cup (approximately) green sauce (recipe to follow)
Rancho Gordo Ayocote Morado beans, cooked (follow black bean method here)
1 handful (each serving) lime-pickled poblano and fennel (recipe to follow)
3/4 lb king salmon fillet, skin removed and trimmed
Sea salt and pepper to season the salmon (or a combination of roasted sea salt, coriander seeds and black peppercorns, ground fine)
4 corn tortillas
Oil for softening tortillas
4 oz ball Buffalo mozzarella
Garnish ideas: cilantro, avocado slices, tomato slices

INGREDIENTS (for green sauce; you will have extra sauce to use for another dish or to add extra salmon, tortillas and guests.)

1 1/2 lb tomatillos, husked
1 jalapeño
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 sweet onion, peeled
1/2 tsp each, cumin, Mexican oregano, natural sugar
1 wad of fresh cilantro, long stem trimmed but short stem left intact. Rinsed (should wad up to the size of a ping pong ball; if you love cilantro, use more).
1-2 TB lime juice

COOK (green sauce)

Parboil the tomatillos, jalapeño, garlic and onion. Drain and put on a sheet pan. Set under the broiler (set to 400 degrees F) and broil until the skins are brown. Transfer all of the contents of the pan (juices included) to the bowl of a food processor. Add the cumin, oregano and sugar – purée. Add in the cilantro and lime juice – process to incorporate. Transfer to a small sauce pan and keep warm. For a prettier, more vibrant-colored sauce, leave out the cilantro, but the flavor is better with it’s inclusion.

20140315-115229.jpg

INGREDIENTS (for lime-pickled poblano and fennel)

1/4 sweet onion, shaved very thin
1/4 fennel bulb, cored, shaved very thin
Juice of 1 lime (3 TB approx)
1/2 tsp each, cumin, Mexican oregano, natural sugar
1 pinch course sea salt, ground between your fingers; add to taste
2 radishes, julienned

PREPARE (lime-pickled poblano and fennel)

Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl, at least 20 minutes in advance of assembling enchiladas.

TO COOK and ASSEMBLE the ENCHILADAS

Soften the tortillas by cooking each side briefly in a hot, oiled pan. Hold between sheets of wax paper as you finish each tortilla.

Season the salmon and sear in a very hot pan coated with olive or canola oil. Let sit undisturbed for 3-4 minutes until a nice, brown crust has formed on the top. Turn and cook a few minutes more until medium rare inside.

20140315-115135.jpgAhhhhhh, such beautiful red fish – so delish.

Meanwhile, lay two tortillas, side-by-side, on a small sheet pan. Top with a ladle of green sauce, then a layer of cooked beans (drained of liquid). Spread over a few of the pickled poblano strips and top with slices of mozzarella.

20140315-114602.jpg

Top each with another tortilla. Ladle over sauce and top with a salmon fillet.

Put the pan under the broiler to heat through. If you have prepared the enchiladas, sans-salmon, farther in advance and they are cold, heat through first, then add the salmon and serve.

Transfer the enchiladas to separate plates and garnish with more cilantro, slices of avocado and slices of tomato if you like. This would also be nice topped with fresh pico de gallo.

In the spirit of a good party, be sure to share with your friends (new and old).

20140315-121845.jpgThese two are always willing participants – have fish, will travel (to the bowl).

February Flashback

11 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by Stacey Bender in the kitchen

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

braised meat, cranberry beans, dinner, food, Oxtail

20140311-193525.jpg

I know what you’re thinking. I need to ween myself from the meat. I have been on a colorfully red meat diet for the better part of the year and I can only chalk it up to my deficiency of iron…well, that’s my story anyways, and as they say, I’m sticking to it, okay? Some nights, when I am feeling particularly guilty, I have tried to go the other way, back into the land of fish but as of late, especially, I know if there is fish, there must also be meat (more meeet!!). Perhaps Buddy has rubbed off on me (you know what they say about humans becoming to look (or act) like their dog?). In my defense however, this dinner was something I made several weeks ago, and I have been more successful in taming that fiendish craving of meat, as my friends at Gemini Seafood Market can attest.

So, as I was saying, several weeks ago while I was cruising (yes, cruising) for meat in the back half of my local market, there sat a tray of beautiful oxtails calling out to me. I tried to ignore them so they must have jumped into my cart without even a word, because when I got home and unpacked my satchels, there they were, unexpected but welcome. I was torn as to what I would flavor them with – spicy, mild, sweet? I did a little rummaging about my kitchen and came up with a pile of ingredients that seemed to suit. The tomatillos were slated for an enchilada sauce that never emerged and the salsa was several days old and needing a warm home. As luck would have it, I had just recently made fresh chicken stock (because I was out of beef stock), and since I had left a few cups of perfectly brewed coffee in the pot that morning, I figured why not? I picked up the cranberry beans on my recent visit to DeLaurenti and if you haven’t tried Rancho Gordo beans, you are in for a treat. To add a dose of greens, toss in a handful of haricot vert for the last little bit (15 minutes).

Braised oxtails with cranberry beans

INGREDIENTS

3 lbs (two packages) oxtail, rinsed and pat dry

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt plus fresh pepper for seasoning
1 TB olive oil

1/4 cup madeira for deglazing
2 large carrots, peeled
2 onions cut in half, skin removed
3 tomatillos, husk removed, cut in half lengthwise
1 head garlic, loose skin removed, cut in half horizontally
1 cup mango salsa (I had mine left from the swordfish on Valentine’s day)
1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 knob veal demi-glace (optional)
1 1/2 cups homemade chicken stock (or beef stock)
1 cup brewed coffee
1 1/2 cups red wine

1 cup Rancho Gordo Cranberry beans (dry), rinsed

COOK

Rinse and pat dry the oxtail. Season with the salt and pepper.

Brown them in a large, low-sided dutch oven over medium heat. Be sure to brown all sides, knobly as they are. Remove to a plate (or, as I do, remove to the lid of said dutch oven).

De-glaze with madeira, scraping all of the bits off the bottom of the pan. Place the carrot, onion, tomatillo and garlic in the pan. Sprinkle the mango salsa over and tuck in the rosemary sprig.

Add back the oxtail and pour over the simmering broth/coffee and then the red wine. Bring this all to a simmer, then cover and place in a pre-heated 300 degree oven. Scatter the cranberry beans in, trying to be sure they are in liquid. These are so wonderful when cooked but I was really nervous that I would have ruined the sauce. It is true that they sucked a bit more of the liquid than I would have preferred but a sauce can still be had if only you are patient. I am of course, not patient, so I make due in a quick sort of cheating way (I add wine when I go to re-heat).

20140311-193140.jpg

20140311-194049.jpg

Let cook for 3 1/2 – 4 hours, covered, checking in every now and again. As you check in on the oxtail, give them a poke and a prod; nudge things around a bit. The liquid should remain high until the 3rd hour. Tilt the lid askew after 3 hours to allow the liquid to thicken a little (but keep an eye that it does not evaporate completely). Also be sure to tuck the beans into the liquid if they pop up.

After 3 1/2 – 4 hours, the meat should be meltingly tender and the top nicely browned. Remove the pot from the oven and tilt it to one side by placing the lid under one end. The oil should collect on one side, making it easy to spoon away and discard.

20140311-193902.jpg
SERVE

On heated plates, place a piece of onion, a spoonful of the cranberry beans and a slice of carrot. Top with one or two pieces of oxtail and tuck the haricot vert underneath.

…and for dessert
Because it was February, closely following Valentine day (February 18th, actually).

20140311-194753.jpgMy favorite way to enjoy, baked in ramekins with marmalade (so, not Madeline after all).

Double-chocolate Madeleines

Tempted by a yummy blog post by the Healthy Epicurean, I decided to try my hand at baking. Not sure why, since I rarely bake. These just looked so good with the added bonus of being healthy, as these baked kind-of-things go.

I, being unable to completely follow a recipe (kind of a rule breaker, I am), took a few liberties to try and make them even healthier (or rather, simply didn’t have all the ingredients) to Tom’s chagrin. It is quite eye-opening as to what a baked product actually consists of when you are the one mixing up the ingredients; with this one though, I felt pretty good about what was going into them. I know I sound a little hypocritical since I would not even hesitate to add half a stick of butter to a pan of potatoes or an extra knob when cooking fish. We all have our priorities you know? Needless to say, these are most likely not as good as hers (although I liked them quite a bit); they are packed with good cocoa flavor, and are extra-delightful when baked in a ramekin with a spoonful of marmalade tucked inside.

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 oz spelt flour whole grain
9 1/4 oz sprouted whole wheat flour
2 1/4oz cocoa (no added sugar)
2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder

90 g dark 70% chocolate, melted
3 eggs
5 1/2 oz can lite coconut milk
1/4 cup greek yogurt (you might need a little extra if the batter seems too dry)
3 TB honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pear diced
Fleur de sel for sprinkling on batter before cooking
Orange marmalade or raspberry jam (optional)

COOK

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease two Madeleine trays, 12 small ramekins or muffin tins (or a combination of all) with butter.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and cardamon into a large mixing bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs. Add the coconut milk, yogurt, honey, pear, olive oil and melted chocolate. Mix on medium speed until well combined. Fill the cooking vessels with the batter, tuck in a tsp full of marmalade or jam, sprinkle with sea salt and bake until a toothpick comes away clean. The time will vary depending on how large or small your cooking vessel. Check in after 10 minutes, but it could take up to 20.

20140311-194945.jpgMy batch made 24 Madeleines, 12 mini muffins and 2 small ramekins

47.535788-122.054813

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