A Fantastic Fish Curry (serves 6)

This was so much better on the plate than I had imagined in my head (and that’s saying something considering my imagination!). We are still in the bowels of a monstrous heat wave and the challenge is to cook something great for dinner quicker than the time it takes me to get agitated from standing by a hot stove for too long!

This fish curry is so good even people who claim to hate fish can be won over!

When I went to the supermarket yesterday with my daughter we talked about what would cook speedily? I told her not to think of a dish but to think of a main ingredient that would cook quickly – “FISH”, she shouted when she was suddenly hit with the idea, causing the woman with the trolley beside us to glare at her for startling her – oops!

The smaller the fish, the quicker it cooks (this was for my little fish fry in Italy – Press here to see the recipe

I thought that a powerful idea but was a bit worried about the selection at a shop I don’t usually buy fish from. The man behind the fish counter was about 16 and was no aspiring fish monger, so I was left up to my own intuition. The best thing to do when you cannot glean any information about which fish came in when is to smell it and give it a little poke with your finger.

Fish needs to be smelled and touched to see if it is fresh

After a couple of whiffs and a little prodding at the flesh I decided that the flounder was the best fish for the job, and being nice and thin, it would also cook quickly. It was also a bonus that it was on sale so I was able to buy a couple of pounds without breaking the bank.

I fried catfish to go with my curry (instead of flounder)

I didn’t want to fry it as that would mean I would also need to use a pot for a green and another for a starch and that was two too many pots for me to take on last night. I decided to cook curry because it would add lots of flavor to the mild fish and also because it’s what people eat in boiling hot countries like India. The theory is that spicy foods cool you down and just over a billion people can’t  be wrong.

Yellow squash from the Farmer’s market and basil from my garden (my garden is my flavor life saver!)

I did not know what veggies I had on hand but decided to use whatever I found in the fridge when I got home. I had yellow squash and some lovely kale and so this lovely curry was invented last night. It was truly fantastic and not a scrape was left today for lunch!

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*YES, I made this a Blood Type A Diet Recipe for me by using catfish instead of flounder and making the curry sauce with no dairy whatsoever. I know we have to eliminate or stick to certain spices but my compromise was to not add too much curry sauce to my dish and to cook my fish separately – A little compromising is how I am generally able to stick to the guideline*

You will need:

2 lbs mild tasting fish fillets (flounder, haddock, cod, white fish, catfish)

3 tbs extra-virgin olive oil

2 yellow squash, thickly sliced (3/4 inch)

3 cups baby kale or chopped kale (or spinach)

3/4 cup matchstick or Julienne carrots

2 tbs all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tbls curry powder (good quality, mild to medium heat)

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp finely chopped fresh marjoram leaves

4 basil leaves, finely chopped (optional or only if you have them)

3 to 4 cups chicken or veggie stock OR water and good quality bouillon cube

basmati rice for 6 (cook according to directions on package or in rice cooker)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Method:

In a small bowl combine the flour, curry powder, turmeric, chopped marjoram and 1 tsp sea-salt.

1 – Put large saute pan on medium heat and add oil. Add the diced onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the carrots and continue to cook for another 3 minutes.

Saute onions, add carrots

2 – Add the spice mix to the pan and stir everything together (it will be a bit dry). If you are using a bouillon cube you should add it now.

Add spices mix and flour

3 – Add 1 cup of broth (or water) and use a manual whisk to stir it until you have a smooth paste with no lumps. Add 2 more cups of liquid and turn heat up slightly. Stir frequently until the sauce gets hot and begins to thicken (about 5 minutes)

Make curry sauce

4 – Add the squash and bring the sauce to a simmer. Turn heat down, cover and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Add squash

5 – Add the fish in an even layer (there will be some overlapping) and shake pan. this action will allow sauce to cover the fish. Turn heat up again and bring back to a simmer (you will see little bubbles on the surface of the sauce).

Add fish

6 – When it is bubbling slightly add the baby or chopped kale (or spinach). Cover pan and cook on a low simmer until the fish is cooked through (anywhere from 6 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish you use). Check fish and taste sauce for additionally seasoning. Scatter the basil leaves on top before serving.

Then kale

Let the curry rest for 5 or so minutes before serving with basmati rice.

Catfish Curry (for Blood Type A Diet Followers) Because I did not want my fish to cook with the flounder, I fried it in a separate pan with a little oil and some seasonings

A few Days At The Beach AND A Quick Way to Feed People with Minimum Effort: Foiled Fish For Four (or more!)

Evening at Cape May Point

It is beach time again and I thought that would mean lounging around reading, swimming and writing long meandering posts of my observations and what I have been cooking. Well, that’s not exactly how it has been working out!

Atlantic Ocean

My friend Kelley and I are have been abandoned by our spouses this year to fend for ourselves. What I can I say…the week at the beach was booked for a year, circumstances changed and Kelley and I were the only ones free this particular week, (Dave managed two days before leaving). How could we disappoint our children who had been dreaming about this moment for what seemed like an eternity when you use “kid logic” (they live in different countries!)

Calder

Who knew it would be so much more difficult to do this with only two adults. This year I am chief cook and bottle washer while Kelley is errand boy and wrangler of all things beach-related.

Ide

This left very little time for that novel I was looking forward to reading and writing down what I have been up to.

Marie-Lyse

We have also had a few misadventures, like the first day when we were not thinking sensibly and dragged everyone to the beach at high noon, resulting in burning my poor fair-skinned son to a crisp!

Cape May Light House

Then there was the day we were determined to stay on the beach even though the wind was whipping sand in our faces and our big umbrella was threatening to uproot itself and sail away down the beach.

Looking for nice rocks on Sunset Beach

Or the other evening when we felt so bad because the kids couldn’t swim all of that day because of the sudden appearance of hundreds of jellyfish keeping them out of the water, and then letting them swim in their clothes when we went for a walk on the beach in the evening. This left me with a pile of sand-ridden clothes and towels to wash: never again!

Fried!

Yesterday we thought we had finally gotten things right: leaving for the beach in the later cooler afternoon, buying my son something to cover his entire body to guard against another case of sunburn, and getting food ready before we left to quickly throw on the grill for dinner upon our return.

Jelly Fish Farming

However, when we got to the beach the jellyfish had decided to stick around and I’m afraid digging holes in the sand did not appeal to my teenage boy so he went back to the house to mope and the girls decided the only thing to do was remove the jellyfish from the water, one shovel load at a time.

Must be mating season

They had done this the day before and now they were getting profession. They dug a wide pond-like hole several feet from the water and filled it with water with their trusty orange beach bucket. Then, for the next couple of hours they filled their pond with jellyfish until it looked like a pink pulsating planet.

No swimming today

It didn’t rid the ocean of these stinging creatures but it did mange to keep them busy for hours and even managed to amuse anyone who walked by who were also more than a little put out by not being able to enjoy the water.

What Life Guards do after 5pm

By about 7pm, Kelley and I, who had enough of the beach for the day, asked if they were ready to leave? They kept asking us to wait just in case there was a chance that the jellyfish would magically decide to go our to sea leaving them to swim at least once that day.

Lots of fishing but as Dave said “I’ve never seen anyone catch a fish!”

We would have held out only it looked like it was going to storm and we didn’t want to get struck by lightning!

Kelley grilled Scallops

When we got back our barbecue plan was foiled by the rolling thunder so we had to cook our lovely marinated chicken in the oven. It was good but would have tasted so much better eating it from the grill outside on the porch.

and shrimp (so we did get lucky with the grilling one night!)

Okay, so we have two beach days left and this morning I said to Kelley, “how about ousting the kids out of bed early, taking them to the beach before the jellyfish invasion, no long preparations, no snacks, just towels and sunscreen?”

He popped out of his chair and said “ready in five!”

on the beach

They were installed in our usual spot by 10am and Kelley took the first shift while I escaped to be alone for the first time in 5 days!

A text from Kelley sent the news that the waves were perfect, there was a cool breeze and the kids had not left the water since their arrival.

Another look

I have not seen sight nor hair of anyone in two hours.We may have finally got it right!

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Foiled Fish Recipe

This is a great way to feed plenty of hungry beach goers and allows you to spend them with them rather than tied to the kitchen!

All it requires you to do is wrap fish in some foil with some great flavorings in the morning, letting everything marinate, and then throwing the foiled packs into the oven for 15 minutes to cook!

Foiled Fish

You will need:

4 pieces of firm white fish or more for more people (tilapia, flounder, haddock, cod, fillet trout, monk fish etc)

1/4 cup extra virgin oil

1/2 cup white wine

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp sea salt

several grinds black pepper

8 sprigs thyme

Method:

Preheat oven 400*

1 – Wash and dry fish.

2 – Tear off 4 large pieces of heavy-duty foil and double it. Lay fish is center. Season with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

3 – Mix oil, wine, and lemon juice together and spoon over the fish carefully. Add 2 sprigs of thyme to each fish and fold packet neatly but not too tight. (This can be done hours or up to 15 minutes ahead of time)

Place in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove and check to make sure the fish is cooked through, and serve with all of its lovely juices.

You can serve this as is or with some sautéed spinach and rice, some pasta or a salad.

More of this tomorrow

Marvelous Mixed Fish Stew with Friends (serves 6)

I made this when our good friends Shawn and Jo stopped in right before Christmas for an early celebration. They were not going to be around for the big Christmas day feast but I wanted to make something special nonetheless. This luxurious fish stew was it!

Marvelous Mixed Fish Stew 

For me, there are a few kinds of special when it comes to cooking; special can be all about cheaper ingredients (cuts of meat, fish, vegetables, spices) which may take more time and love to coax goodness from, or using more expensive ingredients that need little help in the flavor department. This is not always the case, but you know what I’m talking about? It takes a few minutes to cook a piece of filet mignon to perfection, while a piece of beef chuck roast may need hours of cooking to taste just as exquisite.

Smoky charred peppers

This particular dish probably fell right between the two with more expensive ingredients being mixed with more reasonably priced ones. I wanted to make a fresh tasting but intensely flavorful fish stew so used cheaper fish like clams and catfish for strong flavor, and cod fish (at $17 per lb!) for girth, sustenance and an air of luxury. This is not a dish I could have made on Christmas as part of a large array of dishes, as it would cost too much, but, for 6 people it was more realistic (this fish dish cost approximately $52)

feast with friends

I wanted to talk about how much things cost because it is a very big part of how I choose certain dishes. I don’t believe for 1 minute that you have to spend a fortune to make something unforgettable, but I am also aware that there are times when using items that cost an arm and a leg, like vanilla beans or saffron or truffles, can transform a dish into something very special. People are funny creatures. We cannot help associating pricy with luxury and inexpensive with plain and ordinary. This is true from clothing to food. I think food is the place where the gap can be closed considerably by savvy, smart shopping, and attention to detail when using those purchases. 

One thing is for sure; anything that comes from your kitchen is going to be better than any take-out, frozen dinner and most every restaurant offering. Happy cooking!

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* A note to Blood type A diet Followers: Omit the clams and add 1 more pound of fish. Omit the clam juice and use veggie broth or veggie bouillon cube and water. Do not add the tomatoes or peppers. Add more spinach if you like. Believe me, it will still taste fantastic!*

You will Need:

2 lbs firm white fish (I used a mix of cod and cat-fish), rinsed, cut into large chunks

2 lbs clams, scrubbed and rinsed

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

3 or 4 long green or Anaheim peppers

2 medium sweet onions

5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme

1/2 cup roughly chopped parsley

1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro

big bunch fresh spinach – 6 or more cups chopped

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 cup crushed tomatoes or tomato puree

3 cups clam juice (usually found bottled in the tinned fish section of supermarket)

1 cup white wine

1 cup water

4 or more cups cooked warm basmati rice

sea-salt & freshly ground black pepper

more chopped fresh cilantro (garnish)

Method:

Cook rice and keep warm. If you have leftover rice you want to use, put it into a pot, cover with lid and turn to the lowest setting on your stove top about 15 minutes before serving.

1 – Prep the peppers as follows: place oven rack close to grill and turn grill to high. Place peppers on cookie sheet or baking tray and place in oven. Check every few minutes. When the peppers’ skin chars and turns black, turn the pepper. Do this until the entire pepper is charred (about 10 minutes or more). Place peppers in brown paper or plastic bag and seal. When they have cooled, remove from bag and tear off the charred skin, remove the seeds and stems and dice. Set aside (this can be done ahead of time and stored in the fridge until ready to use)

De-seed and chop peppers

2 – Put big saute pan or large saucepan or pot on medium heat. Add oil and when it had heated up, add onions, garlic, and several grinds of black pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

saute onions

3 – Add the herbs (thyme, parsley, cilantro), pepper flakes and charred, diced peppers. Cook for another 3 minutes.

add herbs and peppers

4 – Add the wine, water, clam juice and tomato puree to your pan and turn heat up. Bring to a simmer and cover. Cook on low for about 3 or so minutes.

add liquid

5 – Add the spinach and cover with lid. Bring back to a simmer and continue to simmer until the spinach is very soft and wilted (another 5 minutes). Taste broth for addition of sea-salt. Add according to taste.

add spinach

6 – If using clams, add about 3 minutes before the fish and simmer. Add the rest of the fish chunks and cover with lid. Simmer for between 8-10 minutes. Take off heat.

add fish

To serve, add a big spoonful of warm rice to bottom of shallow bowl and ladle fish stew on top. Add more pepper flakes and black pepper if you like. You can also omit rice and serve with fresh crusty bread (or serve with both, as I did)

serve with rice or crusty toasted bread

Fried Fish with Sweet Potato Fries & Spinach with Bacon and Cranberries

 I have to admit that I cook fish for dinner when I am in a hurry, or when I feel like my body has over-dosed on meat!

Fried Fish with Sweet Potato Fries & Spinach with Bacon and Cranberries

I am now admitting to having to get dinner ready ASAP, and that I was in dire need of something less filling. Fish is always my solution to these two inconveniences.

I was also still thinking about how my friend Lisa had cooked sweet potatoes with craisins the other night (see post for Beautifully Barbecued Pork with Sensational Side-Dishes) and was still dreaming about the taste of everything.

I was not going to copy it exactly, so I used the same basic ingredients, only different combinations. I used sweet potatoes, but made fries, and, used dried cranberries instead of craisins, and cooked them with salty bacon (to balance the sweetness), and spinach, to satisfy my need for “green-ness”

It turned into this fantastical feast of a dinner, and I felt as if we were in the pub back home, waiting for the music to start.

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You will need: 2 lbs white fish (cod, catfish, tilapia), 4 tbs vegetable oil, 4 tbs olive oil, 2 large sweet potatoes, 1/2 lb bacon, sliced into 1 ” pieces,  1/3 cup dried cranberries, 8 cups fresh spinach leaves, 2 tsp cumin seeds, 2 tsp sea-salt (I used Maldon), 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper.

Preheat oven 450*

1 – Put saute pan on low/medium heat and add bacon to cold pan. When the bacon begins to get crispy, pour off some of the fat. Turn heat to low and add cranberries. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes.

Fry bacon, add cranberries

2 – Add the spinach. Turn heat off and cover the pan until ready to serve (the spinach will have wilted nicely)

add spinach to bacon

2 – While the spinach and cranberry thing is going on, get the sweet potatoes prepped and into the oven! Wash and dry sweet potatoes, and slice lengthways into 1/2″ slices. Slice into “chips” and put into a big bowl. Douce with 3 or 4 tbs of olive oil and a good sprinkle of salt and pepper. Mix together.

roast sweet potatoes

3 – While you are doing this (I know, a lot to keep track of, but try to go with the flow!). Put 2 tbs of olive oil onto a baking sheet and place in warming oven. When oven comes to temperature, take sheet out and spread the potatoes in an even layer. Place back in oven and time for 22 minutes. take out, turn fries and place back into oven for 12 more minutes. By this time the rest of dinner will be ready.

sweet potatoes done

4 – While fries are in oven and spinach dish is cooking, start frying the fish. Put big saute pan on medium heat and add 2 tbs of vegetable oil. Season the fish with cumin seeds, salt and pepper and add to the pan when the oil has warmed. Put lid on pan and cook for 4 minutes. Take lid off and repeat for 4 more minutes. Take fish off of pan and keep warm and cook the next batch.

fry fish

The fish will has a slight crispines, while staying soft and tender.

fish ready

Divide all the components between 4 warmed plates, and get busy eating!

a lovely feast

Fries with Catfish, Spinach & Asparagus (serves 6)

Yesterday, summer felt like it was finally in the air. It was Friday, the beginning of the weekend and in the very early evening I sat on the back steps inspected the cardboard boxes of herbs I had just bought that day. The kids were in the back garden with a couple of friends building some kind of magical wilderness out of grass, sticks and leaves for some little vinyl toys, even managing to get a zip-line up and running!

As I was pottering around the garden trying to figure out where on earth I would squeeze in all I had over-zealously purchased, my neighbor came strolling in wondering if we could get a little “Yard-Time” in. Her way of say “is this a good time to open the bottle of wine I have in my hand and for us to drink it in the garden?” Why not? Before I knew it  my sister-in-law had joined us with a bottle of prosecco and another friend, who came to pick up her daughter, decided she could do with a little yard-time also! By the time my husband came home we had a little backyard party going.

"Yard-Time"

One of the plants I bought yesterday was a Stevia Plant.  Stevia leaves are naturally sweet and are the new craze in powdered sweeteners in place of cane sugar. When I tasted a leaf at the farm where I was getting my herbs I couldn’t believe how absolutely sweet it was! I just had to grow it and try it out!

Perhaps it would make a good substitute for a sugar cube in a champagne cocktail? (things one thinks about while drinking..) Armed with bitters and a chop stick I did my best to bruise a few leaves in a glass with bitters and then topped it off with sparkling wine – not bad…..

Stevia Leaf at Work!

As the evening grew later I figured that dinner would have to be straight-forward and quick. When everyone disbanded I had decided on making fries, roasting asparagus at the same time and frying the catfish I bought yesterday. I hurried through my tasks and we were all tucking in within the hour. I love this kind of food after indulging in a little beverage or two. Maybe it is the nostalgic feeling I get when I douce a french fry (or a chip as I call it) in malted vinegar,  remembering the many occasions where I stepped out of a pub and headed straight for a lovely piece of fish and searingly hot, vinegar-y chips!

Making crisp and delicious fries is easy if you follow my fool-proof (no sticking to the pan!) method.

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You will need: 6 catfish fillets (or other firm white fish), or 12 fresh eggs (instead of using fish),  12 medium to large yellow/golden potatoes, 1 bunch of asparagus, 6 cups fresh spinach, washed, coarse sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, paprika, fish seasoning, olive oil, vegetable oil. Condiments such as hot sauce, malted vinegar and ketchup.

Preheat oven 450*

1 – Wash and dry potatoes. Slice into thick pieces (3/8″ / 1 cm) and then cut each slice into the same size sticks or fries. Put in a big bowl and add 3 tbs of olive oil and mix together until fries are coated with oil. Add the asparagus and rub a little oil on them also, trying to keep them in their own bunch

Potatoes and Asparagus for Fries, Catfish, Spinach & Asparagus

2 – Add 3 tbs olive oil to a big baking sheet and place in lower third of preheated oven. Time for 5 minutes at which time the oil and pan will be very hot. Carefully remove from oven and spread fries and asparagus onto sheet in an even layer. Sprinkle everything with 2 tsp coarse salt, several grinds of pepper and 1 tsp of sweet paprika (or hot or smoked paprika if you like?). Place in oven and time for 20 minutes.

even layer or fries and asparagus..

3 – Take out of oven and wait for 1 minute before flipping everything. If you have done everything right up to this point your fries should flip with the greatest of ease! Place back in oven and time for 5 more minutes. Take put, remove the asparagus and put on a plate. Put fries back into oven for 10 more minutes. Remove when done and divide onto plates when ready to serve.

French Fries..

4 – When fries have 15 minutes to cook put saute pan on medium to high heat and let it get hot. Add a layer of oil to pan and let it get hot. Season fish with whatever you like or have….Old Bay Seasoning, Creole Fish Seasoning, Celery salt & paprika, salt and pepper??? Fry fish is batches. When you add the fish to pan do not move for 3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3 minutes or so. Keep everything warm on a plate as you go. If you are cooking eggs start the frying a little later.

spinach is a quick and easy way to add greens and color to a dish!

5 – To cook the spinach add a little extra virgin olive oil (1 to 2 tbs) to a big saute pan and turn stove to medium heat. Add a little cayenne pepper flake if you like? Cook until it just begins to wilt. Turn off pan and set aside until ready to serve. I cook the spinach when the fries come out of the oven.

Catfish with Fries and Spinach

Instead of fish, you could fry some eggs!