Alaskan Halibut with Wild Rice, Zucchini and Arugula Puree

I have really been getting back into eating fish. Its delicious, nutritious and easy to prepare. Halibut is a cold water fish that is very delicate. It can easily be over cooked and ruined so pay attention to the cook time and the fish itself while cooking. I had this beautiful organic wild rice also so I decided to make them a team. This dish takes 45 minutes, costs $20 and feeds one.

Pan Seared Alaskan Halibut
1 6oz Alaskan Halibut Filet
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon butter
salt and pepper

Pre heat the oven to 350. Start a saute pan on medium high heat. Add oil and butter the season the fish with salt and pepper on each side. Once the pan is hot add the fish and let cook for 4 to five minutes or until golden. Turn the fish and place the whole pan in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove and delicately serve.

Wild Rice Pilaf
1 cup long grain organic wild rice
3 cups cold water
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

Rinse the rice well in cold water. Start a sauce pan with 3 cups of water and a cup of the wild rice. Bring to a boil then cover and turn down to simmer. let it cook for 45 minute to an hour or until rice grains have popped and are tender. Drain then add salt and the chopped basil. Serve warm or cold.

Butter Poached Zucchini
1/4 cup yellow squash, chopped
1/4 cup zucchini, chopped
1/8 cup red onion, chopped
1/8 cup fresh tomato, chopped
1/8 cup vegetable stock
3 tablespoon butter

Start a small saucepan on medium low. Add stock, butter, onions, zucchini and squash. Let cook for 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Then add the tomatoes and let cook ten more minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Arugula Puree
1 cup arugula, rough chopped
1/8 cup vegetable stock
1 teaspoon onion, finely chopped

Add all ingredients to a small saute pan and turn to medium. Let cook ten minutes or until arugula is very soft. Puree in a food processor then strain. You as a garnishing sauce.

After putting this all together I was pleasantly pleased at how well it all worked together. The buttery vegetable with the buttery fish was rich and the earthyness of the wild rice made a great combination. Buon Apetito!!

Scallops and Prosciutto on Whipped Potatoes with a Fig-Apricot-Mustard Vinaigrette

This savory and rich dish is a great lunch or early dinner combination. It whips up pretty quick and tastes amazing. The key to the dish is the quality and freshness of the scallops. These are u-10 scallops, or under 10 per pound so they are quite large. I also used fingerling potatoes for the whipped potatoes which gives them more body and a richer flavor than other potatoes. This take 1 hour, costs $20 and feeds one.

Pan Seared Scallops
3 u-10 sea scallops
1 teaspoon butter
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Score each scallops by cutting a 1/16 inch checker board pattern into one side of each scallops. Season with salt and pepper. Get a large frying pan very hot on medium high heat. Once really hot add the butter and then the scallops cut side down. Let them cook without moving them to 3 to 5 minutes or until a very golden brown. Turn them over and then place the whole pan in the oven for 7 minutes or until cooked to desired tenderness. Do not over cook them!

Whipped Potatoes
4 medium fingerling potatoes, sliced
1/8 of a red onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, rough chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/8 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme

Start sliced fingerling in a pot of cold water and salt on high heat. Bring to a boil and turn to medium high for 25 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Start a small saute pan on low and add olive oil, red onion and garlic and let cook 20 minutes or until very tender. Drain cooked potatoes and place in a strong food processor then add cooked onions, garlic and olive oil, butter heavy cream, thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth, about two minutes, adjust seasoning and add more cream if they are too stiff.

Fig-Apricot-Mustard Vinaigrette
1 teaspoon, organic fig jelly
1 teaspoon, whole grain mustard
1/2 teaspoon, dijon mustard
1 teaspoon, apricot juice
1 teaspoon, white balsamic vinegar

Mix all ingredients well in a small bowl. Brush on scallops before placing them in the oven. Top scallops with this sauce when done.



To Plate this whole thing up I place three small mounds of potatoes, then topped that with the center portion of the prosciutto, topped it with a scallop and then some of the mustard sauce. My fresh marjoram is flowering so I added some fresh marjoram flowers to give the dish some added beauty. This is a great appetizer or entrée for a relativly small amount of work. Buon appetito!!

Roasted Chicken with Easter Radishes, Sunchokes, Golden Beet Puree and Pomegranate Sauce

I am making back to back posts to get back into the swing of blogging. I used the leftover golden beets from yesterday to make the puree. I also used the actual radishes today, where I used the greens from the radishes yesterday. Easter Radishes are multi colored and not so bitter radishes that can be eaten raw or cooked. Sunchokes are a tuber that taste very similar to artichoke when roasted. This dish takes 1 hour, costs $15 and feeds 2.

Roasted Chicken Legs
2 Bell & Evans Chicken leg quarters with skin on
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt, pepper, paprika, cumin and coriander

Preheat oven to 375. Seasonal legs liberally with the seasoning mix. Start a medium frying pan o medium high. Once it is very hot add the oil and place the chicken in skin side down. Let it cook about 3 minutes and then without turning to chicken, place the whole pan in the oven. Let that cook for 12 minutes and then flip over and let cook three more minutes. Remove and let rest 5 minutes and serve.

Roasted Radishes and Sunchokes
1 bunch organic easter egg radishes
4 sunchokes
1 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375. Thoroughly warm radishes and sunchokes. Slice in half and place face down of a foil lined then oiled baking sheet. Salt and pepper the tops and place in the oven for about 40 minutes. Once tender remove and serve.



Golden Beets Puree
1 cup roasted golden beets
1/4 cup fresh papaya
1/8 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon chopped parsley
salt and pepper

Puree beets, papaya, cream, parsley, salt and pepper. Warm and serve.

Pomegranate Sauce
1 cup vegetable stock
1/8 cup pomegranate juice
1 teaspoon parsley
salt and pepper

Add stock and juice to a small sauce pan on medium low heat. Let it reduce to 1 tablespoons and then add herb and salt and pepper to taste. Serve over the chicken.

This meal was packed with vitamins and minerals as well as flavor. I normally do not eat radishes in this way but they were tender and delicious. The chicken skin was perfectly crispy and the meat was moist inside. All together it was a successful dish and part of my healthier diet. Enjoy!

Grassfed NY Strip with Golden Beets and Field Greens

This is my first post on a while. Life and work have been hectic, but I found some time to make this steak and veggie plate before work yesterday. Grassfed beef is less fatty then regular, corn fed beef. I have always found it to be a bit tougher then regular meat but it has more flavor and health benefits over conventional beef. WholeFoods had great organic golden beets with the greens still attached so I used these greens along with the greens from the easter radishes I bought and some black kale to make the sauteed vegetables. This meal costs $20 take 1 hour and feeds 1.

Roasted Golden Beets
1 bunch organic golden beets
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 375. Wash beets thoroughly and slice in half. Place beets flesh down on a foil lined baking sheet and add salt and olive oil. Let them bake for 45 minutes, then loosly cover with aluminum foil and let bake for 15 more minutes or until tender. Let them cool slightly and peel off the skin with your hand or with a pairing knife. Add salt and serve.



Sauteed Field Greens
1 bunch of organic beet greens
1 bunch of organic radish greens
1 bunch organic black kale
5 cloves garlic
1/4 organic white onion
1 tablespoon olive oil

Thoroughly clean and wash the greens. Chiffonade or shred the greens into thin strips. Start and sautee pan on medium low and add oil, onion and garlic. Let that cook for 15 minutes or until tender and then turn up the heat to medium high. Add the greens and sautee quickly, about 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Grassfed NY Strip
1 8oz grassfed NY strip or sirloin

Season steak with salt and pepper. Place the steak on a baking rack and place in the oven with the beets for 10 minutes. Remove the steak and sear in a hot frying pan, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes. you can sear it first or last, I did it last to experiment with a suggestion a friend made. It came out ok but I will sear it first in the future so I can control the internal temperature better.

This healthy, vitamin and protein packed lunch was easy to make and the beets were delicious. The greens came from parts of the vegetables that most people throw away so it was a side dish for free. Check out the close up on the golden beet to see how beautiful they turned out. Enjoy!