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Ok, so that’s fun to say, isn’t it? lol Fun to say, and fun to eat! Looking for something simple and packed with flavor? This is just the ticket. Active work time is only about 15 minutes, the rest is just bake time. Empanadas are great for lunch, or for a snack, and are great the next day…perfect to take with you wherever you need to go. They’re even good cold, so are perfect picnic fare! When we had the sailboat, I’d make these all the time to take with for a day out on the water. You can make them up ahead of time, and they keep really well. Empanadas can be made into a pie, like I’ve done here, or if you’re feeling feisty, go ahead and make them into individually sized empanadas, for a quick bite, or a great party appetizer.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce (or pure)
1 pound (1/2 kilo) light tuna, drained and flaked
pastry for 2 pie crusts (either homemade or store bought)
1 egg, beaten

Preparation:

Heat oil and saute garlic first until golden.
Add onion and pepper and saute until tender.
Add thyme, bay and tomato sauce and season with salt and pepper.
Cook about 5 minutes on medium heat.
Add tuna and stir until combined.
Remove from heat and remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
Spread half of the pastry on a baking sheet.
Cover with tuna mixture, leaving a 1″ border.
Top with remaining pastry and seal edges.
Brush pastry with beaten egg and poke a few ventilation holes.
Bake at 400ºF/175ºC for 20-30 minutes or until golden.

Y en español:

Ingredientes:

3 cucharadas de aceite de oliva
3 dientes de ajo, majados
1 cebolla, picada
1 pimiento rojo picado
3 ramos tomillo
1 hoja laurel
sal y pimienta al gusto
1 1/2 vasos tomate frito (salsa de tomate o puré de tomate)
2 láminas de masa quebrada
1 huevo, batido

Elaboración:

Calentar el aceite y dorar los ajos.
Añadir la cebolla y el pimiento y freir hasta que estén blandos.
A continuación, añadir el tomillo, laurel y salsa de tomate.
Salpimentar.
Cocinar unos 5 minutos.
Añadir el atún escurrido y desmenuzado y mezclar bien.
Extender 1 lámina de masa y cubrir con la mezcla de atún, dejando unos centimetros al border.
Tapar con la segunda lámina de masa y cerrar bien por los lados.
Pintar con huevo batido, y abrir unos agujeros en la superficie.
Hornear a 175ºC durante unos 20-30 minutos, o hasta que esté dorada.

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So, remember last week, when I was telling you how badly I wanted to try ZenChef’s (over at Chefs Gone Wild)   Well, I did it.  I made his absolutely remarkable risotto and I’m sort of half wondering if I have died and gone to heaven?  Did I?  Somebody let me know if you read this post…to let me know if I died or not.  I mean seriously…it’s *that* good.  I even screwed it up a little–I forgot the lemon juice until after we finished eating it.  Did I mention there was not a single grain of rice left over?  We even licked the cockle shells clean.  I was going to make some really inappropriate joke about sucking cockle shells, but I’d better not.  But we did. lol  ;)  If you know me, you know that I cannot follow a recipe exactly.  It really is some sort of impossibility for me.  I do not feel complete if I don’t change things up at least just a little.  After all, a recipe really should just be a springboard for our own creativity, right?  So, I will note my (minimal) changes, even though I did stick pretty close to . 

So, would you look at this?  Don’t you just want to dive into that plate of creamy risotto bliss?  Trust me, it’ll be the best dive you’ve ever performed.

Here are my changes:

*Rather than using 6 pounds (3 kilos) of clams, and a pound (1/2 kilo) of mussels I used a combination of cockles, mussels and prawns (peeled, deveined)
*I used 2 1/2 cups rice (because I had only a little left in the bag. Toss it in there, I said.
*I added the prepared prawns to the clam broth, and then added them in with the rice right away (as you know, prawns either need to be quick cooked, or long cooked for them to be tender, so I opted for long cook, so the broth would have a hint of prawn flavor as well)
*I forgot the lemon.
*I added freshly grated Parm cheese to serve.

See? Hardly any changes, really. Just a couple.

Wow, that old saying of “You learn something new every day,” really is true, isn’t it?  I was thinking of writing a cute little title for this dish, playing on an old Mother Goose rhyme; Mary, Mary, quite contrary…etc, until I read the history and significance of the rhyme.  Um, let’s not use that particular imagery on the cooking blog. Yikes! So, a simple title will have to suffice, because the only other clever thing I can think up using the word, “cockle,” is probably also inappropriate for a cooking blog. lol

It’s Cockle season!  Yes!  Cockles are (in my opinion) better than clams….they are a type of mollusk, small and heart shaped, and if you really would like to know all about them, here is a link to Wikipedia detailing the exact nature of the creature.  What Wikipedia doesn’t tell you, though, is that the cockle is delicious!  It’s sweeter than a clam, and quite tender and succulent.

ZenChef over at Chefs Gone Wild made a the other day, which I had planned on trying this week.  Unfortunately, my market’s clams left much to be desired.  Which is strange, considering that they are almost always available and fresh and begging to be purchased and made into something wonderful.  They did, however, have cockles, and I think that I’m almost happy that the cockles were screaming at me instead.  The delicately sweet flavor lends itself really, really well to this garlicky white sauce,  And over pasta?  Yum.  I will definitely try soon, though. 

Ingredients:

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 garlic cloves, sliced
1 medium onion, minced
3-4 small dried cayenne peppers
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup water
1 1/2 pounds (750 grams) linguine
2 pounds (1 kilo) cockles (soaked in salted ice cold water for a minimum of 1 hour)
1/4 cup butter, in pieces
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
*optional, but recommended* 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/3 cup water
freshly grated parmesan cheese to taste

Preparation:

Get your water going for the pasta…you’ll want to salt it fairly heavily and bring to a rolling boil.
Meanwhile, begin your sauce.
Heat olive oil in a wide, medium depth soup pot.
Saute garlic first, just until beginning to turn golden, then add onions and saute until translucent and tender.
Add cayennes, wine and water and cook about 3-5 minutes over moderate heat.
By now, your pasta water might be ready, so pop the noodles in there and prepare according to package directions.
When the pasta is done, drain well and return to the pot.
Ok, back to the sauce.
Season with salt and freshly cracked black pepper, then add the cockles and cover.
Cook over moderate heat for about 5 minutes or so, until cockles have opened (discard any that haven’t opened, they’re not fit to eat).
Remove from heat, add butter and parsley and stir.
Add cornstarch slurry if using and stir some more, then reserve.
Is your pasta back in the pot? Ok, then it’s time to pour the cockles and sauce over your pasta and stir well to combine.
Discard any empty shells you find.
Sprinkle with parm to taste and enjoy!
Oh! Be sure to have more of that dry white on hand to drink with this dish.

 

Do you even recognize that name?  I sure as heck don’t.  Ho. Lee. Crap I had a hard time translating that one.  :P  This particular fish is called “Sama Dorada” (even though it’s pink) in Spanish, and is very common, but being the gal who grew up in Minnesota, I had no idea what the English translation might be, so the internet search began.  Thanks to my fil who helped me figure it out, because there is actually various types of Samas, and another different fish, though from the same family, called “Dorada.”  Are you confused yet?  Yeah, me too. lmfao  Whatevertheheck it’s name is (Peter at Kalofagas tells me that it’s also known as Pandora fish! Thanks, Peter! ), it’s an incredibly delicious, delicate and mild tasting white fish that lends itself perfectly to pretty much any preparation.  It *is* known to have quite a few small bones, though, so it’s probably best to check it well for children, or sub something else less boney.  The way my mil has always served it is “desmenuzado,” which means “broken up” or “shredded.”  Sooo, that’s what I did too (this method of serving really helps get rid of all of the bones, too).  And of course, I had to prepare some fresh homemade “chips” to go with it.  A little lemon, and we were good to go. 

Ingredients:

1 pink dentex (about 2 pounds/1 kilo) (or 2 smaller ones) (entrails removed)
2 pounds (1 kilo) sea salt
1 lemon, sliced
a few sprigs of cilantro, washed
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 onion, sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400ºF/200ºC.
Sprinkle the bottom of a baking dish with enough salt to cover the bottom surface.
Place fish on top of salt bed, and stuff with a couple of lemon slices, cilantro sprigs, garlic and onion slices.
Pour remaining salt over fish, covering completely, and packing it around the fish.
Sprinkle a bit of water over the salt.
Bake fish about 40-45 minutes and remove from oven.
Crack the salt “crust” and remove.
Remove skin and bones from fish and serve with chips and lemon wedges.

So, as most of you already know, yesterday was Chinese New Year.  While I’m not Chinese, I must admit I’ll look for any excuse to celebrate! LOL  So, I made some Asian treats in honor of this special day.  Chuck over at Sunday Night Dinner posted his mom’s top secret recipes for Nuoc Cham (dipping sauce) and recently, and I just couldn’t go another day without making some of my own…my Gawd that stuff is good!  It’s also been a while since I’ve made fried rice, and my dear hubs really loves a chicken curry version that I do, so it was set…spring rolls and fried rice would be our menu for the day.  I realize that my menu doesn’t have all of he traditional elements of a Chinese New Year menu, but heck, it’s the sentiment that counts, right? lol  I decided to do a step by step for the spring rolls, like Chuck (sheesh I’m such a total copycat!), for those of you who might not have rolled them before…I know that before I tried to make them the first time I was a little intimidated by the idea.  But, it’s really very simple, as you’ll soon see.

First of all, the Curry Chicken Fried Rice:

Ingredients:

I should note that most of these amounts are approximate…this is one of those dishes that I just sort of eyeball the stuff and throw it in there.

4 cups cooked jasmine rice, cooled
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, minced
3 tablespoons minced ginger
1 pound diced chicken breast
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 tablespoons curry powder
a generous splash of soy sauce
a few drops of sesame oil
2-3 cups mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, sprouts, green onions)

Preparation:
Heat a wok or large saute pan over high heat.
Coat the bottom with a bit of sunflower oil.
Saute garlic first, then add onion and ginger and saute a minute or so.
Add in chicken and season with salt and pepper.
Stirfry until cooked through and beginning to brown.
Add in curry, soy and sesame oil and toss to combine.
Add in rice and toss around, with the help of a paddle or large spoon, working the chicken mixture into the rice to coat.
If the rice is sticky, you might want to toss in another splash of oil.
When rice has a nice yellow color, add in vegetables and serve.

And now the Spring Rolls (Cha Gio)….I was much inspired by , though I just had to make some changes (you know me!)…I sort of morphed his mom’s recipe with mine, and the resulting roll was just fab.

Ingredients:

1 small bunch cellophane noodles (about 3 cups after soaking)
4 cups shredded cabbage
1 large carrot, shredded
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined and minced
1 pound ground pork
3 tablespoons soy sauce
a splash or two of sesame oil
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
18-20 spring roll wrappers (I used the frozen ones this time)
oil for frying

Preparation:

Before anything else, put the cellophane noodles in a large bowl of cold water to soften.
Now, mix all spring roll ingredients except wrappers and oil in a large bowl.  I find it’s best to get your hands in there and mush it all up using manual labor…a spoon just won’t cut it for spring roll filling.

Now, place a wrapper on your cutting board and add about 3-4 tablespoons of filling at the center, like this:

Now fold the sides in towards the center, and moisten edges with a bit of water.

Carefully fold the bottom portion of the roll up over the filling, pressing tightly:

Now, tightly roll up the spring roll and place seam side down.  Cover with plastic wrap and repeat with remaining rolls.

Now, heat oil to moderate heat…I like to use my deep fryer for this, but you could also use a deep pan.  You’ll want the oil to come at least half way up the roll.  Carefully fry rolls in hot oil about 5 minutes per side, or until golden and cooked through.

Serve with lettuce leaves wrapped around the roll and Nuoc Cham (dipping sauce).

What?  I totally speak Spanish.  I’m serious!  haha  Sorry, I’m just in a cheeky mood(not *those* cheeks), I guess–must be the heat.  LOL  This recipe has a bit of a history….WAY  (Ok, maybe not WAY…just *way*) back when, I lived in Minneapolis, right near Loring Park and the Walker Art Museum…I loved my neighborhood.  I loved that it was close to Uptown, and close to Downtown…and one of the restaurants I used to *Really* love was the Green Mill Too on Hennepin Avenue in Uptown.  I swear, you have not lived until you’ve tried their pizza, or had drinks at the Oyster Bar!  :D  If you are interested in their story, you can find more info here: The Green Mill Too.  Anyway, back to the food!  One of my absolute favorite things to order was their extremely deep dish shrimp and pesto pizza…SO freaking good.  I mean, even better than SO freaking good!  So, I had to start making my own here, since the last time I checked, we still don’t have a Green Mill ’round these parts.  Sigh.  Maybe one day. 

My version doesn’t have the extreme deep dish crust, but I think you’ll find that it’s darned good anyway.

Ingredients:

1 pizza crust (use you favorite recipe, adding garlic powder, basil and oregano to the dough, and be sure to sprinkle your pan with cornmeal before placing tossed crust onto it)
1 cup (more or less according to taste) pizza sauce (stir all ingredients and allow to meld for 2-3 hours):

-4 ounces (100 grams) tomato paste
-1 cup water (more for a thinner sauce)
-1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
-garlic powder to taste
-dehydrated onion to taste
-salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
-1 tablespoon oregano
-1 tablespoon basil
-1 teaspoon fennel2/3 cup pesto sauce (process everything in a food processor until fairly uniform):

 

-4 cloves garlic
-1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (to toast pine nuts, just toss them in a dry skillet over medium heat until lightly browned and aromatic)
-1 large bunch basil (by large, I mean about 2 cups leaves), stemmed
-1 large bunch parsley, stemmed
-1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
-salt and cracked black pepper to taste
-extra virgin olive oil to taste

1-2 cups grated mozzarella cheese to taste
1 pound shrimp, cleaned and deveined, brushed with olive oil

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 500ºF (260ºC).
Par-bake pizza crust for 5-7 minutes.
Spread sauce over crust.
Sprinkle pesto over sauce.
Sprinkle grated cheese over this.
Now arrange the shrimp.
Bake for about 10-15 minutes, until shrimp are cooked through.