spinach stuffed salmon

I found this recipe originally at Allreicpies.com.

2 salmon fillets
1/2 (10 ounce) package baby spinach, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon prepared pesto
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 1/2 teaspoons pine nuts
salt and pepper

Make a slit two-thirds of the way through the center of each salmon fillet making sure not to cut all the way through. Season each fillet with the salt and pepper. In a food processor, combine the spinach, pesto, tomatoes, and pine nuts and pulse until mixed well. Spoon about a third of a cup of the mixture into each slit.

Place the fillets on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until the spinach mixture is heated through.

Peace,
Milton

red beet risotto

This is worth making for the look of it as much as the taste.

1 large beet, or one can of beets
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
1 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup red wine
3 cups of water
salt and pepper

If you are using a raw beet, wrap it in foil, place in a pie plate, and roast in the oven at 350 for about an hour. When it comes out of the oven, put it in the 3 cups of water and let it cool there. (You can actually do this a day ahead and the water will really get red.) Once it has cooled, scrape the peeling off the beet and dice it. puree half of the beet and add back to the water. Set diced pieces aside. If you're using the canned beets, empty the can, juice and all, into the water and let them soak for awhile, then follow the same instructions.

When you are ready to cook the rice, heat the oil on high in a large saucepan;add the shallots. When they become translucent, add the rice and stir for about a minute. Pour in the red wine and lower the heat a bit and stir until the wine is mostly absorbed; lower heat to medium. Add the beet water one cup at a time, stirring consistently. When you add the last cup of water, add the diced beets. When the water is mostly absorbed, remove from heat, cover, and let stand ten minutes before serving.

Peace,
Milton

salmon wellington

We had a special dinner tonight at the restaurant (I found out later I was cooking for Reynolds Price and friends as a part of the celebration of his fifty years at Duke). I needed something I could do that would allow me to serve up thirty plates at once, so rather than grilling the salmon, as we usually do, I opted for this recipe, which allowed me to use the oven. It worked out wonderfully.

First, for the mushroom duxelles:

1/2 onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
16 ounces mushrooms, sliced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

Put the onion and the mushrooms in a food processor and blend until they are almost pureed. Heat the oil in a skillet to medium heat and add the onion-mushroom mixture until it is tender (five minutes or so). Turn up the heat and continue cooking until the moisture is gone and the mixture is almost like a paste. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Set aside to cool. (You can even make this a day ahead.)

1 package puff pastry sheets, thawed
4 salmon fillets, about 6 oz. each
1 egg, beaten well

Cut the pastry sheets in half and stretch them out, or roll them to activate the dough. Put 1/4 of the duxelles in the middle of the sheet matching the shape of the salmon fillet. Place the salmon with the best side down, facing the duxelles. Fold in the short sides and then wrap the long sides over to seal. Turn over and place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with the other three fillets. Brush tops with egg wash. Cook in a 350 oven for about eighteen to twenty minutes, depending on how well done you like your salmon to be. Let the fish rest for about five minutes before serving.

Peace,
Milton

scalloped sweet potatoes

At the restaurant this week, I had to use sweet potatoes because we ran out of whites. The dish turned out to be amazing and it's really easy. I made a huge pan -- I think these proportions will work well for the family at home.

3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
(I use the slicing blade on my food processor)
3 1/2 cups of milk. scalded
6 tablespoons of butter
6 tablespoons of all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg
salt and pepper
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Melt the butter in a saucepan and whisk in the flour to make a roux, cooking for about three minutes. Add the scalded milk in a steady stream, continuing to whisk, and bring it to a boil. Then simmer the sauce, still whisking, for a minute more, adding the nutmeg, salt and pepper, and the parmesan cheese.

Grease a 13 x 9 baking dish and then put a thin layer of sauce on the bottom. Put one layer of sweet potatoes, half of the sauce, and then half of the cheddar. Repeat with a second layer of potates, sauce, and cheese. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 40-45 minutes. Potatoes will be brown on top and should be fairly firm when you shake the dish. Let stand for ten or fifteen minutes before serving.

Peace,
Milton

pineapple au gratin

1 20 oz. can pineapple chunks, drained
1/2 cup reserved pineapple juice
1/2 cup self-rising flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cheddar cheese

Mix flour, sugar, and pineapple juice. Add pineapple chunks and cheddar cheese and pour into a 9x9 casserole dish. Cover and bake in 350 oven for 20 minutes.

1/2 stick of butter, melted
1 tube Ritz crackers
1/4 cup brown sugar

Mix butter, crackers, and sugar. Remove casserole from oven and spread mixture over the top. Return to oven and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.

Peace,
Milton

sweet potato, apple, and ancho soup

There is a recipe for a similar soup in this month's Food and Wine, which I had planned to make, but I was late getting off work and had to stop at the grocery store without benefit of the recipe. Here's my improvised soup, which turned out to be good enough for me to bring home an empty pot.

4 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon, diced fresh ginger
1 dried ancho chile, chopped

Heat the oil in the pot and add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chile; heat until onion is translucent and the mixture is aromatic. Add

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 large sweet apple (Honeycrisp or Fuji)

and continue to cook until apples soften up a bit. Add

1 large bottle Newcastle Brown Ale

and bring to a boil. After a couple of minutes, add

4 cups vegetable broth
1/4 cup honey
salt and pepper

Bring mixture to a boil once more, stirring occasionally.Lower heat and let simmer until potatoes are soft. Use a wand blender or a food processor and puree the mixture. If it's not sween enough, add some brown sugar. Once it's pureed, bring back up to bubbling and let reduce for a few minutes.

You can serve this with sour cream to cut the chile-heat, if you like. You can also use less ancho in the mix. If you want a significantly thicker soup, use one more sweet potato and one more apple and the same amount of liquid.

Peace,
Milton

sweet potato cakes with cranberry relish

For a number of years, Ginger and I have had a New Year's Day open house and this has been one of the staples of that event. Now that I live in Sweet Potato Land, I thought I would post the recipe.

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Sift these ingredients together into a medium bowl.

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and grated (I use my food processor)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme

Add these ingredients to the flour mixture and toss to cover the cheese and potatoes well.

1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups milk

In a large bowl, combine the egg and milk and then add the dry ingredients until combined.

1/2 cup oil, for frying

Heat the oil to medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet. Drop a few rounded teaspoons of the batter into the oil and flatten to form cakes about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Cook until bottoms are browned and tiny bubbles begin to form on top (about two minutes). Flip and cook a minute or so longer; transfer to paper towels and repeat until all batter is used.

(You can make these ahead of time, layer them between wax paper, and then reheat them in a 350 oven when you're ready to serve.) On to the relish.

1 medium orange, unpeeled, but cleaned well, halved, seeded, and cut into chunks
1 medium Granny Smith apple, unpeeled, cored, and cut into chunks
1/4 medium unpeeled lemon, treated just as you did the orange

Put the fruit in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add cranberries and pulse until they are the same consistency.

2 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Transfer to a bowl, add sugar and walnuts and mix well. (This can be made up to a week ahead.) When I've served these, I also put out some sour cream.

Peace,
Milton

orange glazed roasted beets

That's right: roast your own beets; make your hands turn red.

5 large beets (about two pounds)

Wash the beets, leaving the roots untrimmed. Place the beets on a large piece of foil on a baking sheet and then fold the foil up to make a packet around them. Roast the packet (on the baking sheet) in a 375 oven for about an hour and forty five minutes. Remove the packet from the oven (I leave it on the sheet), open it slightly, and let it cool. (Yes, this recipe takes some time. While they're cooling, go run some errands or something.) When they have cooled, slip the skins off (your hands will turn red) and slice them into quarter inch slices.

1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix orange juice, cumin, vinegar, and cornstarch in a small bowl until the cornstarch is completely mixed in, then incorporate the honey until blended. Pour the mixture into a large, nonstick saute pan and heat to a medium high heat. Add butter and salt and bring to a boil. Add beet slices and cook, turning beets as necessary, until they are glazed and heated through (and we all know how that feels). Put in a serving bowl.

1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon finely chopped orange zest
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Mix walnuts, orange zest, and parsley and sprinkle over beets before serving.

Serves six.

roasted red curry carrots

This is another recipe I found first in Food & Wine. I thought it would add a little zing to our Thanksgiving table.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon Thai red curry pas

In a 1 1/2 quart shallow baking dish, mix the oil, butter, and curry paste together.

1 pound baby peeled carrots
1 tablespoon julienned fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, chopped
salt
1/4 cup water

Add the carrots, ginger, and garlic to the paste mixture and toss to coat. Season with a little salt and add the water. Cover the dish tightly with foil and roast for about 30 minutes in a 425 oven. Remove the foil and cook another ten minutes, until the water has evaporated.

Can be served hot or at room temperature.

Peace,
Milton

state fair pecan pie

This is an adaptation of the recipe that won the 1996 State Fair of Texas.

1 1/2 cups pecan halves (5 1/2 oz.)

In a pie plate, toast the pecans for 8 minutes, or until lightly browned. Let cool.

1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
3 tablespoons whole milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, corn syrup, milk, flour, vanilla, and salt. Cook over moderate heat just until the mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and let stand for 5 minutes.

4 large eggs

In a heatproof bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Gradually whisk in the hot sugar mixture until thoroughly blended. Mix in the toasted pecans and pour into a pie shell. Bake for about 45 minutes in a 350 oven, or until the center is just barely set and the crust is golden brown. Transfer the pie to a rack to cool completely.

Peace,
Milton