Marseille Style Shrimp Stew

Seafood Summer
When the mercury starts to climb, my diet becomes sushi, ceviche, and shrimp cocktail heavy. Maybe it is because the high temps outside make a lighter meal sound more appealing. Or maybe it’s because I spend more time at the beach. And, you can’t not have seafood at the beach. But, during the summer months, I eat a lot of seafood.

I am especially fond of anything steamed or stewed in a light broth that requires some gorgeous crusty bread for dunking. Mussels, clams, shrimp…? Bring ‘em on. They are tasty. They are fast. And, any of the possibilities pair well with a salad and a cold glass of white or rose.

The added bonus? There is just something about a tasty bowl of mussels or shrimp that immediately transports you to a seaside village in the South of France. The smell of the salty air. The sound of the boats rocking on the water. Ahhhhhh!

Marseille Style Shrimp Stew
Adapted from Melissa Clark for Food and Wine
Yields 4 generous servings

In our recipe for Marseille Style Shrimp Stew, jumbo shrimp are stewed with savory fennel, cloves, tomatoes, orange zest, and wine. It is served with a rouille, or delightfully flavored mayonnaise, spread on a toasted baguette slice. Read more…

Vietnamese Peach Relish

Relish The Thought
I have a mango salsa that I love to make when we have grilled fish or, better yet—and more likely than not—fish tacos. It adapts this salsa recipe from Macademia-Crusted Yellowtail with Mango Papaya Salsa. Except, I leave out the papaya and double the mango. Nothing against papaya per se. But, I find it is too soft for my taste in a salsa. (That’s just me.)

As much as I dig my usual, it is never a bad idea to broaden your horizons and try something different. And, with the fresh peaches and nectarines coming into the market, I felt inspired. So, I tried something outside my norm. And, I think I have found a new favorite.

Peach Salsa is not a new concept, but this relish recipe is new to me, at least. And, it is less south of the border and definitely more Southeast Asia. This opens up a whole range of possibilities from grilled salmon to Halibut steamed in banana leaves. (Not that I always have banana leaves at hand, but a girl can dream. Don’t harsh my vibe, man…)

I like the funkiness that the fish sauce lends to it, and I am curious to see if a little lemongrass would work too…maybe next time.

This relish screams hot summer nights by the pool with some grilled shrimp skewers and a cold glass of white wine…though you could never go wrong with a Mai Tai if you’re feeling tropical.

Vietnamese Peach Relish Recipe
Adapted from Food and Wine
Yields 3 cups Read more…

White Wine–Poached Fish

Awards Season
My daughter is graduating from high school at the end of the month. For those of you who have been through it, you know that this means that the last month of school is filled with AP Tests, Ditch Days, and plenty of awards banquets. It is a lot of fun, but also just…a lot. Throw in birthdays for four of the five members of my family and, yeah. We are busy, y’all.

I am a weirdo in that I love awards nights/banquets. I mean sure, of course, you are going to enjoy seeing your kids and their friends succeed at something and achieve their goals. But, it extends into other areas for me as well.

The morning they announce the Oscar nominations I am right there making a list of the movies I have and have not seen so that I can make a point to seek the films I missed before the big night. I try my best to see them all. And, I am alarmingly disappointed when I can’t manage to do it. Life tends to get in the way of my fixation.

I am equally as obsessed about the James Beard Awards.

My anticipation of the James Beard Foundation Awards might seem obvious to most people since my days consist of talking about food, writing about food, and selling food. So, my interest in awards which honor talking about food, preparing food, and writing about food is rather on the nose. I anticipate their release every year and use the lists of nominees, semi-finalists, and finalists to educate myself on who and what is hot in the industry. And, let’s be real, create a wish list of new cookbooks or future dinner reservations.

If you are curious, this year’s list of James Beard Foundation Awards Finalists can be found here. Get your planner out before you click…and don’t do it when hungry!

Lest we forget, James Beard himself was a force in the culinary world. And, he eventually came to be known as the Dean of American Cuisine. If you don’t have a copy of his American Cookery in your library, consider seeking it out.

White Wine–Poached Fish Recipe
Adapted from James Beard
Yields 4 servings

I am all for drinking and cooking with simple wines that don’t cost an arm and a leg, said James Beard. In this simple and comforting recipe, the wine gives the sauce its subtle delicacy. Read more…

Fish a la Spetsiota

It’s Greek To Me
If you ever feel like you’re in a cooking rut, take a Saturday and go through your cookbooks. As you weed out the ones to be donated, you will discover books you forgot you had. The ones you loved at one time but since have languished on the shelf are desperate to see the light of day.

This was me last Saturday.

Because my love of cookbooks (read: addiction) exceeds the amount of room I have to store them, it became necessary for me to cull the herd, as it were. Some books were easy to remove. Those were the books I acquired as editorial copies during my Barnes and Noble days and frankly never really used.

Then there were the books you never get rid of even if you don’t use them on a weekly basis. The Art of French Cooking (my grandmother’s copy) for example or The Joy of Cooking. Anything by James Beard or the 1941 copy of The Escoffier Cookbook (also my grandmothers…you get the gist).

The hardest decisions were made with the regional cooking books. I was shocked to note that I have just as many Cajun/Louisiana cookbooks as I do Mexican cookbooks, and I have a lot of Mexican cookbooks. I couldn’t bring myself to part with any of those. There were a few French ones that I just didn’t really need anymore but France is still well represented as are Spain and Italy. I was surprised, given the fact that I love the cuisine, that I didn’t have a wide selection of Greek cookbooks. I have a number of Mediterranean cookbooks but only a few that are specifically Greek.

One of the books I do have is The Glorious Foods of Greece by Diane Kochilas. It is a fantastically comprehensive collection of recipes from across all of Greece and its many islands. I recommend it highly. Diane Kochilas is an authority on Greek and Greek American cooking and her books are a must-have for any well-rounded library.

Apparently, I need to do a little work on my well-rounded library….

Maybe it’s because spring is right around the corner or maybe it’s because it’s been a while, but after my spring book cleaning I find myself with Greek food on the brain. The bright fresh flavor of lemons, olives, and olive oil are calling to me in a big way. But first, I need another Greek cookbook or two…I wouldn’t want all that new shelf space to go to waste….

Fish a la Spetsiota
Adapted from Diane Kochilas
Yields 4 Servings

This classic Greek Fish a la Spetsiota recipe comes from the island of Spetses off the eastern coast of the Peloponnese. This dish has many versions and this simple one is a favorite. Read more…