Macadamia Crusted Yellowtail with Mango-Papaya Salsa

Aloha
As you are reading this, I am sitting on the white sand on a beach in Maui, maybe even with a cocktail in my hand.

In honor of my 40th (Really!?!) Birthday, my husband and I packed up the kids and flew to paradise. There’s really not much more to say about that. It’s pretty rough being here. There’s no laundry to do. No dishes. Food is only available at a number of fine dining establishments. Someone comes in and makes my bed for me. The alarm clock never goes off. I’m just not sure if I can take any more of this. Somehow I will try to carry on…

In the mean time, enjoy this island-inspired recipe for Macadamia Crusted Yellowtail with Mango-Papaya Salsa from my classes with Tante Marie. I have used Tuna and Red Snapper for this recipe as well as Mahi Mahi. Swordfish and Chilean Sea Bass would also work well. Read more…

Gam’s Cranberries

Of all the holidays, Thanksgiving is the one that reminds me of my Grandmother the most, and probably not for the reason you think. I don’t have visions of my Grandmother wearing a frilly apron rolling out pie dough, though she could make a mean crust. What I do have are Gam’s Rules of Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving dinner was always at our house and every year, and I do mean every year, my sister and I (and my poor mother who was actually doing the cooking) were subject to Gam’s lessons, rules, and commandments in cooking Thanksgiving dinner.

While we remember those lessons fondly now, at the time we just rolled our eyes. “For a good gravy, first you have to make a good roux. Did you make a good roux?” This lesson was the first in the Gospel According to Gam and has become a battle cry at any family dinner be it Thanksgiving or otherwise. (First You Need To Make a Good Roux became the title to the book of her recipes that I put together for the family.)

The first lesson was quickly followed by the mildly condescending, “If I were making this at home I would have some Kitchen Bouquet” to the gravy. This was a hotly contested addition, and I’m in the you don’t need it camp. We never had Kitchen Bouquet the house except at Thanksgiving, but we ran out and bought some every year, or never heard the end of it.

My favorite lesson, and the one that makes me smile as I write this, is her ritual warning of, “Don’t touch the plates! They’re hot!” And every time without fail my grandfather would touch the plates and say, “Wow that’s hot!” just to bug her.

By far Gam’s best contribution to the Thanksgiving feast was her cranberry sauce, though sauce may be a bit of a misnomer. Year after year it was one of the favorite things on our Thanksgiving table, and now that she’s gone it just wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without her cranberries….as well as hot plates…and a really good roux…

Go ahead…Roll your eyes….
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Baked Apples Filled with Fruit and Nuts

My brother-in-law came over for dinner last weekend, which isn’t anything too terribly out of the ordinary. He called me Saturday to invite himself over for dinner on Sunday. Again, not out unusual, but what prompted the phone call was. He had recently been to up to Mendocino County and bought some wine along the way. Among those purchases was a bottle of Gewürztraminer from Navarro; one of my favorite wines. (If you’ve never been to Navarro, go. It’s worth it. Great wines that are only available through the winery.) Needless to say, I told him to come over and bring a straw.

I had to come up with what to cook. I spent Saturday making the Chef of the Month dinner, so I didn’t want to do anything super-complicated. However, I wanted something really good to make up for missing out on dinner the night before. I stuffed a pumpkin. (See Pumpkin Stuffed With Everything Good) I threw a salad together using yet another pomegranate. (Again, see The Problem With Pomegranates.)

And, I made these really easy and very yummy baked apples. With all of the great apples coming into season, it’s fun to use them in different ways. I found this recipe in the same book as the stuffed pumpkin, and it was soooo delicious and satisfying. I used a combo of dried currants, raisins, prunes, and pecans for the filling. And, added cinnamon, cloves, and fresh nutmeg. With a little Vanilla Ice cream? Shut. The. Front. Door.

Next time I might try cranberries or maybe a little maple syrup instead of honey. Mmmmm….
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Thick Pork Chops with Spiced Apples and Raisins

Pork Chop Over the weekend I went to my former residence, now owned by my brother-in-law, to raid the apple tree. Each year it seems this tree produces more and more apples and it’s basically impossible to do something with all of them. My brother in law will eat what he can but he’s single. He’s not going to be home on the weekends canning. He has other pursuits.

So I arrived armed with three bushel baskets and with the intention of picking the apples and making both applesauce and apple chutney. Applesauce is, frankly, the easiest thing in the world to make and it has so many uses. My kids will eat it right out of the jar with a spoon. (Or, in a lesser moment, their fingers. I’m so proud.) And it’s great with yogurt or mixed into pancake batter. I make the chutney because there is nothing like a grilled panini or open faced sandwich with some arugula, a thick slice of ham, some Irish Dubliner and a dollop of tangy apple chutney on good french bread. Add some butternut squash soup to that and you have yourself one perfect and colorful Fall lunch or dinner.

Needless to say, I now find myself with more apples than I know what to do with so I am trying to use apples as much as I can which means I have been cooking more pork lately. For me there is no better flavor match up than apples and pork. One of my favorite recipes is from Tyler Florence and is listed below. The pork chops are definitely tasty (brining is a must!) and a pork roast will work well too but the main reason I make it is because of the warm compote. The pork is just the vessel for the apples and raisins.

Then again, you could just skip the pork altogether and use a spoon… or your fingers. Read more…