Halibut in Parchment

I went out an got some new clothes on my last day off, nothing big 3 pair of pants and 4 shirts.   The stuff in my closet is getting beat up by my life, I work around food all day then usually cook when I get home so my clothes go through a lot.  Here is a little side bar about me, I usually shop for clothes at the second hand store, I like the feeling that if I spill a gallon of curry sauce down my front I can just throw my outfit away and only be out about 5 bucks.  Anyway when I told Kris that I was going shopping for clothes she asked me to please get rid of some stuff.  We are out of hangers plus I am have more clothes than any 2 normal men and there is no more room in the closet.   So this morning I had to open the closet and come to terms with why I don't wear some of the clothes in there...

Is it really because I don't like to iron those linen shirts?  Is it because I can't wear tan pants to work?  Is it because I don't like to wear some of the bold colors that I used to?  Well, to be honest none of those reasons apply...

OK I am going tell you a game that isn't any fun...  Open up the closet and try on clothes that you haven't worn in say 4 or 5 years.  I say to myself, "I look the same as I did in my wedding picture," but deep down I know that the suit didn't shrink and there is another reason that I can't get my pants to zip.  I just don't like to think about it.  Some of the clothes in my closet aren't exactly things that I don't want to wear they are things that I avoid wearing because...


Well it just makes me think that my stupid Doctor was right when she called me FAT,  I am working on it and here is another winner to prove it!  I hesitate to call it a recipe because really I am putting a bunch of junk willy nilly into an envelope and tossing those into the oven.  This is how it goes:

Cut parchment into 14 inch squares
spray parchment with cooking spray
line each square with Julienned fennel bulbs enough to hold up your fish
Place a filet of halibut on top of the fennel
add salt, pepper, a smashed garlic clove and the grated zest of one lime
Top all that with julienned zucchini then squeeze the juice from half a lime on top

Wrap these guys up in a happy little parchment envelope and put into an oven preheated to 425 for 10 minutes.

There really isn't anything that compares to opening something like this up!  Compare it to opening a little present for dinner, just set the little packages up on each plate with any side dishes that you choose, when you open them you get the smell of all of the steamed vegetables floating up from your plate, The fish is perfectly light and flaky, the zucchini is still crisp and everything is permeated with the flavors of anise and garlic.

Grilled Peaches and Cream

OK I think that I've done it, maybe the cooking on the grill thing has gone too far... well maybe not... is that even possible?  In my last post I mentioned that I have grilled about every sort of protein and almost every vegetable out there, this week I have been working on dessert.  I have done it a couple of ways but I think this was the best!

Grilled Peaches and Southern Biscuits... without turning the oven on at all!  It was easy enough to start with:

The peaches
2 whole peaches pitted and cut into 8 pieces
2 TBS balsamic vinegar
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix ingredients together and set aside to soak. 

While they are soaking make your biscuits:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powser
1 tsp salt
1 TBS brown sugar
1/2 stick COLD butter cut up
1/4 cup 
Mix first four ingredients together then add butter and milk.  Quickly mix together kneed briefly being careful not to over mix, then roll out to about 3/4 of an inch and using a biscuit cutter cut into circles.  Roll and repeat I got 6 biscuits in total.   Place on a small oiled baking sheet and... yes my friends set on a cool area of your grill and cover.

Once the biscuits are going put your peach wedges on a hot area of the grill and cook until they are nicely caramelized.  Take the peaches off and set, back in the marinade you will be using that liquid.  The biscuits took about 20 minutes in all, while I was cooking the rest of my meal, when they were done they had risen quite well.  Cut them in half and stuff serve with whipped cream (heavy cream, honey and vanilla) and your peaches then add just a touch or the marinade.  What you end up with is a light biscuit with a cloud of whipped cream and the sweet, tangy slightly smokey fruit with caramelized sugar and vinegar clinging to it.

Now I have grilled just about everything this summer except for salad (working on that though) and soup... which is just weird. 

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

If you are a regular reader you probably realize that I like to cook out on my grill in the summer... well even in the winter sometimes I will brave an ice storm in order too grill out a tenderloin.  Anyway I grill out about 4-5 nights a week I grill out every sort of protein and most vegetables have found their way to my grill this summer, my problem has been the starches.  I make a mean cheesy potato (they really rock so I haven't tried too hard to replace them) but I have always felt like a "one trick pony" with the potatoes.  This past couple of weeks I have been trying some starches on the grill.  This way I can walk onto the deck, beer in hand, and get everything done in one place.  This is one of my more successful new additions.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes
3 Sweet potatoes
juice from 4 limes
grated zest from one of the limes
1 tsp salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1/3 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

Place the potatoes, peel on, in cool salted water and bring to a boil let them boil until almost tender, about 25 minutes.  They should still be a little firm in the middle when poked with a fork.  Pour out the water and cool with cold water until you are able to handle them,  I put mine under cold running water for a few minutes.  These can be stored in the refrigerator for several hours until you are ready.
For the Lime Cilantro Vinaigrette mix the rest of the ingredients together with a whip and set aside.  This can be made a day ahead if you like.

When the time comes peel the sweet potatoes then cut into quarters lengthwise.  Put them on a HOT grill (you want the grill marks) for 3-4 minutes on a side.  Take them off and set aside, when it is time to serve drizzle the Cilantro Vinaigrette on them.  You can serve them hot, right off the grill but I like mine about room temp (or outside cookout temp).  These guys are sweet and tangy with a little of that caramelized sweetness it turns out to be a great picnic side dish.

The leftovers worked well for dinner a couple of nights later here they are diced and sauteed with some chicken, crumbled goat cheese and just a touch of brown sugar.  This one almost qualified as foodie crack!

Grilled Slider Trio

We had our friends Rochelle and Dan over for dinner last night, just for a pleasant evening of hanging out with our friends.  Kris asked me to hold back with the menu, it seems that some people think that sometimes I go overboard with the dinner plans, I push everybody out of the way, spend way to much money on dinner then don't let any one else help.  Kris suggested something simple, hamburgers and hotdogs, perfect but then I think that maybe I can do a step better...

I called Kris about halfway through the day, "How about a grilled slider trio, with caramelized sweet potatoes?"  I mean every body loves a Tuna Bahn Mi right?
She paused for a moment, I am pretty sure thinking, why can't you keep it simple just once, but said, "Ok... just make sure that you have enough hamburgers for everybody and pick up some hotdogs."

Ok there is a lot of stuff to this meal so lets get going:


Tuna Bahn Mi with Carrot Daikon Slaw

The slaw
1 cup Champagne Vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup shredded carrots
3/4 cup shredded daikon
1 TBS chopped cilantro leaves
1 TBS chopped mint leaves
light sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Heat vinegar and sugar until they almost boil then remove from heat and let cool for 10 or 15 minutes.  While that is cooling put the rest of the ingredients into a storage container and pour vinegar sugar mixture on top, seal the container give it a good shake and store in the refrigerator.  This can be made the day ahead.

The Tuna (about 5 burgers)
2 tuna steaks (about 4 ounces each)
2 green onions chopped
1 tsp soy sauce
1 TBS bread crumbs
1 egg white
juice from one lime

Dice tuna steaks then coarsely chop in a food processor mix with the rest of the ingredients then form into about 2 oz patties (a little over 2 inches in diameter) put them on a plastic wrap on a plate then cover.  Refrigerate until you are ready to go, about 15 minutes before you grill them put then in the freezer so they hold up well.  Grill for a couple of minutes on each side, try to get these off medium so there is a little pink in the middle.

To assemble take your slider bun add a schmere of siracha mayo then your tuna patty and top with s TBS of the daikon slaw.

Chicken Parmesan Burger (made 8 sandwiches)
3/4 pound ground chicken
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 TBS olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together then form into about 2 oz patties (about 2 inch circles) place on plastic wrap on a plate then cover and refrigerate until you are ready to start cooking then pop into the freezer for about 15 minutes before you grill.  Grill for 3-4 minutes on each side

Other ingredients
3/4 cup marinara sauce (I used a sauce from a jar)
Mozzarella cheese
5-6 fresh basil cut into a chiffonade
french bread sliced then grilled with a little olive oil

To assemble, take one slice of french bread top with marinara, then a chicken patty,  top with a little more marinara sauce, fresh basil, mozzarella cheese then the other slice of bread.


The Hamburgers (made 10)
1 pound of hamburger
2 TBS breadcrumbs
1 1/2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
salt and pepper

Like above mix ingredients together then form into about 2 oz patties and refrigerate until you are ready to go then freeze for about 15 minutes before you grill.  Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.  Assemble like you would your favorite burger mine was with lettuce, tomato, onion, ketchup and mustard.  I put the pickle on a stick through mine for the picture... isn't it cute?

A couple of things to note all of these had bread crumbs in them, I find a little bit of bread crumbs will help hold moisture and flavors in.  I don't always do that but with these guys being so small I wanted to make sure they were juicy when it was time to serve.  I also popped them all in the freezer for a for a few minutes again that was because they were so thin I wanted to make sure they held together through the rigors of my grilling.

Over all the meal was a success!  The surprise to me was the Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches both Kris and I did a double take when we tried the little sandwich the first time, I expected them to be good but these were great!  The Tuna was a great mix of flavors and textures too!  the flavor of the slaw just keeps going.

Outtakes

So a few weeks ago Kris and I were watching The Next Food Network Star, we were talking about how cool of a job the win in the end.  Face it, Guy Fieri has a pretty cool job.  My beautiful wife said, "you should do that!  You're  personable... you can cook, plus you have figured out how to keep the pickiest eaters on earth fed."
So I looked up what it takes to try out, simple fill out a LONG application and make a three minute video... easy right?!?  Over the next few days Kris and I tried shooting a video... turns out it isn't that easy we have about 80 clips now,  I thought I would share some of my outtakes.

OK maybe it was harder than I thought but at least I can laugh about it.

Oh and if you were wondering about where Mr. Man picked up some of those words he used when I made the Pirates Potty Mouth Ice cream....

I don't know... maybe I should have gone with this guy playing me... he seems pretty at ease in front of the camera.

I made (go figure) a Pork Tenderloin,  I know you all have seen me do that to death but they haven't seen me do it at Food Network.  Right now I am piecing together the "good" takes and my neighbor is willing to help edit, he does video editing for ESPN.  I will keep you guys posted if anything happens, if nothing else I can share a 3 minute video with you in the end.

Spinach Salad with Mixed Berry Vinaigrette

The kiddos and I took a trip to Lincoln Park Zoo on my day off.  More important that the destination was how we would make our way into the city to visit this Chicago Landmark.  Driving was off the table, the kiddos didn't want to do that, it seems to be less of an adventure.  That left us with the options of the commuter train and tourist trolly or the El (subway) and city bus.  We opted for the more urban method of transportation.  After all if you miss an El or a bus you have about a 20 minute wait for the next one, if you miss a commuter train of the free trolly is full you are at least 30 to 40 minutes for the next.  Add to that there is something to be said for hopping off the El for a transfer in the middle of a regular Chicago neighborhood, instead of in the middle of the loop.

I was pushing for a trip to the zoo mostly for the walk, I am still reeling from the Doctor visit you know, "Fat, fat fat fat, fat, drinker...  you need to exercise!"  I figured that the walk around the zoo with kiddos in tow plus the lunch below would help me at my next appointment, coming up in just a few days.  The kids and I brought a duffel bag full of snacks, for me the leftovers from this salad and a bit of salmon.  As we were sitting down to our picnic lunch at the outskirts of the zoo Miss Lu handed me the quote of the day, "I don't like eating here... there are so many animals... it's just gross." 

We made this salad when we had the neighbors over for dinner a couple of days earlier, it was such a bright addition to dinner that I couldn't resist having it again:

The Salad dressing
1/2 cup chopped strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries
1 clove garlic chopped
2 TBS Campaign vinegar
2 TBS confectioner sugar (more or less depending on the fruit)
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Put all of this into a blender and blend until smooth.

The salad
Couldn't have been easier about a cup of loosely packed spinach for each adult then toss with the dressing.  I'll let you decide how much dressing you want, just remember that this has quite a bit of punch to it so go easy.  I topped the spinach and dressing with a great mixture of nuts and assorted dry fruit, most people call it "trail mix."   Then I tossed in some crumbled up goat cheese.

This one had everything my friends: the healthy stuff that my Doctor wants me to get to know better, the bright warm crunch of nuts alongside the chewy dried fruit.  Top that all with creamy goat cheese and the zing that you get from this dressing and you have an awesome salad.

Grilled Salmon with Black Bean Salsa

I have had a pretty good record of consistently seeing my family practitioner in my adult(ish) life. I went for a physical shortly before embarking on my journey to college. The next time was around my 32nd birthday and then again a couple of weeks ago, right after my 45th birthday so really I am like clockwork. I also see a Doctor every time I cut off the tip of a digit or my appendix explodes, pretty regularly I would say. Plus I don't want anyone to think I am a hypochondriac. After my latest check-up I went in for the inevitable blood work, a few days later my Dr. Called me. Now I can't say that I am quoting her exactly it started like this.


"Bryan, this is Doctor Crystal, I just got your lab results, over all everything is in order, your triglycerides seem to be a little bit elevated but that really isn't a big surprise given your weight..."

OK this is where I don't quite trust that I remember exactly what she said...

"Do you mind if I ask if you drink?"

I answered, "yes... some"

"Yes I often find that FAT DRINKERS are prone to high triglycerides, that kind of explains your cholesterol levels too, *FAT people often have high cholesterol and yours is one full point above average. I also find that FAT people often have high blood pressure just like yours and the DRINKING doesn’t help. For the love of GOD it is a wonder you are still alive. By the way you need to make a follow-up appointment so we can check your blood pressure again and get a plan in place for your life as a SIMPERING IDIOT after your inevitable STROKE... Do you have some time next week?"

OK, maybe it isn't word for word...

Given the advise of my new family practitioner I thought I would try a couple of dishes without my usual friends, you have met them, butter, heavy cream and bacon.

Black Bean Salsa (enough for 4-6)
1 can of black beans, rinsed
1 whole tomato diced
1/2 onion diced
1/3 cup of fresh corn
2 cloves garlic minced
1 TBS chopped cilantro
1 Jalapeno pepper diced (I removed the seeds so it wasn't so hot)
1 TBS olive oil
Juice from one lime
Salt and Pepper to taste
Stir the ingredients together and set aside to rest while you make the rest of dinner.

Salmon
Really this was as simple as can be; I set a 4-5 oz salmon filet out and sprinkled a little salt, pepper and Olive oil on it. I grilled it for about 3 minutes on each side until done.

When it was time to serve I put a handful of fresh spinach on a plate then added about 1/3 of a cup of my salsa then topped it with the grilled salmon. I have always loved this salsa/salad, filled with the bright crisp summer flavors and textures, the Jalapeno it this one doesn't really add heat, it is more like a little pop of sunshine.

The whole meal clocks in well under 400 calories and is low enough in fat to keep the dietitians at bay. That gives me a little extra room for a Martini right?

*For the record I am 6 feet tall but to weigh myself the following criteria must be in place:
1. Weight must be taken first thing in the morning.
2. I must be right out of the shower and naked
3. I must have recently used the restroom
4. I must have skipped diner the night before and not yet eaten anything that day.

If all these criteria are in place I weigh in at about 206 pounds... Obviously the Doctor I see doesn't respect these rules so my weight at her office was a little higher.