Racy Salmon Steaks and Canadian Wild Rice

There is always salmon sitting in my freezer..it'easy to
cook and you dont have to defrost it!
Ikea sells a pretty decent one.
perfect for a last minute dinner or week end crashers..
when it's summer I have a great device to smoke the fish as it cooks
but it has to be used outside and anyway it's in storage
so I'll use the good old fashioned oven..with a racy
marinade.

Ingredients

1. grated zest of a lemon
2. a knob of grated fresh ginger
3. a splash of soya sauce
4. a tea spoon of sugar
5. two or three salmon steaks
6. a cup of canadian wild rice

marinate the salmon for about an hour even frozen

place the salmon in one of those silicone magic boxes

one cup of rice, with a cup and a half of water and follow the instructions on packet

all ready for an oven preheated to 180 for fifteen minutes

GOOOOD.......

my waterzoi

When I had waterzoi for the first time at the house of my belgian friend Flo 

who happens to be a fantastic cook , she told me that one can add/subtract

most ingredients , after all it is poached chicken or fish with different

vegetables and herbs served in a thickened broth

 with egg yolk , lemon and cream...

first  immerse a chicken in cold water then bring to the boil.

add one carrot , one parsnip , one onion , one leek ,six 

chopped lemongrass sticks, a tea spoon of chili flakes,coarse salt and simmer for an hour.

let it cool , skin and bone the chicken , keep the vegetables

for a soup , the dog , the chickens , a friend....

If you do this dish a day in advance put the chicken and the broth

in a big bowl in the fridge , the next morning the grease will have 

risen to the surface and you can just scoop it out..

If not strain the broth through a thick cotton cloth 

( I use old sheets teared up..).

nice poached yellow chicken from the south west in France

straining the broth...

always do it in the sink , it's easier to clean !

prepare the chicken

I like to use mini vegetables because they look so pretty

coriander

use always the freshest of farm eggs

The following list is really up to you , feel free to use any vegetables you care for..

turnips , leeks , brussel sprouts , celeriac , potatoes...

I used lemongrass sticks in the broth and coriander leaves to garnish..but you can 

flavour your broth with cloves and bay leaves and scatter parsley or tarragon

on the dish...

INGREDIENTS

serves 6

1. one or two table spoons of butter
2. twelve small carrots
3. twelve small "marows"
4. six small courgettes
5. a handfull of tiny asparagus
6. a big bunch of coriander
7. three egg yolks 
8. juice of two lemons
9. one cup of light cream
10. salt and pepper 
11. broth 
12. poached chicken

saute the vegetables in the butter for about five minutes, add enough broth to cover , simmer for ten minutes add the chicken and keep on very low heat.
mix with a wooden spoon the egg yolks with the lemon , and the cream add slowly a ladle of broth
mix gently and add to the dish.
Do not bring to the boil , reheat gently ,scatter the coriander add some pepper and serve .

my garden borlotti

                                   INGREDIENTS

1. half a kilo of fresh borlotti beans 
2. two big garlic cloves unpeeled
3. three fresh sage leaves
4. olive oil
5. rice vinegar
6. chopped parsley
7. coarse salt and pepper                                 

    Well with the horrid weather I had to cook my borlottis with my lamb...

Every year I grow borlotti beans in my garden..they mature in september and I always keep bags of them in the freezer to add to vegetable soups in the winter , or cook them the italian way...

In a thick cocotte , cover the beans with cold water , add the garlic, the sage and coarse salt , bring to the boil and then simmer about an hour until the beans are cooked but not mushy ..
discard the sage and the garlic .

put in a bowl a ladle of beans and the same amount of cooking liquid , a table spoon of vinegar, a dash of pepper and olive oil .
mash with a plunging mixer or by hand.
mix the puree with the beans , cook for another fifteen minutes , if the mix is too thick add a little hot water , scatter the parsley on top and serve.

Costiera cod

Wonderful Maite was over generous this summer and brought me salted cod (baccala) from Spain. In august I cooked it "à la française" and did an aïoli just poached with lots of boiled vegetables and a garlic maionaise which is a perfect summer dish...

GRAND AIOLI

this time I did a "costiera cod" from Amalfi .                                                                       

beautiful spanish packaging what a treat!

INGREDIENTS
serves 8

1. four pounds of salted cod
2. two cans of chickpeas
3. two chopped medium onions
4. four garlic cloves sliced in two
5. one big spoon of dried oregano 
6. two big spoons of tomato paste
7. two pints of tomato sauce (plain)
8. a big glass of white wine (dry)
9. half a cup of small capers
10. a cup of chopped parsley
11. hot chili flakes
12. olive oil

got to desalt for 48 hours

poach the whole fillets for five minutes in boiling water then drain .

as far as the ingredients are concerned , I think one should use as much olive oil and chile flakes as one feels...

I usually use italian capers kept in salt which have to be rinsed.

this recipe does not need salt because of the cod.

Heat a big cocotte add olive oil , when it sizzles add the onion , the garlic , oregano , and chili flakes.

cook turning occasionally with a wooden spoon until the onion begins to brown.

then pour the wine in and let it boil until reduced by half.

mix in the tomato paste , tomato sauce and capers. Simmer covered about 15 minutes.

in the mean time skin and debone the cod , cut it in two inches pieces or flake it.

add the cod and the chickpeas to the cocotte.

all this can be prepared in advance , just sprinkle with parsley before serving.

I served "costiera cod" with cooked polenta topped with breadcrumbs popped ten minutes under the grill..
mmm...!