herbs

Rosemary Skewered Halibut

April 21, 2013 by Eva Louise 2 Comments

Recently, my mom gave me about a dozen rosemary branches from her garden. It was a lot of herb and I didn’t want it to go to waste, so I made this Rosemary Skewered Halibut. Rosemary is an intensely woody and lemony herb that I normally associate with meats, but Halibut is a pretty bland and trim fish, so the intensity of the rosemary actually worked quite nicely. The halibut can easily be substituted for chicken, red meat, lamb or tuna, and since it’s almost summer, these skewers would be happiest when cooked on the grill.

The secret to this dish is marinating the halibut for at least 1 hour beforehand in a really intense herb blend. I tossed some fresh thyme, seasoned salt, paprika, garlic, Italian seasoning, herbs de provence, an herb mix containing dried chervil, parsley and coriander (pretty much the entire spice rack) and olive oil in a medium sized glass bowl and let it hang on the counter for about 10 minutes. If you try this recipe, the marinade should be almost pasty and super intense in flavor.

While the marinade rested, I rinsed and pat dry a beautiful filet of halibut and cubed it into 1 inch chunks, added it to the marinade bowl and chilled it for 1 hour.

I then heated the oven to 475 and lined a cookie sheet with tin foil and olive oil. With an entire stalk of rosemary, I laced 3-4 cubes of halibut down the rosemary from the bottom up and laid them on the cookie sheet so no halibut cubes were touching, then baked them for about 8-10 minutes until they were golden brown (they go fast, so keep on eye on them so they don’t over cook). Note: the rosemary edges will burn at this high heat. This is fine, but just have someone ready to do the “dish towel helicopter” under the smoke detector just in case.

I served the skewers with a kale salad and mushroom polenta and I can’t wait to get my hands on more fresh rosemary so I can do this again….

On the (Herb-crusted) Lamb with Mushroom and Leek Bread Pudding

January 2, 2013 by Eva Louise Leave a Comment

Herb-crusted lamb with mushroom and leek bread pudding – fast friends that seemed so natural together after just one encounter. The herb-crusted lamb isn’t anything revolutionary (just luscious) but a savory bread pudding?! Totally revolutionary. Inspired by Ina Garten, I actually followed the recipe (!) and it turned out beautifully.

Herb-crusted rack of lamb

adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine

2 racks of lamb, about 1-1/4 lb. each, chine bones removed, rib bones frenched, and meat trimmed of all but a thin layer of fat
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbs. chopped fresh thyme
1 cup soft fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard

Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 475°F. Season the lamb with salt and pepper. Combine the garlic, parsley, thyme, and breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl. Moisten the mixture with enough olive oil to make the mixture hold together.

Heat a large dry skillet over high heat. Put the lamb, meat side down, in the skillet. With tongs, hold the lamb against the skillet for a minute to give it a nice brown crust. Turn the meat to sear it on all sides for a total of 4 minutes. Remove the meat from the skillet and paint the meaty side of the rack with the mustard. Roll the meat in the herb mixture to coat it. Sear and coat the second rack in the same way.

Transfer the racks to a roasting pan just large enough to hold them. Cover the rib bones with strips of foil so they don’t burn and roast until medium rare, 20 to 25 minutes (120-140°F internal temperature). (I forgot cover the bones and smoked out the whole kitchen). If you want a crispier crust, finish cooking under the broiler for 2 minutes. Let the racks rest for 5 minutes before carving.

Use a carving knife to cut between the rib bones. Arrange the chops on warm serving plates. Serve hot. (The chops will cool quickly, so the best strategy is to carve the racks at the table.)

Ina Garten’s Mushroom and Leek Bread pudding

6 cups (1/2-inch-diced) bread cubes from a rustic country loaf, crusts removed
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 ounces pancetta, small-diced (optional)
4 cups sliced leeks, white and light green parts (4 leeks)
1 1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms, stems trimmed and 1/4-inch-sliced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves
1/4 cup medium or dry sherry
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
4 extra-large eggs
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 1/2 cups grated Gruyere cheese (6 ounces), divided

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the bread cubes on a sheet pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the oil and butter in a large (12-inch) saute pan over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook for 5 minutes, until starting to brown. Stir in the leeks and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until the leeks are tender. Stir in the mushrooms, tarragon, sherry, 1 tablespoon salt and 11/2 teaspoons pepper and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until most of the liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally. Off the heat, stir in the parsley.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, chicken stock and 1 cup of the Gruyere. Add the bread cubes and mushroom mixture, stirring well to combine. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow the bread to absorb the liquid. Stir well and pour into a 2 1/2-to-3-quart gratin dish (13 x 9 x 2 inches). Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup Gruyere and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the top is browned and the custard is set. Serve hot.

Dinner with Basil: Homemade Pesto + Caprese Salad

August 11, 2012 by Eva Louise Leave a Comment

Green Gold

Red, White and Green

Earlier this week, Ray and I had a special guest for dinner, basil! This beautiful broad-leafed herb is definitely in season with the bundles so big, I could barely tell it apart from heads of lettuce in the produce section. When I get a bouquet of basil this large, there’s really only two things I want to make, homemade pesto and a caprese salad. And that’s what I did: Seared Scallops with Pesto Rigatoni with a Caprese Salad drizzled with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. I think I’d like to have basil over dinner more often!

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For the Pesto: I never follow recipes, so in my Cuisinart I just blended pine nuts (they have pre-packaged 1/4 cup bags in the baking aisle at the store), whatever Parmesan I had in my fridge and garlic. I then added the basil leaves and the juice of one lemon. Word on the street is to keep the Cuisinart running while you add the olive oil through the top feeder until the mixture is smooth. At the last minute I added zest of 1/2 lemon and I’m pretty sure that took the pesto to a whole other level of amazing both in flavor and color. For perfect single-servings down the road, scoop any extra pesto into an ice cube tray and cover with plastic wrap making sure it’s flush with the pesto and place in freezer. For the rule followers, Ina Garten has a great recipe for pesto.