Coming Soon: Almost a Swordfish Recipe

Tomorrow we'll be doing a little experiment involving this incredibly delicious swordfish preparation. I didn't film the making of the dish, but when I went to serve it, I decided it was too good not to share, so the plating was captured in all it's brief, but beautiful glory. Will I still be able to "teach" you the recipe? Stay tuned!

Whipped Cream Recipe

This recipe for whipped cream is another essential component recipe that you can use with many desserts. It is easy to make and does not have any of the preservatives that the store bought versions of whipped cream contain.

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tspn vanilla
2 tbsp sugar

Preparation:

1. Using a stand mixer, whip all of the ingredients together at high speed until stiff peaks appear.
2. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

France

Figgy Friday! Burrata Bruschetta with Grilled Figs

My friends at Goodbite featured this lovely grilled figs and burrata cheese video today, and since I've been seeing lots of fresh figs at the market I thought I'd re-post it. If you haven't seen it before, I hope you enjoy. If you've seen it, but didn't get around to trying it, then consider this a friendly reminder that you really, really should!


The original post from last August follows:

If you watch as much food television as I do, you hear the adjective "sexy" thrown around quite a bit, and more often than not, it just doesn't fit. No matter how nice a bowl of chili looks, or how beautifully a game hen glistens, they're not really "sexy."

This burrata bruschetta with grilled figs on the other hand? Totally "sexy!" If there were such a thing as word association flash cards of food, the most common result for this one would be "sexy." Okay, I'm going to stop using those quotation marks now.

Above and beyond how awesome this recipe tastes, it's so nice to be able to post such an aesthetically pleasing dish after the recent string of homely food. I appreciate all the nice comments about the sausage and zucchini stew, but if that thing was a blind date, it would have been described as, "having a nice personality."

Depending on the location, I can't guarantee you'll be able to find burrata and fresh black mission figs, but if you can, you really need to give this a try. I know someone will ask, so I'll tell you right now, there really isn't a great substitute for this heavenly cheese.

A very fresh mozzarella would be the closest, but it would still be like substituting for Beyonce with Wanda Sykes. That's no insult to Wanda Sykes (she has a great personality), but in the sexy department, Mrs. Jay-Z is in a whole other league, and so is this burrata and grilled fig bruschetta. Enjoy!




Ingredients:
burrata cheese
fresh figs
Italian bread
balsamic vinaigrette (1 part vinegar to 1 part extra virgin olive oil - shaken vigorously)
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Please Nominate Chef John for a 2012 Tasty Award!

Yes, it's that time again! The Tasty Awards are an annual awards show celebrating the best in food and fashion programs on TV, in film, and online. Last year, we won the award for "Best Home Chef in a Series," and would love to defend the title this year.

If you'd like to help with the nomination, please follow this link and cast your vote. The two categories we qualify in are "Best Food Program - Web" and "Home Chef in a Series." Thank you for the support!

Gluten-Free Zucchini Bread Recipe

Delicious gluten-free zucchini bread.

Today's post will be short and sweet. We are back. My trip to New Hampshire is over. The wedding weekend was one lovely blur. I had a love hangover for days. Being present at your son's wedding is an experience like no other. Especially when members of your newly expanded family feel like old friends instead of in-laws. 

I cannot help but feel abundantly blessed.

To celebrate I'm baking a zucchini bread.

Continue reading

Bauru Recipe

The Baura gets its name from the Brazilian city, Baura located in the state of São Paulo. It was first served at the Ponto Chic Restaurant in the 1930s. Like most popular sandwiches, many variations of the Baura have been developed over the years. The sandwich is usually served on French bread with roast beef, some type of melting cheese, and usually tomatoes. This recipe also includes pickled cucumbers for added flavor.

Ingredients:
French bread
1/4 pound of freshly cut roast beef
4 slices tomato
4 slices mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cucumber, sliced
oregano to taste
Kosher salt to taste

Preparation:

1. The night before you make this sandwich, mix the vinegar with the sugar. Combine this mixture with the sliced cucumber in an air-tight container and refrigerate overnight. You can use these pickled cucumbers when you make the Bauru.
2. Cut the French bread lengthwise and remove the soft inner bread.
3. Layer the roast beef on the bottom piece of the French bread.
4. Dust the roast beef lightly with salt and oregano.
5. Place the slices of tomato on top of the roast beef followed by the pickled cucumber slices.
6. Top with melted mozzarella cheese and the top piece of the French bread.

Brasil

Sandy Beans! Getting Our Grit On with Crispy Parmesan Breadcrumb Coated Beans

We all know our food has to look and taste good, but one of the more overlooked aspects in cooking is texture. This sandy beans recipe is a great example. Sure, a nice bowl of white beans warmed in garlic oil and topped with parsley is a fine thing, but texturally…kind of a snoozer.

Here we're coating the beans with a crispy, cheesy, pleasantly gritty breadcrumb mixture. That's right; less yawn, more fawn. This was inspired by a similar trick I like to use for finishing pastas, and if there's one thing I know about people (maybe the only thing), it's they like crispy and crunchy toppings.

At the beginning of the recipe you'll hear me mention a garlic-infused oil. I will demo this in a future video, but in case you're wondering, here's what I did. Take a 1/4 cup of olive oil and place it on low heat. Add a sliced garlic clove. As soon as the garlic starts to bubble slightly, turn off the heat and let the oil cool to room temp. Do not brown the garlic. Strain this oil and voilà, you have garlic oil.

One quest that never ends for a cook is the search for ways to make common side dishes seem a little more special, and this is one trick I hope you try soon. Enjoy! 

Food Safety Note: One of our concerned viewers reminded me to point out that there is a botulism concern when dealing with garlic stored in oil. So you don't worry needlessly, out of 300,000 Americans, there are only about 25 cases of botulism per year with very few cases resulting from stored garlic. But better safe than sorry, so it's recommended that you store any leftover garlic oil in the fridge and use within 10 days.

Ingredients:

For the crumbs:

1/4 cup garlic olive oil

3/4 to 1 cup breadcrumbs (depends how "dry" you want your "sand")

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

For the beans:

1 can white beans, drained, rinsed

1 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

salt to taste

cayenne to taste

1/4 cup chopped parsley

Beautiful Breast of Lamb with Honey Parsley Vinegar Sauce - Hey, My Eyes are Up Here!

You know I love lamb, as evidenced by the various chops, shanks, legs, and shoulders I've featured in the past. These are among the most popular meat recipes on the blog, so it seems many share my love. Here we have a brand new cut to celebrate, the lamb breast.

This is not common in your regular supermarkets. There's an inverse relationship between the size of the parking lot, and the chances you'll find breast of lamb in the meat case. However, a visit to a real butcher (look for lots of tats and facial hair) should be rewarded with some slabs of this bony, fatty, but richly flavored meat.

Since I hadn't cooked this in ages, I decided to play it safe, and use a time-tested Mediterranean-inspired spice rub, and it could not have worked more perfectly. The exotic spices made the rich meat seem even more decadent, all of which was nicely balanced by the vinegar sauce's astringency.

A bright green chimichurri sauce on a well-marbled piece of meat is one of the best things ever, and this dish definitely borrows from that playbook. It's not like you'd want to eat a spoon of the condiment right out of the bowl, but slathered over the glistening meat, it's a thing of beauty.

I hope that if you are a fan of lamb, and you haven't tried lamb breast yet, that you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 pieces lamb breast, about 3 1/2 pounds

For the spice rub:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs seasoning (dried rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano blend)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon paprika

For the sauce: (note - this is all "to taste")

1/2 cup packed chopped Italian parsley

2 cloves crushed garlic

1/3 cup white wine vinegar, more as needed

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 or 2 teaspoon honey

juice from 1 lemon

pinch of salt

Coming Soon: Beautiful Breast of Lamb

Maple Pear Porridge Recipe

This recipe for Maple Pear Porridge is my entry into the Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods Spar For The Spurtle Porridge Making Contest. The creators of the top three recipes will be flown to Portland, Oregon to compete in a live cook-off. The winner then will receive an all-expenses-paid trip for two to Scotland, to represent Bob’s Red Mill in the 18th Annual Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship in Scotland, $2,500 in cash, and several other prizes. The deadline for the contest is July 31st. Click here for more details about the contest.

After learning about this contest, I wanted to come up with a unique but simple recipe using steel cut oats. This recipe involves cooking the oats and also making a sauce that is added just before it is served. In addition to the recipe below, you can also view this video that will walk you through how to make this simple breakfast treat.



Referred to as brochan in the Scottish Highlands, porridge is most commonly made with oats, boiling water, and salt. This recipe for maple pear porridge is no exception. However, it takes this combination of simple ingredients to the next level in terms of taste. Even if you are not a big fan of oatmeal, you have to give this dish a try.

Ingredients:
2 cups of water
1/2 tspn kosher salt
1/2 cup Bob's Red Mill Steel Cut Oats
1 cinnamon stick
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tspn pure vanilla extract
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/4 cup shelled walnuts
1/2 of a pear, pealed and sliced

Preparation:

1. In a large saucepan, bring 2 cups of water to a boil over medium heat.
2. Add the kosher salt and stir.
3. Add the steel cut oats, the brown sugar, and the cinnamon stick. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. While the oats cook, peel and slice the pear into length wise wedges.
5. After 20 minutes have passed, add the vanilla to the oats and stir.
6. In a separate small saucepan over medium-low heat, add the butter, maple syrup, and walnuts. Cook for about 5 minutes until the butter has melted. Stir the mixture and then remove from heat.
7. Distribute the oats evenly between 2 serving bowls. Place the slices of pear around the perimeter of the bowl. Top with the walnut, butter, and maple syrup sauce.

This recipe makes 2 servings

Scotland [ print this recipe for Maple Pear Porridge ]

Oregon Ginger Salmon Recipe

This recipe for Oregon Ginger Salmon is another quick and easy dish that will help you include more fish in your diet. All you have to do is prepare the marinade, throw in the salmon steaks, and refrigerate overnight. When you arrive home from work, you can put them on the grill or bake them in the oven and they will be ready in about 25 minutes.

Ingredients:
4 salmon steaks
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1-2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 tbsp fresh ginger, diced
juice of 1 lemon
3 tbsp Old Bay seasoning

Preparation:

1. Mix together all of the ingredients (except the salmon steak) in a medium sized casserole dish.
2. Place the salmon steaks, skin side up, in the marinade and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

United States Oregon

North South East West Carolina-Style Barbecue Sauce

The only thing I know for sure about Carolina-style barbecue sauce is that there isn't one. The base is usually always vinegar and pepper, but then depending on which part of the state(s) you're dealing with, there are countless additions and variations.

This one features fresh apple to add a little extra something, but otherwise it's a fairly straightforward, totally in-your-face with tang and heat barbecue sauce recipe. It was fantastic on a molasses-brined pork chop that you'll see in an upcoming video.

One note for those of you that pay particularly close attention to these videos; you may wonder why I mash the cooked apples in the saucepan, when I'm going to put the sauce in the blender anyway. Extreme sauce ugliness, that's why.

I was originally going to leave the sauce unblended, with the hopes the apple would basically disintegrate into the sauce, but when I stirred in the mustard the sauce suddenly looked like the opposite of something you'd want to eat.

Happily a quick trip to the blender made everything okay again, and I was blessed with a superb summer grilling sauce. It's beautiful for basting, or as a can't-miss condiment. It was really nice on these chops, but I think it shines brightest with pulled pork. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

1 apple, peeled, cubed

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

Coffee Flan Recipe

Coffee flan is a standard dessert in Spain and Portugal as well as other Spanish and Portuguese speaking nations. Flan is a perfect ending to classic Latin meals such as Ropa Viejas, Carnitas, or Pork Tenderloin in Chipotle Mole. It is a light dessert that is just sweet enough to crave another serving.

The most challenging part of this recipe is coating the molds with the caramelized sugar before the sugar hardens. But if you work quickly, you can do it. This recipe is ideal for parties or other gatherings as you can make it a day or two in advance so that it is ready to serve.

Recommended Equipment:
6 - 8 ceramic ramequins

Ingredients:
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/3 cup warm water
3 tspn Nescafe Clasico instant coffee
1/2 tspn vanilla
1/4 tspn cinnamon

Preparation:

1. Grease each of the 6 ramequins.
2. In a small saucepan, heat the 1/2 cup of sugar over medium heat. Stir the sugar continuously until it melts into a smooth caramel.
3. Quickly pour equal parts of the caramel into each of the ramequins and then let them cool.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. In a small mixing bowl, mix together the instant coffee and the warm water. Set aside for later.
6. In a mixer, mix together the eggs and 1/2 cup of sugar. Mix in the cinnamon, vanilla, sweetened condensed milk, whole milk, and the instant coffee mixture.
7. Evenly distribute the mixture into the ramequins.
8. Place the ramequins into a deep roasting pan.
9. Pour warm water into the roasting pan so that the water is about 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep.
10. Carefully place the roasting pan into the oven and bake for 40 minutes or until a fork inserted into the flan and it comes out clean.
11. Remove the flan from the oven and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate until it is ready to serve.
12. To serve the flan, Use a knife to cut around the perimeter of the ramequin to free the flan from the sides. Then place a small plate on top of the ramequin and quickly flip it over. The flan should release from the ramequin and come to rest on the plate.

Spain

Relaxation Through Deflation

Maybe it's just me, but I find time-lapse video of cooling, deflating blueberry clafouti quite calming. If you're feeling a little stressed, watch this video and see if it doesn't relax you. Enjoy!

Watermelon Caipirinha Recipe

Watermelon caipirinhas are cocktails that were made for summer. The sweet, refreshing taste of watermelon, the tart lime juice, with the punch of cachaça create a perfect drink. Here in the States, cachaça used to be very difficult to find. Recently, however, brands such as Leblon, Cabana, Pitu, 51, Água Luca, and Beleza Pura are making this South American spirit easier to obtain. So there is no reason not to try watermelon caipirinhas. In fact, after you purchase your cachaça you can also try the traditional Caipirinha and the Batida de Maça.

Recommended Equipment:
cocktail shaker
food processor or blender

Ingredients:
2 tspn sugar
1/2 lime, cut into quarters
1 cup of watermelon pieces, seeds removed
1 shot of cachaça

Preparation:

1. Put the watermelon pieces into a blender or food processor and puree.
2. Muddle the pieces of lime with the sugar at the bottom of the shaker using a wooden spoon.
3. Add the cachaça and the watermelon puree to the shaker along with crushed ice.
4. Shake until your arm hurts and then strain into your favorite cocktail glass.

Brasil

Fried Peanut Butter & Jelly Pinchy Pies – One Chef's White Trash is Another's White Treasure

I was doing some research on shrimp toast for an upcoming video, and I became obsessed with the thought of frying things on white bread, which led to being obsessed with the thought of frying things in white bread. These fried peanut butter and jelly pinchy pies are the result.

The technique was ridiculously easy, but naming these delicious discs was another thing altogether. They aren't cakes, donuts, or fritters; so I was sort of stumped on what to call them. I decided to make up something completely new (or at least Google says so), and the pinchy pie was born.

As I mention in the video, the possibilities are endless as far as stuffings go, so I can see this really catching on. I think I'm actually going to trademark the name, and maybe hit the state fair tour. These would totally fly out of any Ferris wheel-adjacent food stand.

Regarding the title: While frying stuffed Wonder Bread is about as stereotypically "white trash" as it gets, I don't like or condone the use of that term. I only used it here because I couldn't think of anything as clever. Enjoy!

Karina's Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

Fresh summer salad ingredients: basil, red and yellow tomatoes.

We have a wedding to go to. And not just any wedding. My first born son's wedding. I am mother of the groom. For the first time. Twenty-nine summers ago I cradled this soulful, musical being with new mother innocence and awe, lost in the ocean of this newborn's eyes, starting a journey called motherhood with few tools beyond my willing heart and a deep rooted conviction that I would create for him a childhood unlike my own.

And in many ways I did. I listened with curiosity. I valued his opinion. I gave him paper and paint and books and music. I gave him the time and space and respect to create. We hung together as true companions.

He was always good company.

Continue reading

Spreading the Homemade Mayonnaise Love

A beautiful homemade mayonaisse from
In Jennie's Kitchen! Photo (c) Jennifer Perillo

My friend and future partner in crime (if this food blogging thing doesn't work out, we're going to rob a bank together), Jennifer Perillo, just posted a homemade mayonnaise recipe on her blog, In Jennie's Kitchen, and was kind enough to credit me with the stick blender technique described therein.

I didn't invent this great trick, but since I don't remember who did, I really have no choice but to continue taking full credit. This video is so old, there's a good chance you've not seen it before, and if that's the case, and you have a stick blender, you'll want to give this a try so you can cross "homemade mayo" off your culinary bucket list. Enjoy!

Click here for the original post with ingredients amounts.

Waldorf salad Apple, celery & walnut salad, watercress & Crozier blue cheese

Ingredients;

For the candied walnuts;

100ml stock syrup

100g walnuts roasted and peeled                             

For the dressing;

100g Crozier blue cheese   

2-3tblsp boiling water  

100ml mayonnaise     

Seasoning to taste

For the salad;

3 sticks of celery cut into 1cm dice      

200g watercress  

1 granny smith apple, peeled and cut into 1cm dice and tossed in lemon juice to prevent discolouring 

50g Crozier blue cheese, cut into 1cm dice                                                               

To serve;

Deep fried celery leaves

Method;

Bring the stock syrup to the boil, remove from the heat and add the nuts, allow the nuts to cool in the syrup. When cool place in the fridge and leave the nuts to sit in the syrup for 2 days.

Crumble the cheese into a bowl and whisk in the boiling water until the cheese is creamy and smooth.  Stir in the mayonnaise and season to taste.

Place all of the salad ingredients into a bowl and toss everything together.

Place the candied walnuts onto a tray and place under the grill; the nuts are ready when they are golden and caramelised 2-3mins.

Spoon the Crozier dressing onto service plates and arrange the salad neatly on top, scatter over the candied walnuts and garnish with deep fried celery leaves.

Pressed Foie Gras Terrine with Caramelised Chicory and Spiced Red Cabbage Chutney

Ingredients;

For the terrine;

2 lobe of foie gras

75ml port

150ml muscat

50ml brandy

2 bay leaves

2 sprigs of thyme

Seasoning

For the braised red cabbage;

1 large red cabbage, shredded

1tblsp sea salt

1bottle of red wine

250ml red wine vinegar

50g brown sugar

50g red currant jelly

1 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

4 juniper berries

2 sprigs of thyme, chopped

Seasoning

For the chicory;

1tblsp of butter

2 heads of chicory

1tsp caster sugar

1tblsp water

Juice of ½ lemons

Seasoning

To serve;

Sprig of parsley

Reduced veal jus

For the terrine;

Leave the Foie gras out of the fridge to come to room temperature approx 45mins. (This will make the Foie gras a lot easier to work with). Pull apart the two lobes and remove all of the membrane that covers the outside of the liver. Starting from the top of the lobes locate the main vein the runs the length of the lobes. Slice through the lobe to the vein and follow its path cutting the vein out as you go. Cut far enough to open the folds and expose the interior of the liver, remove as many veins as possible.

Once the Foie gras is cleaned, fold over the sides and return its original shape.

Place the port, muscat, brandy, bay leaves and thyme into a pan, bring to the boil and allow to catch fire to burn of the alcohol. Once the flames have subsided remove from the heat and cool to room temperature.

Place the de-veined Foie gras into a vac pak bag and pour over the alcohol reduction, seal bag and leave to marinate in the fridge over night.

The next day remove the foie gras from the fridge and take it out of the bag, press the foie gras and its marinade into a terrine seasoning between the layers.

Set the oven to 110c and bring a small pan of water to the boil.

Place a large metal tray into the oven and lay a folded tea towel on the bottom of the tray, make sure the tea towel is the same length as the terrine.

Set the terrine onto the towel and pour into the tray enough water to come half way up the side of the terrine. Cook for 35-40mins.

Remove the terrine from the oven and take out of the water bath. Place on a tray and press overnight in the fridge.

For the cabbage;

Toss the cabbage in the sea salt, cover with cling film and leave to go limp in the fridge over night. Rinse well and drain.

Place the remaining ingredients into a large pot and bring to the boil, add the cabbage and turn down the heat to a simmer, leave to simmer for 1 hour, stirring all the time, remove from the heat and strain of any excess liquid. Place the cabbage into a blender and pulse lightly, pour over a little of the liquid and continue to pulse until desired consistency, cool and store in the fridge for a couple of days to allow the flavours to develop.

For the chicory;

Melt the butter in a small pan. Add the chicory, cut side down and cook over low heat until they take on a nice brown colour, 20mins.

Turn the heat up and turn the chicory over, quickly cook just to colour the other side.

Turn back over and sprinkle with sugar, water and lemon juice, season well and cover with tin foil. Bake at 150c for 2 hours or until tender.

To serve;

Slice the terrine into thick slices brush with a little warm veal jus and season with Maldon salt and pepper, place onto a serving plate.

Place a quenelle of cabbage to one side and place the warm chicory to the top of the plate.

Drizzle a little jus over the chutney and garnish with a sprig of parsley.

Colcannon Wrapped in Cabbage with Roast Celeriac, Marinated Mushrooms and Red Wine Dressing

Ingredients;

For the parcel;

1 medium savoy cabbage

50g butter

2 onions finely sliced

1 large parsnip finely diced

2tblsp chopped flat leaf parsley

350g plain mash potato no cream or butter added

1 egg yolk

100g grated Irish Cheddar

For the celeriac;

1 medium sized celeriac, peeled

300ml duck fat

2 cloves garlic peeled and sliced

2 sprigs thyme

Seasoning

For the mushrooms;

12 small button mushrooms

Olive oil

Seasoning

For the dressing;

2tblsp Dijon mustard

2tblsp red wine vinegar

4tblsp walnut oil

4tblsp ground nut oil

To serve;

Asparagus tips, roast pumpkin, olive oil and finely chopped chives

For the cabbage parcel;

Remove the four outer leaves from the savoy cabbage by cutting away the base core.

Remove the thick stalk vein from each leaf without cutting in half. Reserve these leaves for wrapping the parcels.

Split the remaining cabbage in half and then into quarters, shred them finely.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and add the outer leaves cook for a couple of minutes until tender, refresh in iced water. When cold lay them out on a cloth to dry. Add the shredded cabbage to the boiling water and cook for 2 mins, strain then spread on a large tray and allow to cool.

Heat a pan over medium heat and add the butter, sliced onions and parsnips fry until golden in colour and the parsnip has been cooked through season to taste and add parsley. Allow to cool.

When everything is cold mix the blanched shredded cabbage with the onion and parsnip mix and add the mash. Add the egg yolk and cheddar and adjust seasoning.

Divide the mix into 4 balls. Season the large cabbage leaves and place the ball in the centre. Roll the cabbage around the mix and wrap in cling film. Refrigerate.

For the celeriac;

Cut the celeriac into 4 even sized disc about 3cm thick.

Place a pan large enough to hold the 4 celeriac disc over a medium heat and add the duck fat, garlic and thyme. Add the celeriac and cook very slowly until golden on one side turn over and continue to cook until golden brown and cooked through.

Keep warm.

For the mushrooms;

Heat a pan over high heat and add the olive oil, season the mushrooms and cook cap side down until browned turn over and remove from the heat.

For the dressing;

Mix the mustard and the red wine vinegar together. Mix the two oils together.

Slowly pour the oil into the mustard whisking vigorously to amalgamate.

Season and set aside.

To serve;

Warm the parcel in a steamer for 6-7mins or until heated through.

Place a hot celeriac disc into the centre of a serving plate. Remove the parcel from the cling film and place on top of the celeriac.

Arrange the mushrooms, asparagus and roast pumpkin around the parcel.

Drizzle with the red wine dressing.

Pour the chives and olive oil over the completed dish.

Fennel-Smoked Salmon – Over the Top Was Not Over the Top

As I was eating this fennel-smoked salmon recipe, I was also enjoying a baseball game on the radio. During a critical point in the game, one of the players was thrown out trying to take an extra base; a major blunder, which the announcer blamed on, "trying to do too much." I had to chuckle, since I had just done the same thing with the salmon.

We've done a hot-smoked salmon video before, using a simple foil tray to hold and protect the fish, but his time I wanted something more aromatic and edible. It worked like a charm. This was one perfectly cooked piece of salmon.

As I say in the video, had I just served the fish over the simple, yet wonderful tomato salad, I would have had a winner, but I tried to do too much. I thought adding the smoky, caramelized remnants of the fennel would elevate the dish to even more epic levels, but that did not happen.

The fennel was tough and stringy, and after a couple bites it was pushed aside so I could concentrate on how great the rest of the plate was. Not only did the heat seem to toughen the vegetable, but also the fact I'd sliced it with the grain made things even worse. In hindsight, the grilled fennel should have been discarded and some fresh, raw fennel should have been shaved into the salad.

I hope you give this a try, especially if you have problems with salmon sticking to your grill grates. Since the fish never touches the grill here, it's easy on, easy off. Just this feature alone makes the technique worthwhile. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 salmon filets

salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 fennel bulb (aka root, although I don't believe it's actually a root)

cold water plus a teaspoon of vinegar

For the salad:

1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes

salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

pinch of sugar

juice from 1 lemon

3 tablespoons olive oil

fennel tops for garnish