Halibut with Tomatoes and Basil

Roasted Halibut with couscous.

I've had a hankering for fish recently. My go-to fish is (predictably) salmon, mostly because I only like fish that is firm and flaky. But CCO was tired of my salmon obsession, so we bought a filet of halibut at the store this weekend.

Roasted in a foil packet with tomato, basil and oil, it was everything I dreamed of and more.

Eat Rating: Delicious.
Difficulty: Easy. Just a long strip of aluminum foil.

1 cup of basil leaves, loosely packed and then chopped
1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp dry white wine (LN: We used Sauvignon Blanc)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 1/2 lb filets of halibut

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Tear two long sheets of aluminum foil, about 6 inches long.

In a bowl, combined the chopped basile, grape tomatoes, garlic, wine and olive oil. Mix until all the ingredients are coated and add salt and pepper to taste. Wash the filets and pat dry with a paper towel. Place a filet in the middle of a sheet of aluminum foil. Top with half the tomato/basil mixture. Fold one end of the foil up over the fish, then fold the other side over so you have a roll with two open ends. Then fold each of the open ends over so all sides are closed. Repeat with the second filet. Place the packets on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

Unwrap and serve immediately.

Bouchons au Thons

In French, that apparently means "tuna corks." We already tried the cake that got Orangette a husband, so I figured I should try the recipe that got her a french lover. CCO said it wouldn't have to be too impressive since french men are "horndogs" but that is beside the point I think. The corks are very light -- just a hint of tomato and tang from the creme fraiche. They are hard to stop eating too. A batch makes about 8-9 corks, which was supposed to feed four people. Instead CCO and I ate them in one sitting. In all a wonderful spring-type dinner. I think I may make for an appetizer next time I host a dinner party.

The creme fraiche was the most difficult ingredient to find (they do sell it at Harris Teeter, maybe also Whole Foods. Check the fancy cheese section.), but I figured I should follow the recipe once before I started making changes. I might substitute full fat sour cream next time and see how they turn out. One other note, if you don't have a muffin tin, you can still make by filling disposable muffin cups and baking on a cookie sheet (I had to do this since I lent out my muffin tins). Make sure to buy the aluminum tins though. They hold the shape much better than the paper ones.

Eat Rating: Awesome. I sort of want to be her French lover now.
Difficulty: Easy (aside from finding creme fraiche)

From A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg

1 6 oz. can of tuna in water, drained
1 cup Gruyere, finely shredded (LN: I used my nun-cheese, which I still (!) have in the fridge)
3 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup creme fraiche
3 eggs (LN: subbed egg beaters and it worked fine)
2 tsbp finely chopped Italian parsley (LN: couldn't find any, subbed 1/2 tbsp dried)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a muffin tin or line with disposable muffin liners.

Drain tuna and place in a medium sized bowl. With a fork, break the tuna up into small pieces. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Divide the mixture evenly between 8-9 tins. Bake 20-25 minutes until the corks appear set on top. Let cool for 5 minutes. The corks will collapse a little, don't worry. Remove from liners or pan and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Eating Down the Fridge Challenge: Day 5 (Thursday)

You may have noticed that there is no Wednesday. We cheated (sort of). When I got home from work, I ran into our upstairs neighbors. It came out that this week was my birthday, also that she had been home all day with her sick (not contagious) son and had spent the day cooking. So she invited CCO and I to dinner with her family. We had delicious Korean food. We did eat food from a fridge, just not ours. And in the spirit of EDF (and being good guests) we brought them a bottle of wine.

To make up for my lapse, though, I promised myself I'd be adventurous for Thursday's dinner. So this can of salmon has been around for awhile (don't worry, it doesn't expire till 2010). I think it was my mother's. She accidentally bought it one time, mistaking it for tuna, then got home and stuck it in the back of her cupboard. When I moved to my new place last summer, she brought me a bag of all this food to help fill my cabinets. It was supposed to be things I requested -- spices I had left with her after moving back from Chicago, important pots and pans like my pressure cooker. Instead I ended up with canned salmon. But never fear. I remembered we had a couple red bliss potatoes sitting around. Also, as used in previous recipes, tons of bread crumbs. So why not salmon croquettes?

Adapted from the New York Times

Eat Rating: Good. CCO commented that the croquettes were a little short on salmon. If I were making it again, I would probably use 2 cans of salmon.
Difficulty: Easy-to-medium (no strange utensils, but does require breading and frying)

3 medium-sized red-skin potatoes
1 can salmon, drained
1 shallot, minced
2 eggs
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 cup sour cream
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh chopped dill (or about 1-1 1/2 tbsp dried dill)
1/2 tsp salt
Oil for frying
Flour

Boil potatoes in medium-sized saucepan until tender. Mash with masher or electric beaters until smooth. Mix in can of salmon, shallot and one egg. Shape into patties and place on a cookie sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Beat remaining egg in a small bowl. Place breadcrumbs in a separate bowl and spread several tablespoons on a plate. For each patty, cover with flour, then egg, then bread crumbs. Set aside. Heat oil in a frying pan until hot, the edges will just begin to bubble. Fry the patties in the oil until brown, about 3-4 minutes per side. Dry on a paper towel before serving.

Salmon patties, frying

While patties are cooking, mix sour cream, garlic, salt and dill to create a garlicky cream. Serve salmon croquettes with a dollop of cream.

With a dollop of garlicky dill cream