Fish with Zucchini and Toasty Garlic Mojo

So the original fish of choice for this recipe was snapper; however given my limited seafood resources, I could not get my hands on any for a decent price. So, I substituted catfish, but the recipe notes indicate that almost any white fish will work in this dish. This is another Rick Bayless jem from the Mexican Everyday cookbook. It. was. awesome. The garlic mojo sauce was drinkable. Seriously. Bayless does it again!

Fish with Zucchini and Toasty Garlic Mojo
Adapted From: the Mexican Everyday cookbook, by: Rick Bayless

Ingredients:
1/3 cup olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
2/3 cup chicken broth
Salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Four 4- to 5-ounce fish fillets (snapper, halibut, mahimahi, catfish, bass etc)
2 large zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 large lime, cut into wedges, for serving

Directions:
Turn on the oven on its lowest setting. In a very large skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until soft, lightly browned and very aromatic, about 4 minutes. With a slotted spoon, scoop the garlic into a food processor or blender jar, leaving as much oil as possible in the skillet. Set the skillet aside.

Add the broth to the processor or blender, along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and the pepper. Blend until smooth.

Return the skillet to medium-heat. Generously season the fish with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, lay in the fish. When Richly browned underneath, about 2 to 3 minutes, flip and cook until the fish gives slightly under firm pressure from your finger, about 2 minutes. Use a spatula to transfer each piece of fish to an oven-proof dinner plate. Keep warm in the oven.

With the skillet still over medium-high heat, add the zucchini and cook, stirring regularly, until lightly browned but still a little crunchy inside, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic mixture and cilantro. Stir until the sauce comes to a boil and becomes homogeneous. Taste and season with more salt if it needs it.

Spoon the zucchini and sauce over and around the fish and serve right away, with lime wedges for each person to squeeze on.



The Result:
This is probably my favorite new fish recipe. We served our fish and zucchini with brown rice, which soaked up all the yummy pan sauce. My belly is very happy. It was pretty fast to pull together and it was one I may have kept overlooking if it was not for the cookbook project. This is my last Bayless recipe for the week, and I am a little sad about it. I may revisit this book again later in my project, since pretty much everything I have tried from it has been a total hit.

Chipotle Chicken Salad Tacos with Avocado, Red Skin Potatoes, and Romaine

Oh, Rick, Rick, Rick, Rick, Rick. I had almost forgotten what a magical, creative, food-stud you are. Thankfully, my husband picked your cookbook for my cookbook project and I was gently reminded that your Mexican cooking skills are unmatched. I will never make that mistake again. I bow to you, sir. Nobody puts Bayless in the corner.

Chipotle Chicken Salad Tacos with Avocado, Red Skin Potatoes, and Romaine
From: the Everyday Mexican cookbook, by: Rick Bayless

Ingredients:
1 large red-skin potato or Yukon Gold, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
Salt
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
2 canned chipotle chiles en adobo, seeded and chopped
1/4 small white onion, finely chopped
6 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) coarsely shredded cooked chicken
2 cups sliced romaine leaves - slice them about 1/4 inch across
1 ripe avocado, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
12 warm corn tortillas

Directions:
Place the sliced potatoes into a large microwavable bowl, pour in 1/4 cup of water and sprinkle generously with salt. Cover and microwave on high for about 4 minutes. Remove potatoes with a slotted spoon to a cutting board and let cool, reserving cooking liquid.

Add the vinegar, oregano, chipotle chiles and onion to the bowl with the potato water to make the dressing. Mix and then taste, add salt if necessary.

Use a fork to break up the potatoes (or just dice like I did) into 1/2 inch pieces, then place them in a large bowl. Add the chicken, drizzle over the dressing and toss to combine. You can refrigerate it for a half and hour to allow the flavors to blend.

Just before serving, add the lettuce and avocado, and drizzle with olive oil and toss gently to combine. Serve with warm tacos.



The Result:
Fan-freakin'-tastico!!! These were delicious and so easy to put together. My photo is a little sketchy, but the tacos were great. We garnished ours with some queso fresco and it was a delicious touch. Yum! Rick Bayless is the man.

Creamy Corn Soup with Chicken and Roasted Chiles

I let the husband choose the second official cookbook for my cooking project. We are huge Rick Bayless fans at my house, so it was no surprise when he picked Everyday Mexican. Since I have tried many recipes (with great success) out of this book already, I challenged myself by picking three dishes that we normally would have automatically passed over for this week. This soup was one of them. I don't know why, but corn soup is not something I think about making at home. Processed forms of corn are so prevalent in our food system, I automatically dismiss actual corn as part of our meal. (Read or watch anything by Michael Pollan and you will understand where I am coming from; current corn production/processing is pretty much the devil.) I think I have become a little prejudiced against corn. Since I knew in my heart Rick Bayless would not steer my wrong, I set aside my issues with corn and made this soup. At first, I will admit, I was luke-warm about it. However, the more I ate of it, the more I absolutely loved it. It really took me a few bites to understand and fully appreciate this soup. As expected, it was hearty, subtle, and delicious. We all had seconds...which is a definite seal of approval around our table.

Creamy Corn Soup with Chicken and Roasted Chiles
Adapted From: the Everyday Mexican cookbook, by: Rick Bayless

Ingredients:
2 large fresh pasilla chiles or poblano chiles
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small white onion, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 cloves garlic, peeled
3 cups corn kernels, frozen
1-2 tablespoon corn starch
1 quart milk
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or about 3/4 pound leftover chicken
Salt and pepper to taste
Cilantro for garnish

Directions:
Roast the chiles directly on the open flame of a stovetop or under a broiler until charred and blackened all over, 5-10 minutes depending on method. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel until cool enough to handle.

In the meantime, heat the oil over medium heat in a 3-quart saucepan and add the garlic and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden. Transfer to a food processor along with the corn, cornstarch, and 1 1/2 cups of the milk.(I used an immersion blender and pureed it right in the pot.) Process into a purée and transfer back to the saucepan, straining out the corn kernel skins if desired.(I did not strain my corn kernel skins out of our soup, I wanted a heartier texture.) Bring to a simmer, whisking frequently.

When the chile is cooled somewhat, rub off the blackened skins, pull out the stem and seeds, and rinse to complete the job. Cut into 1/4-inch strips or pieces, then stir into the simmering soup along with the chicken and remaining milk. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, if necessary, stirring as you go. Serve with sprinkled cilantro.



The Result:
As I said this was delicious, and fairly easy to put together. I used some pre-cooked chicken breasts, so I did not need to cook the chicken in the soup. I couldn't find poblanos, so I used pasilla chiles as a substitution that worked out just fine. Also, see my notes (in italics) in the cooking directions for a couple of minor changes I made to the original directions. My only real issue I had was that I needed more cornstarch than the original ingredients indicated. I think I probably used about 3 tablespoons of corn starch to get the texture I was going for. I would recommend starting with 1 tablespoon of corn starch and then adding more as you go, until you get the desired result for your soup. The chiles were not spicy, but gave the soup a great roasted flavor. Thanks Rick Bayless for another keeper to add to our repertoire.

Beef, Cheese, and Noodle Bake

I love a good casserole, and this one was the best, family-friendly casserole that I have come across, thus far. Seriously, we all gobbled it up! Everyone had seconds, including the boy child. My little girls loved it, as well. It reminded me of a really fantastic version of the Hamburger Helper that I was tortured with as a child. (As you probably guessed, I am not a fan of boxed and over-processed Hamburger Helper.)

I substituted naturally-lean ground bison for ground beef, and ended up using a can of fat-free evaporated milk instead of regular skim milk. I was about halfway finished with the recipe and about to make the sauce before I realized that we ran out of milk. Oops! Thankfully, I stocked some of the canned stuff in my pantry, and it ended up making the sauce deliciously creamy. Creamy, cheesy sauce--without a ton of calories--is a total score in my book. Best of all, this is a Cooking Light recipe...the last one I am making from the Cooking Light's Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook. I swear you really can't go wrong with anything from Cooking Light. I am so glad that I tried this recipe!

Beef, Cheese, Noodle Bake
Adapted From: Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook (Joy Zacharia, Cooking Light, JANUARY 2006 )

Ingredients:
1 (8-ounce) package small whole wheat elbow macaroni
Cooking spray
1 cup diced onion
1 cup shredded carrot
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound lean ground sirloin, lean ground beef or lean ground bison
1 cup tomato sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup fat-free milk OR 1 (8 ounce) can of fat-free evaporated milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) 2% reduced-fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Lightly coat pasta with cooking spray.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and carrot, and sauté 4 minutes. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add ground beef; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes or until most of liquid evaporates.

Add pasta to beef mixture in pan, stirring to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Place milk, flour, nutmeg, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan; stir with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly with a whisk. Add 1 cup cheese, stirring until smooth. Pour cheese mixture over pasta mixture; stir. Top evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information:
Serving size: 1 cup, yields: 8 servings
Calories:283 (24% from fat)
Fat:7.7g (sat 4.2g,mono 2.4g,poly 0.7g)
Protein:22.3g
Carbohydrate:30.1g
Fiber:2.1g
Cholesterol:46mg
Iron:3.1mg
Sodium:622mg
Calcium:209mg





The Result:
Delicious! My family loved it; and hopefully yours will, too. A side of sauteed zucchini and yellow squash made this one satisfying meal. I almost forgot to mention that this dish was very economical to put together. Woo-hoo...double score!

Dijon Chicken Stew with Kale and Potatoes

Out of all the recipes to choose for my cookbook project, I am really not sure why this one caught my attention. When I was outlining which dishes I wanted to try out of the Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 book, I kept flipping back to this one. I was really trying to find new things that I hadn't experienced before, so I kept gravitating towards this dish. I just couldn't imagine how the flavors would come together in a stew. I knew I had to try it and see.

Dijon Chicken Stew with Kale and Potatoes
From: Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook (Jeanne Kelley, Cooking Light, JANUARY 2006)

Ingredients:
4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
2 cups sliced leek
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 cups(1/2-inch) cubed peeled white potato (about 1 pound)
8 cups loosely packed torn kale (about 5 ounces)
Crushed red pepper

Directions:
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add leek; sauté 6 minutes or until tender and golden brown. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Spoon leek mixture into a large bowl.

Place 1/3 cup flour in a shallow bowl or pie plate. Dredge chicken in flour, shaking off excess. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add half of chicken mixture; sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Cook 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Add browned chicken to leek mixture. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken mixture, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper.

Add wine to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Combine 1 cup broth and 1 tablespoon flour, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add broth mixture, remaining 2 cups broth, water, and mustard to pan; bring to a boil. Stir in chicken mixture, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes.

Stir in potato. Cover and simmer 30 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in kale; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Garnish with crushed red pepper flakes.



The Result:
Our stew was savory and delicious, with very grown-up flavors. My husband and I really loved this recipe, but it was soooo labor-intensive. It took me over two hours from start to finish; and that is just too darn long for a weeknight meal. We ended up feeding the kids and putting them to bed before we sat down to eat.

The stew itself was rustic, hearty, and comforting as you would come to expect; but it also tasted very polished at the same time. There was a fairly complex layering of flavor going on...I guess that is why it took so long to cook. It truly was unique, which is what I was going for in the first place.

Overall, I am certainly glad I decided to go for it. This was a really great one pot recipe that would be something I make again, as long as it is on a day when I have the time to dedicate toward it (i.e. not a busy weeknight).

Lamb Pitas with Lemon-Mint Sauce

The cookbook project isn't shaping up to what I thought it would be, so I think I am going to loosen up the parameters a bit. After all, it was my idea...so I can change it, right??? Anyway, due to time and budget constraints, I am just going to pick a cookbook and cook out of it until I get tired of it. Then, I will move on to the next. I could make just one recipe or several. I could use that particular book for just one week or spread it out over a few. The point is that it should make the project easier to juggle. I will still go through my collection one at a time, but I won't be hard-pressed to only pull the majority of my dinners for the week out of one resource. Whew! That makes it a lot less stressful.

I have one recipe slated for this week (this one), and two more recipes on tap next for week from the Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook.
Every year, Cooking Light will take it's entire catalog of magazine recipes and compile them into one volume. I love these compilation books, because I can recycle all my old magazine copies and still have the recipes from that particular year at my fingertips. I had some ground lamb that needed to be used, and I found this pita dish hidden in the back of the book. I decided to start with this as my first book (and recipe) for my project; especially since I had everything on hand for it, and it was a new twist on pitas for us.

Lamb Pitas with Lemon-Mint Sauce
Adapted From: Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2007 cookbook

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 lb. of ground lamb
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 red pepper, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup of fresh chopped Italian parsley
1/4 cup of fresh chopped mint
whole wheat pita pockets, opened
lettuce of your choice
cucumber slices
sliced tomatoes

For Sauce:
1/2 cup of plain, fat-free Greek style yogurt
zest of one lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon (or more to taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon of tahini
chopped fresh mint to taste


Directions:
Mix sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Saute onions and peppers with a pinch of salt. Once onions are start to caramelize and are soft, remove mixture to a plate. In the same skillet, cook ground lamb with salt, pepper, cumin, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Break up large chunks of meat with a wooden spoon and cook thoroughly. Once lamb is no longer pink, add minced garlic and cook for another 30 seconds or until garlic is fragrant. Add onion and pepper mixture back to pan and remove from heat. Add mint and parsley to pan, stir to combine.

Stuff pita pockets with a handful of lettuce, meat mixture, sauce, tomato and cucumber slices. Serve immediately.



The Result:
My final dish barely resembled the original published recipe (linked above), but it still turned out to be fantastic. We really loved these pitas, and some glazed carrots were the perfect side dish to go with our sandwiches. Yum!

Stir-Fried Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Here is my other "non-cookbook" recipe for the week (refer to my previous post for the scoop on all the "non-cookbook" drama of the week). This is a 2-step Martha Stewart dish, that is yummy, healthy, and will satisfy any take-out cravings you may have lurking within your psyche.

Stir-Fried Turkey Lettuce Wraps
From: Martha Stewart Everyday Food app for iphone (via marthastewart.com; Everyday Food, Jan. 2010)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons fish sauce
4 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1 large shallot, finely chopped (I didn't have a shallot, so I used finely diced white onion)
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small jalapeno or serrano chile, seeded and finely chopped
1 pound ground turkey (93 percent lean)
2 large heads Bibb, Boston, or iceberg lettuce, leaves separated (I used iceburg)

Directions:
1.In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, fish sauce, and sugar and stir until sugar dissolves. Set sauce aside.

2.Heat a large skillet or wok over high until hot. Add oil and swirl to coat skillet. Add shallot, ginger, garlic, and chile and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add turkey and cook, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until almost cooked through, 5 minutes. Add half the sauce to skillet and stir until meat is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Serve in lettuce leaves with remaining sauce.



The Result:
This was awesome! My whole family loved it. Here is some exciting news...by whole family, I mean the baby girls, too. Yup. They ate some of the turkey (without pieces of the jalapeno pepper) and they LOVED it. Big girls! This is totally a tangent, but we are transitioning them onto table food and I am really excited. They had steamed peas and carrots, the ground turkey, and fresh mango tonight. It was our first official family dinner where we were all eating together.

Anyway, this recipe was a hit. It was a delicious take on lettuce wraps. I didn't serve the sauce on the side, but instead turned off the heat and just combined the remaining sauce with the finished, cooked turkey. It wasn't overly saucy, but it was super-flavorful. We garnished our iceburg lettuce wraps with some fresh, diced yellow bell peppers, chopped green onion, fresh cilantro, and those crunchy, chow mein noodles. As a side dish, I made roasted broccoli for the boy, the husband and I, and--as I mentioned--steamed some easy finger veggies for the babies. Nom, nom, nom!!! Thanks again to Martha; I am one happy momma.

Apricot and Cheddar Chicken Melts

Well, my 2011 cookbook project is already off to a rocky start. Not intentionally, mind you. It's just because I am a certifiable doofus. The two "cookbook" recipes that I planned this week, are not from actual "cookbooks". How does that happen, you ask? Well...I found two Martha Stewart recipes on my iPhone app that I thought looked familiar. I said to myself, "Self, because these two recipes look familiar I bet they are in one of your Martha Stewart cookbooks. Don't check or follow up in any way. Just go ahead and put 'em on the menu plan and worry about it later." So that is what I did (or rather didn't do). I put both unverified recipes on my menu plan that I THOUGHT were in my cookbook(s). As it turns out, they are NOT in said cookbook(s). ::SIGH:: Oh well. I guess the cookbook project will officially start next week.

These (non-cookbook related) open-faced sandwiches were really great. The flavors were layered and complex; a winning sweet/savory combination. Again, we had some fresh roasted asparagus as our side dish. What can I say...my family loves asparagus. This was a really fun, new take on the ubiquitous boneless, skinless, chicken breast.

Apricot and Cheddar Chicken Melts
From: Martha Stewart Everday Food app for iPhone (via marthastewart.com; Everyday Food, September 2007)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup white-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves, chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each), split horizontally
1 baguette (about 20 inches), split horizontally, then cut in half
1/4 cup apricot preserves
4 ounces thinly sliced deli ham (I used prosciutto)
4 ounces white cheddar cheese, grated (1 cup)

Directions:
1.Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. In a shallow dish or resealable plastic bag, combine vinegar, mustard, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; add chicken, and turn to coat. Marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes (or cover and refrigerate in marinade up to 24 hours).

2.Lift chicken from marinade, and place on prepared baking sheet; broil (without turning) until opaque throughout. Transfer chicken to a work surface; discard pan juices from baking sheet.

3.Place baguette pieces on baking sheet, cut side up; dividing evenly, spread with apricot preserves, and layer with chicken, ham, and then cheese. Broil until cheese is melted, 4 to 6 minutes.



The Result:
This was a great sandwich idea! I used prosciutto instead of deli ham, and a whole wheat loaf instead of classic baguette. I think these melts would also be fantastic with fig jam, in lieu of the apricot preserves. (Although, the apricot flavor was delicious as-is.) Cookbook or no cookbook, this was a great chicken recipe!