Entrees – Page 2 – A Pat & A Pinch

Smoke Infused Potato Salad with Chorizo and Asparagus

We are at the end of the local asparagus season and I wanted to do something different with the last of the local harvest.

This recipe, adapted from a recipe by Heather Christo, did the trick for me taste wise. Unfortunately, it was not as photogenic as I hoped. Next time I will look for smaller yellow fingerlings to provide more of a visual contrast for presentation.

What the recipe lacks in presentation is made up in flavor. The smokiness infuses the sautéed onions which, when combined with the freshness of the asparagus and the spiciness of the chorizo, makes for a refreshing combination of flavors. The salad is a perfect simple meal that is easily assembled.

Smoke Infused Potato Salad with Chorizo and Asparagus

1 pound small fingerling potatoes

1/3 pound chorizo sausage

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoon smoked paprika

½ red onion, thinly sliced

1 pound trimmed asparagus, each stalk cut into thirds.

1/3 cup water

¼ teaspoon liquid smoke

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook until just fork tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan or heavy skillet, cook the chorizo over medium heat, breaking it up as you cook, about 2-3 minutes.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, the liquid smoke, and the red onions and sauté another 2 minutes. Add the asparagus and sauté two minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to remove the potatoes from the pot of water and add them to the pan. Stir to coat and cook, add the water and a lid and cook 2 more minutes.

While that is cooking, whisk together the remaining paprika, garlic, vinegar and olive oil.

When you remove the lid of the pan, make sure that the water has all cooked off. Turn the heat to low and add the oil and vinegar mixture. Toss everything together.

Transfer to a serving platter and garnish as desired: I used some micro-greens. Serve hot or warm.

Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

Cooking time: 20 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 4

June 22, 2014September 1, 2014

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Opa’s BBQ Pork Ribs

My Opa (grandfather in German) is one of the most fascinating people I know. His skills range from welding to cooking to removing blackberry stains to growing the best tomatoes in his greenhouse (which as you can likely guess he built all by himself). He is a man of all trades but most of all, he is a family man who loves to be surrounded by good food and company. Back in the day, I honestly have no idea when a company, then called Western Natural Gas in Alberta, Canada, provided recipe suggestions to its customers. This recipe, which has been lovingly modified and bulked up since, came from that company oddly enough. It is one of my absolute favourite recipes to make as it is simple and a definite crowd pleaser. Unless you are vegetarian, I guarantee this will be a hit!

Opa’s BBQ’d Pork Back Ribs

2 pounds, preferably back rib rack

Sauce

1 1/12 cups ketchup

1 cup brown sugar

4 tablespoons liquid smoke

4 teaspoons celery seed, optional

4 tablespoons hot horseradish (preferably not creamed)

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Mix the sauce ingredients together.

Brown the ribs on the BBQ. Then place them in a disposable aluminum pan and cover with the sauce. Cover the pan with foil.

Cook on the BBQ on a low heat until the meat is tender, stirring occasionally to prevent the sauce from burning. Back rib racks take approximately one and one-quarter hours, country style ribs take longer.

May 23, 2014June 17, 2014

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Pan Fried Salmon Cakes with Dill-Mustard Sauce

Living on the west coast, good salmon is easy to come by. For this recipe, we typically use Pink or Coho fillets as opposed to the more coveted Sockeye. The dill-mustard sauce is an absolute must with this recipe as the two compliment each other perfectly, although we serve the sauce on the side as some of us like to take more than others.

Pan-Fried Salmon Cakes with Dill-Mustard Sauce

Salmon Cakes

1/2 kg poached salmon (boned and flaked)

1/4 c. wild rice, uncooked

1/2 c. bread crumbs

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp. fresh dill, finely chopped

1 tbsp. capers, finely chopped

1 tbsp. horseradish

1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1 large egg, beaten

1/4 cup mayonnaise

salt and pepper

3 tbsp. flour

1 tsp. paprika

butter

Dill-Mustard Sauce

2 ½ tbsp. grainy mustard

2 ½ tbsp. honey mustard

1 tbsp. white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. honey

8 tbsp. fresh dill, finely chopped

Boil the wild rice until cooked. In a large bowl, mix the salmon, wild rice, breadcrumbs, onion, dill, capers, horseradish, and lemon juice. Add and combine the beaten eggs and mayonnaise to bind. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place flour in a shallow dish and season with salt, pepper and paprika. Using your hands, form the salmon mixture into thick patties. Lightly coat each patty in the seasoned flour and refrigerate for at least half an hour ensuring that they are in a single layer or there is parchment paper between the layers.

To prepare the sauce, whisk together the mustards and incorporate the vinegar and honey. Stir in the dill and refrigerate until the meal is ready to be served.

When ready to cook the salmon cakes, melt some butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add as many patties as will comfortably fit in the pan and sauté, turning once, until golden brown on both sides (approximately 5 minutes on each side). Cooked cakes can be kept warm in the oven on a low temperature until the whole batch is ready to be served. Add more butter to the pan if needed.

Serve the cakes with the sauce. We like to serve them over a simple green salad with a light vinaigrette that does not compete with the dill-mustard sauce.

May 12, 2014June 4, 2014

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Minted Lemon Pappardelle with Butter-Seared Baby Scallops

To celebrate exams being finished and having the luxury of time to cook and enjoy a proper meal, I made one of my favourite pasta recipes today. The recipe is based on a re-creation of a shrimp dish I used to enjoy at a long defunct restaurant. At this point, I don’t think that my dish bears much resemblance to the inspiration dish, other than pasta, lemon and mint. As you may have ascertained looking through my blog posts, I am a huge fan of lemon anything. Adding mint to it takes it up a notch. The freshness of this dish is the perfect compliment to the approaching warm weather and sunshine.

Minted Lemon Pappardelle with Butter-Seared Baby Scallops

Serves: 4

1 large shallot, yielding 3 tablespoons finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup white wine

4 cups chicken stock

500 grams fresh pappardelle or linguine

5 tablespoons butter, 3 of which should be kept cold.

400 grams scallops

zest and juice of 2 or 3 large lemons (2 -3 teaspoons zest, 3 tablespoons juice, to taste)

salt and pepper, to taste

generous handful of chopped fresh mint

Saute the shallots in the olive oil in a large sauté pan or frying pan until translucent. Deglaze the pan with the wine. Add the chicken stock and lemon zest. Simmer vigorously to reduce to 1 1/2 to 2 cups of liquid. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set to the side in the sauté pan.

Drain and dry the scallops. Heat a skillet on high heat. When hot, reduce the heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons of the butter allowing it to melt and coat the surface of the skillet. Brown the scallops on one side, turn to brown the other side. Do not over cook. Remove from the pan and set to the side, reserving the browned butter.

Cook the fresh pasta as directed on the package. Drain.

Re-heat the reduced liquids in the sauté pan. Add the lemon juice and reserved butter and browned bits from the scallops to the sauce, stirring to incorporate. Taste for seasoning. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the drained pasta, scallops and mint turning gently to marry them. Serve with a glass of crisp white wine.

I also make this pasta substituting cooked salmon or shrimp for the scallops. I increase the cold butter slightly depending on whether there are juices with oil or butter resulting from their preparation that I can incorporate into the sauce.

April 24, 2014April 26, 2014

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Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shanks

Great news, not only is it summer, but I have finished my undergrad and have 3 months before my first year in law school commences. I’ve got a summer job that I’m quite excited about, who would’ve thought employment would feel like such a luxury!?! If you are thinking, “hmmm, no blog posts since November, I wonder if she still knows how to cook?” the answer is yes, I just have spent very little time cooking anything shareable.

So, although the weather is getting warmer, here in B.C., we still have the occasional wet and chilly day and this is the perfect meal for just that. I inquired as to its origins and my mother scoured her cookbooks and the internet to no avail. So while I am sure this faux-tagine is not a family recipe, I can only credit my mom for introducing it to me.

Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shank

3 tbsp. cumin seeds

3 tbsp. coriander seeds

4 12-14 oz. lamb shanks

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

¼ c. olive oil

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1 1” piece fresh ginger, chopped

1 large yellow onion, grated

1 large pinch saffron

1 c. white wine

1 cinnamon stick

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 ½ tsp. ground cloves

2 whole bay leaves

1 ¼ c. dried apricots chopped

4 c. chicken stock

1 tbsp. butter

Toast the cumin seeds in a skillet for about 4 minutes, stirring a few times. Grind the cumin seeds and coriander seeds coarsely with a mortar and pestle. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350F. Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper. Put the olive oil in a large ovenproof pan over medium-high heat. Brown the lamb on all sides, 10-15 minutes.

Remove the lamb, pour off the fat and add the carrots and celery. Cook over medium heat for 4-5 minutes or until just beginning to soften. Add the fresh ginger, onion, and saffron and cook until the onion is translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Add the wine, ground cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon stick, ground ginger, ground cloves, bay leaves, and dried apricots. Cook 5 minutes.

Place shanks back in the pan and add the stock. Cover the pan and cook in 350F oven for about 1 ½ hours or until meat is tender and falling off the bone. Remove the lamb shanks and cover with foil. Set aside and keep warm.

Skim the fat off and strain liquid into a saucepan. Discard solids. Reduce the braising liquid to a saucy consistency by slowly simmering. Time will vary widely, can take as long as 20 minutes. Adjust the seasoning by adding salt and pepper, add butter.

Serve with couscous and a nice seasonal green vegetable.

May 18, 2013May 19, 2013

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Zucchini Lemon Thyme Cheese Tart

At a visit to the local Saturday market, we were offered a taste of this delicious tart made by Hastings House pastry chef, Rosemary Harbrecht. The pastry was a perfect compliment to the freshness of the cheese and zucchini. Rosemary gave us a copy of this recipe and we made it for lunch that day and it was a family hit. Enjoy!

1 1/2 c. flour

5 oz. cold unsalted butter

kosher salt

1/2 tsp. vinegar

1 1/2 lbs. zuchinni cut into 1/8 inch slices

black pepper

2 tbsp. olive oil

8 oz. chèvre (original recipe called for 4 ounces each of chèvre and cream cheese)

1 tsp. parsley

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. lemon zest

By hand or in a food processor, mix flour, butter, 3/4 tsp. salt until crumbly. Add the vinegar and 3-4 tbsp. cold water just until dough comes together. Flatten the dough into a disk and wrap in plastic to chill for 20 minutes.

Roll out the dough to about 10 or 11 inches in diameter. It should be about a 1/4 inch thick. Place the pastry on a parchment lined baking sheet and chill for at least another 15 minutes.

Toss the zucchini slices with a teaspoon of salt and let it drain for about 20 minutes. Gently press out more moisture with paper towel. Then toss the zucchini in a bowl with pepper and 1 tbsp. of the olive oil.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Mix the cheese with the herbs, zest, and salt and pepper to taste. Spread this over the pastry leaving a small uncovered border. Arrange the zucchini slices in overlapping circles. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and bake for 30-40 minutes until the zucchini is golden around the edges.

August 14, 2012October 22, 2012

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