1. Warm Spinach Salad with Scallops
Thick-cut bacon, 2 slices chopped
White wine vinegar, 2 teaspoons
Shallot, 1, minced
Freshly ground pepper
Baby spinach, about ¼ lb (375 g)
Sea scallop, 1 lb (500 g), side muscles removed
SERVES 4
1 Cook the bacon and prepare the spinach
In a frying pan over medium heat, cook the bacon, starring occasionally, until crisp, About 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together the vinegar, shallot, and a pinch of pepper. Add the spinach and toss to coat with the vinegar mixture. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to the bowl of spinach, then drizzle 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat over the spinach and toss quickly to combine. Divide the spinach mixture between individual plates. Reserve the remaining fat in the pan.
2 Sear the scallop
Return the frying pan to medium-high heat and add the scallop. Cook, turning once, until golden brown on both sides but still slightly translucent in the center, about 2 minutes per side. Arrange on the spinach and serve.
2. Baked Halibut with Salsa Verde
Halibut or Salmon fillets 4, ½ lb (750 g) total weight, pin bones removed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Garlic, 2 cloves
Fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley leaves, 1 cup (1 oz/30 g) loosely packed
Fresh tarragon leaves, 1 tablespoon
Olive Oil, 5 tablespoon
Anchovy Paste1 teaspoon (optional)
White wine or sherry vinegar1 tablespoon or to taste
1 Cook the halibut
Preheat the oven to 300° F (150° C). Oil a shallow baking dish just large enough to hold the fillets in a single layer. Season the fillets lightly on both sides with salt and pepper and place skin down, in the prepared dish. Bake until opaque throughout, about 8 minutes; start checking the fish after about 5 minutes to avoid overcooking.
2 Prepare the sauce
In a food processor, combine the garlic, parsley, tarragon, oil, anchovy paste, and I tablespoon vinegar. Process until smooth, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the work bowl. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and more vinegar if desired. Transfer the fish to individual plate, top with the sauce, and serve.
3. Tilapia with Sweet Pepper
Olive oil, 3 tablespoons
Red, orange, or yellow bell peppers (capsicums), 3, seeded and sliced
Garlic, 1 large clove, sliced
Dried oregano, ¼ teaspoon
Chicken or vegetable broth, ¼ cup (2 fl oz/60 ml)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Tilapia fillets, 4, 1 1/.2 lb (750 g) total weight, pin bones removed
Paprika, 1\4 cup (1 1\2 oz/45 g)
Flour1/4 cup (1 1/2 oz/45g)
Sherry vinegar, 1\2 teaspoon
SERVES 4
1 Saute the pepper
In deep frying pan over medium heat, warm 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the bell peppers, and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano, broth, ½ tablespoon salt, and a pinch of pepper. Cover and cook until the peppers are tender and most of the liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes.
2 Cook the fish
Meanwhile, place the fillets on a plate. Season on the both sides with the paprika and then sprinkle with salt. Set a large, heavy frying pan over low heat to preheat. When the peppers are nearly done, raise the heat under the empty frying pen to medium-high. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle the fillets on both sides with the flour, shaking off any excess. And the fillets to the pan and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes, Turn and cook until just opaque throughout, about 3 minutes. Stir the vinegar into the peppers and season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer the fillets to plates. Spoon the peppers over add alongside the fillets and serve.
4. Grilled Salmon with Zuchhini
Salmon fillets, 4, 1 ½ lb (750 g) total weight, pin bones removed
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Fresh thyme, leaves from 6 springs
Olive oil, 3 teaspoon
Zucchini (courgettes) or other summer squashes, 4, quartered lengthwise
Lemon, 1, cut into wedges
SERVES 4
1 Prepare the grill
Prepare the gas or charcoal grill for direct grilling over medium-high heat and oil the grill rack. If using a gas grill, leave one burner on high and turn the other burners off. If using a charcoal grill, bank the coals on one side of the grill.
2 Season the salmon and zucchini
Place the fillets on a plate and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with half of the thyme and drizzle with 1 ½ teaspoons of the oil. Place the succhini quarters, cut side up, platter large enough to hold the fish and zucchini. Season with salt and pepper, top with the remaining thyme, and drizzle with the remaining 1 ½ teaspoons oil.
3 Grill the zucchini and salmon
Place the zucchini,m cut side down, on the hottest part of the grill and cook, turning occasionally, until browned, about 3 minutes. Move the zucchini to the cooler part of the grill and continue cooking until tender, 3-5 minutes longer. Place the salmon on the hottest part of the grill until marked with grill marks on the first side, about 3 minutes. Using a spatula, turn the salmon, move to the cooler part of the grill and cook until opaque throughout, 2-3 minutes longer. Return the zucchini to the platter and turn to coat with any remaining thyme-flavored oil. Arrange the salmon and lemon wedges on the platter and serve.
5. Clams Steamed in Ale
Wheat, white, or brown ale, 1 cup (8 ft. oz/250 ml)
Shallot, 1 , minced
Littleneck, Manila, or other small calms, 4 dozen, scrubbed
Unsalted butter2 tablespoons
Baguette or other crusty white bread
SERVES 4
1 Steam the calm
In a large saucepan, Dutch oven, or stockpot , combine the ale and shallot. Add the calms, discarding any that do not close to the. Covers, bring to a boil over high heat, and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, for 3-4 minutes. Uncover and, using a slotted spoon, transfer any fully opened calms to bowls. Re-cover the pan and continue to cook until the remaining calms open. Transfer the calms to the bowls, discarding any that have failed to open. The total cooking time will be 5-10 minutes, depending on the size of the clams.
2 Finish the broth
Add the butter to the broth and stir until melted and combined. Ladle some broth into each bowl. Serve with bread for dipping in the both.
6. Shrimp with Wine & Herbs
Olive or canola oil,1 teaspoon
Shrimp (prawns), 1 ½ lb (750 g). peeled and deveined, tails intact
Garlic, 2 gloves, minced
Fresh flat-left (Italian) parsley, 1 tablespoon minced
Fresh thyme, 1 tablespoon
Fresh basil, 1 teaspoon
Dry white wine, 3 tablespoon
Unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons
SERVES 4
1 Cook the shrimp
In a frying pan over medium, warm the oil. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring, just until opaque throughout, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
2 Make the sauce
Return the pan to medium heat. Add the garlic, parsley, thyme, and basil and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the wine and stir, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. When the wine has nearly evaporated, remove the pan from the heat and add the butter and a pinch of pepper. Stir until the butter melts, then return the shrimp to the pan and toss to coat with the sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and serve.
