Rose Snapper with Seabeans, Lollipop Kale, Cranberry Beans, Pink Lemon Butter Sauce

I was out Christmas shooping in NYC and stopped by Mario Batali's Italian shopping Mecca, Eataly. They literally have everything Italian and amazing meat, produce and fish sections.  I saw this reddish pink fish and inquired what it was.  I forget excatly what he said but the fishmonger told me it was a variation of snapper.  I decided to go with it and add some other exotic ingredients to come up with a little something different.

Rosatto Snapper with Exotic Vegetables

1 fliet - Rosatto snapper (or any snapper)
1 handfu1 - seabeans or sea asparagus
10 pods - cranberry beans
3 heads - lollipop kale (a small head of baby kale)
1 - pink lemon
2 - tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon - fresh marjoram

Blanch the seabeans and kale for about 2 minutes in boiling water then ice bath.  In the same pot cook the shelled cranberry beans for 20 minutes.  Sear the snapper skin side down in a large saute pan until the skin is crispy.  Place the whole pan in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.  For butter sauce just melt butter in a small pan, add a teaspoon of pink lemon juice and fresh marjoram and let cook for 3 to 4 minutes.  Spoon over the top.  Buon appetito!!

Atlantic Cod, Lobster Sauce, Oriental Yams, Chanterelle Mushrooms, Garlic Scapes and Jerusalem Artichoke Puree

Food, wine and great company is all I need to be happy.  In this case we had a lot of all three. Thanks Michal, Harout, Caitlin, Padraic, Tara, Dre and Kristin for making it all happen.  These recipes feed 8 people and cost about $100.  Total cooking and prep time is about 2 hours.

Cod with Lobster Sauce
8 filets of black cod, about 3 lbs
1 shallot, fine dice
1/4 stick butter
1/2 cup vegetable stock
4 oz creme fraiche
1 lb white shrimp, 25ct peeled deveined and halved long way

Preheat the oven to 400. Season cod with salt, pepper and olive oil then lay them flat on a greased, foil-lined baking tray.  Roast for about 15 minutes.  Remove with a spatula and place in a large serving tray.  Top with cream sauce.

In a medium sauce pan start the butter, shallots and garlic on medium heat and let cook until the onions are just turning brown.  Add flour and mix well, keep stiring for 10 minutes or until the flour begins to just get lightly brown.  Add the cream and the vegetable stock and mix well.  Let this cook for about 15 minutes or until reduced by half.  Now add the shrimp and let cook for 10 more minutes.  Serve over top of fish.

Jerusalem Articoke Puree
1/2 lb sunchokes, peeled and large diced
1/2 vidallia onion, rough chop
4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon cream fraiche (or cream cheese)
salt and pepper

Start sunchokes and shallot in a medium pot with cool water.  Bring to a boil and let cook 15 minutes more until the sunchokes are fork tender.  Remove from the heat and strain, reserving 4 teaspoons of the water. Puree in a blender with the reserved water, olive oil and cream fraiche, add salt and pepper to taste.

Yams, Chantrelles and Garlic Scapes

The yams and the mush rooms were cut in half an oven roasted at 400 degree.  The yams took about 40 minutes while the mushrooms only about 12 minutes.  The garlic scapes, which are the green tops of the garlic bulb, were blanched for 2 minutes and then sauteed in olive oil and butter for 2 minutes as well.


Organic Kale, Nectarine, Beet and Yellow Tomato Salad  

Pick thru the kale and remove all of the stems.  Cut roasted beets and nectarines in 8ths.  Halve yellow tomatoes and squeeze juice and seeds out over a fine strainer with a small bowl to catch the delicious tomato water.

Tomato Water Vinaigrette
2 oz tomato water
2 oz white balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
salt and pepper
4 oz extra virgin olive oil

Mix everything but the oil.  Then slowly add oil while whisking until mixture comes together.

What a great meal with some great people.  Till next time... Buon apetito!!

Baby Kale, Heirloom Tomato, Spanish Clementine, Lamb Chops

Baby kale in a salad is great tasting and super healthy.  Add some baby lamb chops and a delicious vinaigrette and now you have a quick dinner that is good for you.  This takes 30 minutes, costs $25 and feeds two.

Baby Kale Salad
12 oz organic baby kale
2 heirloom tomatoes
1 Spanish clementine, peeled and sectioned
1/2 English cucumber, peeled and chopped

Spicy Vinaigrette
5 tablespoons white balsamic vinaegar
5 tablespoon rice white vinegar
1 tablespoon spicy pepper jelly
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon diced shallots
1/16 cup canola oil

Lamb Chops
3 baby Australian lamb chops, trimmed

Season with olive oil, salt, pepper, marjoram and oregano.  Pan sear and let rest.

Buon Apetito!

Red Snapper with Kale Puree and Roasted Carrots

This dish is a easy and healthy meal that requires minimal time.  This costs $15, feeds two people and takes under 30 minutes.

Kale Puree
1 bunch organic kale, chopped
1/2 organic white onion, chopped
1/2 organic leek, chopped
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt and pepper

Blanch all items in boiling water for 7 to 10 minutes or until onion are tender.  Drain and puree in a blender with olive oil and lemon juice, season to taste.

Roasted Carrots
Julienne one organic carrot.  Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and place on a foil baking sheet in 400 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Pan Seared Snapper - Shallot Meyer Lemon Sauce
Get a sautee pan hot over medium high heat.  Add a good coating of oil.  Season fish with salt and pepper and pan sear skin side down for 5-7 minutes or until skin is crisp and golden.  Flip the filet for 2 minutes on the other side and then remove from the pan and let rest skin side up.  Remove excess oil from the same pan and add a tablespoon of butter along with some finely diced shallot (or onion).  Let cook 2 to 3 minutes or until golden then add a tablespoon of meyer lemon juice (or regular lemon/lime/citrus).  Stir well and spoon over plated fish.

Buon Apetito!!

Grassfed NY Strip with Golden Beets and Field Greens

This is my first post on a while. Life and work have been hectic, but I found some time to make this steak and veggie plate before work yesterday. Grassfed beef is less fatty then regular, corn fed beef. I have always found it to be a bit tougher then regular meat but it has more flavor and health benefits over conventional beef. WholeFoods had great organic golden beets with the greens still attached so I used these greens along with the greens from the easter radishes I bought and some black kale to make the sauteed vegetables. This meal costs $20 take 1 hour and feeds 1.

Roasted Golden Beets
1 bunch organic golden beets
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 375. Wash beets thoroughly and slice in half. Place beets flesh down on a foil lined baking sheet and add salt and olive oil. Let them bake for 45 minutes, then loosly cover with aluminum foil and let bake for 15 more minutes or until tender. Let them cool slightly and peel off the skin with your hand or with a pairing knife. Add salt and serve.



Sauteed Field Greens
1 bunch of organic beet greens
1 bunch of organic radish greens
1 bunch organic black kale
5 cloves garlic
1/4 organic white onion
1 tablespoon olive oil

Thoroughly clean and wash the greens. Chiffonade or shred the greens into thin strips. Start and sautee pan on medium low and add oil, onion and garlic. Let that cook for 15 minutes or until tender and then turn up the heat to medium high. Add the greens and sautee quickly, about 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Grassfed NY Strip
1 8oz grassfed NY strip or sirloin

Season steak with salt and pepper. Place the steak on a baking rack and place in the oven with the beets for 10 minutes. Remove the steak and sear in a hot frying pan, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes. you can sear it first or last, I did it last to experiment with a suggestion a friend made. It came out ok but I will sear it first in the future so I can control the internal temperature better.

This healthy, vitamin and protein packed lunch was easy to make and the beets were delicious. The greens came from parts of the vegetables that most people throw away so it was a side dish for free. Check out the close up on the golden beet to see how beautiful they turned out. Enjoy!

Mahi-Mahi with Raw Kale Salad

Florida mahi-mahi, aka dolphin fish, is a clean tasting, firm white fish that is usually fresh and reliable buy from the grocery. I made a blackened style seasoning and coated the fish with it. I served it with some kale salad which has the highest vitamin and mineral content of any vegetable. Check out the link for more info. This meal cost $15 takes about 30 minutes to make and feeds 1.

Pan Seared Blackened Mahi-Mahi
2 oz vegetable oil
10oz Mahi-Mahi filet
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dry thyme
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 chipotle pepper
1/4 sliced red onion
1 bunch of parsley

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Turn a medium sautee pan to medium high heat and add the oil. Mix the seasoning together and coat the fish on each side. I like the taste of the fish so I didn't completely coat fish but you certainly can if you wish. Once the pan is very hot place the fish in and let it cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden. Now flip the fish and let cook for 3 more minutes. Then add the red onions and parsley and place the fish on top of the onions and parsley. I do this to impart some flavor and to keep the fish from over cooking on one side in the oven. Now place the whole pan in the oven and let it cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and put it on the plate with the kale salad.



Raw Kale Salad
3 large organic Kale leaves, destemmd and leaves chopped
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 red onion, thin sliced
3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Mix lemon juice and oil with salt and pepper. Add red onion and lemon juice and toss well. Do this first and let it sit for at least 20 minutes while you prepare the fish. this will soften up the kale and make it much more palatable. Strain out the lemon juice and serve on the plate.

This was a really healthy lunch after a long workout and right before work. It is loaded with omega 3's, vitamins, minerals and protein. All part of a healthy diet and a step on the road to being in the best shape of my life. Enjoy!

32 oz. Ribeye with Baby Sweet Potato and Black Kale

Tonight we decided to have an early dinner. We had the kale and sweet potatoes from the farmers market so I went to Publix to get some of my favorite proteins. I picked up a monster Prime Grade 32 oz. Boneless Ribeye and decided it would pair up nice with the kale and baby sweet potatoes I had. So here we go.

I always start by getting all of my spices and ingredients out and in order. I made a spice rub for the steak that included cayenne pepper, chipotle peppers, cumin, coriander, paprika, garam masala, pepper and salt. I chopped my vegetables and seasoned my meat so that I only had to cook. This is very important to sucessfully timing your meal, so always have your Things in Place ("mis en place" to French trained chefs)




I used a grill pan for the steak so that it would get good color and nice markings. I turned the pan on med-high and let it get very hot. Because a ribeye has a lot of fat I did not use any oil or butter. I seared the meat on each side and then placed the meat and pan into a 300 degree oven. It took about 40 minutes to get it to medium rare. You can use a thermometer if you are not comfortable with the "touching" method. I let the meat rest for 20 minutes (a good rule of thumb is rest the meat 1/2 as long as you cooked it). I like a lower temperature for my oven if I have the time so the meat can cook off, or render, much of the fat.




Sweet Potatoes. I cut them in half lengthwise. I seared them cut side down in a pan with butter and brown sugar on medium heat. Once caramelized I turn them over and placed them in the same 300 degree oven with the steaks. They take about 40 minutes in the oven.

The Kale was easy. Chop it and rinse it thoroughly. In a sauce pan on medium low, start olive oil with butter and then add the kale and cover. Stir the kale often to get even cooking. After cooking for about 15 minutes I started the onions and garlic in a small separate saucepan. Once the onion and garlic was cooked till about done I added it to the kale. I tossed them together with a lot of salt and pepper and turned the heat to low. I let it cook for another 15 minutes or until desired tenderness. Kale is very bitter but if you cook it for long enough it starts to get a somewhat sweeter flavor. I finished this with some salt and pepper and a pat of butter and let it rest.

To finish, I sliced the steak and plated the three items together. This is somewhat of a winter or heartier dish but it will work anytime of the year.