Ginger Maple Mahi Mahi

I had gotten some nice mahi mahi fillets from Dry Dock Fish at my farmer's market. For some odd reason, I was feeling lazy to actually do some cooking of my Sunday meal. I remember reading a recipe somewhere in the interweb about cooking with foil pouches. I think it had something to do with camping. Either way, I figured this may be something right up my lazy alley.

I marinated the fish the night before in a maple syrup concoction. This can be fore 30 minutes before baking. The next day, I prepared the fish. Cut out two large pieces of foil. Just enough to wrap around the fillets. I placed a nice bundle of fresh spinach as a bedding and placed a fillet on top. Drizzled some of the marinade over to help the spinach cook as well. Wrap it up and baked it. I set it and forget it and 20 minutes later...voila!

I carefully opened the pouch letting the steam escape and inside was a perfectly tender fish and cooked spinach with a nice broth underneath. I topped it with some corn-tomato salsa that I had made a couple days before before. You'll see the recipe for that tomorrow. You can add other veggies to your liking as well, but I preferred just some spinach. Cooking the fish in a foil pouch was like poaching it in a way, which was pretty neat. I may try cooking with foil pouches more often. The fish had a lovely light savory flavor of the maple and ginger and it made for an easy cleanup.

Serves 2-3

Ginger-Maple Mahi Mahi

2 mahi mahi fillets
1 lbs fresh spinach
paprika
salt
pepper

Marinade:
1/4 c maple syrup
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1 garlic clove - minced
additional seasoning (optional)

Foil

Combine the ingredients of the marinade together. Place the filles in a large enough dish or in a large ziplock bag. Pour the marinade and let it sit for at least 30 minutes. This may be done the night before.

Preheat your oven to 375˚F

Cut 2 large pieces of foil large enough to wrap the fillets.  Divide the spinach into two bunches bundle them at the center of the foil.

Place a fillete on each one and drizzle the marinade over.

Seal each into tight pouches by bringing together the longer edges  to the center and roll the ends in.

Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and open slowly.

Apple Cinnamon Bread

I bought some really delicious organic baby fuji apples from the farmer's market over the weekend and my mind started rolling as to what I can make with them. Was I going go to the tart, cake, dessert, bread route? I went for the bread route. So I decided on a simple apple cinnamon bread.

I followed a simple banana bread recipe and just replace a few ingredients here and there. Like the banana and nuts. I peeled and chopped the apples and made the batter. Here's a cool little tip when working with apples. To keep them from browning, soak them in some water spiked with a little vinegar. Neat, eh?

Mixed the apples into the batter and poured it into a loaf pan. Sprinkled a good amount of oats on top. Baked it for close to 60 minutes on a 350˚F oven. The end result was a moist and chewy. You can definitely taste the apple and cinnamon. Perfect to have for breakfast or as a snack. Check out those little apple bits.

Makes 1 loaf

Apple Cinnamon Bread

4 baby fuji apples or 2 recular sized fuji apples - peeled, cored and chopped
1/2 c rolled oats
1 c sugar
2 c flour
1/2 c unsalted butter or margerine - softened
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 Tbsp ground cinnamon

note: to keep the apples from browning after peeling, soak them in some water spiked with vinegar.

Preheat your oven to 350˚F

Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.

Cream together butter and sugar.

Beat in each egg, mixing after each one. Mix in the flour mixture.

Drain the apples from the water and add into the batter, mixing well.

Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Tuna Corn Casserole

No that isn't a dish full of broken tortilla chips. Actually, those are crushed taco shells. But hiding underneath is where you'll find a creamy delicious treasure I like to call a tuna corn casserole. I happened to be taking stock of what I had in the cupboards and shelves of the pantry and happened to see a couple cans of tuna left. What can I do with tuna that I haven't already done yet?

I don't think I made a casserole with them yet. If I did, it was something different. I can't remember. I had some ears of corn I had gotten from the farmer's market so I figured I'd add that into the mix as well. To top it off I'd make a lovely cheese sauce to mix into it. Yum! I oven roasted the corn and scrapped off the kernels. You can used the canned or frozen corn to save you time. Mixed it with the can of tuna and some chopped shallots.

For the cheese sauce, I used a combination of grated parmesan and some swiss. Cheesy deliciousness. Mixed it all together and topped it of with a layer of crushed taco shells.  Baked it in the oven for 20 minutes. The crushed taco shells got extra crispy while baking giving the dish a nice cunchy texture to the lovely creamy and cheesy sauce.  This is one casserole I'd make again and again.


Serves 2-3

Tuna Corn Casserole

1 6oz can tuna in oil
2-3 c corn kernals - fresh, canned or frozen
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
3/4 c milk
1/2 grated parmesan
1/2 c swiss
salt
pepper
1 shallot chopped
Crushed tortilla chips


Preheat your oven to 350˚F

In a casserole, combine the corn, shallot, and tuna.

On medium to low heat. In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour. Combine together to make a roux. When the mixture turns into a douy mass.

Add the milk.  Stir occasionally until milk thickens. Then add the cheese and stir until melted.

Pour the cheese mixture, into the casserole and mix to coat everything. Top With half the crushed tortilla ships and baked for 20 min.

Remove from pven and let it sit for 2 min. Top with the rest of the tortilla chips.

Production Catering on an Island

Ah yes, production catering. I love it. This week I worked on two shows and both sets had some really good and tasty food. I like to taste a little bit of everything that's being offered. So these were a hit with me or else I wouldn't have posted it. The first was Bones. That crime show on Fox starring David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel. I think we were shooting episode 7. Anyway...

The main plate

Let's start from the top, going clockwise: Steamed broccoli, pesto potatoes, soft white bread with butter, pasta with a type of marinara sauce, grilled steak, misc salad,  at the center is some kind grilled fish with a spicy mango-corn salsa.

There was also some carrots, but I wasn't in the mood for carrots. I like the steak. They grilled that one pretty good and tender. The fish could have been little better, but I think the salsa made up for that. The salad was just one of those "make your own" type. It was some lettuce with mushrooms and fried rice noodles with a little vinaigrette.

I really do want to try and make the spicy corn-mango salsa and pesto potatoes. OMG, those were awesome!!! I wish I had gotten more that just some scoop. I should have taken the whole bowl!

On my little dessert plate are some fruit and a really REALLY REALLY delicious raspberry crumb bars and a cake of some kind. I wish I had gotten two of the bars!! I was tempted to go back and get another.

The next show was Cold Case. I haven't really watched this show, so I can't really say who's in it or what the series is about. We shot scenes from episode 8. Here's what was served for lunch.

From the top, going clockwise: Deep Fried tofu, Spanish rice with pineapple and baby corn (I think), chicken fajita stir-fry, cold rice noodle with giner sauce and a beef skewer.

I loved rice noodle dish. It was really gingery, which I like. Yum. It's been while since I had tofu, so I was happy about that. I think tofu is underrated. I never really got why it gets such a bad rap. It's really good stuff. I think I'm going to try adding pineapple to my fried rice next time I make it. It was actually a pretty good combination.

The other day, I went and ordered take-out from Island's. *Gasp* What?! I had a gift card, so it was like getting free food. Besides I like Island's. They have some pretty good sandwiches and burgers. Not sure if it's only found here on the west coast, but it's like a "beach" themed restaurant that serves the usual American fare. My best friend and godson came to visit, so instead of eating at the restaurant, we decided to get take-out. Besides, the little one tends to get a bit fussy in loud crowded places. We went during the dinner rush. We ordered and took it back to my house and chowed down while the little one, who has just begun to walk, investigated the vast space of my house. He's really the inquisitive type. It looked like a hurricane blew through my bedroom. haha...

My friend ordered the Hawaiian burger, which had a well done burger patty with pineapple, teriyaki sauce, lettuce, onion, swiss and mayo on a wheat bun. Some cheesy, pineapple goodness going on in that one.

I ordered the Sandpiper, which was grilled chicken breast with sauteed mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, swiss and mayo. I devoured that thing. I think it was because I was really hungry. I really liked the mushrooms in this one.

Both ordered came with a handful of fries and some ketchup packets, but we also ordered a side of cheddar fries with bacon bits. Yum!! Cheese and bacon. You can't resist that.

It may not look pretty, but it was some good food. Besides, I was glad to not cook as much this week and being able to spend time with my godson was the icing on top of the cupcake.

Mini Peach Cobbler

Don't you just hate it when you have to share? Though, I do love sharing. Sometimes there are moments when you want to keep something to yourself. This was one of them. A nice little personal peach cobbler. One I can have all to myself.

I had some peaches that I wanted to baked something with. But it wasn't enough to make a full pie or a tart of some kind. I didn't feel like taking a lot of effort into making some kind of dough. I decided on make then into mini sized desserts. I remembered I had saved the small tart foil cups from some fruit tarts I made a while back. I knew I'd find another use for them. Woohoo...

I also used two  graham cracker mini tart rounds I had in the pantry. Those are optional This one is easy to make. Peeled the kinds from peaches and sliced them up. Tossed a bit of cinnamon in them to bump up the flavor level. Then placed them in mini tart cups and baked until the cobbler topping was nice and browned. 

Look at that peachy goodness wanting to pop out from under the cobbler topping. It's saying: "eat me."

Makes 4 mini cobblers

Mini Peach Cobbler


2 Ripe peaches
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon (plus extra)
3 Tbsp butter
2 c flour
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt
 4 small ramekins or foil bowls.

Preheat oven to 350˚F

Poach the peaches in some boiling water for 60 seconds. Let the peaches cool, then carefully peel off the skins and cut into slices.

While the peaches cool, mix together the butter, flour, egg, and salt until a doughy crumb consistency. Set aside.

Add the cinnamon to the peaches and toss together. Divide the peach slices among the 4 ramekins. Then top with the flour mixture. Sprinkle with some extra cinnamon on top.

Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the cobbler topping is golden brown.

Roasted Eggplant Panini

There's nothing like a good panini.  And I think this panini speaks for itself. For this one, I roasted some eggplant slices in the broiler lightly seasoned with some salt and pepper. Took some slices of bread, provolone cheese, fresh slices of tomato and basil leaves and some avocado. Oh, and I lightly spread some balsamic vinegar on the breads, too. I used my Georgie grill for press the sammies to perfection. That thing is really handy.

You can toast these paninis like you would a grilled cheese sandwich, too. It's the same thing. You just want to toast the outer bread and melt the cheese. So good, so delicious and full of veggie goodness.

Makes 4 medium-sized paninis.

Roasted Eggplant Panini

1 medium round eggplant - sliced 1/2 thick
4 sliced provolone cheese or your choice
1 medium tomato - sliced
fresh basil leaves
4 sandwich or panini rolls
1 ripe avocado - pitted and sliced.
salt
pepper
extra olive oil
balsamic vinegar.

Preheat your broiler.

Coat both sides of the eggplant slices with some olive oil. Season with a little salt and pepper as well.

Place the slices on a baking sheet and into the broiler for 5 min or until browned. Give the slices a turn and roast for another 5 min. Then remove from the oven and let it cool.

To assemble the sandwich, spread some a little balsamic vinegar on inside slices of the bread. Layer the cheese, eggplant, a couple slices of tomato and avocado in that order. Top with the other half of the roll.

Using you panini press,  grill, skillet or oven, place the panini on the press for 5 minutes or until bread is lightly toasted and cheese is melted.

Serve warm.

Cream of Broccorn soup

What is broccorn, you ask? Why it's non other than broccoli and corn. I felt soup was in order for an easy meal. It was hot that day, too. But if I want soup, I'm going to have soup, gosh darn it! Even though the weather may say otherwise. I'm meditating on fall right now. Chanting a mantra and spreading the fall vibe.

The last time I had such a soup was at Whole Foods from their prepared foods area. It was alright and I thought to myself maybe I can do better. This is a really easy and simple to make. Just remember to blow on it, if it's super hot. I got a little excited and I burnt my tongue upon first spoonful. Oh, how I've put my tastebuds through so much and yet, they've managed to recover every single time. But this soup is worth a slightly numbed tongue.

You may use chicken broth, if you'd prefer. I used vegetable broth for this soup. Add a dollop of sour cream and some shredded cheese with some crackers or bread on the side. Yum yum!

Serves 2-3

Cream of Broccorn Soup

1 head of broccoli - fresh or 1 small frozen pack
2 c corn kernels - fresh, canned or frozen
1 12 oz can vegetable broth
1 large garlic clove
1/2 medium onion - chopped
3/4 c evaporated milk
salt
pepper

sour cream - optionals
shredded cheese - optional

Finely chop the broccoli into piece.

Saute the garlic and onion in a tiny drizzle of olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add in the vegetable stock, then the broccoli. Cover and bring the broth to a simmer on a medium heat. This will cook the broccoli.

Stir in the evaporated milk.

Using a blender, food processor or emersion blender and puree the broccoli.

Add in the corn and let it simmer for 5 more minutes on medium to low heat.

If you don't have a blender, food processor, or emersion blender, you can leave it as a chunky soup.

Add a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle some cheese. Serve warm.