Halibut with Mango Salsa and Avocado Mash: goodeats

Last night's dinner was one for the books.  Our new favorite, pan seared halibut topped with fresh mango salsa on a bed of avocado mash.  Scrumptious and low cal :)  The salsa is the perfect blend between tangy and sweet, and the avocado mash is buttery and light: the perfect setting for a savory slab of seared halibut.

Seared Halibut with Mango Salsa and Avocado Mash
Serving Size: 4
Fatty Meter: 1.5/5  Fish, fruit and tons of vegies.  Only thing high in fat are the avocados, but good fat! 

Ingredients:
-2 ripe mangoes, cubed
-1 red bell pepper
-1 green bell pepper, chopped
-half a red onion, chopped
-few cloves of garlic, finely minced
-hand full of cilantro, chopped
-juice of one lime
-Vinegar to taste (I just eyeballed it and kept tasting, I would say about 1/3 cup)
-S&P and garlic salt to taste
-1-2 jalapenos, chopped
-4 pieces of fresh halibut
-2 or 3 ripe avocados
Directions:

1) Chop all vegetables and mango.  This could take forever, so I recommend using one of these handy contraptions, saved us so much time and effort

2) Combine all ingredients, season with S&P to taste and more lime juice and cilantro if necessary.  The salsa can be eaten immediately, but I find it's the best after it's been sitting for a few hours.  Can even be made a day ahead and kept in the refrigerator.

3) Season both sides of the halibut liberally with S&P.  

4) Drizzle a little bit of EVOO onto a hot pan and heat for about 30 seconds

5) Sear both sides and lower heat until fish is cooked through.  About 3 minutes on each side 

6) Avocado mash is really simple: Mash up a few avocados and season with S&P and squeeze some lime juice. Also really delicious spread on toast.  

7) To plate: smear some avocado mash on a plate.  Place halibut on top, followed by mango salsa.

Below is the dish plated and ready to be devoured with a side of yellow rice.

Enjoy ya'll!

goodeats: Arroz Con Pollo

Anytime Arroz Con Pollo is on the menu, I order it.   Arroz Con Pollo (literally meaning rice and chicken) is the perfect excuse to use Betty since it starts stove top and finishes off in the oven.  Coupled with its layers of flavor and intense colors of orange, red and green, Arroz Con Pollo is equally beautiful and delicious.  This is a great meal to cook for a small group since it makes a lot of food, but we always cook for two... meaning left overs for the whole week :)

 Arroz Con Pollo
Adapted from: For the Love of Cooking
Serving Size: 6 moderately sized plates
Fatty Meter: 1 being the healthiest, 5 being the fattiest.  I would rate this a 4 since it's dark chicken thigh meat including the skin and white rice all stewed in bacon fat.  Other then that, it fills you up with vegies! You could substitute with chicken breast and brown rice (boooooring)
Ingredients:
-1 pack of chicken thighs with skin on (should be 6 pieces in one pack)
-4-6 slices of bacon, chopped (reserve half of bacon fat inside betty after cooking)
-2 bell peppers, diced (I used one red and one yellow for the color)
-1 onion, diced
-2 cups of white rice
-4 cups of chicken stock
-1 can of diced tomatoes (14-15 oz can)
-few cloves of garlic, minced
-1/4 cup of white wine (any wine you like to drink works)
-2 tsp of saffron sprigs
-spices for chicken: S&P, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup of frozen peas
-handful of cilantro, chopped, and a few sprigs for garnish
-juice of two limes

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Generously season chicken with all seasoning, don't be shy. In Betty, cook bacon for a few minutes.  Remove onto paper towels to drain before it gets too crispy (it will cook a little more in the oven).  Soak up some of the bacon grease with paper towels but leave an ample amount.  Chop up bacon and set aside. After, keep Betty on high heat and place chicken thigh's skin down.  You should hear a really great sizzle as soon as the skin touches.  If you don't...Betty's not hot enough.
2) Cook chicken on both sides until you develop a nicely crusted skin (see photo below) Should be about 5-7 minutes on the skin side.  You won't cook the chicken through, but that's alright as it will finish cooking in the oven.  Set chicken aside on a plate.

3) Add in vegies and saute for a minute or two.  Add in wine to deglaze bacon and chicken bits from the bottom of the pan.  Add in garlic and saute for another 2 minutes.
4) Add in diced tomatoes, rice, bacon pieces, saffron and chicken stock.  Bring to a boil, and lower heat to simmer.  Simmer for about 10-12 minutes until rice is at a porridge consistency.  It won't be cooked through yet, and a little bit of liquid should remain.  Place chicken on top of the rice, skin side up, place lid on top and throw into pre-heated oven.
5) Bake for about 15 minutes or until rice has absorbed liquid and chicken is fully cooked.  Plate chicken separately and mix in peas, chopped cilantro and a good amount of salt and pepper to the rice (you will need a lot of salt).  Finish of with lime juice and plate with the chicken.  Enjoy!

Stuffed Poblanos, Mexican Rice & Roasted Red Pepper Sauce: goodeats

This meal deserves the "I wanna eat this every day of my life" goodeats award.  It's REALLY good and easy to make, although it does take some time (we started cooking at 7:30 and didn't eat till about half past 9).  Just like the stuffed portobellos,  the poblanos can be stuffed with just about anything you like.  Here is the version we made for dinner the other night.

Stuffed Poblanos

Ingredients:
-4 well sized  poblano peppers
-cooked chicken, chopped
(we seasoned ours with s&p, cumin and chili powder)
-1 can of black beans, rinsed
-1/2 an onion, diced
-few cloves of garlic, minced
-cilantro, chopped
-Mexican blend cheese (cojita if you've got some)
-S&P
-EVOO
-fresh lime juice

Directions:

1) heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine EVOO, beans and garlic in a pot and begin to cook down on low heat.  The beans should start to cook down a bit getting soft, feel free to mash it up a bit with a fork.  Add in chicken, onions and cilantro and heat through for a few more minutes.  Set aside

2) To prepare the peppers for stuffing, cut a cross down the belly of the pepper.  Empty out seeds with your hands and give the peppers a rinse.  Keep the stems on for presentation :)

3) Stuff the peppers with a small spoon with the bean/chicken mixture.  Place in a casserole dish or on a cookie sheet lined with foil and bake for about 40 minutes.  During the last 5-10 minutes of baking, top peppers with cheese.

Mexican Rice

adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

-2 cups of long grain white rice

-3 cups of chicken stock

-1 cup of chopped tomatoes (about 2 roma tomatoes)

-half an onion chopped

-1-2 jalapeno peppers, chopped

-garlic, minced

-juice of 1 lime

-s&p

-about 2 tsp of cumin

-EVOO

-cilantro 

Directions:

1) in a large sauce pan, saute the rice in some EVOO until the ends are golden brown (about 4 minutes).  Mix in the garlic, jalepenos and onions.  Cook for another 2 minutes.  Pour in chicken stock and bring to a boil.

2) as soon as the stock boils, reduce heat and simmer until rice is cooked

3) fluff rice with a fork and add in lime juice, cumin, s&p (don't be shy with the s&p, you will need a hefty amount to bring out the flavors).  Before serving, stir in cilantro.

AND THE AWARD GOES TO....

So the peppers and rice were delicious, but what brought this meal to award worthy status was the Roasted Red Pepper sauce Tom whipped up in his new cuisinart food processor!  This sauce is extremely addicting, so be careful.  You could use it on a steak or even as a dip with tortilla chips, it's that good.  For the recipe, you're gonna have to ask mistertom. 

 

 Hope you make this one...it's a keeper

Sunday afternoon at the Grand Central Market: goodeats

Good food & fresh produce... you can find it all at the Grand Central Market, LA's oldest and largest open air market and one of the city's many hidden gems.  You would drive right by the historical Homer Laughlin Building and fail to realize that a cultural Mecca resided on its ground floor.

Food vendors line the floor selling everything from Salvadorean Pupusas to Mediterranean kabobs to even Korean kimchi burritos.  The food options are limitless so make sure to arrive with an empty stomach.

The best part about the GCM is all of the fresh produce.  Walk the aisles and take your pick of the freshest, ripest and cheapest produce you will ever find.

After a few hours, our TJ's bag was full of the week's produce as well as 4 hefty slabs of skirt steak...and it only dented us about $40,  such a steal!

 

So next time you're in need of some goodeats and fresh produce... skip your local TJ's, hop on the metro with your reusable bag in hand and visit the Grand Central Market.

Say hello to your new weekend ritual!

Grand Central Market
317 South Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90013
(213) 624-2378

Baked Sea Bass & Mushroom Risotto: goodeats

This was one of my most favorite meals that Tom and I have tag teamed on.  Tom is a master at grilling/baking/frying meat & fish so we sided with a simple sea bass for dinner, my favorite!

 We decided to make a mushroom risotto as the side dish. Risotto is often intimidating because it requires a ton of TLC and a lot of wrist action.  The first time I made risotto was in college and I almost set my kitchen on fire. The trick to risotto is never add more liquid until all the liquid in the pan has been soaked up completely, and of course don't stop stirring that wooden spoon.  Patience can go a long way with risottos, and the result is well worth the wait. Here is an adapted recipe for a creamy mushroom risotto with layers of flavor. Feel free to sub out the mushrooms for any other vegetables such as asparagus or spinach.

Mushroom Risotto
Ingredients:
-1/2 pound of baby portobellos, sliced or chopped into bite size pieces
-1/2 pound of crimini or white button mushrooms, sliced or chopped into bite size pieces
-1/2 cup of dry white wine, I recommend a nice sauvignon blanc that you would drink a glass of
-6 cups of chicken stock (low sodium, the cheese will add enough salt)
-3-4 tbsp of butter
-minced shallots
-chopped garlic
-1 1/2 cups of arborio rice
-chopped chives
-S&P
-EVOO
-freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1) Heat chicken stock on low until it barely begins to simmer.  Meanwhile, in a wide sauce pan, saute the 2 tbsps of butter with the mushrooms, garlic and shallots for a few minutes until the mushrooms have fully sweated out and reduced in size.  Set aside in a bowl with all juices.  Return the pan to the heat
2) Saute the arborio rice with the remaining 2 tbsp of butter until the edges of the rice turn into a nutty brown, about 4-5 minutes.  Slowly add in the 1/2 of rice, deglazing the pan.  Allow the wine to completely evaporate and soak up.
3)  Begin to ladle in the heated chicken stock 1/2  a cup (or ladle full) at a time, constantly stirring.  Again, do not ladle more liquid until the rice has fully absorbed all of the stock.  Continue to stir and add in the stock 1/2 cup at a time until the 6 cups has been added or the risotto is at a texture of your liking.
4)  Remove from heat and stir in the sauteed mushrooms, cheese and chopped chives.  Season with S&P to taste.

For those of you wondering about the fish, you'll have to go to Tom's blog and see if he ever divulges the secret recipe to delicious sea bass :)

Sincerely, Jacques Peppin: goodeats

The other night, Mr. T and I were chillin on the couch when this adorable little man popped onto the television screen

  It was Jacques Peppin! One of the most beloved French culinary masters of all time.  It's ok, at the time I also was an ignorant fool and had no idea who this bundle of joy was either.

Now, when I say adorable, think thick French accent muddled with a slight lisp...it's to DIE for.  Pair that with old man charm and mean knife skills, and yes... you've got yourself a serious bundle of joy

Last night's dinner was thanks to Jacques...and it was BOMB! 

Jacques' Lime Skirt Steak w/ sauted Mustard Greens

-Skirt Steak

-Fresh lime juice

-Garlic, chopped

-Scallions, chopped

Directions:

-Heat some EVOO in the good o'l cast iron pan Generously season the steak on both sides with salt and fresh cracked pepper and a bit of lime juice.   Cook the steak for a few minutes on each side depending on how rare you like your meat.  For medium-rare, it will be about 3-4 minutes on each side.  Remove the meat from the pan and let it rest.  Lower the heat and add in chopped scallions and garlic.  Deglaze the goodness from the pan with some lime juice and a few tablespoons of water.  Top the glaze onto the meat. 

 Sauteed Mustard Greens

-Fresh bundle of mustard greens

-Onions, sliced

-S&P

-Garlic, chopped

-Italian sausage, de-cased and torn into bite size pieces (optional.  This is for the side dish so the extra meat with the mustard greens isn't necessary)

Directions:

-Saute the Italian sausage in some EVOO and add in onions mid way.  Season with a bit of S&P and add in garlic.  After sauteing for a few minutes, add in the mustard greens.  It should be flowing out of the pan, but fear not...mustard greens is like spinach and it will shrink down significantly.  Put a lid on the pan to help the shrinkage move right along.

I had some big, beautiful portobellos left over from lasagna the other night, so we decided to throw some stuffed portobellos onto the menu along with the greens and steak.  Portobello mushrooms is like bread to a sandwich...you can literally stuff it with whatever combination you want, stick it in the oven, and it will be everything you imagined and more.  These particular mushrooms were just a mixture of what I had on hand in the fridge, and they came out pretty tasty!

Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms 

-2 Portobello Mushrooms

-Sundried tomatoes, chopped,

-Garlic, chopped

-Onions, chopped

-Fresh spinach (frozen works too if that's all you have)

-Low fat cream cheeese (or ricotta cheese, mozarella cheese, sour cream...anything white and creamy.  However, if you use ricotta or mozarella, you probably need to throw an egg in there to make sure everything holds)

-Parmesan cheese, grated

-Panko bread crumbs

-EVOO

-S&P

-Garlic powder

Directions:

-Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  De-stem the mushrooms and gently wipe clean with a damp papertowel.  Do not wash the mushrooms.  Mushrooms are super absorbent will soak up the water leaving you with soggy mush.  Generously rub with EVOO and throw on the grill pan, cap faced down first, for about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, saute onions and garlic.  Add in spinach until all of it wilts.  Mix together with cream cheese, S&P, garlic powder and parmesan cheese. Flip caps over and begin to grill the outside for another 2-3 minutes. Scoop stuffing into the caps and top with a little bit of panko and more parmesan.  Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until panko is brown and stuffing is bubbling.

 Merci Jacques!

Aroma Coffee & Tea, Studio City: goodeats

yep, all real

Classic eggs benedict from Aroma Coffee and Tea in Studio City.  This place is exactly like Alcove Cafe in Los Feliz.  Cute little restaurant in a cute little house surrounded by a cute little garden.

 Salmon scramble with cream cheese and capers

Ambiance: B

-Again, very quaint and cute.  Personally, I think Alcove Cafe does a better job of embodying the "breakfast at a friend's" feel, but Aroma Cafe tries. Great outdoor seating

Food: B

-Pretty standard, nothing spectacular or extraordinary.  The food wasn't terrible, but not very memorable either.  I leave it at a solid B thanks to the picture perfect fruit :)

Perfect For...

-A fall back brunch spot if you happen to be in Studio City

Aroma Coffee and Tea 

4350 Tujunga Ave.

Studio City, CA 91640

three layers of goodness: goodeats

I'm usually not a fan of sweets, but I've been craving something to satiate my sweet tooth this week. One of my favorite cakes is the Triple Berry Shortcake from Sweet Lady Jane Bakery on Melrose. It's a yellow butter cake filled with three layers of slightly sweetened whipped cream and fresh blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Frosting kills cake, but whipped cream...that's what really makes this cake delicious.

If you're ever in need of a delicious cake, check out the triple berry shortcake from the sweetest lady in town, it's a little pricey but oh so worth it.

Sweet Lady Jane Bakery
8360 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90069-6519
(323) 653-7145

Ginger me Seabass! goodeats

After two weeks of eating whatever I saw, a healthy dinner was in order.  We decided to go with ginger sea bass and Japanese style cold soba noodles.  Cold soba noodles is one of my favorite summer dishes, light & fresh with great texture thanks to the thick buckwheat noodles and grated daikon..and since it's hitting high 70's in LA in January, I guess cold soba noodles can be a year round favorite.  The fish recipe was sent to me via one of those recipe chain mails (they really work if everyone participates, ahem). We added a few ingredients and also steamed it differently.  You really can't go wrong with sea bass, but this dish is super light so I suggest being liberal with all the ingredients. 

Ginger Sea Bass
-sea bass fillets
-grated ginger
-S&P
-sliced garlic
-sliced ginger
-sliced green onion for garnish
-soy sauce

Salt & pepper both sides of the fish.  Rub grated ginger generously. Create a foil pouch and line the bottom with sliced ginger and sliced garlic. Place the fish in the pouch and drizzle soy sauce on top. Close the foil pouch and place in steamer for about 12-15 minutes depending on size of the fish.  It's finished when it is white and flaky. Garnish with green onion slices.

Japanese Cold Soba Noodles
-buckwheat soba noodles
-soba sauce (found at any Japanese or Korean market)
-grated daikon
-sliced green onion
-wasabe

Cook soba noodles and rinse in cold water.  Set aside in serving dish.  Combine sauce, wasabe, grated daikon and sliced green onions in separate bowl. Dip soba noodles in sauce bite by bite, yum.

This meal is super quick and easy and is the perfect post gym meal to keep your health kick going!