Last night was a momentous occasion - the first time that we had four people sitting around a table in our San Francisco apartment. Mind you, at 7 PM, we still only had two chairs, but by 10 PM when we ate dinner, there were four sturdy chairs around a brand new counter height table (thanks to Nick who put the remaining chairs together).
Our impromptu dinner party night 2 (the night before Derek cooked for over 20 people over at our friend's place - a gourmet meal of:
1) Arugula salad with shaved parmesan cheese and a lemon-mustard vinaigrette
2) Wild Mushroom Risotto with Truffle Oil
3) Chicken Cacciatore with Fresh Ciabatta (my only contribution to the meal - the bread)
Paired with:
1) 2008 Beringer Alluvium Blanc, Knights Valley ($18)
2) 2008 Chateau St. Jean Pinot Noir ($19)
3) 2008 Colores del Sol Malbec Reserva ($12)
It was killer - I was so impressed by his ability to pull it all off and feed so many people - even catering to a vegetarian, mushroom allergy, and cheese allergy.
Needless to say, after lots of food, wine, and good company, I only had 4 hours of sleep that night - I dragged myself through work, even made it to the gym, and all I wanted to do was come home and rest on Tuesday night - but, SURPRISE, Dinner Party #2!
Derek's friend flew in from NC and his other local friend came over, so he planned yet another menu, went out and bought the ingredients, and went to town in the kitchen. I helped out a little more this time - well only with the salsa. Oh, and I heated up the refried beans :)
A Not-So-Simple Fish Taco Fiesta Menu:
- Wet Rubbed Grilled Tilapia Tacos (grilled corn tortillas, red cabbage, sour cream)
- Papaya Avocado Salsa
- Roasted Tomatillo Avocado Lime Salsa
- Mexican Red Rice
- Refried Beans
No drinks for me tonight, however the boys enjoyed some Dos X beer with the meal.
Fish Tacos
Base Recipe Courtesy of Bobby Flay
Ingredients
Fish:
•3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (yes, we really did fresh squeeze these)
•1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
•2 tablespoons canola oil
•3 heaping tablespoons ancho chile powder
•2 cloves garlic, smashed to a paste
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1 1/2 pounds red snapper fillets (we used tilapia - any flaky white fish would work)
•6-inch flour tortillas
•Shredded red cabbage
•Cilantro leaves
•Avocado-Papaya Relish, recipe follows
•Roasted Tomatillo, Avocado and Lime Salsa, recipe follows (our own recipe!)
•Lime wedges
Directions
Whisk together the juices, oil, ancho powder, garlic and salt and pepper, to taste, in a small bowl and let stand 10 minutes at room temperature.
Preheat grill to medium.
Brush some of the wet rub on each side of the fillets and season them with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown and slightly charred on both sides and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the grill, let rest 5 minutes and flake into large pieces with a fork. Serve wrapped in the tortillas with the cabbage, cilantro, Relish and Salsas. Garnish plates with lime wedges.
Avocado-Papaya Relish:
•2 ripe Hass avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
•1 ripe papaya, peeled, seeded and diced
•1/2 small red onion, finely diced
•1 serrano or jalapeno chile, finely diced (you can use more chiles if you want it spicier)
•2 limes, juiced
•2 tablespoons canola oil
•2 teaspoons honey
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Combine avocados, papaya, onion, chile, lime juice, oil, honey and salt and pepper, to taste, in a medium serving bowl. Fold in the cilantro until combined and serve at room temperature
Roasted Tomatillo, Avocado, Lime Salsa
There is a casual fish restaurant near us in San Francisco that has this killer green avocado/tomatillo salsa that they serve alongside their fish tacos. It's a smooth salsa that would act as a great dressing for a salad, or on fish, chicken...really several uses. Here was our attempt to recreate this delicious salsa - and might I say, Derek gave me kudos saying it was "pretty darn close!" Score.
Ingredients:
5 tomatillos, husked, roasted over the open gas flame on the stove
1.5 avocados, coarsly chopped
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp. honey
3 T. water
salt and pepper
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and blend with an immersion hand blender or other device. Add enough water or maybe a little more lime juice if the mixture seems too thick. It should be a moderately runny consistency - so that it would drip off of a spoon if held up, but is not soupy.
Mexican Red Rice
Recipe courtesy Ingrid Hoffmann, 2008
Ingredients
•2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
•1 small onion, finely chopped
•2 garlic cloves, minced
•2 cups long-grain white rice
•1 teaspoon achiote powder
•1 bay leaf
•2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
•2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Directions
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onion is soft, about 2 minutes. Add the rice, achiote powder, and bay leaf. Cook and stir until the rice is opaque, about 2 minutes,
Add the tomatoes and broth, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook until the liquid evaporates to just below the level of the rice, about 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to the low, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Uncover, fluff with a fork
Our impromptu dinner party night 2 (the night before Derek cooked for over 20 people over at our friend's place - a gourmet meal of:
1) Arugula salad with shaved parmesan cheese and a lemon-mustard vinaigrette
2) Wild Mushroom Risotto with Truffle Oil
3) Chicken Cacciatore with Fresh Ciabatta (my only contribution to the meal - the bread)
Paired with:
1) 2008 Beringer Alluvium Blanc, Knights Valley ($18)
2) 2008 Chateau St. Jean Pinot Noir ($19)
3) 2008 Colores del Sol Malbec Reserva ($12)
It was killer - I was so impressed by his ability to pull it all off and feed so many people - even catering to a vegetarian, mushroom allergy, and cheese allergy.
Needless to say, after lots of food, wine, and good company, I only had 4 hours of sleep that night - I dragged myself through work, even made it to the gym, and all I wanted to do was come home and rest on Tuesday night - but, SURPRISE, Dinner Party #2!
Derek's friend flew in from NC and his other local friend came over, so he planned yet another menu, went out and bought the ingredients, and went to town in the kitchen. I helped out a little more this time - well only with the salsa. Oh, and I heated up the refried beans :)
A Not-So-Simple Fish Taco Fiesta Menu:
- Wet Rubbed Grilled Tilapia Tacos (grilled corn tortillas, red cabbage, sour cream)
- Papaya Avocado Salsa
- Roasted Tomatillo Avocado Lime Salsa
- Mexican Red Rice
- Refried Beans
No drinks for me tonight, however the boys enjoyed some Dos X beer with the meal.
Fish Tacos
Base Recipe Courtesy of Bobby Flay
Ingredients
Fish:
•3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (yes, we really did fresh squeeze these)
•1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
•2 tablespoons canola oil
•3 heaping tablespoons ancho chile powder
•2 cloves garlic, smashed to a paste
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1 1/2 pounds red snapper fillets (we used tilapia - any flaky white fish would work)
•6-inch flour tortillas
•Shredded red cabbage
•Cilantro leaves
•Avocado-Papaya Relish, recipe follows
•Roasted Tomatillo, Avocado and Lime Salsa, recipe follows (our own recipe!)
•Lime wedges
Directions
Whisk together the juices, oil, ancho powder, garlic and salt and pepper, to taste, in a small bowl and let stand 10 minutes at room temperature.
Preheat grill to medium.
Brush some of the wet rub on each side of the fillets and season them with salt and pepper. Grill until golden brown and slightly charred on both sides and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Remove from the grill, let rest 5 minutes and flake into large pieces with a fork. Serve wrapped in the tortillas with the cabbage, cilantro, Relish and Salsas. Garnish plates with lime wedges.
Avocado-Papaya Relish:
•2 ripe Hass avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
•1 ripe papaya, peeled, seeded and diced
•1/2 small red onion, finely diced
•1 serrano or jalapeno chile, finely diced (you can use more chiles if you want it spicier)
•2 limes, juiced
•2 tablespoons canola oil
•2 teaspoons honey
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Combine avocados, papaya, onion, chile, lime juice, oil, honey and salt and pepper, to taste, in a medium serving bowl. Fold in the cilantro until combined and serve at room temperature
Roasted Tomatillo, Avocado, Lime Salsa
There is a casual fish restaurant near us in San Francisco that has this killer green avocado/tomatillo salsa that they serve alongside their fish tacos. It's a smooth salsa that would act as a great dressing for a salad, or on fish, chicken...really several uses. Here was our attempt to recreate this delicious salsa - and might I say, Derek gave me kudos saying it was "pretty darn close!" Score.
Ingredients:
5 tomatillos, husked, roasted over the open gas flame on the stove
1.5 avocados, coarsly chopped
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 tsp. honey
3 T. water
salt and pepper
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and blend with an immersion hand blender or other device. Add enough water or maybe a little more lime juice if the mixture seems too thick. It should be a moderately runny consistency - so that it would drip off of a spoon if held up, but is not soupy.
Mexican Red Rice
Recipe courtesy Ingrid Hoffmann, 2008
Ingredients
•2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
•1 small onion, finely chopped
•2 garlic cloves, minced
•2 cups long-grain white rice
•1 teaspoon achiote powder
•1 bay leaf
•2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
•2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
Directions
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onion is soft, about 2 minutes. Add the rice, achiote powder, and bay leaf. Cook and stir until the rice is opaque, about 2 minutes,
Add the tomatoes and broth, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook until the liquid evaporates to just below the level of the rice, about 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to the low, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Uncover, fluff with a fork
No comments:
Post a Comment