Spicy Pan-Seared Salmon with Feta Sauce

There seems to be a fish theme going on here lately, with this third post in a row. The wild Alaskan salmon caught over summer and frozen for later is now so handy for a quick and sumptuous meal.

Some fresh greens from the fall garden was handy for this dish: Lacinato kale and Baby Romaine leaves make a lovely crisp bed of salad to serve this spicy pan-seared salmon dish.

Salmon was rubbed with a mix of spices: cayenne pepper powder, berbere powder, salt, onion powder. Mix the spice powders in some ghee to make a paste and rub on the salmon.

Home-made ghee is an indulgence every once in a while - a recipe shared here over a decade ago: Home-made Flavored Ghee at Delectable Victuals

The fusion of flavors is one of my favorites - the spiciness from Ethipioan berbere and the buttery flavor and aroma from the Indian ghee, plus the Mediterranean flavors of Feta sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, capers, and olives makes this a richly flavored dish.

Feta sauce: Crumble some feta, stir in some thick Greek yogurt, olive oil, minced garlic, marjoram sage, and oregano. I blend it into a smooth thick dressing-like sauce consistency.

Pan-seared Salmon: Heat some oil in a cast-iron skillet and place the salmon skin side down first and sear well till skin is crispy; flip so that the side that is rubbed with the spice mix is now getting seared, then, turn down the heat and cook till salmon is cooked through and flaky.

Home-made Falafel with Chard

Masala Vadai, a ubiquitous south Indian fried snack, is what came to mind when I first encountered Falafel ages ago. The name was new, but the flavor and appearance was all-too-familiar. Chickpeas being a staple in Indian foods, plus all the grams and pulses and lentils, it is not surprising that versions of fried chickpea patties and lentil patties were ubiquitous in India, and I grew up taking them for granted.

Over summer, it was so much easier to make falafel on and off at home and serve with some pita or home-made naan, plus some assortment of fresh filling like olives, feta, tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, onions, lettuce, and home-made hummus.

My favorite of course was to serve falafel with little bowls of bib/Boston lettuce which seem perfect for filling with fresh veggies from the garden.

Simply soak the chickpeas overnight, then grind them up coarsely. I like to add chopped onions and chard from the garden to this, season with salt, and knead a bit. If it seems too loose to shape, I add a sprinkling of my favorite coconut flour. With its high fiber content, coconut flour works well to thicken as needed. Chill for a hour in the fridge before shaping into patties for deep frying.

Home-made hummus has always been a fun endeavor. Usually a batch of hummus gets made once a week or so and saved in the fridge to act as spread for wraps or toppings for salads.

Fattoush with Grape Molasses, Fenugreek, and Mango Powder

Mediterranean foods are perfect for Spring and Summer... well, any time of the year, really, but as fresh produce is abundant around this time of the year, it makes it all the more easier to serve up these bursting-with-goodness options.

Fattoush is a wonderfully fresh salad if one can get the traditional spices, but, suitable substitutions are fine with me. I tend to go MediterrAsian or MediterrIndian with the spices that are handy.

Coating the pita with olive oil and lightly pan-frying them is an extra step I do sometimes to prevent the pita from soaking up the vinaigrette and ending up a soggy mess.

Grape Molasses, one of the original sweeteners, is still a favorite for me, especially in vinaigrettes. I try to keep an extra jar in my pantry, as these are not easy to find in the regular grocery stores. While I don't actively hunt for ethnic ingredients, I can't pass them up when I find them at specialty stores around town that I manage to visit on and off.


MedirrIndian Fattoush Dressing:
Juice of 1 lime
Juice of 1 lemon, plus its lemon zest
2 Tbsp grape molasses
1 Tbsp finely pressed/minced garlic
½ tsp dried mint leaves
1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves
¼ tsp dried mango powder
½ cup extra virgin olive oil, maybe a bit more...
salt to taste

For the salad:
English cucumbers (or burpless Persian cucumbers if available)
kale
radicchio
cherry or grape tomatoes
seedless red or black grapes
kalamata olives
avocado
scallions or red onions or both, thinly sliced
whole wheat pita bread, or naan

Served here with leftover Fenugreek Sesame Oregano Cumin Stuffed Eggplant, plus some wholewheat pita slices, and those gorgeous kale flowers that I am determined to enjoy for the short couple of weeks that they grace my garden.

Black Bean Hummus

Cinco de Mayo is always fun, especially when it is close to a weekend, extending the party.

This black bean "hummus" dip is easy to whip up if using canned black beans. I usually have a stash of pressure cooked beans in the freezer, not just black beans, but pinto, mayo coba, chickpeas, kidney beans, white beans... plus, home-made refried beans as well, so kids can make a quick burrito for themselves.

Nothing fancy here, just used black beans instead of chickpeas, and followed my usual hummus method using garlic, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, and cilantro instead of parsley.

Fenugreek Sesame Oregano Cumin Stuffed Eggplant

There is something beautiful in the shapely elegance, the careless asymmetry, and the deep velvety purpleness of the Eggplant that has always attracted me.

Of course, having grown these beauties at home for almost a decade now, and knowing that not all of them are purple (think orange!), and not all of them sport the same uniform looks, I'd like to think that their differences add to their charm, for sure.

They are not always in season, and I try to eat local, so, it doesn't always work out that I find the right eggplant for the price and origin I am comfortable with. But, when I found these young Black Bells at the market, I couldn't pass them up.

Stuffing vegetables is always fun, mixing up the spices and grains to suit the mood and the vegetable at hand:

Bitter gourd, Bitter melon, Ridge gourd, Snake gourd, Kohlrabi, Zucchini, Danish Squash, Acorn Squash, Scallop Squash, Bell Peppers, Brussels sprouts, Okra, Sweet Potato Skins, Portobello Mushrooms, and of course, Eggplant!

This time, I wanted to bring in the goodness of fenugreek and sesame to the mix. Simmered in a tomato-based sauce, these slit-and-stuffed eggplants were quite a treat, enjoyed even more as leftovers when flavors have had a chance to settle.

The kale in my garden has matured, flowered and gone to seed. Kale flowers get sprinkled on salads when they are handy in the garden. They make a fun garnish for spicy dishes, bringing in their sunny yellow to the dish.

Ingredients
Medium eggplants that are easy to slit and stuff
Oil
Salt to taste

For the spice mix powder:
1 Tbsp sesame seeds (white or black is fine, I went with white)
2 Tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
1 Tbsp dry oregano leaves
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 Tbsp coriander seeds
2 dry red chilies

For the sauce/gravy to simmer in:
½ cup chopped onions
½ cup chopped tomatoes
6 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp grated ginger
2 Tbsp raw almonds, soaked in water for about 10 minutes

Preparation

1. Slit the eggplant cross-wise, like a plus sign, to separate out the quarters, but still held intact at the stem-end
2. Rub the insides of the eggplant with some salt and let it sit
3. Grind the spice mix to a powder; stir some of it with some oil to make a paste
4. Slather this paste into the slits of the eggplant
5. Grind the sauce ingredients to a fine paste
6. Heat some oil in a pan, add this paste and a pinch of salt, saute till rawness of onions is gone
7. Add some water and stir well to make a slightly runny sauce consistency, then, place the slit-and-stuffed eggplants into this runny sauce, cover the pan, and allow to simmer till eggplants are cooked and the sauce thickens
8. Turn the eggplant partway, carefully, so, all sides get cooked evenly while still retaining their wholeness
9. Serve warm with naan or basmati rice

Pan-roasted Radish and Brussels Sprouts

I

A big bunch of rainbow radish hop-skip-and-jumped into my shopping basket at the farmers market.

Rather than adding it raw to salads or cooking Indian-style Dal or Sambar, I went with a searing and pan-roasting them with Brussels sprouts.  Flavoring with Balsamic vinegar, mirin, and Braggs Liquid Aminos, and sautéing the radish greens along with the radishes and Brussels sprouts, seemed to make the dish all the more appealing.

Brussles Sprouts by themselves are relished in many ways at home, a few of which are shared in the Brussels Sprouts Fete post about four years ago. And, am sure this combo of radishes and Brussles sprouts can be cooked in any of those delicious methods.

With some Tabbouleh and pan-roasted sweet potato medallions, the roasted radish and Brussels sprouts rounded out a simple but filling weeknight meal.

The sweet potato medallions were roasted on a cast iron skillet with a touch of brown sugar for caramelization. 

Tabbouleh, a quick and simple salad,  tastes even better the next day. Just some chopped celery, carrots, purple cabbage, sweet onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, feta, walnuts, apples, cranberries, parsley tossed with softened bulgur. Of course, bulgur is high in carbs, complex carbs - but also high in fiber and low in fat, plus has a nice amount of protein. Being a low GI food, I like that it is easy to make and is good all round.

The dressing is just lime/lemon juice and olive oil, some salt to taste, plus a splash of orange zest for this tabbouleh.

I had a small lump of Jalapeño goat cheese and served small discs of it as garnish to add a bite to the roasted radish and Brussels sprouts.

Zucchini Mahshi

This Lebanese-cuisine inspired Koussa Mahshi or Stuffed Zucchini with a blend of Mediterranean spices, served hot with fresh warm flat bread, is a treat to be relished.

Small whole zucchini is cut at stem end, cored, stuffed and stewed in tomato-based sauce.

I had fairly large zucchinis and scooping out the core seemed tricky, so, I cut them in half and made little zucchini cylinders/tubes. One half of each zucchini is open at both ends, the other half is open only at one end.

Of course, this means, stuffing is not going to be contained inside and will definitely ooze out when cooked, but, the whole blend in the pot with the softened zucchini cylinders, the sauce, and the aromatic rice stuffing came together nicely in the end.

I used the left over stuffing from Swiss Chard Dolmas.

Ingredients
5 or 6 small zucchinis, stem-end trimmed, cored

For the stuffing:
(see Swiss Chard Dolmas)

For the sauce:
12 oz tomato sauce
1 medium onion, diced finely
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried mint (or about 12 to 15 mint leaves chopped finely)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
1 pod of cardamom, crushed
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
water and salt as needed

Preparation

Stuff the zucchini and keep handy

Bring the sauce to a simmer in a large pot and arrange the filled zucchini cylinders, cover and simmer over low heat till zucchini is tender and cooked just enough, but not mushy.

Swiss Chard Dolma

Dolmas: Something Stuffed.

Flavorful stuffing wrapped in favorite leaves and steamed. Be it East Asian style lettuce leaves or Mediterranean style grape leaves or Swiss chard.

Blanch the Swiss chard leaves after cutting away the white thick stems carefully. I have a tendency to over-stuff, but, this time I managed to use just enough and wrap it into tight little packages for steaming.

Brown rice with toasted pine nuts, feta, and dried cranberries, flavored with cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and a hint of cayenne pepper makes up the stuffing for these Swiss Chard Dolmas.

I served it with a Balsamic Vinaigrette dip and Sweet Chili Sauce. But a delicious rich tomato sauce or a light and delicate Mint-Yogurt sauce or Tahini-Sumac-Yogurt Dressing would be wonderful as well.

Spicy Cous-Cous Patties with Mint and Fennel Pesto

Cous-cous with Spicy Tagine is a favorite dinner for the adults in the house. Kids don't care for it much. There's usually some cous-cous leftover, nudging me to reconstitute them into something appetizing the next day.

These cous-cous patties are a nice way to use up leftover cous-cous. Simply add finely diced onions, carrots, bell peppers, maybe some spices like paprika and cumin, perhaps even some chipotle chilles, bind with eggs or bread, form into patties and pan-fry.

Or, shape them into small balls, even flattened balls, and deep fry, like bonda or vada. The deep fried flattened cous-cous balls remind me of one of my favorite street foods in India, Masala Vada, which is usually made with a few different kinds of lentils.




If I were to indulge à la Owl in Tearwater Tea, I would say the heels, the end-slices, of sliced bread loaves, loathed and discarded cruelly all over, warrant a mention.

Anyway, rather than eggs for binding the cous-cous, I prefer slices of bread, especially the heels, adding a bit of stock or water as needed to be able to shape the patties or balls.

Now, chutneys and pestos flow freely in my kitchen. Chutneys were nothing to write about when I was growing up in India - there were several varieties - any combination of handy edible ingredients, ground together with thought to flavor and texture, becomes a fine condiment to accompany any meal.

In those days, my mom reserved her precious Moulinex Mixer exclusively for delicate handling. All the heavy-duty idlee/dosai batter and chutneys were made using the large mortar-pestle called Aattukkal - The Grinding Stone. Quickly smashed ginger, garlic, black pepper, cumin was done in Ammi kal - a lesser known but just as valued companion of Aattukkal. Ammi kal is very much like the Mano and Matate used in the Americas.

Pesto, to me, bears similarities with the Indian chutneys I grew up with. After all, Pesto is made by quickly grinding the ingredients together in a mortar and pestle. Some favorite nuts, olive oil, fresh herbs, dash of salt/pepper is all it takes to make fresh pesto that has enhanced many a simple dish in our house.

The mint and fennel pesto with sunflower seeds came about thanks to the lovely mint and fennel in the garden that have managed to survive my negligence.



Mint and Fennel Pesto with Toasted Sunflower Seeds
Ingredients
1 cup fresh mint leaves
¼ cup fresh fennel leaves
1 clove of garlic
¼ to 1/3rd cup toasted sunflower seeds
2-4 Tbsp olive oil
hint of water, if needed
salt and black pepper to taste

Simply blend the ingredients together to desired consistency, adjust salt to taste.

Adzuki Beans, Asparagus, and Bulgur Salad

High in iron, protein, soluble fiber, and folate, and low in fat, Adzuki beans is believed to benefit reproductive and kidney function, by speeding up removal of waste from the body and promoting regularity.

Ever since I "discovered" it in the local Asian market and read up on its health benefits, I have been incorporating it more in my cooking over the last year or so. I can't quite tell the difference between the basic Atzuki beans and the Hokkaido variety yet unless I read the label, but, considering that about half a cup per week is all that is prescribed for getting its benefits, it seems hard not to take advantage of its nutritional value.

There are many ways to present these beans, just like any other beans: As bean burgers, as bean soup, in salads and stews, in tacos, in rice, even as plain Adzuki bean soup. Or, just toss a handful into whatever meal I have planned for the night...

Since fusion cuisine is my personal slant, this Adzuki Beans, Asparagus, and Bulgur Salad, has a MediterrAsian feel with Bulgur from the Mediterranean and Adzuki beans and the dressing from Asian cuisine. Roasted asparagus is optional. I had some leftover from previous meal so it was nice to use it up. Serve at room temperature (or slightly chill, if preferred).

Leftover dressing can be saved for up to a week in a cool dark place and used for other salads and sauces, or even as a home-made spring roll dip.

Maybe one of these days I will get around to listing the frequently used spices and condiments in my cupboard, by cuisine. Just like I restock organic ketchup and stone ground mustard, I restock kecap manis and sambal oelek... and since basically "anything goes" in my kitchen, I seem to use them all up at almost the same rate.


Ingredients
2 cups loosely packed fresh baby spinach leaves
1 cup cooked Adzuki beans
1 lb of fresh asparagus, cut, and roasted
1½ cup cooked medium-ground bulgur
¼ cup chopped dry apricots
¼ cup coarsely broken toasted walnuts
spring onions and cilantro, chopped

Dressing/marinade:
¼ cup light soy sauce
2 Tbsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp kecap manis
1 Tbsp sambal oelek
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1 garlic clove, finely chopped

Preparation

1. Combine the dressing ingredients, stir well, adjust to taste, keep handy
2. Toss together bulgur and adzuki beans; add the dressing a little at a time to desired sogginess and set aside for 20-30 minutes to overnight (in fridge)
3. When ready to serve, place a bed of spinach leaves, pile the salad, top with apricots and walnuts, and garnish with spring onions and cilantro

Pesto Sun-dried Tomato Feta Chicken

This Pesto Sun-dried Tomato Feta Chicken recipe is based on Chicken Cordon Bleu or Chicken Kiev, but, rather than coating in breadcrumbs and frying or baking, I simply pan-cooked the dish to keep it light and easy.

Although any favorite filling would work, I used Mediterranean flavors of Feta, Basil Pesto, Capers and Sun-dried Tomatoes for the filling. Boneless skinless chicken breasts work well for this recipe, marinated if preferred; then pounded lightly to make it about ¼ inch thick and uniformly flat for even-cooking.

Oh, and this happened to be D's special birthday dinner :)

Ingredients
2-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
marinade: red wine vinegar or cider vinegar, minced garlic and some salt and pepper
1 Tbsp canola oil, or olive oil
2-4 Tbsp basil pesto

Filling:
2 Tbsp coarsely crumbled Feta
1 Tbsp small capers
2 Tbsp sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil

garnish: chopped spring onions, chopped parsley

Preparation

1. Pound the chicken breasts lightly with a mallet to a uniform ¼ inch thickness; marinate it for about 10-15 minutes while assembling the filling
2. 
   Combine the filling ingredients, keep handy; heat oil in a non-stick pan or cast iron skillet
3. Remove the marinated chicken and pat dry very gently; spread a layer of pesto on each slice of chicken, add a tablespoonful of filling; roll carefully and as tightly as possible from the pointy end, stick a toothpick if needed to hold it together
4. Place the stuffed chicken rolls, seam-side down if possible and allow it to brown over medium-low heat; carefully turn each piece so all sides can be browned uniformly at the same time allowing the chicken to be cooked through; use a meat thermometer and check for doneness - about 170-175°F is good; as the slices are thin it cooks up fast
5. Garnish and serve warm

Baba Ghanouj

I was going through my old photos again. I had skipped posting this one as it didn't capture the mouthwatering quality of the dish - it just looks like a dirty blob of goo in the photo... however, I decided to note down the recipe here while the taste of this dish, when I made it last, is still lingering in my memory...

We make this quite often at home, almost as often as my chutneys or salsas, so much so that D has gotten quite good at it that he whips it up usually without any constructive input/interference from me :)

While large fleshy eggplant is commonly used for this dish (and readily available in markets here), I found that Ichiban and Calliopes from my garden had a certain bold eggplant flavor that I liked.

Serve with pita chips or even simple rotis or dosai.

Ingredients
1-2 globe or black beauty or other large, soft fleshy eggplant
3-4 Tbsp tahini (sesame paste)
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
3-4 Tbsp lemon juice
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
1 tsp Hickory Smoke Flavoring liquid ^*
salt to taste

^* D uses this a lot in his cooking, so, we have it handy at home, and we love the smoky flavor... but this is definitely an optional ingredient

other optional items: cayenne pepper, paprika, toasted sesame seeds, cilantro (to taste)

Preparation

1. Slice the eggplant with the skin on, spray or brush some oil and either roast in a 375°F oven till tender, or, what I like to do is to char them a bit over open flame of my gas stove
2. allow to cool a bit; remove skin if you don't care for it - I like it, so, I leave it on
3. combine the eggplant with rest of the ingredients, a little at a time, in a blender/food processor, and pulse to desired dip texture/consistency; i like it a bit coarse, not smooth and silky
4. taste and adjust flavors;garnish with paprika, or cayenne pepper powder and sesame seeds

falafel pita pockets

Every once in a while, I soak a huge pot of chana/chick peas/garbanzo beans and cook them and freeze any unused portion. A few weeks ago, I had the last of the frozen batch I needed to use up and that's how this falafel pita pocket meal came about. Plus, there were fresh, sweet, juicy cherry and grape tomatoes from our garden that needed to be eaten up as well :-)

Falafel can be made with fava beans or chickpeas. I've always used chickpea batter of sorts, with some za'atar/dried herbs thrown in for home-made falafels. Also, used chickpeas to make a simple hummus.

Ingredients

For hummous:
2-3 cups firm cooked chick peas
3-4 garlic cloves
3-4 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp sesame tahini
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp finely minced sun-dried tomatoes (optional)
salt to taste

For falafel:
2 cups firm cooked chick peas
1 Tbsp za'atar spices (optional)
OR
1 Tbsp dried spices like parsley, dill, coriander
salt to taste
oil for frying

Other:
fresh romaine hearts or any lettuce of your choice
fresh tomatoes
kalamata olives
feta cheese
pocket pita bread, cut in half, warmed up and opened into a pocket for stuffing

Preparation

Combine the falafel ingredients in a blender of food processor and grind to a thick paste

Heat oil in a pan for frying the falafel balls

Meanwhile, combine the hummous ingredients in the blender and grind to a smooth dip consistency

drop a dollop/ball of the chickpea paste into the hot oil and deep fry to make the falafel balls; drain on a paper towel and keep handy

Assembly: Stuff each pita pocket as you like with falafel balls, lettuce, kalamata olives, feta, tomatoes, top with hummous and enjoy.