Portuguese Fish Stew by Tyler Florence

I am an Aquarius. My due date to be born was December 24th, but I held in there until January 26th. I tell my mom I was just making sure I could be born an Aquarius. She is not amused. Can't blame her really, I wouldn't be amused to be pregnant a MONTH longer than necessary just to then give birth to a 10 pound baby who grew to be an incredibly sarcastic and strong willed child. But I digress.

The reason my astrological sign is mentioned is because it was my birthday recently. For a gift a few of my friends got me what they knew I would love the most, an amazon gift card. With that gift card I purchased the beautiful masterpiece you see here:
No, amazon did not sell me a pot of soup, but I did get the fabulous pot it was made in. That is pure Lodge Logic enameled dutch oven greatness. In green, which happens to be my favorite color.

I could not wait to get cooking with it. Funny how I have made about a million recipes that call for a dutch oven, at which point I would bust out our hilariously huge 12 quart camp one, and curse that I did not have a smaller one. So of course when I finally get a smaller one I cannot find a single recipe to break it in with. So I searched The Food Network website and found one.

My only regret about the recipe I chose is that I did not take step by step pictures as I usually do. Once it was ready to serve I saw the error of my ways and managed to at least snap a few before eating it.

So here it is:

Portuguese Fish Stew courtesy of Tyler Florence (who I happen to kind of be infatuated with)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
2 medium onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 pound linguica or chorizo sausage, sliced in chunks
5 sprigs fresh thyme sprigs
1 handful fresh oregano, hand torn
2 bay leaves
2 pounds potatoes, sliced
3 quarts chicken broth
1 pound kale, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/2 pound perch, cod, or bass fillets, skin and pin bones removed (I used cod)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 Recipe Rustic Crusty bread, for serving, recipe follows

Directions
Heat the oil in a heavy 4 to 6-quart pot over medium flame. Add the onions, garlic, and sausage; cook, stirring with wooden spoon, until the sausage renders out some of its fat and the onions are soft. Toss in the herbs and then the potatoes, stir that around for a minute to coat in the oil. Pour in the chicken broth and bring up to a simmer. Add the kale, season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes until the potatoes are nearly tender.
Uncover the pot and add the clams; simmer, covered, for 15 minutes until the clams open. Add the fish and continue to cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until the fish is cooked. Serve with crusty bread.

There you have it, a soup pot to heaven.
Pardon the shadow, I was jittery with the excitement of sitting down to this fabulous feast. I sprinkled some parmesan cheese on it because... well why the hell not?

Now for a random picture. This was the scene out of our master bedroom window a few weeks ago. Unusually dry winter + high winds + a brush fire = this madness. We were incredibly fortunate that it didn't reach us. Anyhow. Make this stew and love it as I did. You certainly won't regret it. It is even better a few days later. YUM.

Now fellow foodies, please tell me, what is your favorite piece of kitchen equipment?

Grilled Fish Packs

I have tried to post this several times but it seems something always got in the way! So here we are, at long last, a new post. Not that anyone was losing sleep about my lack of posts but it was definitely bugging me. Anyway, on to the fun.

Grilled Fish Packs

~1 halibut fillet (about 1 lb) cut in half
~1/2 T of cumin, rosemary, thyme, and cayenne
~1 can of cannellini beans
~2 c (about 6 medium) mushrooms chopped
~1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes
~1 T olive oil
~2 T balsamic vinegar
~Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Pre heat your grill
2. Sprinkle the fillet with salt and pepper
3. Scatter the other seasonings on a plate.
4. Rub the seasoning on the fish.
5. Drain and rinse the beans.
6. Put the beans, mushrooms, and tomatoes in a bowl.
7. Pour the olive oil in the bowl, and sprinkle some salt and pepper in it. Mix together.
8. Lay out a sheet of aluminum foil.
9. Place about half of the bean mix on the foil. Top with the seasoned fish.
10. Wrap the bundles so that the foil is sealed all around.
11. Place the packs on the grill and cook for 14 minutes or until fish is done.

Corn

~3 corn cobs
~1/4 cup of butter, softened
~Approximately 1/2 t thyme, parsley, and paprika
~1 clove of garlic, minced

1. Remove husks from corn.
2. Place corn on a sheet of aluminum foil.
3. Mix the spices and garlic into the butter.
4. Spread even amounts of the spiced butter on each cob.
5. Wrap in foil, and grill with the fish.

Ingredients all pretty and ready to go.

This is a beautiful piece of fish. Worth every single penny.

I just use a paper plate for the spices, easier clean up though far less "green".

Don't these look pretty? Now don't be scared. I know this looks like an overwhelming amount of spice but it's not. As it cooks in the packet the seasoning will melt off onto the veggies below.

Drain and rinse the beans. I can just eat these straight out of the can I love them so much.

Now I break for an intermission, a snack intermission. This is "moody blue" cheese from Whole Foods and holy mother is it good. I don't even bother with a cracker, just eat it as it is. Mmm...

Toss the beans, mushrooms, and tomatoes into a bowl. Toss in the olive oil and spices and mix well.

YUM!

Now lay out a sheet of aluminum. I got these at the dollar store and now regret not buying ten boxes! They are pre-cut and perfectly sized sheets of foil.

Put about half of the bean mixture on one sheet, and top with the fish. Do the same with the rest on another sheet.

Start folding up the sides of the foil. Pour 1T of balsamic on each piece of fish.

Wrap the fish completely.

Now for the corn. Mix the butter, spices, and garlic together.

Place the corn on a piece of foil and pull up the sides.

Spread an even amount of the butter mix on each ear of corn.

Wrap the corn in the foil and set aside.

Take the packets and corn, and put them on the pre heated grill. They will cook for 14 minutes or so.

At which point I go in the house to pick the wine to be enjoyed with this fine meal. This was on special and I have never met an Australian wine I didn't like. This one didn't disappoint!

When the time is up go and get the stuff off the grill.

Open the pack and check to make sure the fish is done. If the fish is not quite done simply re-seal the foil and let it sit for a few more minutes. The fish will continue to cook in the foil. I actually like to take it off a little early and let it finish cooking in the pack. It stays so moist it is unbelievable.

Plate the fish, veggies, and corn. The best part about this recipe? The clean up couldn't be easier. The foil gets put in the recycling bin and there you have it.

Look at the inside of the fish. Heaven.

Well, judging from his plate, I think the man of the house enjoyed his meal.

This recipe is healthy as well as delicious. It is my own version of the Halibut Fish Packet recipe from Eating for Life by Bill Phillips. You can eat this and not feel guilty about having dessert afterward!

Enjoy!