Fish Stew!

I found this recipe on a food blog I visit often, Simply Recipes.

When I told some friends I was making fish stew for dinner, the response was.. uncertainty. The name does not do this soup justice. It is so good!

I used fresh wild-caught cod for the fish. I followed the recipe pretty closely, with a few substitutions: canned organic tomatoes instead of fresh (not currently in season), and cumin instead of paprika.

You can find the original recipe on the Simply Recipes site, here: Moqueca--Brazilian Fish Stew.

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs of fillets of firm white fish—I used cod
(rinse in cold water, remove any bones, cut into large portions)

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 T lemon juice

1 t salt

Freshly ground black pepper

grapeseed oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1/2 yellow and 1/2 red bell pepper, seeded & chopped

14.5-oz can diced tomatoes

1 t cumin

Pinch red pepper flakes

large bunch of cilantro, chopped + some for garnish

14.5-oz can coconut milk

HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:

Place fish pieces in a bowl, add the minced garlic and lime juice so that the pieces are well coated. Sprinkle generously all over with salt and pepper. Keep chilled while preparing the rest of the soup.

Heat 2 T of oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and cook a few minutes until soft. Add the bell pepper, cumin, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook a few minutes longer, until the bell pepper begins to soften. Stir in tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook 5 minutes, uncovered. Stir in the chopped cilantro.

Add fish pieces—spoon some of the vegetable mix on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour coconut milk over the fish and vegetables.

Bring soup to a simmer. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. (Add more salt, lime or lemon juice, cumin, pepper, or red pepper flakes to your preferred taste.)

Garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice or with crusty bread.

I will definitely make this again, and I am already thinking of other ingredients that would work well with this base (chicken, potatoes, carrots--yum).

-Anna

Scrumptious Sloppy Joes

I have fond childhood memories of eating sloppy joes. Part of the fun was just trying to hold the thing together with both hands, as the greasy ketchup-y juices mingled with the mayo from the coleslaw, soaked into the soft bun, and dripped everywhere... mmm.

Of course, other childhood favorites (ahem- Chef Boyardees ravioli, McDonalds cheeseburgers) were vastly disappointing when I revisited them in adulthood, so for all I knew, sloppy joes would just disappoint as well. However, I was cautiously excited when I spotted this recipe in The Cast Iron Skillet Cookbook. It promised to be an almost impossible combination of things: quick, easy, delicious, pretty healthy, and even kind of upscale (based on the fact that it was featured in this particular cookbook, which rocks). It did not disappoint.

Open-Face Sloppy Joes: 4 servings (I made more than this)

1 T vegetable oil

1 T salted butter

1 c yellow onion, chopped

12 oz lean ground beef

1/2 c red pepper, chopped

2 c tomato sauce

1/4 c ketchup

1-2 t Worcestershire sauce

4 small hamburger buns, toasted and buttered (I used Trader Joe's par-baked rolls)

Heat oil and butter in a 10 or 12" cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook 5". Add bell pepper and ground beef, stirring to crumble and brown meat. Add tomato sauce, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 15 minutes.

Place a toasted bun, open face, buttered side up, on each plate and spoon the meat mixture on top.

Recommended accompaniment: coleslaw.

I will definitely do this next time.

P.S. It's also delicious with Frank's hot sauce, if you want to go there.

I feel like there's something vaguely wrong with this, but the stuff is so good too...

P.P.S. I plan to make a vegetarian version with fake ground beef; we'll see how it goes.