A Sustainable Seafood Stew

This week is crazy busy for me for some reason. Tons of reading for class, work for my internship, errands to run and events to attend. Somehow (not sure exactly how) I found time to make a pretty delicious meal tonight. Fortunately I have leftovers, so if I'm too busy to cook tomorrow, I won't have to starve.

This Spanish Fish Stew with Peppers, Almonds and Saffron is really quite healthy. I'm on phase 2 of South Beach, so I served it on top of some brown rice to make a really filling and awesome meal. I try to be really conscious about what seafood I eat; this summer I worked for an environmental non-profit organization called Oceana that does a lot of marine conservation, and I learned a lot about unsustainable fisheries and the damage to the oceans that a lot of fishing practices can do. Fortunately there are some kinds of seafood that aren't so terrible to eat, and those are what I put into my stew. Farmed clams are one of those OK seafoods - they don't have to be dredged off the ocean floor to be eaten. (Dredging kills everything that lives on the sea floor, like coral reefs and turtles.) Pacific halibut is also a fish you can eat with a clean conscience, because that's a fishery that's responsibly managed and not in huge danger of overexploitation. For a complete guide to ocean friendly seafood, Oceana publishes a great list and you can find it here.


Spanish Fish Stew with Peppers, Almonds and Saffron
Serves 4

• 1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• salt and pepper
• 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 tsp. Spanish smoked paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1-1/2 c. dry white wine
• one 14-oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 1-1/2 c. water
• 1/4 tsp. saffron threads, crumbled into 2 Tbsp. hot water
• 1/4 c. salted roasted almonds
• 1 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
• 1-1/4 lbs. Pacific halibut, meat cut into 1-inch pieces

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy casserole. Add the onion, bell pepper strips and garlic and season with salt and black pepper. Cover and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add the rosemary, paprika, and bay leaf and cook for 1 minute. Add the white wine and bring to a boil. Simmer until the liquid is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, water and saffron and bring to a boil. Cover the casserole and cook over medium high for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, finely grind the almonds in a food processor. Stir in the almonds into the stew and simmer until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Add the clams, cover and cook until most of them open, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the fish and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer until the fish is cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Transfer to bowls; serve over brown rice if desired.

Sometimes Diets Aren't So Bad

I've been really frustrated recently because A) dieting sucks because you can't eat anything fun and B) if you're going to bother dieting you should at least be able to lose weight, right? Well, there's nothing I can do about that second thing right now (except bitch to anyone who will listen), but tonight I was determined to at least make something South Beach friendly that I would actually enjoy eating. A piece of wild Alaskan salmon solved all my problems. Behold a meal that is both delicious and healthy.


Seared Mediterranean Salmon
Serves one (because I'm a loser)

• 1 T extra-virgin olive oil
• salmon fillet (5-6 ounces)
• 1/2 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 tomato, coarsely chopped
• 1 T chopped black olives (Nicoise or other)
• 1 T fresh Italian parsley, roughly chopped
• squeeze of juice from half a lemon
• 1 t capers, drained
• roughly torn fresh basil leaves (2-3)

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a heavy skillet until smoking. Sprinkle the salmon with salt and pepper. Cook to desired doneness. I like mine crispy on the outside and a bit rare in the middle, so I cooked mine about 3 minutes per side. Remove from the skillet to a plate. In the same skillet, add the chickpeas and all remaining ingredients except basil. Stir until warm. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the chickpea mixture on top of the salmon and top with the basil.

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging #101, hosted by Myriam of Once Upon a Tart. WHB is a weekly food blogging event where bloggers post recipes using their favorite herbs, plants, veggies, and flowers. My herb of choice is fresh basil, showcased delightfully in this dish.

Florida, Sweet Florida

I'm at home in the sunshine state for the holidays. I've been spending my days studying for finals, which unfortunately fall in January, forcing us poor, wretched Harvard Law students to spend our Hanukwanzistmas break with our noses buried in exciting books like Gilbert's guide to Property Law. Today I went so far as to take my laptop, books and notes to the Odessa public library. I live in the middle of nowhere, so the library consists of one room with some bookshelves (not entirely full) and a couple of tables that have been arranged to look vaguely like desks/study areas. But at least it was an excuse to get out of the house and drive 5 minutes each way with the car windows down singing out loud to Rascal Flatts. Oh yeah, and it's 75 degrees here.

But I digress. After rotting my brain with studying all day, I like to cook. And I'm familiar with my mom's kitchen, so at least I can do it with some ease, despite the crap she's got lying around everywhere. I made dinner for my parents last night, which they always appreciate after a long day at work. I decided that while I'm home, I'm going to try to make as many things as possible with key limes and/or coconut. Reason? Key Lime & Coconut is the title of my blog (surprise!), and these two flavors are central to what Floridian/Floribbean cuisine is all about.

My Bahian Seafood Stew with Coconut and Tomato incorporated both of these delicious ingredients. Bahia is a region in Brazil, so this stew draws lots of Latin American influences. If you can get super-fresh ingredients (particularly the tomatoes and seafood), I think you'll find that this dish will transport you to somewhere warm, sunny, and tropical... maybe like Florida.


Bahian Seafood Stew with Coconut and Tomato
(serves 4-6, depending on appetite)

• 2 Tbsp. canola oil
• 2 shallots, minced
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 small onion, diced (1+ inch pieces)
  
• 1 red bell pepper, diced (1+ inch pieces)
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
• 1 stalk fresh lemongrass, outer leaves discarded and stalk smashed, or 1 Tbsp. dried lemongrass
• 3 tomatoes, halved, seeded, and diced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
• 1/2 pound lump crab meat, picked over
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 12 cilantro leaves, plus 1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
• 1/2 pound grouper (or similar) filet, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 Tbsp. fresh key lime (or regular lime) juice
• White rice
• Lime wedges

Heat the oil in a medium enameled cast-iron casserole. Add the shallots, garlic, onion, bell pepper, ginger, and lemongrass, and cook over moderate heat until the vegetables are softened, about 7 minutes. Add the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and cook for 3 minutes. Season the shrimp and crab with salt and pepper and add them to the casserole along with the coconut milk and cilantro leaves. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Season the grouper with salt and pepper, add to the casserole, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Discard the lemongrass stalk, if using. Add the lime juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve over white rice with lime wedges.

Suggested wine pairing: a Latin American white, such as a Chardonnay from Argentina's Mendoza region. A chardonnay is a sturdy enough white to stand up to this rich dish, and additionally, food and wine from the same general region tend to complement one another.