Grilled Soy-Glazed Halibut

Inspiration:
Real Simple

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
• 4 6-ounce pieces white fish fillet (such as cod or halibut)

Instructions:

1. Heat grill to high.
2. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, soy sauce, and ginger; set aside.
3. Grill fish skin side up for 5 minutes. Flip and grill an additional 7 minutes, brushing twice with the sauce.
   

Notes:
Loved the ginger-soy combination with the fish.

Tim's Rating: 8.5/10
Liz's Rating: 8.5/10

Rick Bayless' Mexican-Style Zucchini Tacos

Inspiration:
Rick Bayless


Ingredients:

1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium white onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

1 pound ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped (6 to 8 Italian-plum or 2 medium- large round)

2 large fresh poblano chiles

1 cup fresh corn kernels (about one ear of corn)

4 medium zucchini cut into 1/2" cubes (about 1 1/2 pounds or 5 cups)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

2/3 cup homemade crème frâiche or heavy cream

Salt

1/2 cup Mexican queso fresco or other crumbly fresh cheese-like salted, pressed farmer's cheese or feta

24 fresh, warm corn tortillas

Instructions:

1. Measure the oil into a large (12-inch skillet) and set over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until richly browned, about 8 minutes.

2. While onion is cooking, coarsely puree the tomatoes in a food processor or blender. Add garlic to the browned onion, cook 1 minute, stirring, then add the tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Roast the poblanos directly over a gas flame or on a baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler, turning regularly until the skin has blistered and blackened on all sides, about 5 minutes for an open flames, about 10 minutes for the broiler. Remove from heat and cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 5 minutes. Rub off the blackened skins, then pull out the stems and seedpods. Rinse briefly to remove stray seeds and bits of skin. Slice into 1/4-inch strips.

4. Uncover the skillet, return to flame and raise the heat to medium-high. Stir in the poblanos, corn, zucchini, epazote and crema. Cook, stirring frequently, until the zucchini is crisp-tender and the liquid has thickened enough to coat the vegetables nicely, about 8 minutes. Taste and season with salt, about 1 teaspoon or to taste. Serve in a decorative bowl, sprinkle with crumbled cheese and pass hot tortillas separate for do-it-yourself tacos.

Nutrition facts per serving (1/6 of the recipe): 453 calories, 18 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 43 mg cholesterol, 66 g carbohydrates, 12 g protein, 604 mg sodium, 8 g fiber


Tim's Rating: 8.5/10 ("better than 'facos'")
Liz's Rating: 8.5/10

Green Beans with Goat Cheese and Fresh Lemon Vinaigrette

Inspiration: Oprah.com and green beans from our CSA.


Ingredients:

• 2 pounds green beans , trimmed
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 2 ounces goat cheese , softened and crumbled

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil. Add green beans. Cook 3 minutes; drain well. Set beans aside in colander; do not rinse (they will continue to cook).
   
2. In a large bowl, whisk together lemon zest, juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add beans to bowl and toss.
   
3. Transfer to a serving platter and sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese.
   

Notes: Loved the combination of lemon zest and goat cheese with the green beans. We took this to work with our lunches- it's a nice way to mix up the monotony of bagged lunch.

Tim's Rating: 8.5/10
Liz's Rating: 9.5/10

Bobby Flay's Grilled Corn Salad with Lime, Red Chili, and Cotija

Inspiration:
A side dish tasted at Mesa Grill over a year ago that we couldn't forget. I finally looked online to see if a recipe was available when we received corn from our CSA. It was!


Ingredients:

• 8 ears fresh corn, silks removed, husk on, soaked in cold water 30 minutes
• Canola oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup creme fraiche
• 2 limes, juiced and 1 zested
• 1 tablespoons ancho chili powder
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 1/4 cup grated cotija

Instructions:

1. Heat grill to high. Grill corn until charred on all sides, 10 or so minutes. Take off the grill and remove the kernels with a sharp knife. While you are cutting the corn, put a cast iron skillet on the grill to heat.
2. Add the corn and the remaining ingredients to the hot pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until creamy and heated through.

Notes: Cotija is the food of the gods. This is a fantastic recipe to enjoy the sweet corn of summer.

Tim's Rating: 10/10
Liz's Rating: 10/10

Bittman's Kosher Pickles

Inspiration: A love for crisp pickles that still have a hint of cucumber, cucumbers from our CSA, and Mark Bittman's recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup kosher salt
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 pounds small (“Kirby”) cucumbers, washed (scrub if spiny) and cut lengthwise into halves or quarters
• At least 5 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 large bunch dill, preferably fresh and with flowers, or substitute 2 tablespoons dried dill and 1 teaspoon dill seeds or 1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1. Combine the salt and boiling water in a large bowl; stir to dissolve the salt. Add a handful of ice cubes to cool down the mixture, then add all the remaining ingredients.

2. Add cold water to cover. Use a plate slightly smaller than the diameter of the bowl and a small weight to hold the cucumbers under the water. Keep at room temperature.

3. Begin sampling the cucumbers after 4 hours if you’ve quartered them, 8 hours if you’ve cut them in half. In either case, it will probably take from 12 to 24 or even 48 hours for them to taste “pickle-y” enough to suit your taste.

4. When they are ready, refrigerate them, still in the brine. The pickles will continue to ferment as they sit, more quickly at room temperature, more slowly in the refrigerator. They will keep well for up to a week.

Notes: So easy, and a good way to use up those summer cucumbers. They're salty and tasty!

Liz's Rating: 8.5/10
Tim's Rating: 8/10

Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Corn Tortillas

Inspiration:
This week, my friend Brooke declared it's easy to make corn tortillas and that they're delicious.

I immediately headed to Amazon to order a tortilla press and to my co-op to search for Masa Harina. They had it, but if you can't find it, you can order it online.


Ingredients:

• 1 cup Masa Harina (will make approximately 6 6-inch tortillas)
  
• Eggs
• Shredded Cheddar
• Hot Sauce
• Optional: cooked sausage, vegetables, other taco ingredients

Instructions:

1. Mix Masa Harina with scant 1 cup hot water and a dash of salt. Once combined, cover and set aside for one hour.
2. When dough is ready, roll into 2-inch balls. Press in a tortilla press lined with wax or parchment paper.
   
3. Heat griddle to hot. Cook tortillas approximately 1 minute on each side. Keep warm in towels until other ingredients are ready.
4. Scramble eggs and season with salt and pepper.
   
5. Assemble tacos and enjoy!

Rating:
9/10

Notes: Very easy to make! I don't know what took me so long to try it, but I don't think we'll ever purchase tortillas again.

Sicilian Shepherd's Tomato Pasta with Fresh Ricotta

Inspiration:
Lynne Rossetto Kasper of The Splendid Table on NPR


Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce container creamy whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup coarsely chopped salami (such as soppressata or Genoa)
• 2 stalks celery with leaves, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped carrot
• 10 large fresh sage leaves, snipped
• 1 tablespoon fresh Italian parsley leaves, snipped
• 2 medium onions (about 1 cup), chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large cloves, garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 3/4 cup dry red wine
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 28-ounce can and 1 14-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained and cut up
• 1 pound penne rigate or bucatini pasta
• 6 quarts boiling salted water

Instructions:

1. Let ricotta come to room temperature. In a 12-inch skillet heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the salami; cook to release a little of its fat. Stir in the celery, carrot, sage, parsley, onions, black pepper, and salt. Reduce heat to medium; cook and stir until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes; cook 1 minute. Add the wine and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes. Cook, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until thick.
3. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to package directions. Drain in a colander.
4. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss together over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through. Spread about one-third of the pasta in a warm serving bowl. Top with one-third of the ricotta. Layer in more pasta and ricotta, then the remaining pasta; finish with a few spoonfuls of ricotta. Serve hot.

Recipe Notes:

Soffritto is literally a "sautéed base" and is the building block for tomato sauce. This pasta dish features the best of pasta, cheese and tomatoes all in one place. Lynne Rossetto Kasper, author and radio show host of "The Splendid Table®," is fond of this dish. Use the sweetest, creamiest ricotta cheese you can find. Soppressata or Genoa salami add a pleasant amount of spice to this pasta dish; you can find these varieties at a gourmet food store.

Notes:
This was a new twist on pasta sauce- I really enjoyed it. It's amazing how much better homemade sauce tastes. This was a fairly easy recipe as long as you don't mind chopping some vegetables. You could surely make the sauce ahead of time. Before eating, boil the pasta, warm up the sauce, and toss together.

I am not the world's biggest fan of ricotta cheese, but this was good. I think the sauce would be just fine without the ricotta. I did attempt to find sheep's milk ricotta without success- when I can find some, I'll try this again!

Tim's Rating: 8/10
Liz's Rating: 8.5/10