Thursday, July 22, 2010

IWAD #6- Delicious Flowers

This week was a little different because my family and I took a trip to Chicago for the weekend and arrived back in town late Monday. With my Book Club meeting on Tuesday, we did IWAD on Wednesday. I did go shopping on Tuesday for all of the ingredients though. On them menu this week was "Margherita Panini Bites", "Prosciutto-Wrapped Halibut", and "Potato Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce". Instead of a dessert this week we made a special cocktail I'll discuss later.

Starting off with the appetizer "Margherita Panini Bites". This was a delicious appetizer, although I'm not quite sure I consider it an appetizer. You could totally just make these Panini sandwiches for lunch all on their own. Essentially it's a regular panini that you cut into appetizer portions. Easy, good, and best of all I had no problem finding any ingredients!

For the entree I made "Prosciutto-Wrapped Halibut". Let me start by telling you that this was pretty far out of my comfort zone because I do not typically even like fish. However, I have dedicated myself to making everything in this cookbook and will have to encounter it at some point. The recipe calls for red snapper or halibut. I went to the grocery store that I use most often because I know where everything is. After shopping for a few other items on my list I made my way to the seafood counter. I asked the lady if they had red snapper. She said they are out, but could special order me some for $20/lb...no thank you. So, I asked if they had halibut and they did, but it was frozen and not fresh. I decided that I would look elsewhere and if I didn't find anything I could go back and get the frozen halibut. Brandy tried to find it, but wound up buying the frozen halibut anyways.

So, I'm ready to cook my first fish ever! I was pretty nervous about it because the recipe tells you to brown in a frying pan and then place it in the oven in the frying pan. I had never done this before, but I've seen many people do it on The Food Network. I really felt like a professional chef doing that part :) The fish turned out perfectly and tasted pretty good as well (even for a non-fish lover). Not sure how red snapper would have tasted differently, but the halibut worked just fine.

On to the "Potato Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce". I decided to let Brandy take a stab at this one while I was handling the fish because I had already made gnocchi a few years ago. I really enjoy gnocchi and order it out frequently at restaurants (it's always a toss up between gnocchi and risotto for me). As I've mentioned before, I kind of feel the need to watch over Brandy as she is cooking with me because she is somewhat careless in the kitchen. My first inclination that this may not go well was when she asked me what part of the egg was the yolk. I should have taken a picture of how she was forming the gnocchi. She made the dough and then essentially was laying it out into rows and cutting it into 2" squares...really Brandy! Come to find out that she had never even had gnocchi before and had no idea what it should look like. She claims she was doing what the recipe said. The recipe says to roll it "into 3/4 to 1" wide rope" and "cut each rope into 1" pieces", but I've had gnocchi before and she was definitely not making it right. Anyways it was a learning experience and I showed her how to do it  how I thought was correct based on my prior experiences with it. Unfortunately, my water would not boil on the stove and the gnocchi probably didn't cook properly and was kind of doughy and not very appetizing, but it wasn't bad either. Just okay.

Then for the yummy cocktail! While in Chicago my husband (Mark) and I went out to a bar called The Crimson Lounge. Very nice romantic lounge night club. When I was trying to decide what to drink the bartender recommended a "St Germain Cocktail". I said, "Sure, why not?" Well, I wound up having 4 that night because they were so good! St Germain tastes somewhat like passion fruit, lemon, and pear liqeuor...delicious by itself. I found out that it is actually made from the Elderflower blossoms though...wow! Delicious flowers!

"Margherita Panini Bites"

  • 1 loaf (16 ounces) ciabatta or crusty Italian bread, cut into 16 (1/2 inch) slices
  • 8 teaspoons pesto
  • 16 fresh basil leaves
  • 8 slices fresh mozzarella cheese
  • 24 thin slices plum tomato (about 3 tomatoes)
  • Olive oil
  1. Heat grill pan over medium-high heat. Spread 1 side of 8 slices bread evenly with pesto. Top with basil, mozzarella cheese, tomato and remaining bread. Brush both sides of sandwiches with oil. Grill 5 minutes or until lightly browned and cheese is melted. Cut each sandwich into 4 pieces. Serve warm.
"Prosciutto-Wrapped Snapper"
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil, divided
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 4 skinless red snapper or halibut fillets (6-7 ounces each)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 8 large fresh sage leaves
  • 8 thin slices prosciutto (4 ounces)
  • 1/4 cup dry marsala wine
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. Combine 1 tablespoon oil and garlic in small bowl; brush over fish fillets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lay 2 sage leaves on each fillet. Wrap 2 slices prosciutto around fish to enclose sage leaves; tuck in ends of prosciutto.
  3. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add fillets, sage side down; cook 3-4 minutes or until prosciutto is crisp. Carefully turn fish. Transfer skillet to oven; bake 8 to 10 minutes or until fish is opaque in center.
  4. Transfer fish to serving plates; keep warm. Pour wine into skillet; cook over medium-high heat, stirring to scrape up browned bits. Stir constantly 2 to 3 minutes or until mixture has reduced by half. Drizzle over fish.
"Potato Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce"

  • 2 pounds baking potatoes (3 or 4 large)
  • 2/3 to 1 cup all-purpose flour, divided
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground ntmeg (optional)
  • 1 jar (about 24 ounces) marinara sauce, heated
  • Chopped fresh basil (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Pierce potatoes several times with fork. Bake 1 hour or until soft.
  2. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise; cool slightly. Scoop pulp from skins into medium bowl; discard skins. Mash potatoes until smooth. Add 1/3 cup flour, egg yolk, salt and nutmeg, if desired; mix well to form dough.
  3. Turn out dough onto well-floured surface. Knead in enough or remaining flour to form smooth dough that is not sticky. Divide dough into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion with hands on lightly floured surface into 3/4 to 1-inch-wide rope. Cut each rope into 1-inch pieces; gently press thumb into center of each piece to make indentation. Space gnocchi slightly apart on lightly floured kitchen towel to prevent them from sticking together.
  4. Bring 4 quarts salted water to a gentle boil in Dutch oven over high heat. To test gnocchi cooking time, drop several into water; cook 1 minute or until they float to surface. Remove from water with slotted spoon and taste for doneness. Cook remaining gnocchi in batches, removing with slotted spoon to warm serving dish.
  5. Top with marinara sauce and serve immediately. Sprinkle with basil, if desired.
"St-Germain Cocktail"

  • 2 parts Brut Champagne or Dry Sparkling Wine
  • 1 1/2 parts St-Germain
  • 2 parts Sparkling Water or Club Soda
  1. Fill a tall collins glass with ice.
  2. Add Champagne first, then St-Germain, then Club Soda. Stir Completely.
  3. Garnish with a lemon twist, making sure to squeeze essential oils into the glass.

1 comment:

  1. Brandy’s Reaction/Scoring (1-High:5-Low):
    Score – Course: Reaction
    3 – Appetizer: Okay.
    4 – Main Course: Leave it.
    3 – Dessert: St. Germain is kind of expensive and this drink is just okay.
    Okay (regardless of the size of the gnocchi), I wasn't impressed with any of this meal. The St. Germain drink was okay, but I think Kim fell in love with it b/c her first time drinking it was such a romantic night with the hubby! ;)

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