Black Bean and Corn Salsa....with Lobster!

Summer time salads are a no-brainer. With all the fresh produce out on the stands, I almost contemplate going raw every year. But I would miss all of my favorite seafood too much! This dish is a summer time staple with a touch of class that brings it up to a whole new level. And its a food recycling project which I love! Say goodbye to days of left overs....recycle them into something brand new. After a girls- night Lobster Boil, I was left with way to many corns to even think about eating but I didn't want them to go to waste... New Jersey Corn is too good to trash! I decided to free up some room in my fridge by taking the corn off the cob and the rest just fell together.

I was so happy to have just received a can of Black Beans from Goya in the mail as I was all out. Thank you to Foodbuzz's Tastemaker program for making this dinner come true! While lobster was the perfect complement to this dish, if you don't have a few extra laying around feel free to use boiled shrimp as it would have a similar taste and texture. While I wouldn't consider this dish very ethnic, I did spice it up a bit with some chipotle pepper powder.

Lobster, Corn & Black Bean Salsa
1 lobster tail - diced
1 can GOYA black beans - drained and rinsed
5 ears of corn - cut of the cob
10 cherry tomatoes - cut in half
2 tbsp good olive oil
juice of 1 lime
4 tbsp fresh parsley diced
2 tbsp fresh basil diced
1 tsp chipotle powder
salt & pepper

1) Season lobster tail with chipotle, salt & pepper
2) Combine all ingredients and toss to mix

Girl's Night Lobster Boil!

Sometimes it amazes me the things that some of my friends have never eaten. Lobster Rolls are so quintessentially New England in the Summer that I forget that people from the other side of the country are as unfamiliar with our past times as I am of palm trees and surfing. A California native friend recently disclosed she had never eaten a lobster roll! Of course, I promised to make her one immediately but at the last minute went for old fashioned lobster boil instead.

She brought the corn and a crusty french loaf courtesy of the farmer's market at the Grove Street PATH station... so conveniently located for a stop on the way home. I added the lobsters and some roasted potatoes. Lobster Boils are so fast that all I needed to do was have the veggies chopped and ready to go into the pot when she arrived. As we sipped on a nice cold glass of white wine....the lobster's took a soak in the very hot tub!

A new way to eat....fill your plate!

There is just about every kind of diet out there, low- fat, low-carb, low- sugar, only eating certain vegetables, not eating certain vegetables, the list goes on and on. But are any of these "diets" really good for us and can we really sustain them long enough to make a real effect on our weight? I know that in my life I have given up everything from chocolate to potatoes and still I don't see the numbers I am hoping for on the scale. With harvest season in full swing here (New Jersey), I don't want to have to give up any of my favorites so instead I have made a pact with myself to have more plates that look like this one.... full of fresh healthy vegetables (and fruits since technically tomato is from that family)

This doesn't mean that I am going to be giving up on any of my favorites this time around...just focusing on how my plate looks. Is it colorful? yes that means that I have plenty of different nutrients (greens and reds are especially good for you!) Is it balanced? yes I have just about every food group here from grains (corn) to protein (shark) and most of all Is it delicious? Hell Yeah!

8/21/10 - Boneless Crockpot Ribs

There are some nights that coming home and opening the fridge to create a masterpiece... and there are nights that you just want to come home to something warm to put in your belly and veg on the couch. With the end of summer rolling in this dinner is a perfect break from cooking, no matter if its too hot to turn on the stove or so cold that you just can't warm up. My favorite part of this dinner was that my boyfriend made most of it!

The recipe for the boneless ribs was simple as can be (ribs + BBQ sauce + 8 hrs in the slow cooker) however, it was the rice and beans that made this a meal. By using the juice given off from the rib, the rice is bursting with savory flavors. To keep things at least mildly healthy, I stuck with brown basmati rice instead of a more traditional white rice. Like all grains using brown, whole grains is much healthier than the white version which has been polished to have the color (as well as important nutrients) removed. While I don't think that this meal is ever going to win any awards simple, home cooking can be better than any 5 star restaurant some nights.

8/14/10 - Weekend Breakfast...bacon, egg and cheese

Living in the city, there is pretty much a deli on every corner selling the ubiquitous breakfast hang over cure - a greasy bacon, egg and cheese. If you had a bit too much to drink the night before sometimes the only way to make it through the day is by coating your oh so sensitive tummy in this heart attack in a bulkie roll. While this homemade version probably isn't any healthier for you, I have upgraded the ingredients to at least give it a hint of class.

The only way to make this is to just go for it - any low fat or "healthy" versions will just leave you wishing for the real thing. Plus after tossing back a dozen or so tequila shots just a few short hours ago why even pretend to be healthy? While I have to admit that though I have lived in NJ for 4 years now I am still not familiar with the pork roll (aka taylor ham) version of this breakfast treat, thick sliced bacon is hands down my meat of choice. I added some nice local NY state sharp cheddar as my base on a Nature's Pride Country White Roll* and topped it all off with 2 farm fresh fried eggs. For condiments, I went with some fresh herbs (chives, thyme and parsley) from my window box (remember this is the city still! we don't have gardens here) and some spicy ketchup... however a fresh Jersey tomato slice would also be right at home here as well.
Serve it with a nice tall ice cold bloody mary if you need a little "medicine" to get you going or a steamy hot cup of coffee.


*As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker's program I receieved samples of this product.

8/18/10 - Fish Simply Two Ways

The summer is the best time to eat simply. When its cold, I love spending hours in the kitchen coming up with some exotic combination. But when farms all over the state of New Jersey are working hard to provide me exquisitely ripe and juicy produce, I go with it. In my last post, I took a look at one of my favorite parts of the summer months - fresh tomatoes. Growing up my whole life, I was lucky to have grandfathers who kept amazing gardens. Summer was always filled with zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, arugala (long before I knew anything about rocket or fancy mixed baby greens) and tons of basil - everything a good Italian kitchen could need.

The top dish pictured is a fresh salsa served over pan seared swordfish with a cajun rub. I accompanied the dish with a side of wilted swiss chard and red onion.
The dish below was a one skillet meal. While I usually make this dish in the oven, the temperatures outside had me looking for another option. First, I sauteed the vegetables (peppers, onions, mushrooms, broccoli)  and then removed them from the pan. I added the haddock and once it was ready to flip (3-5 min), I returned the vegetables to the pan. I topped the fish with the tomatoes and covered the pan to allow it to heat through (5 min).

8/17/10 - Fresh Salsa

It's amazing how many uses I have for some nice delicious salsa.... this one bowl ended up in 2 dinners, a lunch and there was still a few nacho's full left over! A friend recently asked me what to do with an overflow of mangoes (she is living in sunny, beautiful Hawaii) and my first thought was SALSA! Dress it up in a wonton cup as a fancy hors'doeuvres or smother it in cheese for the big game...either way its a hit! The biggest secret to fresh salsa is dicing all the ingredients up nice and fine so that there is a lot of surface area for all the flavors to mingle together. Also salsa is always better when it is made in advance and it has time to rest and let all of the juices blend together.

This is a very basic salsa made with nice ripe jersey tomatoes, however you can feel free to add most fruits to a salsa as well - mango, peach, strawberries all work well!

3 plum (or roma) tomatoes - diced
1/2 red onions - diced
1 bunch cilantro - leaves only diced
1/3 green pepper- diced
1 jalapeno - diced (seeds removed) 
juice of 1 lime
salt & pepper
2 garlic cloves - smashed & diced

1) combine all ingredients together and refrigerate overnight

8/13/10 - Seafood Extravaganza

A few weeks ago, I was talking with a friend who lives near a great seafood market. He is so lucky to have delicious fish straight off the boat at a great market with helpful service. We decided to have a fun little dinner where he would bring some thing fresh from the market and I would see what I could come up with. He was kind enough to call when he was at the store so I had a little advance notice - we were having a red snapper that he bought whole but had them fillet and some calamari. I was tempted by the idea of soft-shell crab earlier in the week so I had to stop by the store to grab a few of those as well.

I was really excited to cook with the red snapper since it was new to me and I have seen so many great recipes with the whole fish (though a check of the Seafoood Watch list made me feel bad! yikes...now I know why I have never used it). We weren't really ready for a whole fish just yet but the fillets worked out perfectly. I decided to go for a marinade with lime, cilantro and garlic and then I baked it. Before marinading the fillet, I attempted to remove some of the bones but it was pretty difficult and was a bit messy so I abandoned that quickly - any tips besides just going at them with pliers should I get this or another similar fish? 

Keep reading for more info and the recipe!

8/12/10 - Tomato Basil Quinoa stuffed 8 ball Zucchini

These cute little mini zucchini were calling me from the farmer's market table. Like so many others, I couldn't help but imagine them hollowed out and stuffed - the perfect little vessel. I knew that Jeremy wouldn't be interested in zucchini no matter the shape so I decided to have a girl's veggie night with my friend, Tova. Each 8 ball was the perfect size for a single serving for each of us along with a nice big salad. I was having trouble decided exactly what direction to go with my stuffing but once I starting peaking around I found a recipe using basil.... hmmm guess who just got another big bag of basil from the CSA? Since I didn't have any sun-dried tomatoes I had to go with a little splash of sauce but I think I might have to try recipe as written some time (though going with out some cheese when baking something just seems wrong!)

This stuffing can be used for a variety of veggies including eggplant and peppers. Since quinoa is a complete protein it makes for a great meal for vegetarians. When stuffing the 8 ball zucchini it is best to first hollow them out using a spoon (cut off the top first) and steaming it for a few minutes (I placed mine upside down in about 1" of water in a covered wok pan). After softened fill with the quinoa mixture and top with some shredded cheese. Place in the broiler for 2-5 minutes or until cheese is bubbling. You can also add a soft cheese like feta or goat to the stuffing before broiling.

7/24/10 - Another Chopped Caprese Salad

When I saw this salad last summer on Smitten Kitchen's page I knew I would be weak against it. My favorite flavors combined and diced into bite size little cubes for easy consumption? I made a version souped up with some baby arugala and pancetta. This time I kept it simple (and vegetarian friendly) and it still was delicious. The perfect afternoon snack to tide us over from brunch to a late dinner with friend or a great start to a "bruscetta bar" served with garlic bread rounds to entice your guests. 

This easy salad is a combo of fresh mozzarella, drained and rinsed canellini beans, diced fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, diced garlic, salt & pepper, EV olive oil and a small splash of balsamic vinegar.