Salmon, Tomato and Feta Pie with Potato Crust

I love fixing brunch. Maybe it's because if we're having brunch I probably had the chance to sleep in (and it was too embarrassing to call it breakfast.) This "Salmon, Tomato and Feta Pie with Potato Crust" makes it easy to whip up brunch, because you can do most of the work ahead of time, even the night before.

Salmon, Tomato and Feta Pie with Potato Crust

I'm thinking this is a great idea for Father's Day this weekend. I can make everything on Saturday. Then while my deserving husband lounges in his pajamas and sets up the television, radio and computer for his full media coverage of a White Sox game (it's a sight you'd have to see to believe), I can casually throw together this full flavored dish in a few minutes. I'll employ the kids to set the table and toast some bread, throw together a salad and I'll be out of the kitchen so fast my coffee will still be hot.

I've served this before at a Luncheon and my favorite thing is how I can serve an elegant looking and tasting dish without missing out on the fun at the table. It's also an easy crowd pleaser or can be served in small sizes as a starter. Oh, I could go on and on, but you can probably think of some good ideas for this too, right? RECIPE: Salmon, Tomato & Feta Pie with Potato Crust

4 eggs
1/2 cup Milk
1 tsp Dill Weed
1/2 tsp Celery Salt
pinch Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tomato (chopped)
2 cups Caramelized Potatoes and Onions (recipe below)
1 Seared Salmon Fillet (recipe below)
6-8 oz. Crumbled Feta Cheese
salt/pepper

1) In a bowl, whisk the egg, milk, dill weed, celery salt & red pepper flakes together. Then add the chopped tomato.2) Butter or oil the bottom of a Medium (about 6x9") baking dish, then fill the bottom with cooked potatoes & onions. Press slightly to seal the bottom.3) Flake the seared salmon fillet and sprinkle it evenly over the potatoes. Then pour in the egg mixture. Lastly, sprinkle over the Feta Cheese and salt/pepper to taste.4) Place in a preheated 375F oven for about 25 minutes, or until set as you like it. This can be served warm or chilled.


RECIPE: Caramelized Potatoes and Onions

2 Potatoes (peeled and sliced thin)
1/2 Onion (sliced thin)
salt/pepper
2 Tbls. butter (plus more as needed)
2 Tbls. Olive Oil (plus more as needed)

1) In a skillet on low/med heat, cook the onions (seasoned with salt & pepper) in the butter and oil until they are slightly caramel colored (about 10-15 minutes).

2) Add the potatoes and increase the heat to Med/High. Cook, flipping the potatoes over, until they are tender (about 15 minutes.) Cool and hold til needed or eat and enjoy.

RECIPE: Skillet Seared Salmon Fillet

1 Fresh Boneless Salmon Fillet
1 Tbls. Butter
2 Tbls. Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper

1) Season the fillet on both sides.
2) Heat a skillet with the butter and olive oil over Med/High heat until the fats are hot.
3) Place the salmon, skin side down, into the hot skillet and let sear on one side for about 3-5 minutes. Turn over and sear the other side for about 2-3 minutes.
4) Reduce the heat to Low/Med and continue to cook the Salmon til done (about 2-3 more minutes.) Cool and hold in Refrigerator for a few hours or overnight to use in another dish, or eat and enjoy.

Avocado, Grapefruit, Shrimp Tartine

Yes, maybe I did put on a couple of pounds over the holidays (aka: Halloween through Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Christmas and New Years.) But, as the proverbial optimist, I choose to see it as an opportunity to Develop Interesting Eating Tendencies (aka: D.I.E.T, shhhhh.)

Avocado, Grapefruit, Shrimp Tartine

Just because I'm not eating my weight in Chocolate Marshmallow Santas for lunch anymore, doesn't mean it can't be exciting, colorful and packed with flavor. This past week I read an interesting article at NaturalFoods.com about water based foods that actually help make us feel full and in some cases actually use more calories to digest than they leave behind...well...on my behind.

Grapefruits are one of those miracle fruits that have tons of Vitamin C, Fiber, Antioxidants, Folic Acid, Potassium AND burn fat. It's like eating a little treadmill (aka: "treadmeal" ). When I was growing up, my grandmother used to serve Grapefruit in the morning with a spiked spoon (aka: a grapefruit spoon, but what's fun about that word when you're a kid.) She may have demolished the full health effects of the fruit by absolutely smothering it in white sugar. It was yummy, and kept my dentist employed.

How can you get more "health-packed" than with a California Avocado (aka: super fruit/heart fruit and hair shiner)? Add these to spinach (aka: Popeye's muscle serum, and gives you 200% of Daily Vitamin K in every cup), and thin slices of Green Tea poached Pacific Shrimp and you have a new mind, body and spirit sitting on a plate (aka: over stating it, but it's healthy and tasty.)
Layer those fat-buster's on a thin slice of toasted home-made bread (aka: Rachael of FujiMama's 1 hour Bread) and I'm expecting the pounds to start disappearing as I chew (aka: Mama's gettin' a brand new dress.)
This Tartine (aka: open faced sandwich) was inspired for my pals in the Lets Lunch Bunch (aka: a twitter group of friends who have a virtual lunch together almost every month). For January we're all posting healthy options to start the New Year. Click on the links below to see an entire week's worth of tasty and healthy lunch choices from the "Let's Lunch" bloggers around the world. Next month we're posting "Lucky" lunch ideas as a way of celebrating the Chinese New Year. (aka: Join us!)
*thanks for enjoying my little joke on the uses of "aka" :D 

RECIPE: Avocado, Grapefruit, Shrimp Tartine

1 ripe California avocado (sliced thin)
1 grapefruit (peeled and slice sections out, then squeeze grapefruit and save juice for vinaigrette)
Grapefruit Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Toasted bread slices (or dense bread such as pumpernickel or rye)
Doz or so, Large shrimp (cooked and sliced) [see recipe for tea poaching below]
1 bunch baby spinach, or arugula leaves Grapefruit Vinaigrette :
1/4 cup grapefruit juice
1 Tbls. red onion (minced)
1 tsp. lime juice
1 Tbls. honey
1/3 cup olive oil salt/pepper

1) Whisk together the grapefruit juice, lime juice, minced red onion, honey and a pinch of salt and pepper.
2) Drizzle in the olive oil while continuing to whisk constantly until a nice thick vinaigrette is reached. 
TEA POACHED SHRIMP:
1 Dozen Uncooked Large Shrimp
2 cups brewed green tea
1 tsp. fresh ginger (minced)1) In a deep sided pan, bring brewed green tea, 1/2 tsp. minced fresh ginger to just-short-of simmer (approx. 188F).
2) Place the uncooked shrimp into the hot tea and keep just below a simmer while poaching for 5 minutes. Remove the shrimp with a slotted spoon and allow to cool before slicing for the tartine.

This can be made ahead of time and chilled in the refrigerator.

TO ASSEMBLE the Tartine:
1) Drizzle a spoonful of the vinaigrette over the toast
2) Place alternating slices of avocado, grapefruit and shrimp over the toast open-faced
3) Garnish with the greens (maybe some crushed walnut) and another drizzle of the Grapefruit Vinaigrette.

Also for a summer twist - take a look at many other California Avocado recipes here: Join Dine and Dish and Cookin’ Canuck for the California Avocado 4th of July Blast, sponsored by the California Avocado Commission. 

To keep the healthy glow going, see these Let's Lunch healthy recipes:

CowGirl Chef - Mandarin Orange and Arugula Salad with Honey Vinaigrette

Cooking In The Fruit Bowl - Spicy Cauliflower
Free Range Cookies - Mesquite Date Muffins
Dreaming of Pots and Pans - Quinoa with Grilled Veggies
The Kitchen Trials-Frittata (almost)
Hot Curries and Cold Beer - Curried Black Eyed Peas, Brown Rice and Beer

Poaching Perfection - Daring Cooks 12/10

Poached Egg on Grilled Romaine w/ Bacon Vinaigrette

Have you ever poached an egg? I mean poached without a "this will make it look like a poached egg" device? It's much simpler than you think. I warn you; once you do one, it's hard to stop playing with dropping the raw eggs into hot water and watching them become a balloon of golden comfort food.
Jenn and Jill have challenged The Daring Cooks to learn to perfect the technique of poaching an egg. They chose Eggs Benedict recipe from Alton Brown, Oeufs en Meurette from Cooking with Wine by Anne Willan, and Homemade Sundried Tomato & Pine Nut Seitan Sausages (poached) courtesy of Trudy of Veggie num num.

Now, for the grilling - it was done inside the house, in my fav pan: a La Creuset grill pan. No, as much as I'd love to be given a free La Creuset...anything, they did not sponsor this "rave". I just wanted to pass along the pan power. :D I'm sure there are other grill pans that also work well. Basically you just want the pan to be heavy (cast iron) and durable (cast iron) and have the raised grill stripes.

To those of you who may be thinking, "Why would I cook lettuce, why would I purposely make my lettuce soggy?" I offer that grilling greens gives them a nice smokey flavor and they're on the heat just long enough to wilt and create a wonderful mixture of saute and crisp. This is a classic French Bistro Salad, often served with varied greens.
Then, there's the Bacon Vinaigrette - 'nuff said, am I right? There is no wrong time for bacon and eggs. The combo in this dish gives you the balance of buttery eggs that burst into their own sauce, on top of smokey greens with the tangy/sweet/savory bite of bacon and vinaigrette. Top this with a shaved shard of true Parmigiano Reggiano cheese that kicks up a natural salty zing and you have a full meal on a luncheon size plate.

RECIPE: Poached Eggs on Grilled Romaine with Bacon Vinaigrette-

Poaching the Egg-

1) Bring a deep sided sauce or saute pan filled 3/4 with water to a low simmer (not boiling)
2) Add 1 Tbls. vinegar to the water (it helps with keeping the egg together as it cooks).
3) Crack open the egg and drop the raw egg into the water gently (or put the egg into a cup first so you can control the gentle drop).
4) Cook the egg (s) for 3-4 minutes until the whites are set, but the yellow is definitely runny.
5) Remove with a slotted spoon and keep in cold water until ready to reheat and serve.

Bacon Vinaigrette:

3 pieces of bacon
1/2 shallot (minced)
2 Tbls Champagne Vinegar (or white balsamic, or other flavor)
1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1 Tbls Bacon fat (from cooking the bacon)
pepper to taste


1) Fry 3 pieces of bacon in a pan til crisp. Remove the bacon and all but 1 Tbls. of the rendered grease. Chop the bacon into small bits and hold.
2) In a bowl, whisk together well the 1 Tbls. left over bacon fat, shallots, vinegar, mustard, and pepper.
3) Drizzle the Olive oil, whisking constantly until the vinaigrette is emulsified (or holds together and thickened) Set aside for serving.

Grilled Romaine:

1) Wash and dry completely several stalks of Romaine Lettuce.
2) Spray (or wipe) the grilling pan with olive oil and heat on Med/High until hot.
3) Lay the Romaine lettuce leaves out as flat as possible and allow grill marks to show, then remove to a platter for serving as soon as possible.

SERVING:

Reheat the poached eggs by placing them in a bowl of very hot water for just a couple minutes
Lay out the Grilled Romaine, top with a poached egg.
Drizzle the Bacon Vinaigrette over the egg, and sprinkle with the cooked bacon.
Garnish with a thinly shaved piece of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Here are a few tips from the Daring Cooks this month:

 Make sure to use the freshest eggs possible. Farm-fresh eggs will make for the best poached eggs. Old eggs will have a harder time with the whites spreading out all over the place when you place the egg in the water.
 Adding a bit of vinegar or acidic agent to your water will help stabilize the eggs and cook the whites faster, and keeping your water just below boiling point (about 190F) will help keep the fragile eggs from all the boiling bubble action rupturing the eggs. Also make sure to salt your poaching water well.
 The other main key to success is to crack your egg into a small bowl first, taking care not to break the yolk. Then it becomes easy to gently slide the entire egg into the water for the poaching process. Some people will also suggest swirling the poaching liquid into a bit of a vortex before sliding the egg in, in order to help keep the egg whites together. I’ve found it works fine whether or not you do this step.
 A poached egg is done when the whites are fully cooked and the yolk has just started to solidify but is still runny when you cut it open – usually three minutes. It’s ok to go a little longer though depending on your desired firmness. I like mine so the edges of yolks are cooking but the inside is still runny, so I usually let them go 30s longer.
 You can poach eggs ahead of time (about a day). Just immerse them in ice water after poaching, and then keep them in a bowl of water in the fridge. When you are ready to use them, place them in hot (not boiling) water until they are warmed through.

Enjoy and for another easy recipe on Poaching Fish from ShowFoodChef - click HERE.

Spring! Color me Raspberry Pot de Creme

Dear Spring,
What took ya? Maybe it's just me, but winter was such a clingy lit'l rascal this year. I'm so happy to see blossoms and color peeping out of the shadows, sunshine showing up and hanging out a little longer, and baskets of berries jumping into my bag at the Farmer's Market.

Fresh Raspberry Pot de Creme

This is one of the easiest and fastest treats ever. And it can go from an elegant addition to a luncheon (how posh) to a "everyone grab a cup of pudding" kid's party.

If fresh raspberries haven't shown up for you yet, it works great with your frozen ones too.


RECIPE:
1 cup raspberries
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 egg yolks

Pour the milk, cream and raspberries into a saucepan and heat to just before boiling. Cover the pan and let sit for 10" while the raspberries infuse the dairy.
While waiting, whisk the sugar, eggs and egg yolks together in a bowl until light and frothy. Hold.

Reheat the cream and raspberries, stirring to break down the raspberries. Bring to just before a boil and remove, strain carefully into another bowl.

Gradually add the raspberry mixture to the egg mixture, whisking constantly so the eggs don't cook in the warm milk.

Fill ramekins or Pot de Creme pots with the creamy raspberry mixture and place the containers into a deep sided pan. Set up a bain marie: Pour boiling water carefully around the ramekins in the baking pan, just to about half way to the filled ramekins.

Place in an oven preheated to 350 for 30". Let the ramekins cool in the water, remove and chill for at least 2-3 hours in the refrigerator.

Garnish with extra raspberries, or dollops of whipped cream.

*Optionally stir in a Tbls of Chambourd to the cream mixture just before pouring into the ramekins or pots for cooking.

These keep for a couple days in the fridge, which makes them a wonderful "make-ahead" dessert.

Quote from hubby - "Yeah, they're little so you can eat more than one, right?"
Do you have a favorite easy spring sweet? I'd love to try it, too. Thanks for pausing at my blog.