Wild Mushroom Salad

Recipe: Wild Mushroom Salad
Page: 78
Date Cooked: February 15, 2012

This recipe somewhat follows a technique I used in a previous recipe, Warm Dandelion, Bacon, and Potato Salad, where you use the hot bacon fat to wilt the greens. In this recipe, you use the warm mushrooms tossed in a vinaigrette to wilt the greens. The fun part of this recipe was looking for wild mushrooms and once I saw them in the store, I knew it was time to pull this recipe out.

Ingredients: Sourdough bread, garlic, rosemary, olive oil, pine nuts, salt, mixed wild mushrooms - shitake and hedgehog, prosciutto, shallot, sherry vinegar, walnut oil, chives, sage leaves, black pepper, mixed torn firm lettuces - endive and romaine, and basil leaves

The first step was to make the garlic croutons. I cut up the sourdough bread into cubes and baked until golden. In the meantime, I minced the garlic. I put the croutons in a bowl and mixed in the rosemary, olive oil, and garlic.

Making garlic croutons

I cleaned the mushrooms and cut them into bite-sized pieces. I put the pine nuts on a baking sheet and toasted them for just a few minutes. Once they were toasted, I poured the pine nuts in a bowl and seasoned with a bit of salt. I also sliced the prosciutto into strips.

1. Cleaned mushrooms 2. Toasted pine nuts with salt 3. Sliced prosciutto 

Then it was on to the vinaigrette...I minced the shallot and put it in a small bowl. I whisked in the sherry vinegar and the walnut oil. The recipe also calls for hazelnut oil - but since I couldn't find any, I simply used double the amount of walnut oil. I then stirred in the chives, sage, and pepper. I also put the lettuces in a large salad bowl and mixed in the basil.

1. Vinaigrette 2. Mixed lettuces with basil

I heated some olive oil in a large skillet until almost smoking. I added the mushrooms and seasoned with salt and pepper. I cooked the mushrooms until they were nice and golden and then quickly added the vinaigrette.

Mushrooms with vinaigrette

I added the mushrooms to the lettuce and tossed. I added the pine nuts, prosciutto, and croutons and mixed it all together. Finally, I seasoned it with some salt and pepper.

Wild Mushroom Salad

This salad was delicious. The crunch of the croutons and pine nuts, the earthiness of the mushrooms, the freshness of the lettuces, and the salt and fat of the prosciutto worked harmoniously. It tasted just as good as it looks. I want to make note of one of the mushrooms I used - the hedgehog mushroom. It smelled amazing. I could not believe the intense amount of flavor that came from this one mushroom. JW mentions really trying to use wild mushrooms for this recipe to get all the flavor of the salad and it makes sense. Overall, a beautiful, delicious salad.

Enjoy!

Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Spicy Clams

Recipe: Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Spicy Clams
Page: 133
Date Cooked: February 6, 2012

There is something about a bowl of pasta that just screams comfort to me. Then, with a bit of seafood mixed in, I am definitely on board. JW speaks wonders about Manila clams in the intro to this recipe. He goes on and on about how sweet and wonderful they are. Unfortunately, these clams are from the Pacific and aren't really available in Central PA. Luckily, in the recipe itself he gives the option of using cherrystone clams. The strange part is the two clam varietals couldn't be more different. Manila clams are small and cherrystone clams are among some of the larger clams. Nonetheless, I hoped it wouldn't take away from the dish.

Ingredients: Cherrystone clams, red tomatoes, yellow tomato, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, garlic, dry white wine, red pepper flakes, dried whole wheat spaghetti, brine-cured black olives, unsalted butter, tarragon leaves, salt, and pepper

While I put some salt water on boil, I starting prepping the other ingredients. I scrubbed and cleaned the clams and put them into the fridge. I coarsely chopped the tomatoes, minced the peppers, and peeled some garlic cloves.

1.Cleaned cherrystone clams 2. Minced bell peppers 3. Chopped tomatoes 4. Peeled garlic cloves

I cooked the spaghetti in the boiling water. I also combined the wine and red pepper flakes in a saucepan and set it to simmer.

Simmering white wine with red pepper flakes

In a Dutch oven, I combined the clams, garlic, and white wine mixture and brought it all to a boil. I cooked it until the clams opened.

Cooking clams

Once the clams opened, I added the butter, tomatoes, peppers, olives, and tarragon to the pan. I brought all the ingredients to a boil and seasoned with salt and pepper. Side note: I ended up taking the clam meat out of the shells, just because the clams were so large.

Clams with tomatoes, peppers, olives, and tarragon

Finally, I drained the pasta and tossed it well with the clam sauce....

Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Spicy Clams

This recipe was a winner. Beautiful colors in the dish - the red and yellow of the peppers and tomatoes, the olives, and the green tarragon. The clam sauce was super flavorful. It was hearty but not heavy. I really enjoyed the dish. Perhaps if I get a chance to get those Manila clams, I will give this recipe another shot. I'm sure I wouldn't mind eating it again.

Enjoy!

Sautéed Monkfish with Spaghetti Squash

Recipe: Sautéed Monkfish with Spaghetti Squash
Page: 205
Date Cooked: January 30, 2012

I walked up to my grocer's seafood counter and indicated that I wanted some monkfish and my fishmonger replied with, "Monkfish, the poor man's lobster." I guess I would have been more intrigued by this statement had it not been the exact opening line of this recipe in JW's A Great American Cook. Never having cooked monkfish or spaghetti squash before, I was excited to see how this recipe would turn out.

Ingredients: Monkfish fillets, salt, pepper, olive oil, spaghetti squash, unsalted butter, lemon, dry white wine, and sage leaves

I sliced the monkfish fillet into equal portions and flattened each portion slightly with the back of my knife. The fillets were then salted and peppered. I put olive oil on a plate and placed the fish on the plate coating each side with the oil. I covered the plate and put it in the fridge.

1. Monkfish fillet in portions 2. Adding salt and pepper 3. Coating fillets with olive oil

Moving on to the spaghetti squash. I cut the squash in half and removed any seeds. I dotted the halves with butter and added salt and pepper. I roasted the squash until it was tender. I then used a large fork to flick out the stands of the roasted squash. And I finally realized why it was called spaghetti squash - the strands really do look like spaghetti, it was kind of fun.

Strands of spaghetti squash

I melted butter in a large skillet until the butter turned a hazelnut color. I added the fish and cooked it for a few minutes on each side and then placed the fish on a baking sheet.

Cooking monkfish

I added white wine to the skillet and reduced the liquid by about half. I then lowered the heat and added the squash, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sage leaves. I cooked the squash for a few minutes and added some salt and pepper as needed.

Cooking the spaghetti squash in a white wine reduction with lemon zest, lemon juice, and sage leaves

When the squash was close to being done, I reheated the monkfish under the broiler for just a few minutes. I formed a nest of squash on a plate and put the monkfish right on top....

Sautéed Monkfish with Spaghetti Squash

There are 9 "Fish" recipes in A Great American Cook. I have now made 4 of the 9 recipes....this is the best fish recipe I have had thus far. It was amazing. I could not get over how freaking delicious the spaghetti squash was. Perfect amount of acidity. Perfect seasoning. Honestly, I have no words for how amazingly good it was. The meaty texture of the monkfish was the right accompaniment. It was so ridiculously simple but the flavor combination was intensely complex. I have to give this recipe rave reviews and there is not a single doubt in my mind that I will make this again. Heck, I wish I had some right now...

Enjoy!