Grilled Halibut and Kale Pesto Pasta.

Hello everyone! Here is a very tasty dish for your summer grilling.   

This delicious Grilled Halibut with Lemon-Caper Wine Sauce and Pasta with Kale and Walnut Pesto are company-worthy recipes but also an easy and delicious meal to make any time you can find halibut available at a reasonable price.

My husband and I were lucky enough to find halibut again in the fish case at our local market just last week.  We like to grill fish on the flat side of a cast iron griddle so that we don't loose any fish that flakes apart and falls through the grates.  The griddle has saved many a tasty morsel! 

I don't know how I first came across the recipe for kale and walnut pesto, but it was probably one the best new recipes I tried this year.  My personal twist on the recipe was adding some chopped garlic scapes from the garlic that I grew for the first time this season but you can simply add a clove of regular garlic. Thank you to Monique for the encouragement to grow garlic! I can't believe it will be time to plant garlic again next month! Time to scope out the local garlic sold at the farmers markets, which is the best to use for growing your own garlic. 

I want to thank everyone for your wonderful comments on my last post when I announced that I had broken my wrist! Also, many thanks for the wonderful emails, cards and care packages! Each and every one meant so much to me.

Until next time!

Grilled Halibut with Lemon-Caper Wine Sauce

Printable Recipe

Serves 4

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel (use organic, if possible)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil (divided)
2 teaspoons drained capers, coarsely chopped
4 halibut filets, about 6-8 ounces, cut from the thick end for even grilling

Whisk together lemon juice, lemon peel, olive oil, wine and garlic in small bowl. Stir in 2 tablespoons fresh basil and capers. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let stand at room temperature until ready to use. Vinaigrette can be made 1 hour in advance.

Pat fish dry with paper toweling and brush about 1 tablespoon of the vinaigrette.

Place a cast iron griddle on top of the grill grates with flat side facing up. Heat grill with cover closed to medium-high for about 10-12 minutes. When ready to grill fish, spray griddle with non-stick cooking spray. You may also broil the fish.

Grill (or broil) halibut for about 3-1/2 minutes per side until just barely cooked through (fish will continue to cook after removing from grill. Watch carefully as halibut can become dry when cooked too long. Transfer fish to a platter and tent lightly with foil. Note: If your fish comes with skin attached, grill the skin side first and remove skin with tongs before flipping over to other side, if desired.

Whisk remaining vinaigrette and pour over fish. Sprinkle with remaining tablespoon of basil and serve.

Adapted from Epicurious

Pasta with Kale and Walnut Pesto

Printable Recipe

Yield: 1 cup pesto

1/3 cup walnuts
3 cups chopped organic kale, thick stems and veins removed (you could also use arugula)
1 clove of minced garlic – or 1 tablespoon of chopped garlic scape, if available
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (divided)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound of pasta of your choice
½ cup of pasta cooking water, reserved

Toast the walnuts in a preheated 350F degree oven until lightly browned and fragrant – about 5-7 minutes. Cool completely.

In a food processor with steel blade, pulse the walnuts until finely ground.

Add the kale, garlic (or chopped garlic scapes) and 1/4 teaspoon salt and pulse until finely chopped.

Add ½ cup grated Parmesan and pulse to combine.

Slowly pour in the olive oil, pulsing to incorporate. Transfer the pesto to a bowl. This will yield about 1 cup of pesto. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Remove ½ cup of the cooking liquid before draining.

Add cooked pasta to a large bowl and add kale pesto to taste (roughly 1/2 cup per pound of pasta).

Add additional grated Parmesan to taste and enough reserved pasta cooking water to make a creamy sauce.

Serve immediately.

Adapted from Food Network

Clam, Halibut and Sweet Corn Chowder

If you enjoy clam chowder, I think you will love this recipe! We are so fortunate to have friends who love to cook and enjoy finding new recipes to prepare for and share with each other.  On one such occasion, we were served this delicious chowder. 

I enjoyed it so much, I couldn't wait to make it myself. Our friend gladly shared the recipe and her adaptations, which I am sharing with you.  This is a perfect, late summer/early fall chowder.  Sweet corn season is nearing its end here, so if you can't get fresh sweet corn at the farmers' market any longer, it's okay to use the sweet corn from your grocer.

When our friend made this for us, she didn't use the fish called for in the recipe but used a larger quantity of clams.  When I made it at home I tried it with the addition of halibut filets and it was wonderful!

Clam, Halibut and Sweet Corn Chowder

Adapted from Chef Adam Zimmerman, Sepia (Chicago)
Printable Recipe

Serves 4

Clam juice – about 1 quart
8 ears sweet corn, shucked and kernels removed, saving cobs (divide kernels in half)
2 leeks, white part only, diced (divided in half)
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced (divided in half)
3 stalks celery, peeled and diced (divided in half)
1 medium onions, peeled and diced (divided in half)
4 sprigs fresh thyme (divided)
1 bay leaf

1 1/2 lbs small red or Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled and cut to the size of the pearl onions
16 peeled pearl onions
2 cups heavy cream, reduced to 1 cup
4 strips of bacon, cut into 1” pieces (can be omitted, if desired)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Salt and fresh ground black pepper
4 each 5-ounce skinless halibut or cod filets
12 little neck clams, scrubbed
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup chopped parsley for garnish

In an 8-quart stock pot combine the remaining 1/2 of kernels with 10 of the corn cobs, half of the diced leek, and half of the celery, carrots and onions, as well as 2 sprigs of thyme and the bay leaf. Add the clam juice then add enough water to cover by about 2 inches and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Strain the corn stock and discard the solids.

Wash out the stock pot and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Over medium heat add the bacon and cook until rendered and lightly golden brown. Remove the bacon and drain on a paper towel. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat/olive oil mixture and add the reserved leeks, onions, carrots, celery and corn kernels. Add a pinch of salt and sweat until the vegetables are just beginning to get tender. Add the corn stock and the remaining thyme. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the potatoes, pearl onions, and cream. Simmer until the potatoes are tender. Add the clams and continue to cook just until the clams open. Add the chopped parsley and the reserved bacon (if using) and taste. Add salt and pepper as needed.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Season the halibut or cod with salt and pepper.  Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and fish. Sear the fish about 4 minutes per side until just cooked through. 

To serve, place a ladle-full of chowder and vegetables into each serving bowl. Add some of the chowder broth and top with a filet of halibut or cod.

Garnish with chopped parsley, reserved cooked bacon and serve with a crusty baguette.

Note:  Can be made without the fish filets - double the amount of clams.

Grilled Shrimp and Halibut with Herb and Dijon Marinade

When the weather is hot as it has been here most of this summer, seafood is a welcomed alternative to the usual suspects on the grill and is lighter on the eyes and the stomach when it's 90F+ degrees.  Since we host our gourmet group for an al fresco dinner on our patio during the summer, the menu always includes something prepared on the grill. This year, we decided it should be seafood.

One of our favorite restaurants offers the most delicious halibut preparation but I was concerned that halibut might be too delicate for the grill.  We experimented with various firmer-fleshed fish but nothing offered the mild and flaky taste of halibut that I love. Trial and error, three difference marinades and sauces, and we finally achieved gourmet-worthy success! 

The marinade and finishing butter I used were a adaptation and combination of two different Pierre Franey grilled shrimp recipes from his iconic 60 Minute Gourmet which was a collection of recipes that he wrote during the late 1980s and early 1990s for the New York Times.  Both sauces are loaded with fresh herbs from the garden and perfectly balanced for both the shrimp and halibut. I added a few additional spices that we enjoy with grilled shrimp. The seafood was marinated for about 4 hours and then basted with the marinade several times during grilling.

Since most of the halibut purchased here has the skin on, the fish held up very well on the grill using a fish grate and very large turning spatula.  We pulled the skin off after grilling and before plating.

You could serve the seafood right off the grill using only the marinade sauce but, for gourmet, we used a finishing herb butter drizzled over the hot, grilled seafood just before plating and we passed extra herb butter at the table.

This is going to be one of our favorite summer recipes!

(Stayed tuned for the dessert recipe from our gourmet dinner coming soon.)

Grilled Shrimp and Halibut with Herb an Dijon Marinade

Adapted from two different Pierre Franey's 60 Minute Gourmet
Printable Recipe

4 servings

20 jumbo shrimp, about 2 pounds, shelled and deveined
4 6-oz fresh halibut filets

1 1/2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped shallots
4 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh basil
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Herb butter (see recipe). May be prepared in advance and reheated gently.

Grill rack for grill is advisable.

Combine garlic, shallots, mustard, wine, lemon juice, olive oil, basil and spices in a bowl. Stir to blend. Place shrimp in a bowl and half of marinade. Stir to coat. Place halibut in a large, shallow dish and spoon the other half of the marinade over the fish, rubbing to coat. Cover and refrigerate seafood for a few hours.

Preheat outdoor grill or oven broiler to high.

Arrange 5 shrimp on each of 4 skewers*, reserving marinade.

Oil grill rack. Place the halibut on one half of the grill, skin side down, and cook for 4 minutes basting with reserved marinade.. Flip and cook for another 4 minutes. Baste again. Place the shrimp skewers on the other half of grill and cook 2-2-1/2 minutes per side, basting each side with marinade.

Place shrimp and halibut on a large platter and drizzle herb butter over all. Serve immediately.

Herb Butter Sauce:

1/4 cup minced shallots
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup heavy cream
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives

Combine the shallots and the wine in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until the wine has almost evaporated. Add the cream and reduce by half. Add the butter quickly, one tablespoon at a time, whisking constantly. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the salt, pepper and herbs.

*Note:  Skewers for the shrimp aren't needed if you are only grilling a few shrimp at a time.

Seared Halibut with Garden Tomato-Caper Sauce

I'm back! I was MIA last week because my husband and I were in the Dallas area for a wedding in the town of McKinney, Texas last weekend. McKinney is quaint, friendly, historic and absolutely charming. We enjoyed picture-perfect weather and thoroughly enjoyed our the time we spent in Texas. 

Today, I'm sharing a dish that I made just before we left for Texas.  I've been on a mission to eat lighter and specifically more fish.  Halibut, salmon and trout are my three favorite types of fish. I adapted this recipe from one I found on in the New York Times online.

 

The recipe calls for plum tomatoes and this year I grew my own San Marzanos. I've been freezing them whole as they ripen to use in recipes like this. I am thrilled to still have fresh herbs growing in containers which were also used.  

Seared Halibut with Tomato Caper Sauce

Adapted from The New York Times
Printable Recipe

Serves 2

For the tomato caper sauce:

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
3 plump garlic cloves, minced
1/8 cup capers, drained, rinsed and finely chopped
1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped, or 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice *See Note
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon slivered fresh basil leaves
Optional: Splash of light cream (I used fat free half and half)

*Note: I used frozen, San Marzano tomatoes from my garden. I simply dunked the whole frozen tomatoes into boiling water for about 30 seconds and removed them to a colandar. The skins peeled off easily. I then chopped them without seeding and used all of the collected juices.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat, and add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, three to five minutes, and add the garlic and the capers. Cook, stirring, for three to five minutes, until the onion has softened thoroughly and the mixture is fragrant. Add the tomatoes, lemon juice, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, for 15 to 20 minutes, until the sauce is thick and fragrant. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add about 1/4 cup of light cream and stir. Serve hot or cold.

For the seared halibut:

1 recipe tomato-caper sauce, above
2 6 to 8-ounce halibut fillets
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Make the sauce as directed and keep warm.

Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet (I used cast iron) over medium heat. Pat fish dry with paper towels. Season fish lightly with salt and pepper. Sear fish in preheated skillet 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes with a fork and is opaque throughout. This will depend on the thickness of the fish. Transfer to a serving platter, and keep warm.

Place a large, spoonful of sauce on each plate, and place a piece of fish on top. Top the fish with another spoonful of sauce, garnish with basil and serve.