Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Sauteed Mustard Green "Sandwiches"

One of the many many things I love about being a part of a CSA is the continual challenge to use vegetables that I might not go out and pick up on my own. Cooking greens are one of the many products that have a much greater variety and usability than I ever thought

The basic recipe is here and it is originally from the Moosewood Restaurant New Classics 

I found the directions a bit unclear and, me being me I had to pork it up a bit
The sandwich Pre-Broiler


You will need
4 cups of mustard greens, rinsed and dried
2 cloves garlic, finely minced ( I used 2 whole garlic scapes)
2 Slices chopped bacon ( I used English bacon when  I made these which is more like ham or back bacon, pancetta would be great)
2 cups grated Gouda ( the recipe calls for smoked Gouda, which doesn't melt very well so I used a really nice goats milk Gouda I picked up at the market, any strongly flavored cheese would work)
4 Slices pumpernickel bread
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Turn on your broiler. Heat a couple Tbsp of olive oil in a large pan and cook your pork product of choice until it is crispy. Add your Garlic and saute for 2-3 minutes until it is soft and lightly browned. Meanwhile chop your mustard greens and grate your cheese. Once your bacon is rendered down and crispy add your mustard greens and saute for 4-5 minutes. While the greens are cooking, lightly toast your bread. Lay the bread down on a cookie sheet, top with the cooked greens and cover with the shredded cheese. Put the sandwiches under the broiler and cook for 2-3 minutes until the cheese gets brown and bubbly.

The sharp peppery flavor of the mustard greens is really softened by cooking, and the salty smokiness of the bacon really works well with the nice crispy cheese. You could very easily use the small hors d'oeuvres pumpernickel squares and turn this into a really delicious appetizer

This would be great with a nice dry Riesling.


Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Foil Pouch Cod with Swiss Chard

I made a variation of this over the weekend and it was so good I wanted to try again. Cooking in a foil pouch allows you to do this equally well on the grill (as I did) or in an oven. Cod is a great fish for this method as it handles the heat very well and if you happen to over cook it a bit it still remains quite moist.

You will need

One large cod filet, about an inch to 1.5 inches thick
Half a bunch of  swiss chard
4-5 cloves of garlic
1 small onion
2 stems of tarragon ( I used rosemary the first time it works great)
salt
pepper
olive oil

Lay out a double layer of foil. Slice the onion and garlic and lay them down on the foil in a pile. Add your sprigs of fresh herb. Roughly chop the swiss chard and mound it up in a pile about as long as your fish. A couple inches tall should be perfect. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on kosher salt and pepper. Lay the fish on the top of the pile, sprinkle on some salt and pepper and a bit more olive oil. Seal the foil tightly and cook on a medium grill or in the oven at 400 for about 10-12 minutes.
The fish should be just starting to flak and the chard should be fully wilted.

I really like the Tarragon this time around as it perfumed and lightly flavored the fish with its delicious licoricey goodness. However if you are really averse to it then go ahead and use some rosemary in its place.