When the Deadliest Catch first aired, I watched with morbid curiosity as the crews manhandled heavy metal cages. Those cages sometimes swung wildly in the air, smashing against the ship's bulkhead, threatening to hospitalize crew members.
Many times, risking life and limb did not have the hoped for payoff when the cages contained the ocean's odds and ends rather than the prized catch of Alaskan king crab. When luck was with them, a cage would be filled with crabs, their pointed, armored legs poking out at any hand that risked a close encounter.
After that, when I ordered a crab cocktail I had newfound respect for my food. The crab meat might be delicate and sweet, but the effort it took to snatch it from the icy, turbulent ocean was marked by sweat, fear and danger. On so many levels, when I am cooking or about to eat, I am happy to be ignorant of the difficult work it takes to get the food from ocean or farm to my table.
Recently, the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute made it easy for me. They offered to send a box of Alaska seafood for me to prepare and write about. Certainly I had bought, cooked and eaten Alaskan seafood before because it is available from local purveyors big (Ralphs and Gelson's) and small (Malibu Seafood).
Winter
Winter
This Creamy Mushroom Chestnut Soup Is Like a Best Friend
Mushroom soup should be like a good friend -- there for you when you need it, full of understanding and comfort, and spicy enough to make you laugh. Consider this Creamy Mushroom Chestnut Soup a best friend.
We met rather informally last fall in my kitchen while I was entertaining a number of other friends including tender red bliss potatoes, earthy chestnuts, and aromatic sage. We liked each other instantly, and our friendship has continued to grow.
Meaty, smoky chestnuts and savory fresh herbs add depth to an otherwise ordinary, creamy mushroom soup. Use bottled, dried, or -- if you're up for the challenge -- freshly roasted chestnuts. For a richer soup, I suggest using cream; 2% milk is best if you're looking to save calories.
I'm not a possessive person, so I'd like to introduce you to her. She'll be one of the truest friends you've ever had.
Holiday Oysters
Everyone has an event that ignites the holiday spirit. Maybe it’s a family outing to cut down a tree or baking spicy, fragrant cookies but for me it’s that annual telephone call a week in advance and the magical ride to Glidden Point Oyster Farm in Edgecomb, Maine.
The phone call and the ride is the start of the holiday season for me, it’s even better then listening to Handel’s Messiah. I order plenty to last from Christmas Eve through New Years Eve, and I serve them in copious quantities.
Barb Scully, the owner of the oyster farm, dives 40 foot deep into the ‘brisk’ water of the Damariscotta River in front of her business/home-that is her description. I should add that the brackish water is almost frozen by Christmas and she generally stops diving for oysters by the 25th, closing her operation down for a few months.
She is a skinny, short-haired woman with pasty white skin and a constant indentation circling her face from her diver’s wet suit. She has a rather abrupt manner to her, but boy, are her oysters the Rolls Royce of shellfish. When I get them they are barely hours old and she dives for the big ones, especially for me. I’ll eat little oysters if I have to but I prefer the older, jumbo ones - luncheon plate size.
Hearty Rotisserie Chicken Soup with Pasta Shells, Tomatoes, and Zucchini
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There’s nothing better than hearty soups during the winter months. When I don’t have time for long simmering stews, I like to turn to this recipe for a super fast soup with lots of flavor. It’s worth using homemade chicken stock, but if you don’t have it on hand, store bought low-sodium broth will do.
Heat oil (or chicken fat) over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, carrots, celery, and zucchini; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add thyme and tomatoes and sauté for 1 minute. Add chicken stock and shredded chicken; simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors meld, 10 to 15 minutes. Add shells and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings, stir in basil, and serve with parmesan cheese on the side. – Recipe courtesy of Cook Like James |
Allowing Citrus to Add Sunshine
From the New York Times
Good citrus can almost make you glad it’s winter. When it’s in season — that’s now — it’s equal or superior to anything else you can buy in the plant kingdom. Any way you can devise to eat it, you’re taking advantage of something at its peak.
This citrus salad requires only that you overcome the notion that salads must be green; it’s a novel and wonderful antidote to sorry-looking lettuce.
If you’re lucky and can find blood oranges, use them; same with the odd, supremely delicious and usually quite pricey pomelos.
The idea is a combination of grapefruit (I like pink), oranges (navels, though common, are still terrific) and tangerines or clementines: pretty much any citrus fruit that’s more sweet than sour.
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