Tilapia with Avocado and Tomato Relish

Posted on September 22, 2008 by Michie

I was raised on Mrs. Pauls Fish Sticks, white salted cod, canned tuna, canned salmon (with those nasty little bones), and the occasional bit of fried shrimp.  It was meat and potatoes..we had beef, chicken and pork — fish wasn’t really on the menu.  So fish, and seafood were more foreign to me than anything when I first started really cooking.

I clearly remember the first time I had “fish” when I moved to New York.  It was grilled Mako Shark, with a butter filled with herbs drizzled over it.  It was fantastic.  I ate every morsel, and, if I had not been in a restaurant, I might have licked the plate ;) At different restaurants, over the years, I tried salmon, haddock, fresh tuna, halibut, fresh shrimp, and on and on.

But I was almost afraid to try and cook fish myself.  It was one thing to eat it out at a restaurant, where it was prepared properly, and tasted like it was supposed to, it was another thing to do it myself — I didn’t really know where to start.  I first fried it, thinking I couldn’t mess that up too much — and I bought a piece of some fish the fish monger at my local market recommended to me. But this piece of fish was in the class I call  “mushy” fish.  Mushy fish is fish that is too soft for me — it’s like really wet bread, with a fish flavor to it, and, makes me gag.

I stuck with the basic “meaty” fish for a long time — salmon, shark, tuna, halibut, etc.  But I started to experiment with different fish, and different seafood a few years back, and have enjoyed it immensely.

I discovered what kinds of fish I really do like — and they all, for the most part, tend to be “meaty”, as I mentioned above.  But some, like the local version of tilapia that I get, is delicately flavored, yet still has a firm texture to it, which I can handle quite well. Once I felt that I could actually cook fish, I started to try different recipes and different types of fish and seafood. It’s been a fun adventure, and one I look forward to learning more about as time goes on.

The following recipe for baked tilapia was given to me by Mark, a friend of mine who thinks fish should be served 5x a week.. minimum.  This is one of his favorite ways to eat it.  The tilapia can be substituted with your favorite type of fish.

The relish recipe isn’t really a relish, but more like one of my favorite meals ;)  It’s really great served on the tilapia, though, and so is included here as well.

Enjoy!

Baked Tilapia

6 tilapia fillets
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat the oven to 375F.

Rinse and pat dry the tilapia.

Mix the oil with the garlic powder, pepper, basil and salt, and brush both sides of the fish.  Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet (or use a baking sheet lined with parchment paper).

Bake for 6-8 minutes, until the fish is flaky and done.

Tomato and Avocado Relish

3 tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 avocados, peeled, seeded, and diced
1 1/2 tablespoon oil, preferably olive oil
salt and pepper to taste.

Prep the tomatoes and avocados.  Place the tomato and avocado into a medium bowl, adding the oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mix together well.

Serve the relish over the fish.

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Baked Cinnamon Apple Pancakes with Warm Apple Cider Syrup

Posted on September 20, 2008 by Michie

Yes.. Yes.. You guessed it — Another apple recipe.  But I simply cannot resist.  It’s apple season, already!!! Live with it!!!!

This recipe is one I got from a bed and breakfast — Sunshines Bed and Breakfast —  in upstate New York, about 10 years ago.  The b&b was lovely — a huge house, with 3 smaller cabins, on about 40 acres.  It had this lovely lake, with the most beautiful swans — I wanted to stay forever.   The woman who ran the b&b served breakfast one morning by the lake, and this is what we had — They were tender, delicious and just freaking amazing.  Best of all, she had no problem sharing the recipe, as it is one she received from a fellow b&b owner.  I have no idea where the recipe originated, but I do know that it is simply fantastic.

She served the pancakes with maple syrup, but to me that just never seemed quite right.  The maple syrup overshadowed the apples.  So, I started playing around with different syrups, and finally came up with the one that is here.  I really enjoy apples, and being able to use them in as many was as possible.  The syrup was just one more way for me to utilize the bushels of apples I always have in the Autumn.  You can use it on regular pancakes as well.  Or, use it on ice cream.. or bread pudding.. or apple bread…or spread on toast.. it’s almost endless what you can use it for.

Baked Cinnamon Apple Pancakes with Warm Apple Cider Syrup

4 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/16 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
4 Tablespoons melted butter, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 medium apples *See Note

Combine the eggs, flour, 1 tablespoon of sugar, baking powder, salt and the milk in a bowl, and mix until smooth.  Add in 2 tablespoons of melted butter, vanilla and the nutmeg.  Allow to sit overnight in the refrigerator. (Or, if you are like me, let it sit on the counter for about 45 minutes before using).

The next morning, (or 45 minutes later), heat the oven to 425F.  Melt the remaining butter in a large (10-12 inch) ovenproof skillet.  Spread the butter all over the pan, including the sides, and then remove from the heat.

Next, mix the sugar, cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg.  Sprinkle about 1/2 of this mixture over the butter in the skillet.

Peel, core and thinly slice the apples, and layer the slices over the butter/sugar in the skillet.  Overlap if necessary, but try to keep the layers pretty thin.

Return the skillet to the stove, and over medium-high heat, cook just until you start to see small bubbles.  Pour the patter slowly over the apples.  If you pour it too fast, the apples will become unseated and move around.  You want the apples to be as evenly spread out as possible for more tasty goodness.

Move the skillet to the oven and bake for 15 minutes, reducing the heat after 15 minutes to 375, and then bake for another 10 minutes.

Serve with Warm Apple Cider Syrup (recipe here), or just sprinkle with confectioners (10x or icing sugar), and serve immediately.

Notes:

You can use 1 large apple in place of 2 medium apples.  I just like the 2 medium apples, because then I use 2 different types of apples.

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Warm Apple Cider Syrup

Posted on September 20, 2008 by Michie

To go with.. well, anything you can think of, really, but this recipe was posted to go along with the Baked Cinnamon Apple Pancakes.

Warm Apple Cider Syrup

3/4 cup, plus 2 teaspoons of apple cider
1/2 cup honey
2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped
1 teaspoons cornstarch.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 3/4 cup of apple cider, honey and the apples, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Reduce the heat to low, place a cover on the sauce pan, and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the apples are nicely fork-tender.

In a bowl, mix the cornstarch and the 2 teaspoons of apple cider in a small bowl. Remove the apple mixture from the heat, and add in the cornstarch, stirring all the while.  Return the saucepan to the heat, and cook until the mix is slightly thickened.

Notes:

Of course, the simplest apple syrup you can make goes like this

4 cups of juice or cider

Place juice or cider in a sauce pan, and simmer until it reduces to 1/2 cup.

The end.

Simple, easy, and though not as thick as you might like, amazingly tasty.

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Official New York State Apple Muffin

Posted on September 19, 2008 by Michie

Woot!! More apple goodness!!  As I said in the last post, it’s Autumn, and apples are everywhere, especially here in New York.  Any market, be it a super-market, a small local market, or the farmers markets are full of dozens of different kinds of apples, everything from Gala to Jonathan and Golden Delicious ..and everything inbetween.

With the abundance of apples, I went through all my recipes, and though I will post some of my own as the season progresses, I found this recipe — The Official New York State Apple Muffin — in the files.  The subheading states: “The apple muffin was adopted as the State muffin in 1987 as a result of the efforts of elementary students throughout New York State.” I actually recall making this recipe with my son when he was in 3rd grade, at the school with his classmates.   It’s a good recipe, and as muffin recipes go, simple to do.

I am making these tomorrow, again with my son — he’s in 9th grade now — and I know we’ll have fun making them, and even more fun eating them.  Knowing him, these won’t last too long, either ;)

Apple muffins cooling on a rack

Official New York State Apple Muffin

For the Topping:
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon peel, grated
2 tablespoons melted butter.

For the Muffins:
1 cups New York State Empire Apples, peeled, cored and chopped
2 cups flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup walnuts
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup butter, melted
4 ounces cream cheese, softened and cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:
Combine the ingredints for the topping and set aside.

Muffins:
Combine apples, raisins, walnuts, eggs, butter, cream cheese, and vanilla.

Add in the dry ingredients a little at a time to the apple mixture.  Stir until just combined.  Do not over mix.

Portion the batter into lightly greased and floured muffin tins, (or use muffin papers).  Sprinkle the muffins with the topping, and bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes.

This recipe makes about 2 dozen muffins.

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Autumn Hot Spiced Mulled Apple Cider

Posted on September 17, 2008 by Michie

Autumn is here and it’s time for apples, and apple cider.  This is one of my very favorite times of the year, and this recipe gets served in my house from about now, until Christmas.  Cool Autumn weekends, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas – they just are not complete without mulled cider.

Below is the version of mulled cider that I have used a lot over the years.  The nice thing about this recipe is that you can leave out ingredients you might not have on hand, and it still comes out pretty well.  The only thing that is really necessary is the cider, cloves and cinnamon.  And even then, if you don’t have cloves, you can leave that out, too.

I like to serve this just as is – in good sized mug – one that isn’t too big, or too small.  Once it is strained to remove the spices, you can put it into a thermos and take it with you on Halloween, or while cutting down your Christmas tree.

This can be made, and then re-heated easily.  Just pour into a pitcher, or a serving container of some sort and refrigerate.  Either warm in a pot on the stove, or a mug in the microwave.

applecider

Autumn Hot Spiced Mulled Cider

1 gallon Apple Cider
12 Whole Cloves
2-3 cinnamon sticks
2 whole nutmeg
2 chunks crystallized ginger
1/2 lemon, sliced
1 tablespoon honey

Add Cider, clove and cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger to a large pot. Slice lemon into wedges, remove the seeds, and add them to pot.  Add honey.

Stir to combine and begin simmering, stirring occasionally.  You can simmer this for 10 minutes to 2 hours.  The longer (up to 2 hours) you simmer this, the better the flavors meld. Strain the cider before serving.

Alternatively, put cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and lemon in a tied cheesecloth bag and no straining is necessary.  Stir often so the flavors mix with the cider.

For the adults, add a splash of rum or bourbon when serving.

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Tortilla Cinnamon Crisps

Posted on September 10, 2008 by Michie

Yesterday I wrote about making deep fried tacos.  When ever I do this, I always make Tortilla Cinnamon Crisps.

I hardly ever deep fry anything, so when I make the tacos, I always make Tortilla Cinnamon Crisps with the leftover tortillas.

These were always available at the Mexican restaurants I grew up with — as a dessert or as a snack.  Even Taco Bell has something similar, though I don’t think they use tortillas, but some sort of light, fried dough, iirc.

These are great on their own, but so good with vanilla ice cream, or served with baked apples.

Tortilla Cinnamon Crisps

2-3 Tortillas, cut into strips
2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
1/2 cup Sugar
Hot oil for frying

Slice the tortillas in strip.  If they are too long for your pot, cut them in  half.

Heat the oil, and fry the tortilla pieces, until golden brown on  both sides.  Flip once during frying.  Remove from the hot oil, drain for a second or two, and then immediately put into the cinnamon/sugar mixture.  Cover and remove to plate. 

Serve hot, warm, or room temp. 

Notes:

  • These are fine left over for another day – just allow to cool, and then place in a tightly sealed bag or container.
  • Serve on their own, with Vanilla Ice cream, baked apples, hot chocolate..the options are endless.
  • If you slice the tortillas in a pretty design — an ‘s’ shape, for example, they look lovely served next to a nicely plated dessert.  I served these once with a baked apple, directly in the middle of a wide, shallow dish, with a scoop of ice cream, and the crisps pushed into the ice cream, with a drizzle of hot caramel.  Absolutely yummy.
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