GREEN IS GOOD

Wednesday, October 5, 2005

Mom, look! Do you see all of those green things on my plate? I ate them, every one.

I used to not like vegetables. Especially green ones. There's a semi-famous story in my family that involves me at the dinner table refusing to eat my green beans, claiming I would be sick if I did. Like all good parents would, mine did not buy that plea, and forced me to eat them anyway. And I threw up. On the table, or so the story goes. My mom still claims I willed myself to do it. Of course, this is the same woman who doesn't believe in medication of any sort; once when my brother was home with a severe toothache, he had to take some Midol we found in my sister's purse. It was that or whiskey.

Medication or not, I have learned to like green vegetables. Or at least some of them, if they're cooked the right way. These two, lemony spinach and parmesan zucchini, are pretty unobtrusive as green vegetables go, and they complement this buttery lemon catfish dish quite nicely. The catfish recipe comes from Come On In!, which I received as a wedding gift from four separate people. Obviously, it was meant to be a staple in my collection. The zucchini is Ina Garten's, from Barefoot Contessa Family Style, and it remains one of my favorite ways to prepare this abundant vegetable. The spinach is the basis for the spinach pie filling later in the week, but it is also good by itself. Additionally, Eileen in the wine department at Calandro's recommended a buttery Chardonnay to accompany this meal, and as usual she was right on target. The Mark West Chardonnay from Sonoma was a perfect match for the subtle citrus and butter flavors of this meal.

Crunch Catfish with Lemon Butter Sauce

4 thin catfish fillets

2 eggs, beaten

2 T. water

1 cup butter-flavored crackers, crushed

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 T. Greek seasoning

2 T. butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Mix the eggs and water in a shallow bowl. Combine the crackers, cheese, and seasoning on a plate. Dredge the fillets in the eggs and then coat with the cracker mixture. Place in a greased casserole, and drizzle with the melted butter. Bake for about 30 minutes.

For the sauce:

1/2 stick butter

Juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup green onions, sliced

Salt and pepper

Melt the butter over low heat; add the green onions and juice. Season to taste, and simmer for a few minutes. Serve over the fish.

--From Come On In! by the Junior League of Jackson, Mississippi, 1991.

Lemony Spinach

3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

Juice of 1 lemon

3 cups fresh spinach leaves

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Saute the garlic slices in olive oil over medium heat. Add the spinach, a handful at a time, stirring until it wilts. Keep adding it until it is all wilted. Add lemon juice and season well with salt and pepper. Reserve any extra for the spinach pie later in the week; if you know you're going to make it, you can even double this recipe and be a step ahead.

Zucchini with Parmesan Cheese

1 yellow onion, diced

2 medium zucchini, sliced and quartered

Butter and olive oil, 1 T. each

Salt and pepper

Freshly grated parmesan cheese

Cook the onions in butter and oil over medium heat until the onions begin to brown. Add the zucchini slices in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. You want them to brown on both sides, which they won't do if you put too many of them in the skillet like I did. Sprinkle with lots of Parmesan cheese when they finish cooking, and serve with more on top. Serve this meal with a nice, buttery Chardonnay, and enjoy eating your green vegetables.

--From Barefoot Contessa Family Style by Ina Garten, 2002.

PURPLE PASTA?

Tuesday, October 4, 2005

I did not know this pasta would turn out to be purple. The recipe, graciously sent to me by Jonathan, a kind reader in Florida, calls for a specific kind of gorgonzola cheese (dolce or Saga Blue), and I could only find the already-crumbled inexpensive kind. Perhaps there is a difference. Or maybe it's the ham I added. At any rate, don't let the color dissuade you from making it--it is quick, easy, and the sauce is smooth and delicious. Even if it is purple.

Penne with Gorgonzola and Walnuts

1 pound penne, with ridges

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup ham, diced

2 shallots, chopped

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped finely

8 ounces Gorgonzola cheese

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/8 tsp. nutmeg

2 ounces Parmesan, plus more for garnish

Cook the pasta in boiling water until firm but tender. In a large skillet, heat the butter and oil. Add the ham, shallots, and walnuts, and cook over medium until the ham begins to brown and the shallots become tender and translucent. Add milk, cream, and gorgonzola, and stir and cook until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low, add the nutmeg and Parmesan, and toss with cooked pasta. Top with more Parmesan. Oh, and Jonathan's recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of fresh sage, thinly sliced to be cooked with the ham and shallots. I didn't have any, but I bet it would add a nice herbal flavor to the dish. Thanks for the recipe, Jonathan!

DINNER IN A FLASH

Monday, October 3, 2005

Things are getting really busy at school--a stack of papers to grade, a presentation to prepare, reading, reading, reading, etc., and David and I made a quick jaunt to Jackson this weekend to see Jerrod and Jessie and the new baby (click here for a really cute picture of David holding him). All that to say, I'm fixing more and more dinners that can be ready on the fly (and probably these posts are going to ramble less and less).

For my busiest weeks, the formula is usually: salad, pasta, pizza, a meat dish, and something else that could use up leftovers. For this week, my pasta and salad center around gorgonzola cheese, and the phyllo spinach pie uses up all the leftover spinach from the one main-dish-and-sides night. Most all of these meals can be prepared in less than an hour, and good food that's also quick makes me happy when life is busy.

This Cobb Salad is a great example of a simple, fresh meal in not a lot of time. I am averse to salad dressings that come in a bottle, so I make my own (which takes about 2 minutes), but other than that, a little chopping, and this meal is ready.

Here's what you'll need for 2 salads:

Baby spinach leaves

Sliced ham

1 avocado, sliced

1 plum or Roma tomato, chopped

2 green onions, chopped

2 ounces blue cheese (I used gorgonzola)

Arrange the spinach on the plates. Top with everything else, arranging each ingredient in its own little stripe. Drizzle with Blue Cheese Dressing.

Here's how to make that:

1 clove garlic

1/4 cup mayonnaise, homemade if you've got it

1/4 cup plain nonfat yogurt

Juice of half a lemon

2 ounces blue cheese (again, gorgonzola for me)

Add the garlic clove to the food processor with the motor running; when it's minced, add everything else.

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