Rainbow Blueberry Salmon

What do crushed pineapple, brown sugar, anaheim chilies, green onion, red grapefruit, limes,  blueberries and chili powder have in common?  They make an amazing salmon entree - so good,  in fact,  that it won an Oregon blueberry  recipe contest some years ago.    I  once served it  as part of a red, white and blue-themed menu for the 4th of July.    It's an incredibly unusual  & good-for-you entree.

1 cup  fresh blueberries
2   salmon filets, 6-8 oz. each
½ fresh ruby red grapefruit  ( I've also  used both  refrigerated sections, and canned section successfully, and find the canned much less expensive  but just as good in the finished product)
½ cup crushed pineapple  -packed in juice, not syrup
Fresh ground black pepper
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 small Anaheim chile  - these are not hot.   They're pointed, curved, lime green , available
        everywhere and they're important  to the  flavor
2 fresh limes
2 tablespoons butter
¾ cup brown sugar  - I use  Brown Sugar Twin or brown Splenda

Generously butter a glass baking dish and spread pineapple in the dish. Sprinkle liberally with fresh ground black pepper. Slice the chile into very thin rings and arrange over the pineapple. Squeeze the juice of two limes over the chile slices, then  slice the limes & place over  the chile, then lay the salmon fillets over the sliced chile  & lime. Peel and trim the grapefruit, and cut it into bite-size chunks and arrange those over the salmon.   Top with  blueberries, sprinkle with brown sugar, and season generously with chili powder. Bake at 425°  till top is bubbly and salmon is opaque.  Serve with all the fruit.. because the pineapple will be tinted slightly blue-ish purple - it's as colorful  a dish as it is flavorful.

Buttered Radishes with Sea Salt

Maybe radishes deserve a little more respect than just hanging out on a relish tray, even dolled up as roses.

Today's garden surveillance revealed radishes just about ready to pick. Understand, I grow them for my husband.  Ordinarily I would not be especially interested in this radish harvest, or any other,  since I don't  like radishes. Not white icicle, not red, not daikon.    Just don't like the peppery taste. Don't try to convert me, this is a lifelong decision.     Raw, at least.

But this summer I'm  enjoying them in a new --and entirely unexpected way I discovered over the winter....... cooked!

It's true that at first I just thought of cooked radishes as a different   way to serve them....to my husband.
He thought they were great.   But I wasn't the least bit tempted to try them even when he mused that they don't  really taste like radishes at all,  and I might  like them.      Nuh-uh.  No thanks,   Not tempted  a bit;  that's how much I dislike radishes. 

Yet, as I was cleaning up after dinner, to my own surprise  I tried a small piece  and  thought it was quite......interesting.....and   tasty.       And not  a bit radish-y.     So I ate all  the pieces that were left.  And enjoyed them.  Imagine that.

You'd be able to identify them of course, if I served them to you. They look like radishes!   But what about blindfolded? I'd say  there'd be no  chance  of guessing what you were eating.  I have no particular  veg to compare the taste to so I'll let you  decide  if their flavor is  totally unique, or whether they remind you of   another garden taste.     I think I'll  serve them to guests sometime as a  good conversation-piece side dish.    "Cooked radishes?  Really?!"

Ready to give it a shot? 

Quarter  or halve red radishes, depending on their size, and saute  5 minutes in a little butter - let them begin to brown a bit.......sprinkle with coarse salt   or   sea salt,  and munch  happily away!  

Really.

Fast Fabulous Korean Steak with Kimchi Fried Rice

                                                                                                                                     
A  great  diversion from ordinary grilled steak, these  popular  Korean street vendor beef strips
will earn rave reviews.  With the  rice, it has become one of our favorite meals,  exceptionally flavorful on all levels  ~~~  and slightly addictive. 

The  thin strips  cook  so  quickly on the grill that you can  feed a crowd  in a flash.  It's best cooked on charcoal  but  any really hot grill will work fine,  & as long as you don't have Korean guests, no one will be any wiser about the missing charcoal flavor.  This recipe  will serve   4-6  people, who will  be  snacking on any  leftover strips  long after dinner's over.  Make a big batch, they're terrific  later in  sandwiches  or on salads.   It does need 90 minutes of marinating time in total.

Cut about  2  lbs flank steak in 1/4 inch  across-the-grain slices.....cut on a slant so they are wider than the piece of beef is high... combine in a large  shallow bowl with  1/4 c sugar. This is not a time to use splenda or  other substitute, as the granular sugar  creates the char/ caramelization.   Toss and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. You could also use  flatiron steak.

Mix 3 green onions, cut in 2" slices & shredded,  2 TB minced fresh garlic,  1/4 c light soy sauce, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 3 TB sesame seeds, 1/8 c peanut ( or canola) oil......peanut is more authentic.     Turn the pieces to coat evenly and let marinate 30-60 minutes.   Do not marinate for long periods ( like all afternoon or overnight).

Grill strips about 5  inches from the heat source. Be sure the grill is very hot.  Take care to not let the steak strips slip off into the coals.  Pile on heaping platters, sprinkle with more toasted sesame seeds, and wait for the ooh's and ahh's of delight!  Best cooked  til  almost charred,  so the sugar caramelizes.


And the perfect accompaniment?  I  found  this rice recipe in  Food Network Magazine in a  feature about......Korean steak..  I like  my steak recipe much more ...but ooh, their  fried rice....excellent!!       Kimchi is a delicious   pickled Korean cabbage salad, found in jars in the refrigerator/produce section of many grocery stores, such as Meijer and Kroger.  I can't always   find   nori  locally, although Kroger has been consistently stocked recently... but  for that reason,  consider it an optional ingredient.  Get the steak ready to cook,  but  get a good head  start on  the fried rice first ----  it  should be nearly ready before you put on the steak. 

Cut 6-8 slices thick bacon in 1/2 inch pieces,   Toast 3 TB  sesame seeds.   Cut nori sheets in  thin 1/2" strips.  Heat an iron skillet to medium high, then add bacon, stir fry til almost done, 6-8 min.  Drain the kimchi, but keep the liquid.  Raise heat to high,  stir fry the kimchi til browned, about 8 minutes, then  add  4  1/2 - 5 c. cold cooked white rice ( chilled),    the reserved kimchi liquid,  all the oil, and half the nori.  Continue to cook, turning and flattening with a spatula til it forms a golden crust, about 8 minutes.   Sprinkle with a few sesame seeds and the remaining nori.

If you need another veg for this meal, throw some  mild frying peppers ( such as Anaheim or Poblano ) on the grill with  wedges of onion, and grill  them along with the meat.

Blueberry Spinach Salad

I'm on a blueberry kick this summer and we're enjoying this salad often.   It's  a bit sweet  with a tangy kick from the combination of berries,  pears and blue cheese.  Walnuts add  a delicious  crunch.

Make a vinaigrette dressing of 1/2 c extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 c. raspberry  or balsamic vinegar,  1 TB dijon mustard, 1 tsp honey,  s & p to taste.. Just whisk til well blended.

Salad:   1 ripe Anjou pear, peeled &  cubed, 16 oz baby spinach, no stems,   2 oz ( 1/2 c ) blue, feta,  or gorgonzola cheese crumbled,   4 oz chopped walnuts, 1 pint fresh blueberries.

For the salad, assemble the ingredients except for the berries and cheese 
Toss and add half the dressing,  toss to coat.
 Add blueberries and cheese, and drizzle the rest of the dressing over, toss again. 

Enjoy with anytihing!  It's  especially good  with  grilled  lamb or fish,   or add cold grilled chicken strips or salmon  for a cool  entree salad.