chili colorado

Every once in a while, a recipe comes along that speaks to your soul in a way that few recipes do.  Whether it's the beauty of the dish, or the method of cooking, or the way it sets your heart aflutter with the very first bite. It's simply...perfect.

Friends, I give you: Chili Colorado.

I came across this recipe as I do many of my best recipes...by stealing it from my friend Heather.  (She also introduced me to this gem of a chicken recipe.)  She made this dish for me and my friend Allison and we thought we had died and gone to food heaven.  The tender pork, the thick and luscious chili sauce and it's smooth, complex flavor.   I found myself wiping the plate clean with my fingers, the sauce is THAT GOOD.

This dish is definitely a weekend affair, but only because it takes a bit of time and NOT because it's hard.  Because IT'S EASY!  I'd never made a dish using dried chilies - it sounded so complicated and fussy to me - but it's WAY simple, and totally makes a difference in the flavor.  There's no substitute for using the dried chilies.  I think you can find them in almost any grocery store these days, even here in Juneau.  

Like Heather, I served these with warm corn tortillas and a simple cabbage slaw tossed with cilantro, green onion, radishes, salt, and fresh lime juice.  So add a few ingredients to your shopping list and get going to the grocery store!  Your friends and family will thank you, and may never want to leave.

Just kidding.  They'll leave eventually.  Don't use that as an excuse not to make this dish!

Chili Colorado

(Adapted from Bon Appétit)

5 dried ancho chilies

2 dried guajillo chilies

2 dried New Mexico chilies or pasilla chilies

8 cups of chicken stock, divided

4 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 3/4 inch to 1 inch pieces

2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil

6 cloves of garlic, minced

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon cumin

1 teaspoon ground sage (or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage)

1 teaspoon dried oregano (or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage)

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

(1) Remove stems and seeds from dried chilies.  Cover chilies with 3 cups of boiling chicken stock, and cover with plastic wrap (I did this in a glass bowl, but a saucepan will work, or a glass blender).  Let chilies soften for 30 minutes to an hour.  Blend chilies and liquid until smooth, either in a blender or by using a stick blender.

(2) Heat a large, heavy pot over medium-heat.  Season the pork with salt and pepper.  In several batches (I did 3 batches), brown the meat in the pot with a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil.  Once browned, remove from the pot.  You're not trying to cook it through, just brown the outside for good flavor.

(3) Once the meat is all browned, add back to the pot and add minced garlic, cumin, sage, and oregano.  Stir for one minutes.  

(4) Add 5 cups of chicken stock to the pot.  Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer for 1 hour, uncovered.

(5) Add chile puree and simmer, uncovered, for another hour or until the concoction is a beautiful, thick, smooth mahogany color.  Taste and season with salt and pepper, as needed.

Serve with warm corn tortillas and enjoy!!

xo H

chicken with morels, rhubarb galette, pickled hatch chilies, and a long overdue post!

Fall has arrived in Alaska.  I love this time of year.  The mornings are crisp and cold, the leaves are beginning to turn, and my flowers are just about ready to call it a season.  

It was a doozy of a summer.  The weather in Alaska was nothing short of spectacular.  Seems like wherever I’ve been (which feels like EVERYWHERE this summer) the sun was shining and the berries and mushrooms have been plentiful. Life has been very good, if not very, very busy.

Lobster roll nirvana

My summer has largely been spent getting from Point A to Point B.  From Barrow to Sitka, from Bethel to Delta Junction, and a few stops in between.  I even snuck down to the lower-48 for a spell (where I located a delectable lobster roll in Minneapolis.  MINNEAPOLIS- of all places.  Who knew?!)  In fact, I'm writing this post as I'm flying the friendly skies back home.

Like so many other folks, my summer got away from me and my life refuses to slow down.  As I was picking the last of the plump raspberries off the plentiful bushes that line my backyard, I suddenly realized that as my life seems to have evolved this year, so must my little blog.  Finding time to cook is not a problem.  Cooking is my therapy after a long day on the job.  For me, it’s like breathing and sleeping.  And without it, I’m just not me.  

But finding the time to write recipes, take photos (which for this amateur blogger is not an insignificant amount of time), and publish new posts has proven a bit more difficult.  So I’m just going to improvise!

Oh, I’ll still post recipes and pictures- don’t you worry.  Some of the recipes will be my own, but many may just highlight recipes that I’ve tried and loved and want to share with others. My pictures may not be as carefully staged and styled to perfection, but they'll still be my own.

This summer in Alaska has truly been a delicious one, and I wanted to share some of its culinary highlights.  It began on a foraging expedition with friends Renee and Michael for wild morels. I posted last year about my foray into mushroom foraging.  After last year’s beginners run, I was totally excited to tackle fungi foraging this summer.  And I’ve done so with gusto!  

Wild morels- one of my favorite adventures all year!

Creamy chicken with morels, photo by Renee

Morels are a tricky mushroom.  Prized by chefs for their earthy, meaty flavor, they’re also fairly elusive to foragers unless you know where to look.  A brief internet search will tell you that they thrive in sparse forests recently struck by wildfire.  They only grow in springtime, so get out there early next year.  They.  Are.  Worth.  It. 

My friend Renee is a fabulous home cook, who's  culinary skill and technique exceed my own.  The woman is stealth in the kitchen.  We turned this incredible bounty of morels into a truly astounding dish: Creamy Chicken with Morels, (recipe courtesy of our guru Ina Garten).  My mouth still waters thinking about that meal.  I cannot wait to hunt for morels again next spring!

While I was home with my family in Fairbanks for Fourth of July, my sister Holly and I threw together this Rhubarb Galette, courtesy of our pal Martha.  It has a cornmeal crust that is TO DIE FOR and comes together very quickly.  My only modification is that I swapped out half the ice cold water for ice cold vodka, because I’ve learned that it makes a flakier crust.  Just trust me on that (or don’t, and Google it for yourself!)

Rhubarb galette with a cornmeal crust.

Juneau was chock full of salmonberries this year (Juneau friends— is it like this every year?!)  I’ve said before, but it bears repeating, that I have a nearly insatiable enthusiasm for foraging wild edibles.  It's difficult to locate my "off" switch when you turn me loose on a berry patch.  I located these jewels in a friends backyard.  While I was excited at the idea of converting them into jam, the delicious treats didn’t make it through the night as we gobbled them up like candy.  Not quite too pretty to eat!

SALMONBERRIES!

One of the very best parts of my summer was spending time in Bethel with my friend Valerie and her beautiful family.  Valerie and her Yu’pik ancestors have been harvesting the land in Western Alaska for thousands of years.  Val taught me the traditional way of processing and smoking wild salmon, just as her mother Tilly taught her, and Tilly’s mother before her.  Just look at the beautiful salmon in her smokehouse!

My happy place: smokehouse on the Kuskokwim River

With the swift work of her ulu, Valerie quickly processed the salmon we caught by setnet.  My job was to tie up the strips of salmon to hang in the smokehouse.  I’m proud to say that I excelled at this task.  I tied up salmon LIKE IT WAS MY JOB.  And it was…for two whole hours.  I ate so much smoked salmon that weekend that I nearly made myself sick.  Zero regrets.

Working through our bounty in Bethel.

A trip to Sitka last month resulted in a BOATLOAD of winter and golden chanterelles.  I was excited to learn how to identify them easily so that I know what to look for on future expeditions.  My friend Heather’s adorable mother Benny was totally thrilled to share her love for mushroom foraging with others, and was the ultimate host.  She turned our bounty into both mushroom quiche and cream of chanterelle soup.  HOLY DELICIOUSNESS, BATMAN.  Sadly, I don't have pictures of the food because I was too busy stuffing my face (along with her homemade biscuits- we ate like champs).

Wild golden and yellowfoot chanterelles foraged in Sitka

Milo's version of "blueberry picking"

Of course, no summer in Alaska is complete for any forager without taking a hike up a mountain for wild blueberries!  

Just like last summer, my friend Erica joined Milo and I for a bit of hiking and a lot of picking.  Last year I posted this tasty recipe for blueberry cornmeal cake, which I love.  I think this year I might make blueberry jam with my bounty.  If so, I’ll post it!



Last year I posted a picture of some pickled Hatch chilies that I made and enjoyed all winter.   Another shipment just landed in the grocery stores here in Alaska and several of your have texted me for the recipe.  I just put up another batch last week, and here's the recipe I used.  I eat them with my Taco King takeout so I feel like I'm getting a few veggies as I scarf down my carne asada special tacos.

Pickled Hatch Chilies

This is just a scattering of my summer food adventures.  I plan to make jams for winter soon, and pickle a few more veggies to eat all year round.  I'm even going to take another stab at perfecting rhubarb ketchup- and if I succeed, I'll post it!

Alrighty, Alaska...bring on winter! 

xo h

old-fashioned navy bean & ham soup

Fall in Alaska is that glorious 3 days of the year where the leaves turn beautiful shades of yellow and orange, there's a distinct smell of sour cranberries and wood smoke lingering in the air, and the Chugach mountains look like they're on fire with all the brilliant red of the dwarf birch and blueberry bushes.

Well, those days are long gone.  What we are left with are bare branches, a chill in the air that feels more like a "freeze" than a gentle "nip", and 1,386,798 political mailers, radio ads, and commercials.  Every.  Single.  Day. 

 

My pesky "day job" has been hogging so much of my evenings and weekends of late as the election nears that I've barely had time to throw a piece of toast in the toaster.   But last weekend, to thank some of my comrades at the office who have been working their little tails off with me, I made a huge pot of warm, comforting old-fashioned navy bean & ham soup.  They devoured it, bless them.

That's the beauty of good food.  It is completely, totally, 100% bipartisan.  No, it's even better than that.  It is non-partisan, a-political, and it's the kind of leadership we need in Washington, D.C.

 

Crap.  Sorry.  Old habits die hard!  

 

I love how easy this soup is to make.  Soak the beans and chop up all the ingredients the night before, then throw everything in the crockpot in the morning and walk away for 10-12 hours.  Magic.

 

Also, your house will smell FANTASTIC.  Best air-freshener ever.

 

So, turn off your TV and radio, leave your mail in the mailbox, and make this soup to brighten up a chilly fall day.  And then remember to VOTE on November 4th!

 

 

Navy Bean & Ham Soup

1 lb. dried beans, sorted and rinsed (navy, great northern, or cannellini beans are great, but whatever dried bean you have on hand should work)
9 c. water
3 medium carrots, peeled or scrubbed well and diced
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
2 cups ham, chopped, or one ham shank
1 bay leaf
2 fresh thyme sprigs, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
several grinds of fresh black pepper
a few dashes of hot sauce, such as Tobasco (optional)
1/2 teaspoon granulated toasted onion (optional)

drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, for serving

(1) In a large crock pot, soak beans in 9 cups of cold water overnight.

(2) In the morning, turn the crockpot on low.  Add all other ingredients except the olive oil.  Cook on low setting for about 8-10 hours.

(3) Remove bay leaf and thyme sprigs.  If using a ham shank, remove shank from pot and chop/shred all ham off the shank and place back in the soup pot.  May sure to "fish" around the soup for any other bones.  Taste soup and re-season with salt and pepper as needed.  Serve with a drizzle of olive oil. 

Enjoy!
xo h

herb-crusted alaskan salmon with roasted lemons

 

My friend Mera and I have been pals for nearly 10 years.  The story of how we met at a Halloween party, when Mera donned a giant paper mache hamburger costume that she and her mother made while Mera was in elementary school, has left an indelible mark on my heart and is mentioned in one of my favorite posts on this blog.  We've seen each other through love, heartbreak, new homes, new jobs, children (hers), and puppy terror (mine). 

 

Mera and her best friend Katie recently started a new blog called Red House West (they both have red houses, one in Oregon and one in Alaska.  How cute is that?!) which contains wonderful, inventive, budget-friendly design ideas and projects for the home.  I love it, and it's getting a ton of online buzz. 

 

Look!  It's me!  In the kitchen!  Credit to Mera for the beautiful photos, and the beautiful apron she made for me.  LOVE.

 

Initially, we hatched a plan to do a blog post together while I was scouring a local furniture store for new bedroom furniture.  After texting her several pictures of different pieces, I was hoping she would just tell me what to buy and then design my bedroom for free.  And frankly, I'm still hoping she will do that. 

 

But Mera had a different idea, and invited me over to cook a Summer Solstice dinner last weekend featuring an Alaskan staple: frozen Alaskan salmon.  And even made me a beautiful new apron to mark the occasion, which now holds the top spot in my extensive apron collection (formerly held by the apron her mother-in-law Katy bought for me.  A girl never has too many aprons, or too many shoes.  Amen.)

 

For the record, I will continue to pester Mera for free design advice on my bedroom.  For now, I give you the recipe for the most perfect company-friendly salmon you will ever make.

Deciding what to make for our Solstice dinner was easy.  During spring and early summer, Alaskans engage in a traditional pastime known generally as Cleaning Out the Freezer.  Many, if not most, Alaskans pack their freezers during the months of July and August with our abundance of red ("Sockeye") and silver ("Coho") salmon.  So naturally, when many of us still have large stocks of frozen salmon fillets in the months of April, May, and June, we go to work coming up with as many creative ways to cook salmon as possible so as to empty our freezers for summer's replenishing bounty.

 

Think Forrest Gump, but with salmon instead of shrimp.  Salmon skewers, barbequed salmon, salmon cakes, salmon salad, roasted salmon, salmon curry, grilled salmon, salmon dip...

 

A beautiful silver salmon fillet from the waters of Prince William Sound,
thanks to my Dad's boat and a great salmon run!

 

My sister Holly originally told me about this recipe.  She was looking for a fast, no fuss salmon recipe to serve for company.  Her guests LOVED it.  And it's no wonder why: it's packed with flavor!  The combination of tangy Dijon mustard, bright and fresh parsley and dill, and crunchy panko bread crumbs provides a perfect accompaniment to the unique, delicately-bold flavor of Alaskan salmon.

 

There are so many aspects of this dish that I appreciate.  For starters, it's easy, but it looks elegant and impressive.  These two qualities make it the perfect dish for entertaining.  In addition, it doesn't need to be served piping hot.  The salmon is just as delicious at room temperature, which simplifies timing for dinner parties.  And, like most recipes in my arsenal, the measurements are forgiving.  When making this, I don't even measure the mustard, the bread crumbs, or the herbs anymore (although I was a little heavy-handed with the parsley this time- I will use less and chop it more finely the next time I make it).

 

 

Just about the only thing you need to worry about with this recipe is the length of time it spends in the oven.  NO ONE likes overcooked salmon.  Not even people that think they like overcooked salmon.  (They just don't know any better.  Bless them.)  I used a rather thin fillet of silver salmon, and 15 minutes in the oven was perfect.  If you have a thicker fillet, say red salmon or King salmon, you may want to add on a couple minutes, or check the salmon by flaking it with a fork in the thickest part of the fillet after 15 minutes.

 

A rare action shot.  I'm toying with the idea of a Kickstarter campaign for a new camera.  Kidding (maybe).

The dinner was an absolute blast.  Credit to Mera's husband, Chester, for his incredible patience as we photographed nearly every aspect of the preparation.  It was so fun!  Mera's kitchen, which they remodeled several years ago, is a dream to cook in.  So much space!  So much light!  So many nice kitchen appliances!  And did I mention the SPACE?  My God, I've been cooking in a postage-stamp of a kitchen for far too long. 

 

 

I had a difficult time editing out any of the pictures that Mera sent to me, so I didn't.  Those of you who have been fans of Chena Girl Cooks for some time now (bless you!) may be overwhelmed by all the photos!  Ol' Heidikins usually just picks a couple of the photos that turn out best and calls it a day.  But this was a special post, and deserved special photographic attention.

 

We served our salmon alongside (1) whole wheat couscous that I spiked with parsley, dill, lemon zest, olive oil, and plenty of salt & pepper, and (2) a salad with roasted beets and goat cheese gorgeously made by Mera's hubby Chester.

 

I really hope you try this recipe and leave your comments below!  And I'd love to hear about your favorite salmon recipes, too.  I'm always looking for new, creative ideas for preparing Alaska's most perfect food.  Who knows, maybe it will appear on the blog one day soon.  More importantly, it may grace my table!  Because I still have several fillets of frozen salmon to cook before fishing season begins.  Happy cooking!

 

Herb-Crusted Side of Alaskan Salmon with Roasted Lemons

(Adapted from Martha Stewart)

 

1 side of wild Alaskan salmon (about 2-3 pounds- I used a silver salmon fillet), pin bones removed

1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

zest of half a lemon

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling lemons

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

2-3 lemons, quartered with seeds removed.

parchment paper

 

(1) Preheat oven to 475 degrees.  Toss panko, herbs, lemon zest, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  Set aside.

 

(2) Place salmon skin-side down on parchment-lined baking sheet.  Spread Dijon mustard on salmon, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle herbed panko evenly on top, patting down gently.  Place lemons around salmon and drizzle with olive oil.

 

(3) Roast salmon for 15 minutes (or a couple minutes more for thicker fillets).  Once salmon flakes easily, it's done.  Transfer salmon to platter with lemons and serve.

 

Enjoy!

xo H

 

 

lentils with kale, goat cheese, and walnuts

It's springtime in Alaska.  A wondrous time of year, full of piles of brown snow on the sides of the highways, potholes the size of craters ready to take a bite out of your car's undercarriage, and windshields full of rock chips from the copious amounts of gravel on road ways that have yet to be swept up and re-deposited for storage in anticipation of next year's snowfall.  Ah, a magical time of year indeed.

Springtime in Alaska is my least favorite time of the year.  Which is why I'm getting the hell out of Dodge to a sunny destination.

Until then, I will endure the final stages of winter with the rest of my neighbors who are anxiously awaiting that first flicker of green on the trees.  All the while knowing full well that Mother Nature's wicked sense of humor likely means at least one more dumping of snow before the end of May.

Sigh.

I've been keeping my Alaskan Springtime blues at bay by cooking up a storm in my kitchen!  Short ribs, pasta, spring salads, soups...anything to keep the dreary brown grass on my lawn out of sight and out of mind.  Summer can't come soon enough!

I devoured this lovely little lentil salad soon after I took these pictures.  Perfectly light and healthy, yet hearty enough to fill me up, this dish makes a great weeknight meal after a busy day at work.  Even better, the leftovers hold up well for lunch the next day.  Which is exactly what I did with them.



Lentils with Kale, Goat Cheese, and Walnuts

(Adapted from Laura Calder)

1 cup French green (du Puy) lentils
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of fresh thyme, or a pinch of dried
2 tablespoons (or more) olive oil
2 large shallots, diced (or one medium red onion, diced)
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups kale, roughly chopped
splash of balsamic vinegar
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
scant 1 cup of walnuts
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

(1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place walnuts on a sheet tray and bake for 10 minutes, or until golden and toasted.  Do not burn!  Once they cool, roughly chop into large pieces.

(2) Put the lentils in a saucepan with 1 1/3 cups of water, the bay leaf, and thyme sprig.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are tender, about 25-30 minutes.  If the liquid is not all absorbed, just drain off any excess.

(3) Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan or dutch oven.  Saute the onion until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and sauté for about a minute, then add the kale and cook until it has wilted a bit, about 2-4 minutes.  Add a little more olive oil if necessary to soften the kale.  Season with kosher salt and several grinds of fresh ground pepper.

(4) Deglaze the pan with a healthy splash of balsamic vinegar, and stir to incorporate.  Add the cooked lentils, taste and reseason with more salt and pepper, if necessary (I found mine needed quite a bit!  Lentils are pretty bland otherwise).  Add more balsamic vinegar if you like that sweet acidic roundness like I do.

(5)  Place the lentil mixture in a large serving dish, and top with the crumbled goat cheese and chopped walnuts.  Drizzle with a little more olive oil if you like (I enjoyed the way it made the final dish glisten a bit).  Serve warm.

Enjoy!
xo h

salty sisters' roasted alaska spot prawns with fennel, olives, and oranges (COOKOFF WINNER!)

There comes a time in every woman's life when her grit, determination, and willpower are put to the test.  A time when resolve and fortitude are challenged in a epic battle of skill, creativity, and knowledge.

 

(Bet you're thinking that I'm talking about the time I took the bar.  Yeah, that totally sucked-- worse than what I'm actually talking about, but no one wants to hear me complain about it for the 800 thousandth time.)

 

I'm talking about the Alaska Sustainable Seafood Cookoff!  Sponsored by the Alaska Food Policy Council, the Cookoff was held on Thursday, October 24th at the newly-opened Downtown Soup Kitchen in Anchorage. 

 

The Challenge:  Four duos battle it out in one hour to produce the best seafood dish for 5 local foodie judges.  Think Iron Chef meets Chopped.  (And if you don't understand these two AWESOME reality show references, then, well...nevermind.)

 

The Catch:  The contestants don't know what they're actually cooking until the competition begins!

We must have been crazy.  And we are, a little.

Thanks to Jennifer McGovern for her excellent photography!
 

 

So I did what I always do when I'm asked to compete in an Iron Chef-like local seafood cookoff at a soup kitchen...I teamed up with my friend Kate Consenstein.  We called ourselves the "Salty Sisters."  And we ROCKED this competition.  LIKE.  IT.  WAS.  OUR.  JOB.

 

While we were allowed to bring our own tools and three "secret" ingredients along with us to the event, we didn't know what we were actually cooking until Rob Kineen of Fresh49 yelled "GO!" revealing we had one hour to cook...Alaska spot prawns.

 

Excellent.

Before the competition, Kate and I were at loggerheads over our strategy.  Should we panko crust our seafood?  Pan-sear it?  Kate insisted that if we get salmon, we leave the skin on.  I insisted that if we get salmon, we take the skin off. 

We were off to a shaky start.

And both of us, with our strong opinions and even stronger personalities, worried if our friendship would survive the challenge.

People, it didn't just survive.  It THRIVED.  Turns out, we make a perfect competitive match. 

Kate and I were both a bundle of nerves before the competition began.  My hands were sweaty.  Kate's stomach was turning.  This was supposed to be FUN?!  Why do we torture ourselves with this kind of FUN?!  But as soon as the clock started running, the nerves simply disappeared and we became seafood-cooking machines.  I took care of the produce while Kate took care of the protein.  The oranges were perfectly segmented.  The fennel was neatly shaved on my mandolin (best birthday present my brother's ever gotten me!)  The shrimp was peeled with precision, with the tails left perfectly intact.  And more importantly, they were cooked to PERFECTION.  Just barely opaque all the way through.

As the clock began winding down, pans were clanging, food was flying, and people were running into each other in the kitchen.  We were all down to the wire.

After tasting my roasted fennel, I worried I over-seasoned it.  It had a sharp, salty bite to it.  But there was no time to fix it, and Kate and I ultimately decided it should make it on the plate.  It was a good decision.  Turns out, the contrast of flavors and textures between the roasted and raw fennel, coupled with the sweetness of the oranges and briny olives, was an incredible combination.  The fresh Alaska spot prawns, after mingling with the chopped bacon in the oven, were salty-sweet and utterly succulent.  Yet Kate and I both agree that the perfect finishing touch came from the buttery toasted citrus breadcrumbs, which added that crunchy texture that we all crave.

And wouldn't ya know it...we won. :)

As Kate said, Viva Sustainable Seafood!

Roasted Alaska Spot Prawns with Fennel, Orange, and Castelvetrano Olives

and Toasted Citrus Breadcrumbs

(Courtesy of the Salty Sisters: Heidi & Kate!)

30 Alaska spot prawns, peeled with tails intact

1 shallot, thinly sliced

4 slices of bacon, finely diced

3 fennel bulbs, cored and halved lengthwise

3 oranges, peeled and segmented (also known as “supreming”), plus their juice

20 Castelvetrano (or other green) olives, pitted and halved

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1-2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons butter

zest of one orange

fennel fronds, for garnish

Serves 4 

(1) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 

(2) On the medium thickness setting of your mandolin (or with a sharp knife), slice one fennel bulb crosswise about 1/4 inch thick.  Toss the fennel on a baking sheet with 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Arrange in one layer and bake for 20-30 minutes until soft and golden. 

(3) Place orange segments and their juice into a bowl along with the olives.  On the thinnest setting of your mandolin slicer (or by using a very sharp knife) thinly slice two fennel bulbs crosswise, being careful to reserve the fronds as garnish.  Add sliced fennel to the bowl, along with the lemon juice and 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil.  Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste and toss well. 

(4) Cook diced bacon on medium-high heat in a large cast iron skillet. When bacon is partially cooked and some bacon fat has rendered, add 1 tablespoon of butter and add shallots. Once shallots have cooked to translucency, remove from heat. Layer shrimp over shallots and bacon and season with salt and pepper.  Bake at 425 until the shrimp just barely become opaque, about 5-7 minutes. 

(5) Mix the bread crumbs with 1 teaspoon of orange zest, a pinch of salt, and a few grinds of pepper.  In a large skillet on medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and add the bread crumbs to the skillet.  Toss the crumbs around in the skillet until the breadcrumbs appear toasted, about 5-7 minutes.

6) To serve, place the roasted fennel on the bottom of the plate.  Top with the shrimp and shallot/bacon mixture.  Place the salad of orange, fennel, and olives on top of the shrimp along with a drizzle of the juices.  Sprinkle with the seasoned breadcrumbs, additional orange zest, and fennel fronds. 

Enjoy!

xo H & K

wild alaska salmon with chimichurri & roasted root vegetables

I'm a bit salmon obsessed of late, and for good reason.  You see, after an extremely successful fishing trip in Valdez's Prince William Sound, I'm a bit salmon-heavy at my house.  And frankly, that's putting it lightly.  It comes down to this: if I don't eat all this salmon, I can't fit anything else in my freezer.  No ice cream.  No frozen pizza (Newman's Own Pepperoni- my favorite!)  None of those frozen balls of cookie dough I buy from every kid's fundraiser (delicious frozen little balls of dough...why bother baking them?) And no room for any wild Alaska game that I beg, borrow, and steal from friends and coworkers to round out my food supply for the winter.

Yes, I KNOW there's a Fred Meyers around the corner from my house.  That's not the point. 

I just like having a lot of food IN my house.  It's hard-wired in my DNA.

So when my friend David from Alaska Public Media contacted me about another interview for public radio, I knew exactly what to make.  Our conversation went something like this:

David: "I'm thinking of a fall theme.  How about soup?"

Heidi: "Great!  But we're going to have salmon."

David: "Pot roast is great, too.  But I love soup."

Heidi:  "Awesome.  Salmon it is!"

Good thing David's a good sport, and loves salmon. 

We traveled to a local farmers' market to gather up beautiful, freshly-harvested vegetables for roasting along with the salmon.  The market was spotted with jewel-colored carrots, beets, and potatoes.  I said to David, "You eat with your eyes first!" and gathered up my colorful crop.

Back at my house, I scrubbed, sliced, and seasoned away in my tiny little kitchen, while chatting with David and cursing at Milo for constantly squeaking his toy at David's feet.  By the time we finally sat down to eat what I had concocted, I had forgotten the mic was even there.  Three hours after we meet at the farmer's market, I sent David home with dinner for his wife. 

It was really fun.

And you know what's the kicker?  This just may be one of the best salmon meals I've ever made.  The salmon and the veggies are delicious on their own, but the chimichurri sauce added an intense burst of flavor, while also tying the entire dish together.  And for me, nothing says fall like a pile of sweet, tender, carmelized roasted root vegetables, at the peak of their freshness when the thermostat starts dipping and the leaves begin to fall.   

(You can listen to Chena Girl on the radio here!)

Alaska Salmon with Chimichurri Sauce

Serves 4

For the chimichurri sauce:
(Adapted from Simply Recipes)

1 cup (packed) fresh flat leaf Italian parsley, stems removed
3-4 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons fresh Oregano leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons white or red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
a few grinds of black pepper 

For the salmon:
(Adapted from Barefoot Contessa)

Four wild Alaskan salmon fillets, skin and pin bones removed (about 4-6 ounces each)
olive oil
kosher salt
a few grinds of pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Place all ingredients for the chimichurri sauce in a food processor and pulse until just combined- you still want the sauce to retain a "chunky" look.  If you don't have a food processor, finely mince the herbs and garlic and toss with the other ingredients.  Set aside while salmon is cooking.

Heat a dry oven-proof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Rub each of the salmon fillets with olive oil and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.  When the pan is hot, place the salmon presentation-side down (usually the top of the fillet) and let sear without moving them for two minutes.  Turn the fillets over and place the pan in the oven for 4-5 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked but still a little pink inside.  DO NOT OVERCOOK THE SALMON.  Best to err on the side of rare!

Top each salmon fillet with a little chimichurri sauce and serve.

Roasted Root Vegetables

Serves 4

8-10 small carrots
2 medium beets of any variety, peeled and sliced into 8 wedges
4-6 small red and yellow waxy potatoes

This recipe is more of a method than an exact science.  You can use any combination of root vegetables.  I particularly love using sweet potatoes and parsnips, and will often throw in butternut squash as well. 

Start by preheating your oven to 425 degrees. 

Scrub veggies well.  Peel the beets and slice into 8 wedges each.  Leave the skins of the carrots and potatoes on if you prefer- I certainly do.  Cut stems and roots of carrots and leave whole if they are small, cut in half if they are big.  Cut potatoes into rough 1 inch cubes. 

Place all the veggies on a baking sheet.  Make sure you only have enough veggies to cover a single layer without overlap- this way the veggies roast instead of steam. Toss all veggies with one to two tablespoons of olive oil, a heavy pinch of kosher salt (about 1/2 teaspoon) and several grinds of fresh black pepper.  Bake for 30-35 minutes, turning once about halfway through.  Finish with a final dash of salt (I love sel gris!) if you prefer, and serve HOT!

Enjoy!
xo H