Inspiration from my trip to Alaska

from the wilds of the Inland Passage to my Personal Chef kitchen

I just came home from a fabulous trip to Alaska.  I am full of negative ions from the waterfalls, full of beauty from the sights and sounds of the whales, eagles, and ravens, cleansed by the rain, filled with the magic of the rainforest and the light of the almost endless days of this season, and most particularly for today’s post, filled with delicious, fresh off the boat salmon. Our cook took a boat out to the fishing boat, negotiated with the fishermen, brought home some fish, and a few hours later we ate it. It absolutely doesn’t compare to anything that we can get from any grocery store. Salmon live here, in the Monterey Bay off the coast of Santa Cruz, but the season is very short and it is very expensive. Fresh salmon season runs from early summer to early fall.  I usually buy my salmon frozen from Trader Joe’s, which is wild from Alaska and frozen right on the boat so a good choice.  There is a lot of farmed salmon available. Please, please, do not ever buy farmed salmon. The fish are fed so poorly, and they use pesticides and herbicides to keep the water “clean”. That runoff goes into our watersheds. The fish sometimes escape ( and who would blame them!) and weaken the natural fish population. Let’s support the fishermen who use wise sustainable practices and we will have salmon to enjoy and eat for many years to come. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has an excellent website with much information about sustainability and which fish we have the green light to eat.

Besides being delicious, salmon is so good for us! Low in calories, high in protein, it also contains a proper ratio of Omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids, which our bodies need for heart health, for inflammation control, etc. I think, too, there is something so powerful in the energy of the salmon. It is sacred to the indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest and Ireland. We can learn from the salmon’s journey, that difficult struggle to spawn, to get back upstream, to get home.

There are many many delicious ways to prepare salmon. It can be eaten raw ( when you are absolutely sure it is fresh) as sushi, sashimi, tartare. It is good cold in a salad, mixed with mayonaise or not. I like it for breakfast mixed with eggs and scrambled. Smoked Salmon is widely available and also good in many ways. Fresh salmon can be grilled outside, broiled, baked. It combines nicely with so many vegetables and pairs nicely with a glass of Pinot Noir.

Here is a recipe to try from Eating Well Magazine.

Lemony Lentil Salad with Salmon

makes 6 one-cup servings

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/3c. chopped fresh dill

2 tsp. Dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

1/3 c extra virgin olive oil

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 cup diced seedless cucumber

1/2c. finely chopped red onion

3 cups of cooked brown or green lentils

1 1/2 c. flaked cooked salmon

Whisk lemon juice, dill, mustard, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Add the remaining ingredients and toss gently.

I serve this on a bed of greens, either raw spinach or lightly cooked kale.

This post is part of GNOWFGLINS Tuesday Twister and Real Food Wednesdays. Please head over there and read the other interesting posts.

Farmers’ Market in full Spring mode

Enjoying Spring in Santa Cruz County

I have been out of town the last few weekends. As a result, I have not gone to the Farmer’s Market in a while. I love my Saturday morning visits there.

Today I went a bit wild. I hope I won’t actually waste anything. I came home with eggs. I have plenty of plans for those, including a frittata for dinner tonight filled with herbs, green beans ( also from the market), onions, potatoes, a leftover roasted red pepper from a personal chef cook date. I will be making some flax bread tomorrow.  I also got a pint of strawberries, some of which I have already consumed and the rest will probably be gone tomorrow. No cooking necessary!

I got carrots and celery, which will be mainly munched as themselves, with some going in some soup in a few days, along with some some celery roots I purchased today.  The carrots may also appear in some salads, as I also got some lovely heirloom Little Gem lettuce and a bag of assorted sprouts. I have been eating a lot of raw beets lately and am looking forward to more, as well as cooking some along with their beautiful greens. I always ask the beet people for extra beet greens that they collect from people who ask for them to be cut off right there in the booth. Oh foolish people, not to try them. I love them steam fried, with a bit of olive oil and water, salt and pepper. mmmm! and so good for you.

I couldn’t resist the baby turnips. Inspired by my recent re reading of Nourishing Traditions, I will be pickling those.  A couple of English cucumbers rounded out my purchases of the day.

Here are a couple of recipes using green beans. I realize they come earlier in the season here in California, but the rest of you, take heart! We have passed the midpoint of Spring and the Summer Solstice is actually only 6 weeks away and green bean season will be upon the whole country.

from Cooking Light magazine, October 2005

Green Beans tossed with Walnut Miso sauce

4 c. green beans, trimmed

2 T. grated peeled fresh ginger

3 T. coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted

2 T water

1 1/2 T. yellow miso

1/2 tsp. soy sauce

Place beans in a large saucepan of boiling water; cook 5 minutes. Drain and plunge beans into ice water; drain.  Place ginger on several layers of damp cheesecloth. Gather edges of cheesecloth; squeeze cheesecloth bag over small bowl. Set 1/2 tsp ginger juice aside; reserve remaining juice for another purpose. Discard ginger ( My experience the first time I made this was that I got NO juice. I just used the grated ginger as is.) Combine ginger juice, walnuts, water , miso, and soy sauce in a food processor and process until the nuts are minced. ( hard to do unless you have a mini processor) Combine walnut mixture and beans in a large bowl. This can be served warm or room temperature.

from a wonderful Personal Chef colleague from Georgia, Jan Harding.

Green Beans Gremolata

1 1/2 lbs green beans, washed and trimmed

1 1/2 c. Italian parsley – packed, then chopped ( it ends up being about 3/4c) ( you can use curly parsley)

1 1/2 T. olive oil ( I usually use a bit more)

1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest

1 1/2 T lemon juice

3/4 tsp. minced garlic

3/4 tsp salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Add beans to large pot of boiling water. Cook 7 – 10 minutes until just tender. Drain well. Combine remaining ingredients in serving bowl until blended. Add hot beans to bowl and toss to mix and coat. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Chicken Enchiladas Verde

Healthy Green Enchiladas

I don’t know the statistics but I bet among meat eaters, chicken gets eaten the most often. It can get hard to come up with new ideas. I have the best idea! How about switching to pasture raised “happy” chickens, that get to eat bugs, wander around and get treated humanely while they are alive ? Use this site to find some near you. If you haven’t had this kind of chicken before, you will absolutely not believe the taste difference and you will never ever want to eat “regular” supermarket chicken again. It is one of those things that IS worth the $$ difference to eat organic and well raised chickens.

Here is a wonderful recipe that is adapted from an old Weight Watchers recipe. In my personal chef business, I emphasize the importance of eating seasonal and local food, but sometimes you really want to step out of that box. Tomatillos are a summer crop. There are tomatillos available from Mexico but I purchased a can, which I think can be a good alternative to fresh when used infrequently. Vegetables that are canned are picked at their peak while vegetables that are brought here from out of the country may be picked before they are ripe.

Chicken Enchiladas Verde

for the sauce:

1 bunch of fresh cilantro

1 bunch green onions

1 or 2 jalapenos

1 can crushed tomatillos

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

Combine the cilantro, jalapenos, and onions in a food processor . Add the tomatillos and spices and blend until mixed.  Set aside.

for the filling:

1/2 bunch of swiss chard, chopped in small pieces

4c. fresh spinach

1 T. coconut oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

splash of water

2 c. chopped cooked chicken

3/4 c. crumbled goat cheese

1 tsp. ground cumin

salt and pepper to taste

Melt the coconut oil in a saute pan. Add the onions and cook until softened. Add the greens and cook until wilted, using the splash of water to steam them a bit. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook for 10 minutes.

To assemble:

corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 35oº. This recipe can make around 8 -10 enchiladas, depending on what kind of tortilla you use and how much filling you use for each enchilada. The size pan you use will also vary according to the size of tortilla.You will cover the bottom of your baking dish with a thin layer of sauce.  I used sprouted corn tortillas which are on the smaller side. I am highly prejudiced against wheat tortillas so I encourage you to use corn ( and please check to see that they are made from  non gmo  organic corn. Sprouting makes them more digestible). Corn tortillas are a bit more difficult to work with as they are not so flexible. I have a gas stove and so I heat my tortillas individually over the flame of a burner, turning them a few times and letting them soften. Then I dip them into the sauce. Placing them on a cutting board, I put a heaping tablespoon, plus a bit more, filling onto one end of the tortilla and rolled them up. Place seam side down into the baking dish. continue until pan is full, or all the filling is used up. Cover with the rest of the sauce. You could add some grated cheese of your choice here if you would like. Bake for 20 minutes, until everything is hot and bubbly.

I served mine with some refried beans and a small salad. Muy bueno y mucho sabor!