Cook with Aloha - Superb Italian Seafood

SUPERB ITALIAN SEAFOOD

For those of Italian heritage, the traditional Christmas Eve dinner of the "seven fishes" is a classic. There are many foods that Italian cuisine is known for like a variety of pasta dishes and sauces, but some of my favorite Italian recipes are those that use seafood and shellfish. I recently taught a series of cooking classes featuring these recipes which are some of my favorite Italian seafood dishes. The home cooks were delighted with the results and were so enthusiastic about the delicious taste of each recipe, they insisted on more classes featuring these two cook books: "Cucina del Mare", by Evan Kleiman (unfortunately out of print but you may find it on E-bay) and "The Union Square Cafe Cookbook" by Danny Meyer and Michael Romano.

There have been some stories in the newspapers and on the internet in the past six to eight months about farmed salmon. I've always been a bit skeptical about buying and eating farmed salmon, mainly because of how they are farmed in huge pens suspended in the water and fed a diet which includes antibiotics. But despite those fears, I have consumed farmed salmon in the past. But in this recent flurry of news stories, one fact came out that disturbed me to the point of not buying farmed salmon again! Apparently, farmed salmon flesh is naturally gray in color....so in order to make the flesh pink to look like the salmon color consumers are familiar with, farmed salmon are fed a coloring agent of some kind to make their flesh pink. So, despite the high cost, when I want salmon I've been buying wild salmon ever since! But, now, in a recent Editorial in the New York Times, Monday, December 6, 2004 there is even more disturbing news about the fate of wild salmon!

Steamed Clams with Fennel and Rosemary

Serves 4

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 medium fennel bulbs, trimmed, cored, and thinly sliced, tops reserved and chopped
48 small clams (such as Manila or Little Necks), cleaned
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves only, finely minced
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, lightly crushed with a rolling pin
1/4 cup white wine
Crusty Bread

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until it releases it characteristic aroma. Add the sliced fennel and sauté until it begin to wilt. Add the clams, rosemary, fennel seeds, and white wine. Cover and cook until the clams open, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Garnish with a small handful of the reserved chopped fennel tops, and serve in wide shallow bowls with crusty bread.

Adapted from "Cucina del Mare", by Evan Kleiman

Tuna with Tomato, Mint and Capers

Serves 4 to 6

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
4 to 6 large garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
15 fresh mint leaves, chopped
3 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves only (or ½ teaspoon dried oregano)
8 Roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 ½ cups green olives, pitted and cut lengthwise into quarters
1/4 cup capers
1 Tablespoon sugar (optional)
4 to 6 tuna steaks (about 6 ounces each)
½ cup white wine (optional)
Sprigs of fresh mint and oregano

In a large deep skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté the onions until soft. Add the garlic, chopped mint and oregano and sauté briefly until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook until their liquid is released, about 10 minutes. Add the olives and capers. For a hint of a sweet and sour taste, stir in the sugar.

Carefully place the fish steaks in the sauce, and spoon some of the sauce over the tops. If you wish, moisten the braise with the wine. Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and cook, occasionally agitating the pan to bathe the fish n the raising juices, until the fish is cooked, about 10 minutes.

To serve, use a wide spatula to transfer the fish to a large serving platter. Spoon the sauce over and garnish with sprigs of mint and oregano.

Adapted from "Cucina del Mare", by Evan Kleiman

Swordfish with an Oregano Crust

Serves 4 to 6

1 ½ to 2 pounds swordfish, cut into ½ inch thick steaks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Olive oil for grilling
½ cup dried oregano (Greek or Mediterranean)
Lemon wedges

Season the swordfish steaks with salt and pepper. Cover the bottom of a pie plate with olive oil. Spread the oregano in another pie plate (or on a piece of waxed paper). Dip each swordfish steak in the oil and then dredge in the oregano to coat both sides.

Heat a charcoal or gas grill or a ridged stove top griddle until very hot. Lightly rub the grill with an oil-soaked towel (or spray with olive oil Pam) to prevent swordfish from sticking. Grill the fish on both sides until just cooked, about 4 minutes in all. Transfer to a serving platter or individual plates and garnish with lemon wedges.

Adapted from "Cucina del Mare", by Evan Kleiman

Mahimahi Baked with Pine Nuts and Currants

Serves 4 to 6

2 onions peeled and thinly sliced
3 tender inner celery stalks with leaves
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1/4 cup currants, plumped in hot water for 20 minutes and drained
2 Tbl pine nuts
10 green olives, pitted and torn in half
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 ½ to 2 pounds mahimahi fillets
2 ripe tomatoes, sliced

Preheat oven to 400. In a sauté pan, cook the onion and celery in the olive oil over moderate heat until very soft and beginning to take on a bit of color. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Transfer to a bowl and let cool. Add the drained currants, pine nuts, and olives to the cooled onions, and season with salt and pepper.

Lay the mahimahi steaks side by side in an oiled oven-to-table baking dish. Arrange the sliced tomatoes in an overlapping pattern over the mahimahi. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the onion mixture over the tomato-topped mahimahi. Drizzle extra olive oil on top. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the top layer of onions is a deep golden brown.

Adapted from "Cucina del Mare", by Evan Kleiman

Pan Roasted Salmon with Citrus-Balsamic Vinaigrette

Serves 4

For Sauce

3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 anchovy fillet, very finely minced (optional)
2 tablespoons finely minced onion
2 teaspoons EACH - coarsely chopped parsley, basil and mint
Pinch kosher salt

For Salmon

4 6 ounce skinless fillets of salmon
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbl olive oil

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Combine ingredients for sauce in a glass jar, cover tightly and shake vigorously and reserve.

Season the salmon with salt and pepper. In a skillet large enough to hold all the salmon, heat the olive oil over high heat. Place the salmon in the pan with its original skin side down. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast for 8 to 10 minutes until medium rare or longer if desired. Transfer the cooked salmon to a serving platter and keep warm while finishing the sauce.

Wipe out any olive oil remaining in the skillet and add the sauce. Heat through for a few seconds over high heat; spoon sauce over the salmon and serve.

Adapted from "The Union Square Cafe Cookbook" by Danny Meyer and Michael Romano