About fish, freezers and more. Did you know...?

A few weeks ago a close friend drove a couple of hundred kms to attend a cooking course we had booked as a birthday present for each other for our 2013 birthdays, so a little over a year later. Considering we live far apart and three out of four of us have young children, we didn't do too bad!

The course was all about cooking fish and we really enjoyed it: not only was the chef sociable, interesting and experienced, there was also a good vibe during the lesson and I had a great time with my girls.

I personally am not scared to cook fish, I actually find it pretty straightforward, they key being to not
overcook it in my opinion. Also, I am not in the least squeamish when it comes things like innards and eyes. Truth be told, I am much more scared of getting egg whites to reach the perfect consistency.

We made two simple, yet very tasty recipes that I will tell you more about in my next post. What I really liked about the course, however, was the preamble.

If there are two things that do slightly intimidate me about cooking fish, knowing  how to buy a fresh, sustainable and healthy specimen is the first, closely followed by cleaning and filleting it. I usually cook fish whole.

The right way

 

Of course, I know that if I go to the renown fish monger downtown and pay four times more than average for wild Alaskan salmon for a special occasion, his fish will be fresh and top quality. But what about feeding my kids on a daily basis without spending more than I would at my favorite sushi place and still bringing a healthy, sustainable meal to the table?

 

Both my fears were addressed during the course: I learned how to fillet a seas bass, but given it looked like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre had taken place at my work station, I think I have to practice a lot more before trying to teach you how to do it. And, the chef gave us a lot of interesting and useful tips that I want to pass on to you. 

The wrong way: Texas Chainsaw Massacre style

He started from the more obvious things, like how to tell if the fish you are buying is fresh. As he spoke,  I realized that things that were a given to me, weren't for others and viceversa. I also learned some things that seem obvious once you know them, but that can be a real eye-opener when discovering them.

There is so much more to learn in the kitchen than just plain technique, and this learning process never ends. So I hope you too will find something useful in this post too. 

Smoked salmon and scallion cream cheese pinwheels

 

 

 

I know that for a lot of people who love to cook being on vacation means lots of time to prepare food for family and friends. They like to spend long mornings at local markets sourcing for ingredients they cannot find as good, as cheap - or at all in many cases - back home. They never leave home without their knives or some other favorite kitchen tool or essential ingredient. They relax firing up the barbecue or mixing large carafes of frozen cocktails.

 

I often entertain such Martha Stewart fantasies about moving at ease around a kitchen in Provence, French windows open on a garden where the children quietly play hide and seek behind the bushes and trees, a light flowing skirt swirling just above my tanned bare feet. A pinch of tarragon here, a drizzle of dry white wine there...

 

The reality, however is very different: I rarely cook consistently on vacation, especially summer vacation.

 

When we visit my husband's side of the family, there is no doubt about who reigns in the kitchen. I humbly hand over my scepter wooden spoon to my mother in law and busy myself with other things.

 

 

 

 

If we travel to the States every day is a whirlwind of friends and family to catch up with. We eat out up to twice a day sometimes and when we are home I spend a lot of time trying to contain my jet lagged, overexcited and overtired kids while my stepmother cooks up a delicious meal. Or we do what so many other fellow countrymen do: order in.

 

When visiting my mother, things are pretty much the same, minus the jet lag. Although, come to think of it, given Spanish hours, perhaps we should put jet lag back into the equation. There are lots of meals in restaurants and even more at family/friends' houses since the kids. When we do eat in, my mom takes care of the food while I, like the Cat in the Hat, save a vase with my left hand and a silver ashtray with my right while shouting at the kids for the umpteenth time to leave the dead snails and those piles of almonds, carobs and overripe figs outside of the front door please, not inside.

 

When we are on our own, by the time we get our tired, salty, sandy selves back from a long day at the beach, the most I can get myself to do is open a cold cerveza for my marido and myself and put some jamon, sobrasada and manchego out on the table for the niños, perhaps accompanied with some anchovy-filled olives and a glass or bowl of gazpacho.

 

This means that by the time I get back I am dying to get my hands chopping and slicing again and simultaneously a little rusty.

 

 

 

 

If you are feeling a little out of practice too, here is a really simple starter you can make in a matter of minutes. This is the perfect appetizer if you are on a no-carb mission after overeating during the holidays. Or, like us, you sometimes just miss a good NY sesame bagel with Nova and scallion cream cheese.

 

I made this following a mish-mash of different recipes online. Most of them said to refrigerate the roll for about an hour before cutting. That wasn't enough for me, so I stuck it into the freezer for another half hour and that made the process a lot less messy.

Baccalà alla vicentina

There are different versions of how the inhabitants of Vicenza, the vicentini, came to love baccalà.

Some say that this recipe from Vicenza was already greatly appreciated back in the 13th century. There is a story that tells of how the Veronese opened the gates of the castle of Montebello in a battle against Vicenza when the latter called out that they were carrying polenta and baccalà.

The most accredited version of the recipe's origin, however, dates back to the middle of the 15th century, when an expedition led by the Venetian Querini was shipwrecked on Rost, an isolated island way off the coast of Norway. The unfortunate event however resulted in a few specimens of stockfish, dried cod, being brought back to the Italian shores, and it was the beginning of a neverending love story. It is undeniable that dried fish was a great solution both for seafaring people all over the world and those they left at home. Preserving food was not as simple as it is today and stockfish became the perfect substitute for fresh fish, then extremely expensive and easily perishable. The people of Vicenza found many a way to cook this fish, but it seems that  a well-loved woman, familiarly called siora Vitoria, the owner of a trattoria came up with this simple, yet very tasty way, of making baccalà at the end of the 19th century: the recipe now known all over Italy as baccalà alla Vicentina.

A few notes:

For those of you who may not be familiar with the difference, stockfish is dried cod while salt cod is made by preserving the same fish in salt. The different ways of preserving the fish are a direct consequence of the seasons. Cod is fished in the northern waters surrounding the coasts of countries like Scandinavia, Canada and Iceland. When the fish was caught in the winter months it was set out to dry in the cold sea air on rocks or wooden racks. In the warmer months, when this was not an option, the fish was cleaned directly on the boats and preserved in layers of salt in barrels. Once the fish is soaked for several days in fresh water, the result is quite similar.

In Italian cod is called merluzzo and the two variations are respectively called stoccafisso and baccalà. The people of Vicenza traditionally use stoccafisso in this recipe although they call it bacalà. They are neither ignorant nor confused, they simply call stockfish bacalà with one "c" and salt cod baccalà with two "c"s. So the truly correct name of the recipe is bacalà alla vicentina, although my post is called baccalà alla vicentina because I used salted cod instead of stockfish to make it (and I made boiled potatoes to go with it instead of polenta, because my daughter came down with the stomach flu and I couldn't hop over to the supermarket as I had been planning).

Frittura di pesciolini (latterini) or deep-fried Mediterranean sea smelt

Before leaving for the beach a couple of weeks ago, we were all tired and in need of a vacation. I know I was being a little more impatient than usual with the kids, who in turn were acting a little wilder than normal. Their constant bickering, running, screaming, jumping and obliviousness to our requests generated a fair share of hollering on our side in the days before our departure.

Now, on a normal day, our meals go something like this:

Kids
"What's for dinner?"
" I don't like xyz"
"Bleah"
"You gave him more than me"
"Why doesn't he have to finish his xyz?"
"Bleah"
"Water"
"La, la, la, la, la"
"Burp"
Crash! Splash!
"I'm tired, can you feed me?"
"I have a tummy ache"
"Water"
"What's for dessert?"
"I have to go to the bathroom"
"La, la, la, la, la"
"Bleah"

Us
"Stop saying bleah, we don't say bleah about food"
"This is not a restaurant, you eat what is on the table"
"Stop watching your brother and concentrate on your vegetables"
"Stop copying your sister"
"No eating with our hands"
"Please don't throw pieces of food on the floor"
"Don't you dare spit out that piece of carrot onto my plate again"
"Sit still!"
"Your brother is two, he doesn't understand yet"
"No getting up from the table"
"Stop putting your greasy hands in your hair, we just washed it".
"If you sat still like we ask you to constantly, you wouldn't have spilled that glass of water onto my plate again!"
"Chew with your mouth closed"
"Finish chewing, then you can tell me the story"
"No singing at the table"
"No playing at the table"
"We say excuse me when we do that."

And this is bed time:

In bed, before lights out:
"Can I read a book?"
"Mommy, book?"
"No, not this book. I want that book"
"No, not that book"
"Can you read me another book"
"Please?"
"Pretty please?"
"I'm thirsty"
"Me too"
"Can I have another stuffed animal?"
"Book!"
"I'm hungry"
"Tractor in bed"

Elba, Il Cantuccio

We just got back from a few days on the island of Elba, taking advantage of my daughter’s days off from school on Thursday and Friday for the later Milanese Carnival. It is a longish drive and ferry boat ride away, making it a bit of a journey to stay just a little over two days, but the amazing weather, the joy on my mother-in-law’s face upon our arrival and the beautiful landscape made it well worth it.

It was our first time there in the winter and after seeing the beauty of the deserted beaches, the turquoise water and the quaint atmosphere of the seaside towns helped me understand how usurped the locals must feel in the summer when the hoards of tourists hit and sully their picturesque shores. 

  

 

The kids enjoyed the briny, fresh air and the total freedom of running around the shores choosing smooth white rocks to paint, picking shells and collecting fallen fern-like branches to use as wings. They sucked on the shells of sea snails and nibbled on fried shrimp. We went with their nonna to buy fresh fish right off the boat and she treated us to many a delicious, if not exactly light, meal.

It was difficult to dissuade her, but we did not want her to cook for us the whole time we were there and insisted on taking her out for a drive and lunch one day given the beautiful weather.

By the time it was noon the kids were starving and we found ourselves knocking on the door of a charming looking restaurant (the only open one actually) in the almost-deserted town of Marina di Campo. We were ushered into the empty rooms and seated at a table, an old glass-covered horse carriage wheel (yup, just like the one in When Harry Met Sally), by the window. The place mats were sheets of yellow paper that my mother in law explained was what they once used to wrap the pasta in at the pastifici, where people bought pasta in bulk before the days of packaging and supermarkets, when she was a girl. It was also used to wrap fried fish. It turned out to be very useful to keep the children busy drawing while we awaited out meal.

The owner/maitre (?) was not very kind to begin with and we were a little surprised given we were the only people there and it was an out-of-season week day in the sleepiest time of the year. We were not handed a menu (rich in delicious offerings of the land and sea of Tuscany) and we were curtly told they do not make pizza at lunch (my mother in law was disappointed, she had had it there before and was looking forward to it). The man went on to list the day’s specials and we were pleasantly surprised so things started looking up. Once we had ordered we were brought a basket of warm, crusty sourdough bread, quite a rarity here in Italy. It was quickly devoured and we were brought more immediately and throughout the meal (free of charge may I add).

Things were getting better by the minute. I looked around while I waited. The furnishing was simple, rustic, with a mix of old and new that is predominant in many Italian trattorias. It was actually quite charming and picturesque to sit in but the camera does not do it justice (not just mine, check out the website and prepare yourself for some pretty bad English). There were very good bottles of wine and pretty wine crates strategically placed around the restaurant, the promise of a good cellar and a reminder that this place has been serving wine since 1930. 

The restaurant started filling up unexpectedly with an array of different people. A middle aged French couple was seated near us and curiously eyed our dishes before ordering. Four builders walked in and sat at a back table, chatting away and sharing jokes with the owner and waitress. A group of fashionable young people sat in the other room and sipped wine and laughed.

Then our orders arrived and we were impressed.

  

The riso al nero di seppia, rice with black squid ink, that my husband and children ordered was served in an edible basket of crispy Parmesan. The rice was perfectly al dente, lusciously black and creamy and studded with chewy yet tender pieces of squid.

I ordered a plate of spaghettini with baby calamari. I am not exaggerating if I tell you this was one of the best pasta dishes I have ever had. The pasta was toothsome, the squid ink fresh and full of flavor and it was filled with the tiniest, most delicious calamaretti, all drizzled with top quality garlic and chili infused olive oil (incidentally, they have an impressive olive oil menu). The French tourists ordered the same and ooohed! and aaahed! the whole time they ate it. I was so in love with the dish that I enthusiastically covered our host in praise despite my initial antipathy towards him. This softened him. This and perhaps seeing my well-behaved (if I may say so myself; not always the case, but in this occasion definitely) childrens’ faces covered in black ink and nibbling on fish heads.  

Next came our three orders of fritto di paranza, generally a plate of bite-sized fried fish. This fish was actually larger in size, but it was fried perfectly, golden and crunchy with little more than a hint of grease. A squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of salt and we were set to eat, head, tail and all.

By the time we ordered coffee, the kids were getting a little restless and my youngest was ready for a nap so we skipped dessert. Well, I will be totally honest with you, we had homemade cannoli waiting for us at home.

Our last surprise was the extremely reasonable check. We didn’t have wine or dessert but our meal of three first courses and three mains, three large bottles of water and three coffees turned out to be €88,000. Not bad for a fresh fish meal if you ask me.

The food really was excellent, the fish fresh and I will definitely go back in high season in the evening my husband to taste some more dishes and a good bottle of wine. I am sure it will not disappoint. I just hope that the sun of summer will warm up our host’s very professional yet icy mannerism.

Ristorante Il Cantuccio

Largo Garibaldi 6

Marina di Campo

Isola d'Elba

Tel. 0565.976775

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Ca's Patro March

We are back!

Yesterday we were still swimming in clear waters and today we went back to work... talk about culture shock (and thermal shock waking up to rainy, cool weather). But this way is best, no time to think about or to acknowledge the sadness you feel when leaving those you love.

Mallorca never ceases to surprise us with its beauty, variety, traditions and breathtaking scenery. Every time we leave its sunny shores, family and good friends, old and new, we cannot help but feel that we are leaving our second home. There are so many stories to tell, so many images to show, it is hard to decide where to start.

So I will start with food of course. I will tell you about a restaurant I highly recommend you visit if you are ever on the island. It is exactly the place you dream of when you set off in your rented car to find that small, quaint seafood restaurant you know is hidden somewhere among the rocks. A place that is relaxed, where the fish is as fresh and as uncomplicated as can be. A place with a view, with the sound of waves lapping up onto the shore, a place to have a late, lazy Spanish lunch, drinking chilled white wine and enjoying a breeze. The locals' best kept secret apparently, because every time I looked for a place like that on my travels, I rarely managed to find it.

You always seem to end up sitting in a crowded tourist trap, with overpriced fish and warm wine. There is never a breeze and as much as you try to smile and make the best of your vacation, rivulets of sweat are running down your cleavage and your thighs are sticking together under your napkin.

I thus present to you Ca's Patro March, so that you will no longer have to revisit that nightmare.

The restaurant is located in the Deìa Municipality, in a little hidden cala you reach driving or walking down a winding road through olive groves. After parking you will have to walk in the scorching sun for a little under five minutes but it will be worth it once you get there. You can go for a swim from the little beach and sit in the sun first or head directly to lunch. The restaurant is perched up on a cliff (yes, you will also have to climb up some stairs to get there) like an eagle's nest and offers the most spectacular of views. It looks like it was built by the Flintstones, lots of stone, straw and wood.  It is a simple and very child friendly place (I was surprised at the amount of strollers and children given the arduous climb up) so don't go there if you are looking for white linens, flowers in silver vases and monastic silence. It is bustling with people and laughter, waiters zigzagging through the tables with large trays laden with the day's catch.

The food was exquisite, the wine was served ice cold and kept chilled and the service was extremely friendly if a little frazzled by the afternoon crowd.

We enjoyed a few dishes of a local treat, our beloved chipirones, baby squid, not much larger than a thumbnail. They were served hot and crunchy, fried  to perfection and seasoned with just enough salt. A drizzle of lemon that grows everywhere you look and we were in heaven. One of our party ordered a gazpacho and claimed it was superb. As our main course we ordered a parillada de pescado y mariscos, a grilled mixture of fish and seafood.

In other words, when you can't make up your mind, go all the way. The platters included calamari, lobster, swordfish, monkfish, shrimp and more (yes, even the grilled head of a rock fish with the its enormous tender cheek, the most prized morsel).

After, large chilled slabs of fresh honeydew melon to cleansen the palate and ice cream for the kids.

If you zoom in on this picture you can see the guy standing up there on the cliff

We even got a show worthy of Acapulco while enjoying our coffee. A group of kids entertained us by diving, frontwards and back, from various heights off of the cliffs right in front of us. Quite an exciting experience, followed by gasps from the lunching crowd and rounds of applause.

Ca's Patro March

Cala Deia +34971639137

Salmon with pomegranate molasses glaze and roasted peaches

Remember how I mentioned a while back that these days my kids have a more active social life than their parents? Well, my children also live a more glamorous life than we do these days. While Mommy and Daddy sit in the office next week, little big girl will be on vacation again. Not bad, eh?

The first night she slept away from us a little over a half year ago I was nervous. The first time she left home for almost a week a few months ago my heart was breaking. The second time we dropped her off for a week less than a month ago I shed a few tears in the car.

This time I refuse to acknowledge that little ache in the upper left part of my chest. I will not have visions of myself sitting on the couch in an old pyjama à la Bridget Jones to the notes of All By Myself. I will blink back those tears and focus on what happens when she comes back.

We are going on vacation. There will be beautiful beaches, great wine, fabulous food. But most of all there will be family, friends, laughs, love. There will be my sister, who is my best friend. There will be my three beautiful blond-haired, blue-eyed German nephews. There will be their smart, fun loving dad. And last, but not least, the woman who started this all. My Mommy.

So there.

The detox continues. I am feeling healthier already and one pound lighter.

No surprise then that I was thrilled yesterday when I found inspiration on Dinners & Dreams to use up exactly the ingredients I had in my fridge. I played around with the recipe to accomodate some ingredients I wanted to use and leave out others I didn't have. The result was tangy, sweet, caramelized and tender at the same time.

The original recipe was meant for the grill and I am sure that would probably give even more delicious results but since I don't have one I roasted the salmon instead. In an attempt to eat as healthy as possible and cut some of the fattiness of the salmon, I roasted some peaches alongside. They were soft and sweet and juicy, just perfect. In less than 30 minutes I made a healthy meal fit for a king.

The next time I make this I will discard the excess marinade so it doesn't burn on the baking tray during roasting. This will allow me to set the oven on grill and raise the temperature so I can cook the fish for a shorter amount of time but at higher heat. This will make the salmon crunchier without overcooking it.