Thursday, July 12, 2012

Healthy summer eating...

More foodies for you!  Gluten free, dairy free, gets you away from the standard burger or chicken on the grill, and ecologically respectful...

Grilled Swordfish Steaks with Avocado, Crab, Red Chile and Cilantro-- by Chris Bauer.

Sustainably-harvested swordfish (harpoon and handline-caught results in little to no bycatch) is becoming easier to find, just be sure to ask your seafood manager where and how it was caught.  However, it's notoriously high in mercury so don't eat this every week, and if you're pregnant or breastfeeding, skip it.

Serves 2.


18 oz swordfish steak, 3/4" thick, no skin, no bloodline
Salt/cracked black pepper to taste
6 Tbsp olive oil
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 Tbsp red onion, finely diced
2 Tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
1 Tbsp red bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp Serrano pepper, finely diced
4 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp sambal oelek chili sauce-- like Sriracha, etc.
4 oz fresh crab meat, no shells


Season fish with salt and pepper, brush lightly with 2 Tbsp oil, and grill over very hot fire 4 minutes on each side to desired doneness (medium to medium-rare is preferred.)

Combine avocado, onion, cilantro, peppers, vinegar, remaining olive oil, lime juice and chili sauce.  Split fish in two, top with avocado mixture, then fresh crab.

Kale and Sugar Snap Pea Salad - by Mark Bittman, NYT.

Serves 4.

Dressing:
1/2 c canola oil
1/2 c peeled, chopped ginger
1/4 c miso paste
1/2 c rice wine vinegar, or to taste
Finely grated zest and juice of two lemons or limes
1/4 c sugar, or as needed
salt and black pepper


 Salad:
 2 Tbsp sugar
4 dried apricots
1 medium bunch kale (Tuscan, red Russian, Winterbor or lacinato), coarse stems removed and discarded, roughly chopped
2 c sugar snap peas, stemmed
4 c feta cheese (optional)
1/4 c almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped (or you can use sliced almonds)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh mint, or to taste

Make the dressing in a blender or food processor, adding everything but the salt and pepper, blending 30 seconds for a creamy emulsion.  Add salt and pepper, and more vinegar, to taste.

In small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine sugar and 1/4 c water.  Add dried apricots and poach till just rehydrated, about 2-3 minutes.  Remove from heat.
In serving bowl, combine kale, peas, and feta if using it.  Add dressing to taste, toss well-- sprinkle with almonds and garnish with apricots and mint.

Apple-Avocado Salad with Tangerine Dressing

Serves 2 as main course, 4 as side dish.


1 (10 ounce) package baby greens
1/4 c chopped red onion
1/2 c chopped walnuts
1/3 c crumbled blue cheese
2 tsp lemon zest
1 apple - peeled, cored and sliced
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced

Juice of 4 tangerines or mandarin oranges
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt, to taste
In a large bowl, toss together the baby greens, red onion, walnuts, blue cheese, and lemon zest. Mix in the apple and avocado just before serving.
In a container with a lid, mix the mandarin orange juice, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, and salt. (Alternatively, you can put the peeled segments of fruit into a food processor with the rest of the ingredients.)  Drizzle over the salad as desired.

1 comment:

Ronnie Brown said...

I LOVE the first recipe, especially! Swordfish is one of my favorites, but I haven't found too many recipes I like for it. This one sounds great. I'll have to try it. Thanks for sharing these!

- Ronnie