Tag Archives: grape tomatoes

Salmon with Sautéed Tomatoes

Uncategorized, , , , , ,

Heart-healthy salmon is paired with jammy tomatoes which get an herby boost from pesto sauce. With very few ingredients and in less than a half hour, you have the makings of a company-worthy dinner.

To really enhance this Mediterranean meal, we also paired the salmon with Zucchini and Feta Fritters with a side of Yogurt Cucumber-Dill Sauce (which could be made a day ahead to save time on dinner night.)

Cutting the fish into the recommended 4 slices will end up with 6-ounce filets. We decided to divide the salmon into 3 filets weighing in at 8-ounces each. If they have thin “tails” at one end. flip them up and secure with a toothpick while you cook skin side down. Remove the toothpicks before flipping them over. This will help alleviate overdone ends.

Salmon with Sautéed Tomatoes

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 2 pints grape tomatoes
  • 2 Tbsp. basil pesto
  • 1 1/2 lbs. salmon fillet, cut into 4 servings
  • 3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

  1. Heat two tablespoons of the olive oil in a 12″ non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add grape tomatoes, season with 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt and sauté until soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in pesto and sauté two minutes more. Transfer tomato mixture to a plate and keep warm in a 200°F oven.
  2. Wipe out skillet (although I didn’t find this necessary). Season salmon pieces with 1/2 teaspoon each Kosher salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Place salmon pieces in skillet, skin side down. Sauté about 4-6 minutes. If you’re pieces are thick you may have to cook them a few minutes longer.
  3. Turn salmon and sauté and additional 4 minutes until salmon is cooked but tender. Serve over tomatoes and with lemon wedges.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Jammy Grape Tomatoes

Uncategorized, , , , ,

Lots of grape and/or cherry tomatoes? A great way to use them up before they go bad is to roast them with garlic and olive oil. All you need are tomatoes, olive oil and garlic cloves. However, we happen to have some organic garlic scapes on hand and decided to chop them up and add to the mix. Jammy describes the way these tomatoes collapse, thicken and sweeten when they’re roasted in the oven.

While exact measurements don’t make much of a difference, I sliced up just over a pound of multi-colored grape tomatoes, peeled and smashed about a head of garlic cloves, and chopped 6 garlic scapes. Then arranged in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet, tossed with about 1/4 cup of good olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. The pan went into a preheated 325° oven for 30 minutes, then tossed everything with a spatula and spread back into an even layer. After another 30 minutes in the oven, the pan was removed.

Let cool completely. You can store in an airtight container for up to five days in the refrigerator, or use immediately as a spread on crusty bread, tossed with cooked pasta, or use as an accompaniment to fish, steak or chicken.

As a special treat, we spread some on thick focaccia slices, topped with shredded parm and put under the broiler for several minutes, then topped with a chiffonade of fresh basil from our garden. In a word, divine!

Sautéed Snapper with Green Beans and Tomatoes

Uncategorized, , , , , , ,

Sometimes there is nothing more satisfying than a meal that is not only good for you, but is art to the eyes and music to the taste buds—plus, comes together quickly with a short list of ingredients. Here, Milk Street riffs on Laura Calder’s recipe for a simple yet elegant one-skillet, six-ingredient (not counting the salt and pepper) sautéed fish supper from “French Food at Home.”

This version yields a slightly more substantial vegetable accompaniment to serve with the fillets but is equally easy to prepare. Green beans are used, but if you prefer, use pencil-thin asparagus instead. However, Milk Street notes it serves four, and while we halved the amount of snapper for the two of us, the full amount of green beans and tomatoes was kept intact, yet we consumed all of them between the two of us. If serving a starch such as rice or potatoes, it probably won’t be much of an issue.

Red snapper is a mild, firm-textured white fish that holds up nicely to sautéing. Flounder is a good alternative, as it typically is of the same thickness as snapper. Halibut works nicely, too, but the fillets are thicker (and more expensive!) and therefore require a few more minutes in the pan. One misstep on our end was forgetting to remove the fish skin which caused the fillets to curl in the pan.

Tip: Don’t fuss with the fish once it’s in the skillet. Allowing the fillets to cook undisturbed for a few minutes gives them a chance to develop a well-browned crust. To flip each one, slide a metal spatula underneath and, as you turn it, support the fillet your free hand. Gentle handling helps prevent the flaky flesh from breaking.

Sautéed Snapper with Green Beans and Tomatoes

  • Servings: 2-4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 4 6-oz. skinless red snapper fillets (½ to 1 inch thick)
  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper
  • 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 8 oz. green beans, trimmed and halved
  • 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
  • 2 Tbsp. salted butter, cut into 2 pieces
  • 2 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar

Directions

  1. Season the fish on both sides with salt and pepper. In a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high, heat 1 tablespoon of oil until shimmering. Add the beans and cook, stirring only once or twice, until spottily browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to char and burst and the beans are tender-crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a serving platter.
  2. In the same skillet over medium-high, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil until shimmering. Add the fillets skinned side up and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Using a wide metal spatula, flip each fillet, then add the butter while swirling the pan. Cook over medium-high, occasionally basting the fish with the fat, until the fillets are opaque throughout, about another 3 minutes. Using the spatula, place the fillets on top of the vegetables.
  3. Set the skillet over medium, add the vinegar and cook, stirring to combine with the fat, just until heated through, 30 to 60 seconds. Pour the mixture over the fish.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Adapted the recipe by Courtney Hill for Milk Street

Braised Chicken with Tomatoes, Mustard and Brandy

Uncategorized, , , , , ,

This dish may sound French, but the starting point for Milk Street was the Portuguese classic called frango na púcara, or chicken in a clay pot. For quick and easy weeknight cooking, boneless, skinless chicken thighs are used instead of bone-in parts. All gets cooked in one Dutch oven on the stovetop—always a plus when it comes to clean up.

Because our chicken thighs were of two different thicknesses, I had to remove the two smaller pieces to a platter, cover with foil, and let the thicker thighs cook a few minutes longer. And yes, you may have noticed from the ingredients photo below, I did increase the amount of garlic cloves.

Cherry tomatoes can be used in place of grape tomatoes, but they tend to be larger, so cut them in half before adding them to the pot. We used the variety pack of tomatoes that contained four different colors, adding to the overall color palette. Serve with warm, crusty bread, roasted potatoes, rice, or as in our case, farro.

Speaking of farro, the kind that’s most commonly found in the US and Europe is emmer wheat. It’s sold dry and prepared by cooking it in water until it’s soft and chewy. Before it’s cooked it looks similar to wheat berries, but afterward it looks similar to barley. It’s a small, light-brown grain with a noticeable outer layer of bran. Farro is loved for its nutty flavor and unique, chewy texture. It’s a great alternative to other popular grains, such as rice, quinoa, buckwheat and barley, among others.

Braised Chicken with Tomatoes, Mustard and Brandy

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed and patted dry
  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper
  • 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
  • 6 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 2 tsp. smoked paprika
  • 2 Tbsp. dijon mustard
  • ⅓ cup brandy
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes
  • ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 

Directions

  1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven over medium-high, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the onion and garlic, then cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the paprika and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  2. Add the mustard and brandy, then cook, scraping up any browned bits, until slightly reduced, about 30 seconds.
  3. Stir in the tomatoes and broth, then nestle the chicken in the liquid. Bring to a simmer, reduce to medium-low, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
  4. Using tongs, flip the chicken and simmer, uncovered, until a skewer inserted into the chicken meets no resistance, another 5 to 8 minutes.
  5. Transfer the chicken to a serving dish and tent with foil. Bring the braising liquid to a simmer over medium-high and cook, stirring often, until thickened and the tomatoes have softened, 5 to 8 minutes.
  6. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture over the chicken and sprinkle with the parsley.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Adapted from a recipe for Milk Street

Pasta Alla Norma

Uncategorized, , ,

The name of the dish is said to originate from the apocryphal exclamation by the Italian writer Nino Martoglio who, upon tasting the dish, exclaimed “This is a real ‘Norma‘!”, comparing it with the exceptional perfection of the Vincenzo Bellini opera Norma.

We obtained the recipe from Milk Street, but changed the penne pasta to gemelli, which gives a twist to the texture and captures more of the sauce in its curves. Feel free to use whatever pasta suits your fancy.

The eggplant is typically fried before being added to the sauce, but here it is roasted to concentrate the flavors and condense the porous texture. The eggplant is in the oven for about 30 minutes unattended, except for one toss; so use that time to prep the other ingredients, cook the pasta and simmer the tomatoes to make the sauce.

If you’ve never had ricotta salata, it is a firm cheese with a milky, salty flavor. Do not substitute fresh ricotta; a mild feta is a more appropriate substitute.

Don’t forget to reserve about ½ cup of the pasta cooking water before draining. You’ll need the starchy, salted liquid to help bring together the eggplant, pasta and sauce during the final simmer.

Pasta Alla Norma

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. eggplant, peeled and cut into ¾-inch cubes
  • Kosher salt
  • 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 12 oz. penne rigate or mezze rigatoni pasta
  • 8 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • ½ tsp. red pepper flakes
  • 2 pints grape tomatoes
  • 2 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
  • ½ cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
  • 2 oz. ricotta salata, shredded

Directions

  1. Heat the oven to 475°F with a rack in the upper-middle position. Line a rimmed baking sheet with kitchen parchment.
  2. In a large bowl, toss the eggplant with 1½ teaspoons salt and 4 tablespoons of the oil. Spread in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and roast until browned and tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring once.
  3. Meanwhile, in a large pot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Stir in the pasta and 2 tablespoons salt; cook until the pasta is al dente. Reserve about ½ cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta.
  4. While the eggplant roasts and the water heats, in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil until shimmering. Add the garlic and pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
  5. Add the tomatoes and 1½ teaspoons salt, then cover and cook, occasionally shaking the pan, until the tomatoes begin to release their liquid, about 1 minute.
  6. Stir in the vinegar, then use the back of a large spoon to crush the tomatoes. Cover, reduce to medium and cook, stirring, until the mixture breaks down into a lightly thickened sauce, 8 to 9 minutes.
  7. Add the drained pasta, eggplant and ¼ cup of the reserved pasta water to the tomatoes. Cook over medium, stirring constantly, until the sauce begins to cling to the pasta, 2 to 3 minutes.
  8. Taste and season with salt. Stir in half of the basil and transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with the remaining basil and the ricotta salata.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Recipe adapted from Milk Street

Meatless Pasta with Lemony Breadcrumbs

Uncategorized, , , , , ,

What to do for dinner in late-summer/early-fall with an abundance of grape tomatoes and fresh herbs? Well that would be Skillet Burst Grape Tomato Casarecce with Lemony Breadcrumbs. It’s a very simple pan roasted grape tomato pasta with white wine, garlic, fresh herbs, topped with the most crunchy lemony breadcrumbs, and finished with luscious burrata cheese.

Don’t forget to add that luscious dollop of fresh burrata.

This perfect late-summer dinner is ready in under 30 minutes using basic pantry staples and end-of-season garden bounty. If you’ve never used it, Casarecce pasta is a very narrow, twisted, and rolled tube, almost resembling a scroll. If you can’t find it, substitute a similar twisted, tubular pasta like cavatappi, cavatelli, gemelli, or fusilli.

If you have any leftovers, keep the bread crumbs and buratta separate. When ready to eat, reheat the pasta in a microwave for a few minutes, then top with crumbs and cheese.

Skillet Burst Grape Tomato Casarecce with Lemony Breadcrumbs

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • 1 cup finely torn ciabatta bread
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Crushed red pepper flakes to taste
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 pound casarecce pasta, or other twisted tubular pasta
  • 1 1/4 lbs. red and yellow grape tomatoes
  • 6-8 cloves garlic, smashed
  • 2 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
  • 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh oregano
  • 1/3 cup dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup manchego cheese, grated
  • 2 cups fresh basil, roughly chopped
  • 2 balls fresh burrata cheese, each ball split in two
  • Crisp bread crumbs until golden
  • Cook until the tomatoes begin to pop
  • Basil and Manchego cheese are added
  • Stir together with some reserved pasta water
  • Top each serving with bread crumbs

Directions

  1. In a large skillet set over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the bread, a pinch of red pepper flakes and pinch of kosher salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until golden and toasted all over, about 5 minutes.
  2. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest. Slide bread crumbs onto a plate. Wipe the skillet clean. 
  3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Just before draining, remove 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain.
  4. Meanwhile, place the same skillet used for the bread over high heat and add the remaining olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the tomatoes, garlic, thyme, and oregano, and a pinch each of salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook until the tomatoes begin to pop, about 4-5 minutes. Pour in the wine, cook 1 minute.
  5. Add the pasta and a splash of the pasta cooking water to the skillet, tossing to combine. Remove from the heat and add the manchego cheese and basil, toss to combine. If needed, thin the pasta sauce with a little of the reserved cooking water.
  6. Divide the pasta among shallow bowls, nestle in half a burrata ball, and top with bread crumbs.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Loosely adapted from a recipe found on halfbakedharvest.com

Green Beans with Tomatoes and Crispy Breadcrumbs

Uncategorized, , , , ,

Tomatoes are another summer staple that explodes with a variety of luscious choices by season’s end. In fact, every year in our raised bed herb garden we are fortunate to get several “bonus plants” compliments of seed from our compost.

Fresh, snappy late-summer beans are a fleeting pleasure on their own, but jazz them up with the sweet acidity of grape tomatoes and crackly breadcrumbs, you’ve got a winning combination. The layers of colors (especially if you include yellow wax beans) and crisp and juicy textures effortlessly upgrade any main, such as our herb-marinated grilled bone-in pork chops.

As soon as I eyeballed this recipe in our latest Martha Stewart Living magazine, I knew it was going to make an appearance on our dining table within days. Unfortunately I could not access any yellow wax beans, so instead I used a combination of red and yellow grape tomatoes for that tri-color effect.

A few weeks earlier we made bead crumbs from some leftover crusty bread and put it in the freeze until such time we would need them again. Well this seemed like the perfect occasion, although the crumb was much finer than asked for here, still we went ahead with the recipe and it was great! They were a side dish to those grilled pork chops, but hardly played second fiddle.

  • Boil green beans in salted water for 4-6 minutes
  • Place drained beans on platter, drizzle with olive oil
  • Brown the bread crumbs in olive oil
  • Sauté the tomatoes halves in olive oil
  • Mix bread crumbs with cooked tomatoes

Green Beans with Tomatoes and Crispy Breadcrumbs

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 12 oz. green beans and/or yellow wax beans, trimmed
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 4 slices rustic bread (5 ounces), crusts removed, torn into large pieces
  • 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
  • 10 oz. cocktail tomatoes or large cherry tomatoes, or a combination, halved
  • 1 oz. Manchego cheese, finely grated (1/4 cup)
Pour tomato/bread crumb mixture over plated green beans
and top with grated Manchego cheese.

Directions

  1. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add beans and cook until bright green and crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Drain and transfer to a serving platter; lightly drizzle with oil.
  2. Pulse bread in a food processor until coarse crumbs form (you should have 2 cups). In a medium skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil and butter over medium. Add breadcrumbs and season with salt and pepper; cook, stirring, until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
  3. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in skillet over medium-high. Add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in breadcrumbs. Top beans with warm tomato mixture. Sprinkle with cheese; serve.

http://www.lynnandruss.com

Adapted by a recipe from Sarah Copeland