Bon Appetit's Bacon-Infused Carolina Fish Muddle

I've been all over Bon Appetit magazine lately. Seeing their magazine really inspires me to try new recipes even if they are sometimes overly complicated. This Bacon-Infused Carolina Fish Muddle was a perfect use for some of the fish we have in the freezer so I gave it a go, with some changes of course. After trying it, I would say it needs a little extra something. If I made it again I would definitely add some chopped fennel bulb to the sauteed veggies and kick up the heat with some extra jalapeno, hot sauce or Cajun hot seasoning. I cut the recipe in 1/2 and easily had enough to serve 4 people. I skipped the toast but it sounds pretty good, doesnt it?! I served it one night with grits and the other night over brown rice and surprisingly I liked the rice better. I posted what I did below but you can get the original recipe here.

Crab Cakes

This was my first attempt at making crab cakes other than heating up the frozen kind and they turned out great. I served them with a remoulade sauce and steamed broccoli. I forgot to take a picture so you will just have to use some imagination. Or you could try out the recipe and send me a picture of your creation.

Red Curry Snapper over Jasmine Rice

This is the last of the fresh snapper we caught. The rest of it has been vacuum sealed and put in the freezer for when friends come to visit (hint hint).  Ron and I made this one up based on a bunch of other Thai recipes we read. It has a tiny bit of heat in the beginning that adds up as you eat it. If you don't like things spicy you may want to cut down on the hot chili sauce when you make it.


Ingredients
1 can coconut milk
1 Tbsp Thai red curry paste
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp sweet red chili sauce
1 Tbsp Sriracha hot chili sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 red bell pepper
1 lime
Snapper fillet
Jasmine Rice






Directions
First, start the rice cooking according to package instructions. I LOVE using a rice cooker because I never end up burning the rice.

In a large frying pan or wok spoon out the 'cream' from the top of the coconut milk can. I would guesstimate that the cream forms about an inch layer on top. Add in red curry, brown sugar, garlic, sweet red chili sauce, hot chili sauce and the fish sauce. Cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add in the rest of the coconut milk, sliced red bell pepper and fish.

Continue to cook over medium heat until fish is cooked through and flaky. Add the juice of the lime to the pan and stir. Serve over the jasmine rice.

Simple Dinner. Fish Tacos with a side of Sweet Plantains (Platanos)

The key to good fish tacos is fresh fish. Our snapper went from boat to table in under 4 hours. That's the way to do it! Random thought: isn't it odd that fish is the only thing that smells like itself when its gone bad? Anyways....

For my fish tacos I rubbed the filet down with some taco seasoning

Then into the frying pan until cooked.

 

Serve in taco shells or tortillas with your favorite condiments. I like to use coleslaw mix instead of lettuce for an extra crunch.

The plantains are just as easy. Make sure you buy ones with bruised and dark skin like below. If your store doesn't have them you can buy green ones and wait for them to ripen on your counter.

 Peel the plantains and slice on an angle. Put them in a warm cast iron skillet with melted butter. Flip once they start to brown.

Don't these look awesome!

Oh Snap-per! Blackend Snapper Sandwich with Southern Style Potato Salad

We have a lot of freshly caught mutton snapper in our house right now so expect to see a few fishy dishes over the next few days. For this one the side dish takes longer than the main course, but all in all it was pretty easy to do.

Sandwich
Making blackened fish is really pretty simple. I don't know if I do it the 'right' way but it always turns out great! All you need is some fish, blackening seasoning (I use Chef Paul Prudhomme's Blackened Redfish Magic) and a skillet.  Rub your fish down with a little olive oil and then sprinkle on the seasoning. Give it a good rub down and then put it into a hot skillet with some olive oil. Cook on both sides until the fish is cooked through and flaky. If you have a thick piece of fish you may want to use the oven. In this case you would let the fish sear on each side and then put the whole skillet in the oven to finish off. I served the fish on fresh baked (by Publix, not me) egg rolls, with lettuce tomato, a squeeze of lemon and homemade dill tartar sauce.

Tartar Sauce
This one you can easily adjust to taste, I used the following: 1/2 cup mayo, spoon full of sweet relish, spoon full of dill relish, one slice of onion finely chopped, 1 sprig of fresh dill and the juice of 1/2 a lemon. (Hint. If you have left over tartar sauce mix in some canned tuna for a dill tuna salad sandwich the next day)

Potato Salad
This recipe is from Southern Living 1001 Ways to Cook Southern, or as I call it the "southern bible". Unless you are feeding an army of hungry boys or are taking this to a potluck I would recommend cutting the recipe in half. It made WAY to much.

Ingredients

• 4 lbs potatoes (boil them about 40 minutes or until soft, cool, peel, cut into cubes)
• 3 hard boiled eggs (the recipe says 'grated', but I just chopped 'em up with a knife)
• 1 cup mayo
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup celery, finely chopped (I think it could use a little more)
• 2 Tbsp. onion, finely chopped
• 2 Tbsp. sweet relish
• 1 Tbsp. yellow mustard
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• 1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled

Directions
Stir together all ingredients except potatoes and eggs. Add potatoes and eggs to the mayo mixture and stir. Cover and chill. Sprinkle with bacon before serving.