Here fishy, fishy.

flotsam from the sea

This past weekend I was able to steal away for a bit of a mini vacation to visit my parents in Florida. Since the onset of the empty nest phase, my parents have become increasingly more mobile and spend a good amount of time in Florida. With my dad's birthday last week and being between assignments in school, I took a long weekend for some good ol' time with Momma and Daddy. A girl needs it once in awhile, you know?  

After a couple of days of hanging out on the beach, fishing and finding the most beautiful shells ever, I planned a good birthday dinner for my Daddy. If I ever thought my parents' kitchen in Jersey was a treat to cook in, apparently I'd forgotten how amazing their kitchen is in FL.  Looking out over the sunset behind palm trees in the backyard, it was tempting to resolve to quit school and become their full time chef.  No, I am not exaggerating; yes, it is simply beautiful.

We spent Sunday fishing "on the wreck" ten miles offshore. As an aside, Schaeffer thought this was awesomely exciting and wanted a full report not on the fish we caught, but on the pirates that attempted to catch us!  Needless to say I'm happy to share that our trip was pirate-free, but not fish-free!  In fact, we caught dinner!  Two beautiful red snapper were added to menu.

Menu:
Hog snapper and Red snapper filets (#181 & 182) with Olive, Pine Nut and Shallot Relish (#183)
Caprese Salad with Arugula, Spinach and Parsley Pesto (#184)
Steamed Haricots VertsBirthday Berry Crumble (#185) with whipped cream

two fish, one way.

I got the fish at this awesome little fish market in town, Paradise Seafood. Not only do you always find the best selection of fish, - this time hog snapper filets, but they give the best cooking suggestions!  Scott told me to lightly season the filets with sea salt and pepper and then dust both sides with a bit of flour. In a skillet I used about a tablespoon of grape seed oil, at his suggestion due to the high smoking point, and sauteed the filets for about four minutes each side.  Delicious. And fool proof.

need to work on my 'drizzle'

My dear not-so-old Daddy is some fisherman, I should say. I've grown up with him knowing every fish that is pulled up to the boat on a fishing rod. At first glance he tell you what you caught and just about how many inches it is, which he then quickly follows up with the rule about whether or not it's a "keeper". Yesterday he was all boy scout style prepared with seven rods on the boat, plenty of bait and chum and two of his favorite skippers, my Momma and myself.  Our two red snappers, 15" and 16", luckily got the stamp of "keeper" approval from our Captain.

fishies, momma and me

The entire weekend was wonderful, and not getting too much time these days just the three of us, it did us all good to be together and relax a bit. We even sang a slightly belated Happy Birthday to my Daddy while watching the Phillies game. All in all, it was pretty perfect. 

Thanks, M & D. Miss you already.

Rainy Mondays.

It is a sad day when the computer doctor, aka mac genius, tells you there is no saving your hard drive.  Yet, at the same time, it offers you an important choice.  I could (a) be frustrated and whiny and stomp my feet a little, or (b) realize it is only a computer that was mostly backed-up and be happy it is covered by warranty. Thankfully mature Kimmi stopped by for a visit, and I went with the latter choice. It does mean, sadly, that I have lost pictures for the last few recipes. So, re-cooking and re-photoing I will do. I ended the evening with some pizza, beers, salad and some girls for a late post-class cooking session.  


Menu:
Cheesy Veggie Pizza (#180)
Mixed greens with vinaigrette

Wow, you are cute.

I picked up this adorable little box-o-tomatoes at the market around the corner and hoped it would be just the tomato-y goodness needed for the pizza.  Beth brought the fresh pizza dough you buy at Whole Foods, which I love.  It makes super delicious pizza attainable on any random night.  And anything that can guarantee that is a good guy in my book.  

strain those tomatoes

Pile of toppings

 Another essential for perfect pizza is a super hot oven.  I mean inferno hot.  Set it to 475 degrees, even 500 if you are comfortable with that, and let it completely heat before putting the pizza in there.  Mix some chopped garlic with the ricotta cheese to add a bit more flavor, slice onion super thinly, slice peppers and top-top-top-top-top away.  Put the whole thing in that hot oven for about 10 minutes until the crust is nice and crispy.  And voila!

yum yum yum

For the cheese, I just added dollops of ricotta here and there and then put a thin coating on shredded mozzarella over the veggies.  Next to a salad on this chilly Monday night, it wasn't far from perfect.  Oh, and the Bud Light didn't hurt either.

120 to go...