Tuna and White Bean Pasta with Gremolata Bread Crumbs

We have had crappy weather all this week and worse is yet to come. It's been raining (yes, raining in San Diego), it's cold and we've had very high winds. And since I have a little baby I was a bit scared to go out driving in this rainy weather to go food shopping. Instead, I found this recipe (and yes, it's from Rachael Ray) and believe it or not, I had most of the ingredients in my pantry. A few modifications are: I halved the recipe and used 1 can of tuna; instead of breadcrumbs I used Panko breadcrumbs; I omitted the rosemary but used a little oregano instead; I didn't have any chicken broth so I used the starchy water of the pasta and lastly I used canned tomato sauce because I didn't have any fresh tomatoes. All in all, it was quite hearty, very filling and I finally found a reason to use my can of anchovies!!!!

INGREDIENTS (serves 6)

• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 flat filet anchovies, optional
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup breadcrumbs, toast and grind stale bread or store bought
• 2 lemons
• 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
• 1 pound penne or ziti rigate
• 4 ribs celery, finely chopped
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 (15-ounce) can white beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup white wine, white vermouth or chicken broth
• 1 large tomato, seeded and chopped or 1 can 15 ounces can diced tomatoes, drained, optional

DIRECTIONS

Heat 4 tablespoons olive oil in small pan over medium-low heat with anchovies, if using. Melt anchovies into oil until they dissolve then add garlic and stir 2 minutes then add breadcrumbs and stir and cook until deeply golden in color. Stir in zest of 2 lemons and parsley and crushed red pepper flakes. Turn off heat and transfer to a bowl.

Heat a large pot of water to a boil for pasta.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add celery, onions and 2 cloves garlic to the pan and cook until just tender, 5 minutes. Add white beans and rosemary and heat through 2 to 3 minutes more. Add wine, vermouth or broth, flakes tuna and tomato, if using. Stir 2 minutes then turn off heat.

Just before draining the pasta, add a ladle of starchy cooking water to pan along with the drained pasta, toss to combine. Serve in shallow bowls with lots of breadcrumbs and a drizzle of oil on top.

Blackened Tuna with Five Pepper Sauce

Matthew is still in Virginia and he has had some incredible seafood. He recently visited Croc's in Virginia Beach and had their blackened tuna with the five pepper sauce. This recipe is not from the restaurant, but it's pretty close. It's both sweet and sour and just slightly spicy because the chili garlic sauce gives it a kick. If you can't find chili garlic sauce, you can use 1/2 tsp. of red pepper flakes instead.

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)

• 2 (8 oz.) Ahi tuna steaks, about 2/3" thick
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 yellow pepper, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 tsp. chili garlic sauce
• 1/4 tsp. fresh black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 8 oz. dark syrup
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• Prepared mashed potatoes

DIRECTIONS

To make five pepper sauce: In medium saucepan, add syrup, chicken stock, vinegars and stir in sugar. Let sauce reduce by 1/4 over medium heat, about 15 minutes. Once liquid is reduced by 1/4, add all the peppers, chili garlic sauce, salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until all the peppers are translucent in color, about 15 more minutes.

To make the tuna: generously coat tuna with Cajun seasoning.

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over high heat. When oil is nearly smoking, place steaks in pan. Cook on one side for 3 to 4 minutes, or until blackened. Turn steaks, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes for medium rare.

To serve: place a portion of mashed potatoes on center of a plate. Place your blackened tuna steak over the potatoes, then pour the five pepper sauce over blackened tuna fillet and serve.

Ahi Poke Sushi

Out of desperation, I went to Bristol Farms in La Jolla (probably the most expensive grocery store in San Diego) because they're the only store that I know of that sells fresh ahi poke by the pound! I only purchased a quarter pound since it runs @ $12.99 a pound. Yikes! Anyhoo, I created this ahi sushi roll with soy wraps instead of regular nori (seaweed). It was quite yummy. I used leftover jasmine rice since it tends to get stickier the next day. I'm no Masuhara Morimoto, but I did feel like an Iron Chef.

INGREDIENTS (makes 2 rolls)

• 1/4 lb. Ahi poke, divided
• About 2/3 to 1 cup sushi or jasmine rice, cooked
• Soy Wraps or Nori
• About 4 to 6 julienned strips of cucumber
• Avocado (optional)
• Equipment: sushi mat, plastic wrap

DIRECTIONS

1. Take one half of the poke and finely chop it with your chef's knife and get your aggression out.
2. Cover your sushi mat with plastic wrap.
3. Place a sheet of soy wrap (or nori if you prefer) on the plastic wrap and spread 1/2 cup of sushi rice on top.
4. Wet your fingers with water and spread the rice over the wrap with your hands, leaving a ½ inch strip of soy wrap uncovered at the bottom.
5. Place your desired fillings along this strip of uncovered soy sheet on the edge closest to you. I placed strips of cucumber, avocado, and some of the minced ahi poke.
6. Using the rolling mat, begin to tightly roll the sushi. Start at the side nearest to you, and roll away from you. Make sure you don’t roll the rolling mat into your sushi!
7. When the sushi is completely rolled, use the rolling mat to squeeze the sushi so it does not unroll when you are trying to cut it.
8. Cut into 6 or 8 pieces. Place sushi, rice side up on a platter and top with remaining ahi poke.

If you're a visual person like I am, you can view the step-by-step pictures here: Sushi Day.

Deconstructed Niçoise Salad

They say that we eat with our eyes first, that's why it's important to serve food that is appealing to the eye...but sometimes it's difficult making food look pretty, like salads, for example. I'm not a big salad eater mainly because it's usually just a mishmash of a bunch of veggies and lettuces mixed together and it's not really a good looking dish. But after visiting Bite restaurant in San Diego, I tried their deconstructed nicoise salad and not only was it delicious, it was probably one the prettiest salads I've ever had.

INGREDIENTS (makes 4 servings)

• 12 fingerling potatoes, or 6 to 8 small new potatoes
• 1/2 pound green beans
• 2 cups arugula or baby greens
• 8 red cherry or red plum tomatoes, cut in half
• 3 hard boiled eggs, sliced
• 1/2 cup black olives
• 10 oz. sashimi grade yellow fin tuna
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil

VINAIGRETTE

• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon garlic, smashed with salt until paste
• Pepper to taste
• 9 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Place the potatoes in a large pot of cold water. Bring to a boil and add a heavy pinch of salt. Simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender and done. Remove potatoes with a slotted spoon and let them cool completely. Add the green beans into the same pot of boiling water and bring to a boil again. Simmer for 2 minutes then drain green beans and let cool room temperature. Drizzle the potatoes with a little olive oil so they don't dry out.

Drizzle the sesame oil over tuna. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then pat down the sesame seeds all over the tuna. Wrap in plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge for 30 minutes.

When ready to cook, heat a cast iron skillet or heavy bottom skillet on medium high. Add 1 teaspoon canola or vegetable oil and as soon as it lightly smokes, place the tuna on skillet. Let it sear for 20 seconds, then turn and sear second side for another 20 seconds. Keep doing this until all sides of tuna are seared. The entire searing time should not take longer than 90 seconds. Remove and let it cool slightly. Wrap in plastic wrap and place back in fridge. About 15 minutes before serving, take seared tuna out of fridge and slice into 1/4" slices.

Vinaigrette: In a bowl, whisk together white wine, Dijon, garlic, and pepper. Drizzle in olive oil while whisking constantly. Drizzle the arugula or baby greens with 1 tablespoon of dressing and set aside.

To plate: In four plates (preferably rectangular and white) uniformly distribute black olives, then fingerling potatoes, dressed arugula, sliced seared tuna, green beans, sliced hard boiled eggs, and sliced tomatoes. Drizzle the green beans with the dressing. Sprinkle a little paprika over hard boiled eggs, and sprinkle salt and pepper over tomatoes and serve with a side of the dressing. I suggest a buttery champagne, such as Cremant de Bourgogne Rosé or even Korbel Brut for this fabulous dish!

Ahi Tuna Terrine with Wasabi Foam

This past weekend, Matt and I took a wine tour down to the Guadalupe Valley in Mexico. As we drove down the very scenic highway, we noticed many fishing farms on the Pacific Ocean, just south of Puerto Nuevo. We were told that those were Blue Fin tuna farms but that hardly anyone in Mexico or the U.S. ever get to taste any of that fish as the Japanese buy them up even before they go on the market. Sadly, blue fin tuna became overfished in Japan and they now rely on other countries to farm these delicacies. I doubt I'll ever eat real blue fin tuna as the current market price is about $110 a pound! So I'll stick to my Ahi tuna (aka Yellow fin Tuna).

As you all know, Ahi tuna is my favorite fish of all time and one of my favorite restaurants here in San Diego has two of my favorite tuna dishes: tuna sashimi terrine and sesame seared yellow fin. My tuna sashimi terrine attempt is below. I'm still working on the wasabi foam, though. I've been experimenting on the seared yellow fin. Hopefully I'll figure out these recipes soon!

If you're ever in the neighborhood, I highly suggest you check out The Guild Restaurant--it's in the barrio, but it's awsome! Sadly, the restaurant closed in January of 2009, due the economic crisis.

INGREDIENTS (serves 2)

• 1 Tbsp. chili sesame oil (plus a few drops extra for presentation)
• 1 tsp. chili garlic paste
• 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 6 oz of chopped sushi grade raw Ahi tuna
• 1 avocado
• Juice of 1 lime, divided
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 1/2 Tbsp. wasabi paste
• 1/2 Tbsp. honey
• 1 teaspoon black sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS

In a bowl combine 1 tablespoon chili sesame oil, 1 teaspoon chili garlic paste, 1 tablespoon soy sauce and the chopped Ahi tuna. Cover with plastic wrap and let it marinate in the fridge for 1 hour. After an hour, chop the avocado and gently fold it in. Squeeze the juice of half of a lime. Let it sit in the fridge another 15 minutes.

Lightly whip the cream and add in the wasabi paste and honey. Whip until stiff peaks form. Season to taste with a sprinkle of kosher or sea salt and a few drops of the leftover lime juice.

When ready to serve, place a round mold (or you can use a PVC pipe mold that is 2" diameter x 3") on top of serving platter. Add the marinated ahi. Pipe the wasabi cream with a make shift zip-loc piping bag or you can dollop the cream. Sprinkle a few black sesame seeds. Then place five drops of chili sesame oil around plate. When ready to eat, remove mold and voilà!

Ahi Poke, San Diego Style

Well my friends, I'm off to Oahu, Hawaii. I figured I would leave you with what probably is my favorite dish/fish/food of all time: Ahi tuna. I love ahi so much that I order it just about every time Matt and I go out to eat. If you make this (or a version of ahi poke) make sure you buy sashimi grade tuna since this is basically a raw dish. Also, you can buy wonton wrappers and lightly fry them in vegetable oil. By the way, a true ahi poke doesn't have avocado, however since I'm Mexican, I gotta put avocado and lime in everything. Enjoy and aloha!

INGREDIENTS (4 servings)

• 1 to 1 -1/4 lbs. ahi (yellowfin tuna, sashimi grade) diced to 1/4" (you want 2 cups total)
• 1 tablespoon onion, minced
• 1 green onion, minced (white and green parts)
• 1 teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame chili oil (use regular sesame oil if you can't find sesame chili oil)
• 1/8 tsp. Hawaiian salt or kosher salt
• Pinch of chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds
• 1 small avocado (optional)
• A little bit of lime juice (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients, except avocado and lime juice, in a stainless steel bowl and gently mix. Refrigerate well (2 to 4 hours). Make this on the day of use.

When ready to serve, squirt a little lime juice over 1 small diced avocado, if using, and add to the ahi poke and serve in martini glasses and with a side of fried wontons.

Poorman's Crab Cakes

These tuna cakes take me back to a time when I was a little girl and I loved, just loved watching The Love Boat with my brothers--even though none of us understood English at the time! During those days, my mom had to feed three very hungry kids. But since money was a bit scarce, my mom made up recipes that were clever because she used ingredients that were always available and oftentimes cheap. I called these poor man's crab cakes because after I made them for Matt last night, he actually thought they were made out of crab and he preferred these to crab cakes. Can you believe it?

INGREDIENTS (makes 6 tuna cakes)

• 2 cans of tuna in water, drained
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup celery, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 large eggs
• Pinch of salt
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 tbsp. flour
• Olive oil
• 8 oz. canned crushed tomatoes and its juice
• 1/4 tsp. Spike Seasoning or your favorite seasoning salt
• Steamed white rice, as a side

DIRECTIONS

In a bowl, combine first 8 ingredients and mix well. Place in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes. Start cooking your rice, if you haven't done so yet.

In a large skillet, heat about 2 teaspoons of olive oil on medium-high. Mix the tuna mixture again (it will be a little watery) and divide into 6 equal parts and slightly flatten them into patties.

Once the oil begins to shimmer, add 3 tuna cakes and cook for 3 minutes. Flip cakes over and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Remove cakes and cover with foil to keep warm and finish cooking the remaining cakes, adding more olive oil to skillet, as needed.

Once the final batch is done, keep warm in foil. Add the crushed tomatoes to the same skillet and 1/4 teaspoon Spike seasoning and bring to a simmer for 2 minutes. Add all the cakes back into the skillet with tomato sauce and simmer one more minute. Remove from heat.

To serve, place two to three cakes in a plate, drizzled with some of the tomato sauce and with a side of cooked white rice. Mmmmm....thanks, mom!

Open Faced Tuna Salad Sami

When I think of a tuna salad sandwich, I think of the 2nd grade. My mom used to make me tuna sandwiches almost every day and, as you can imagine, my lunch was not very popular with my school buddies. The smell of the sandwich was always very strong--probably from being in my school bag for 4 hours--and it tasted more like a mayo-tuna sandwich on soggy, white Bimbo bread. Years later, when I was in college, I refused to make tuna sandwiches. Even if I was dirt poor, I refused to buy any cans of tuna. I guess you can say tuna left a bad taste in my mouth. Now, as a grown up(!) I realize that tuna is not so bad after all. It was a perfect piece of Ahi tuna I had at Peohe's that changed my mind forever. Since then, I love everything tuna; tuna steaks, tuna rolls, tuna tartar, tuna casserole and, yes, even tuna sandwiches. I saw the follwoing recipe on Everyday Food and I knew I had to try it immediately. All the measurements are approximate. I can't fint the recipe online yet, so I guessed on the measurements. All in all, it was a really good, open faced tuna sandwich. It makes a hardy and tasty lunch alternative.

First I started with my ingredients:

1/2 cup chopped red onion

2 cans of Albacore Tuna (in water)

1 can of garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

2 TBSP. capers, rinsed and drained

1 TBSP. hot sauce (optional)

About 1/4 cup Mayo (you can substitue Light Olive Oil instead of Mayo)

1 TSP. Mustard

The juice of one lemon

2 TBSP. grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 TSP. Salt

1/2 TSP. Pepper

***

1 loaf of sourdough bread, halved

Mayo or olive oil

Gruyere Cheese or Parmigiano Reggiano, grated

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 farenheit. 2. I mixed the first 11 ingredients until a slight creamy consistancy. You want the consistancy to be a little looser than a regular tuna salad. Place the mixture in the fridge for about an hour for all the flavors to develop. 3. Brush the sourdough halves with a little mayo or olive oil. If the bread is too thick, scoop out a little bit of the bread to make a bread boat. 4. Divide the tuna mixture and top each bread half with it. Top off each one with grated cheese. The cheese will hold the tuna salad together. 5. Bake the sandwiches in a baking sheet for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese melts and the sandwich is warmed through. 6. Cut the bread in thick slices and serve with a salad. YUM!