Fennel & Lemon Relish
This crisp slaw from Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food II is excellent tossed with grilled veggies.
Ingredients:
2 lemons
2-3 fennel bulbs
1 shallot
2-3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Using a box grater or rasp, zest both lemons, then reserve the zest and fruit.
2. Peel and finely dice the shallot. Place shallot in a small bowl with the lemon zest, juice of 1 lemon, Champagne vinegar, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Mix well and let sit for a few minutes to macerate. Whisk in the extra-virgin olive oil. Taste for salt and acid and adjust as needed.
3. Trim the fronds and dark green stalks from the fennel bulb. Cut the bulb in half lengthwise and then into a fine dice. Toss with salt to taste and stir into the lemon-shallot mixture. Remove all the remaining peel from the unjuiced lemon and cut the segments from their membranes. Cut segments into a medium dice and gently stir them into the relish. Let relish sit for 5 minutes before serving.
Garden Herb Vinaigrette
This flavor-packed vinaigrette is fantastic with both grains and greens.
Ingredients:
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 tablespoon, plus 2 teaspoons minced fresh Italian parsley
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary leaves
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
½ teaspoon fresh lemon zest
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Method:
1. Combine all the dressing ingredients in a pint-sized jar with a tight-fitting lid, cover, and shake vigorously until emulsified, about 30 seconds. Reserve until ready to use.
Roasted Halibut with Fennel, Leeks & Garlic
Fragrant with roasted fennel and leeks, this incredibly elegant dish is sure to impress.
Ingredients:
2 medium fennel bulbs, cored and cut into ½ -inch thick slices
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, cut in half lengthwise and into 1/2 inch thick slices
10 garlic cloves, cut in half
1 pound filet of halibut, skin removed
4 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup white wine
Zest of 1 lemon, plus 3 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons golden raisins
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
2 tablespoons chopped fennel fronds
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Stir the leeks, fennel and garlic together with 2 tablespoons of oil, the white balsamic and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Add half of the lemon zest, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, raisins and season with salt and pepper. Pour the vegetable mixture into a roasting pan and roast for about 15-20 minutes until veggies start to get tender.
2. In the meantime place the halibut, skin side up, in a baking dish with the white wine and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Let marinate in the refrigerator while the veggies are roasting. After about 15 minutes, pour off ¾ of the liquid, flip the fish to have the skin side down, rub with 1 tablespoon olive oil, season with remaining red pepper flakes, lemon zest and salt and pepper.
3. Push the veggies aside to make space and place the fish in the oven to roast, moving the pan to the top rack. Roast for about 15 minutes until the fish is flaky and slightly opaque, and veggies are full cooked and caramelized. Stir together the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, ½ tablespoon lemon juice and the fresh herbs. Spoon the veggies on to a serving platter, lay the fish on top and spoon the herb vinaigrette over top. Garnish with toasted pine nuts.
Variation: In lieu of the herb vinaigrette at the end, you could instead garnish the fish with a few pats of this week’s lemon-basil compound butter; delicious!
Garlic Butter-Roasted Mushrooms
Roasted with capers and garlic, this simple dish is a real show-stopper.
Ingredients:
½ pound wild mushrooms, such as this week’s mixture of local mushrooms, washed and dried
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 450° with rack placed in middle.
2. Toss mushrooms with capers, garlic, salt and several grinds of black pepper in a small 1½- to 2-quart shallow baking dish.
3. Top with butter and roast, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender and golden and bubbly garlic sauce forms below, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve immediately.
