Grilled Halibut Salad with Avocado, Tomato, Olives and Egg with Garlic-Herb Toasts

Grilled Halibut Salad with Garlic-Herb Toasts           

My mother didn’t like fish so I grew up in a house where we didn’t have much of it. Except maybe for salmon steaks, which she broiled, and occasionally some fresh mackerel when my Dad and uncle would go on their once-a-year fishing trip during the summer.

Otherwise, a “fish meal” was canned tuna, sardines or “tomato herring” or smoked salmon, pickled herring or whitefish. And occasionally, because my mother thought we should eat some fish because it was probably healthy, she made frozen white filets of something.

Frankly, when what you think of as fish is white filets of something it’s no wonder you don’t like fish.

I should say that in those years there wasn’t the abundance, variety or availability of fresh fish that we have today. It’s much easier nowadays. Go into a store and choose salmon, tuna, branzino, cod, tilapia. All sorts of goodies.

One of my favorites is fresh halibut. So thick and meaty. It has a delicate taste that you can dress up a bit. It’s wonderful by any cooking method but when the weather is warm enough to go outside and grill, that’s the way for my tastes.

This grilled halibut salad with avocado, tomato, eggs and olives is an all-spring, all-summer treat. The Garlic-Herb Toasts make it a more substantial dinner. It’s also delightfully colorful and pleasing to look at.

Healthy too. Can you beat that?

Grilled Halibut Salad with Avocado, Tomato, Olives and Egg with Garlic-Herb Toasts

16-20 ounces halibut

5 tablespoons olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 large hard-cooked eggs

1 large avocado, peeled, pit removed

2 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 coarsely cut imported black olives

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Garlic-Herb Toasts

Preheat an outdoor grill or oven broiler. Brush the fish with some of the olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill or broil for 4-5 minutes per side or until cooked through. Cut into bite sized chunks and set aside. Cut the eggs, avocado and tomatoes into chunks and place them in a bowl. Add the olives and fish and toss ingredients gently. In a small bowl mix the remaining olive oil, lemon juice, Parmesan cheese and mustard. Pour over the ingredients and toss gently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before serving over Garlic-Herb Toasts (2 per person). Makes 4 servings

Garlic-Herb Toasts

2 tablespoons olive oil

8 1/2-inch slices Italian bread

1 large clove garlic, mashed

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees (or use an outdoor grill). Brush a small amount of the olive oil on one side of each slice of bread. Mix the remaining olive oil, garlic, parsley and lemon peel in a small bowl. Place the bread slices, oiled side up on a cookie sheet. Bake for 3 minutes. Turn the slices over and spread with the olive oil-parsley mixture. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Bake for 3-4 minutes or until crispy. Let cool. Makes 8

Fresh Tuna Nicoise Salad with Feta Cheese

Grilled Tuna Nicoise Salad

The first time I tasted Tuna Nicoise Salad I was in Paris with my Mom. The weather was perfect and we were thrilled to be lucky enough to be there. Thrilled as we drove into the city from the airport and get our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower. Thrilled to visit the Louvre and finally see the Mona Lisa for real (it’s so much smaller than I had imagined!). Not so thrilled to be yelled at by a taxicab driver because our French wasn’t as fluent as it should have been. At least in the driver’s opinion.

So there we were in a French cafe in that marvelous city and having the time of our lives and eating Tuna Nicoise with tiny little black olives and perfectly cooked eggs, crisp green beans and grilled tuna.

When we got back home and I looked at the cookbooks I owned then, there weren’t very many recipes for Tuna Nicoise and all called for canned tuna. I didn’t own an outdoor grill or a grill pan at the time and I was young and single and didn’t care so much about dinner then, so Tuna Nicoise made with canned tuna was (still is) pretty good, assuming everything else is fresh and the dressing is homemade.

But I do own a grill now. And a grill pan. And maybe it’s just me, but I think canned tuna ain’t what it used to be. It’s way too salty and the fish isn’t as firm as I remember.

So now I make Tuna Nicoise with fresh, grilled fish. It’s so refreshing, the perfect dish to welcome spring and enjoy throughout the summer. For me it also brings back some wonderful memories of Paris and my Mom.

Fresh Tuna Nicoise Salad with Feta

16-20 ounces fresh tuna, 1-1/4” thick

olive oil

12 small new potatoes

20-24 slim asparagus, cut up (2 cups)

12 grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/2 cup imported olives, cut in half if large

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

lettuce leaves, rinsed and dried

radicchio leaves, optional, rinsed and dried

6 tablespoons olive oil

3-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1-2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano, marjoram or thyme

2-4 hard cooked eggs, cut into 4 wedges

Preheat a grill, broiler or grill pan. Brush the tuna with a film of olive oil and grill, broil or pan-broil the fish about 3-4 minutes per side or until cooked but still rare. Remove the fish from to a cutting board and carve into slices. Set aside to cool slightly. Cook the potatoes in simmering water for about 15 minutes or until they are tender. About 2-3 minutes before they are done, add the asparagus. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until tender but still firm. Drain the vegetables under cold water. Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces and Place them in a large bowl. Add the asparagus, tomatoes, olives and feta cheese. Toss gently to distribute the ingredients evenly. Line 4 plates with the lettuce leaves and radicchio, if used. Combine the 6 tablespoons olive oil, wine vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper and oregano and mix well. Pour most of the dressing over the vegetable mixture and toss the ingredients. Spoon equal amounts of the vegetable mixture on the plates. Top with the tuna slices. Surround with the egg quarters. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the tuna and egg. Makes 4 servings

Broiled Salmon with Horseradish Crust

Several years ago Ed and I traveled to Ireland, a most wonderful and almost magical place with interesting things to see, friendly people and the most gorgeous green countryside that makes it truly the emerald isle. It rains practically every day, but only for an hour or so and then the sun comes out and everything is beautiful.

I’ve heard people complain about Irish food. My friends who are Jewish and Italian and Polish are always talking about their grandmother’s this and their mother’s that recipe. There’s always more than a tinge of pride as they mention the matzo balls or marinara sauce or pierogies. But when I mentioned the delicious food in Ireland to an Irish friend she said “Impossible. There’s no such thing as Irish cuisine.”

I beg to differ.

In Ireland we had the most wonderful, fresh-from-the-water salmon. It was so good we ate it practically every day. And the potato dishes are awesome. Also the breads, the salads and desserts.

So, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day coming up in a few days, here’s a really simple recipe for Broiled Salmon. To paraphrase an old Levy’s Jewish Rye Bread ad, you don’t have to be Irish to love it. In fact, this recipe, with its matzo meal crust, is perfect for Passover.

Broiled Salmon with Horseradish Crust

6 salmon filets, 5-6 ounces each

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons finely grated fresh horseradish (or use bottled white horseradish, press out the juice)

3-4 chopped scallions (or 3 tablespoons chopped chives)

2 tablespoons matzo meal (or bread crumbs)

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven broiler. Lightly grease a cookie sheet and put the filets on top. Mix the vegetable oil, horseradish and scallions and brush the salmon with this mixture. Sprinkle with the matzo meal. Broil the salmon for about 8 minutes or until the fish is nearly cooked through and the crust is lightly golden brown. NOTE: If you prefer, you can roast the salmon in a preheated 475 degree oven for about 18 minutes. Makes 6 servings

Roasted Arctic Char with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus

Did you overeat over the Thanksgiving weekend?

Mmm hmm. Me too.

So here’s the bad news. I’ve read that Thanksgiving, the beginning of the “holiday season,” is the starter point for weight gain and that the average number of pounds a person puts on between the end of November and January 2nd is about 7.

Yes, there are some recent studies that say it’s only one pound.

I’m already there though and they didn’t poll me for that study.

It’s hard not to be a glutton when there are so many goodies around as temptations. Stuffing and gravy, Hanukkah latkes or doughnuts, Christmas cookies, hot chocolate with marshmallows. The list goes on.

There are recipes for low-fat or low-calorie versions of our favorites.

But they aren’t really as delicious as the real thing.

And there are diet and nutrition experts who write about the ways to refrain from over indulging.

But how many of us actually pay attention? 

I can only speak for myself.

I don’t.

I enjoy food, create recipes, write about food for a living, so keeping myself at a reasonably normal weight is always a problem, exacerbated during the holiday season.

But I do try to keep to a sort of a plan. Instead of refraining entirely, one of the ways I try to keep from at least going over the average is to stop stuffing. One doughnut, not three or even two. 

And I try to eat well in between celebrations, meaning lots of fish, vegetables, whole grains. Skip the fried. Keep away from the cookies in the freezer. No bread for dinner unless I’m serving soup.

I think this helps.

One of our favorites of the season is Arctic Char. It’s filling, mild but tasty, and easy to prepare. It’s also not one of the more expensive fish, comparatively speaking.

Here’s a recipe for a recent version I made. It includes colorful and nutritious vegetables (tomatoes and asparagus) so it’s like a meal in one, though you can add a side dish if you like.

Roasted Arctic Char with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus

12-15 medium asparagus

1 cup halved cherry tomatoes

1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1-1/2 pounds Arctic Char

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the woody bottoms from the asparagus, rinse the stalks and dry them in paper towels. Rinse and dry the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half. Place the vegetables in a roasting pan and pour one tablespoon olive oil over them. Roll the vegetables to coat them. Place the asparagus in the center of the pan and put the fish on top. Mix the remaining olive oil, mustard and lime juice and spread this mixture on top of the fish. Move the cherry tomatoes around the pan. Scatter the dill on top of the fish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 12-15 minutes or until cooked (slightly rare or cooked through). Makes 4 servings

Snapper in Coconut Curry

When I was a kid I thought fish was a white rectangle that came from a box in the freezer. My mother didn’t like fish except for salmon, so we didn’t eat it much. My Dad went fishing once or twice a summer and my grandmother would cook some delicious mackerel or bluefish that day. But that was it. That boxed fish tasted like it looked — like a piece of white painted wallboard.

I eventually learned to love fish, fresh fish, later in life. White fish, blue fish, mild fish, strong fish. (This one has a little star! Say, what a lot of fish there are! (thanks Dr. Seuss)).

And although I will sometimes grill or broil a fillet simply, with a brushing of olive oil and sprinkle of salt and some bread crumbs, I prefer to cook fish with sauces, salsas, relishes, compound butters and interesting seasonings so that my husband, who says he likes fish but is really more on my mother’s side of the ledger fishwise, will eat it more readily.

Yesterday I bought snapper and made this spicy preparation that combines tomatoes, ginger, chili peppers and curry powder, balanced with rich, vaguely sweet coconut milk. Absolutely first rate delicious and incredibly easy to cook. And you can see for yourself that it looks good on the plate, so it’s suitable for company. You can make it with any mild, white fleshed fish.

Snapper in Coconut Curry

• 2 pounds snapper or other mild, white fleshed fish

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 3 scallions, chopped

• 2-4 dried red chili peppers

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped

• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger

• 1 teaspoon curry powder

• 1-1/2 cups coconut milk

• 1 medium tomato, chopped

• salt to taste

Cut the fillets into smaller pieces and set aside. Heat the vegetable oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the scallions, chili peppers, garlic and ginger and cook, stirring frequently, for 1-2 minutes to soften the vegetables. Sprinkle in the curry powder, stir and pour in the coconut milk. Add the tomato, bring to a simmer and cook for 8-9 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add salt to taste. Add the fish, spoon to sauce on top and cook for 5-6 minutes or until cooked through. Nice served over rice.

Makes 4 servings