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Grilled Flounder with Sweet Tomato and Chili Chutney, Rosemary and Sage

September 3, 2020 by Mary 9 Comments

How many of you adore eating fish but are longing for ways that are quick and easy and would love to add a new zing to just a regular old piece of grilled fish with EVOO, salt and pepper? And how many of you have a refrigerator full of various condiments that take up too much room? I know. So this simple recipe of Grilled Flounder with Sweet Tomato and Chili Chutney, Rosemary and Sage delivers on taste and ease all in one!

You don’t necessarily have to go out and buy The English Provender Co. Sweet Tomato and Chili Chutney. Although this is very tasty with a savory sweet hot vibe, I say you should try to use up something you already have that has the same vibe. Wouldn’t that be even better?

Of course you could also dress up a piece of fish with my versatile Green Sauce, but that takes more work than I was willing to do last night. ( I can be so lazy…)

Think of flavors you LOVE…

Since it is only me eating now, I am trying all kinds of flavor combinations and I have been fascinated by mixing up sweet summer fruits with meats and fish. I mean, why not? I want to eat something new, surprising and different. After all, being totally alone in this Covid time, cooking and eating (and drinking wine) are the highlights of my day, so I love experimenting.

And I have made a commitment to myself to clean out the fridge of all of these jars! You see, my kids stayed in my apartment in the city for nearly seven weeks and cleaned out that fridge of outdated things and used the others, so now I want to do that here, upstate.

I have tons of jam that I never use on toast. I want to attack those – maybe on grilled pork chops soon…

Get creative!

I hope this post will spur some creativity on your part. Go ahead and try an unusual combination. Have fun! Experiment and enjoy. But remember to always make it with LOVE.

GRILLED FLOUNDER WITH SWEET TOMATO AND CHILI CHUTNEY, ROSEMARY AND SAGE – serves 2

1 lb. fillet of flounder
Extra virgin olive oil
½ TBS. The English Provender Co. Sweet Tomato and Chili Chutney
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped
1 sprig of fresh sage
Salt
Pepper

Preheat your grill or oven to 425 F degrees. Use a grilling vegetable pan for the grill.

Thoroughly wash and pat dry the fish. Coat both sides with a thin film of olive oil. Salt and pepper on one side only. Then spread on the Sweet Tomato and Chili Chutney. Top with chopped rosemary and lay the sage sprig on top.

Spray the grill pan with high heat grilling spray or if using the oven, line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Grill or roast for about 5 minutes.

Use 2 spatulas to remove the fish to a platter. Cut in half and serve.

Enjoy!

My dinner – with 1/2 sweet potato and fresh cut arugula and tomatoes from my garden!

Quick Fish Stew

November 13, 2016 by Mary 15 Comments

With the election finally behind us, I can only think to provide more comforting recipes for you. There is much that divides us as a nation and clear communication is key. It is always the key. I say we all need to gather around the table and listen to one another while breaking bread. We all need to eat. This is a fact. Sharing a meal around the table is a great place to connect. This comforting, Quick Fish Stew is easy enough to make on a weeknight and can be just the thing you need right now.

I also have an idea to solve the terrorist problem. They hate us so much and want to kill us all, so I keep thinking, how can we change that around? My solution is to air-drop food laced with marijuana. They will eat it and just be happy! Having the energy to fight will just be the furthest thing from their mind. What do you think?

Back to the Quick Fish Stew recipe, the beautiful colors and crisp tender vegetables will delight you. The broth will soothe. I love fish simply oven roasted with just some good olive oil, French grey salt and fresh ground pepper, but that can get boring, particularly with flounder. So this Quick Fish Stew recipe is a great way to change it up.

I already had leftover roasted potatoes in the fridge, but you can use any vegetables or starches you have, even pasta or rice would be good.

To flavor the fish and the stew, I used this June Bug Rub spice mix I had on hand, which is a little sweet and a little spicy, but you could use anything you’d like – thyme, cumin, Chinese five spice or za’atar would be great as well, depending on how you’re feeling. Imagine what you want to taste and make it happen. Get creative and have fun!

To finish the stew, I threw in thinly sliced radishes, along with their chopped green tops, which added a nice little spicy interest. The fennel fronds are also a nice touch.

Here’s what I did. If you make this, please share with us your version!

QUICK FISH STEW – serves 4 – 5

8 cups of chicken or vegetable stock – boxed low sodium or homemade
1 stem of rosemary, finely chopped
1 small eggplant, cut in chunks 1/3” thick
2 Tbs. olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 flounder fillets – about 1 lb.
June Bug Rub or other herbs and spices
½ of a red pepper, cut in ½” chunks
1 stalk of celery, cut in ½” pieces
2 cups roasted potatoes – or roast fresh at 425 degrees with 1 Tbs. olive oil for 30 minutes
2 cups tiny broccoli flowerets
3 breakfast or regular radishes, sliced thin with a hand mandoline
1 bunch of radish greens, washed in a bath of water, air dried and chopped
1/3 cup fennel fronds
Maldon salt flakes

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. On a parchment paper lined rimmed baking pan, toss the eggplant chunks with 2 Tbs. olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in oven on top shelf for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour broth into a stock pot and warm on medium-high heat. Add the rosemary and potatoes.

Prepare the other vegetables.

Wash and pat dry the fish and season one side with the June Bug Rub or other herbs and spices. Cut the fish into 1” squares as shown.

Add the broccoli flowerets, red pepper and celery to the broth, which should be simmering by now. Simmer for 4 minutes. Then add the roasted eggplant and the fish, simmer for 2 – 4 minutes more, until the fish is white and done.

Toss in the radishes, radish greens and fennel fronds, stirring just to combine. Immediately ladle the stew into bowls as you just want the greens to wilt. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle crushed Maldon salt on top and serve with LOVE. Enjoy!

Flounder Fillets with Garam Masala, Avocado & Mayo

April 3, 2016 by Mary 12 Comments

I love fish. But, it can get boring. I mean, it’s delicious roasted with a little olive oil, French Grey salt and fresh ground pepper but you know, after so much of that, it becomes ho hum. So, I am always on the lookout for something different, something new and not fattening. (Ok, so the mayo’s a little fattening.)

So the other day on the way home from work I was reading the dining section of The Times. They had an article about making your own masalas – Indian spice mixes. Sounded great but I didn’t happen to have any fresh curry leaves in the house. That, I’ll definitely have to go hunt for or order online. But then I read the shrimp recipe where they said you could also use Garam Masala and that I had, along with my flounder fillets. Success!

Then, I also remembered this dish my friend Margaret makes – I think it’s a Bittman recipe – of salmon with an avocado topping.

And then, I’ve been reading about coconut oil and how it’s supposedly so good for your brain. I’m for that!

Additionally, I had made the Sauerkraut Salad and had some leftover mayo from that recipe.

So here’s what I did. This was SO good – like a restaurant meal!!

FLOUNDER FILLETS WITH GARAM MASALA, AVOCADO AND MAYO – serves 2

2 tsp. coconut oil
2 flounder fillets
French Grey salt
Fresh ground pepper
Garam masala
1 avocado, cut into chunks
2 schmears of homemade mayo

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Slick a rimmed baking sheet with 1 tsp. coconut oil.

Wash and pat dry your fish fillets. Lay on the oiled baking sheet and rub 1/2 tsp. of oil on the top of each fillet. Salt and pepper to your taste, then sprinkle with Garam masala.

Roast in the preheated oven 10 – 12 minutes, until it flakes and is white in the thickest part.

Place on warm plates. Top with the avocado cubes and the smear of mayo as shown. Serve with LOVE and enjoy!!!

I served this with simple roasted asparagus topped with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a spoonful of leftover baked ziti. You can roast the asparagus at the same time as you’re roasting the fish and voila! This is an easy delicious 30 minute meal!!! (you don’t really need the ziti – I was just trying to clean out the fridge.)