Orange Glazed Salmon

This is my absolute favorite seafood dish. The glaze carmelizes under the broiler to create a crisp crust on the salmon. It is so flavorful and light.

Orange Glazed Salmon

2 (6-oz) salmon filets
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup orange marmalade
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons lemon-pepper seasoning
1 teaspoon minced ginger

• Place filets in a ziplock bag and set aside
• In a small bowl, wisk together orange juice, marmalade, mustard, lemon-pepper, and ginger.
• Pour into bag, squeeze air out and seal. Massage bag to combine ingredients.
• Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 or 2 hours. Remove 30 minutes before cooking.
• Line a baking sheet with foil. Place fish on prepared sheet.
• Broil 4 to 6 inches away from heat for 4 – 6 minutes per side until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Chicken Alla Fiorentina

I usually make this recpie with Chilean Sea Bass. But since I had chicken in the fridge and my husband requested grilled chicken parm (which I secretly hate), I thought this would be a good comprimise. I prefer it with the bass, but it was still good.

Chicken Alla Fiorentina
(Adapted from Giada DeLaurentiis)

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning cutlets
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14-oz) can crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.
Dredge the chicken in the flour (in a shallow bowl) and tap off excess.
Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a medium nonstick fry pan over medium heat.
Cook chicken about 3 minutes per side until golden brown. Transfer to plate.
Wipe out pan with paper towel and add remaining oil.
Add garlic, tomatoes, water, parsley, salt and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add basil and chicken and heat for 2 minutes.

So Comforting

Well today was an utterly frigid day in NY so I decided to make one of my favorites, baked tortellini. It was the perfect dinner to top off a blustery day of shopping for/putting up some Christmas decorations. Forgive its unphotogenic appearance, it really is such a tasty dish.

Baked Tortellini

1 lb. store-bought tortellini
2 cups crushed Italian tomatoes
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded fresh mozzarella cheese

• Preheat oven to 350
• Cook tortellini according to package instructions
• Using a paper towel, coat the bottom and sides of an 8 x 8 x 2″ baking dish with olive oil
• Wisk the tomatoes and mascarpone cheese in a medium bowl
• When tortellini are ready, drain and add to sauce. Toss to coat.
• Top with parmesan cheese followed by mozzarella cheese
• Bake, covered for 30 minutes or until cheese melts and sauce begins to bubble

Happy Birthday, Hubby

For my husband’s birthday, I decided to cook one of his favorite things, Filet Mignon. Despite the fact that I forgot to take out the frozen filets to thaw all day and had to let them sit in a hot water bath, they came out pretty darn good if I do say so myself.

Peppercorn-Crusted Filet Mignon
(Recpie from America’s Test Kitchen)

5 tablespoons black peppercorns , cracked (see illustration below)
5 tablespoons olive oil , plus 2 teaspoons
1 tablespoon kosher salt
4 center-cut filets mignons , 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick, 7 to 8 ounces each

• Spread half of the peppercorns on a cutting board. Place a skillet on top. Pressing down firmly with both hands, use a rocking motion to crush the peppercorns beneath the “heel” of the skillet. Move the skillet back and forth, redistributing the peppercorns as needed. Repeat with the remaining peppercorns.
• Heat peppercorns and 5 tablespoons oil in small saucepan over low heat until faint bubbles appear. Continue to cook at bare simmer, swirling pan occasionally, until pepper is fragrant, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
• When mixture is room temperature, add salt and stir to combine. Rub steaks with oil and pepper mixture, thoroughly coating top and bottom of each steak with peppercorns.
• Cover steaks with plastic wrap and press gently to make sure peppercorns adhere; let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.
• Adjust oven rack to middle position, place rimmed baking sheet on oven rack, and heat oven to 450 degrees.
• Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in 12-inch heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat until faint smoke appears. Place steaks in skillet and cook, without moving steaks, until dark brown crust has formed, 3 to 4 minutes. Using tongs, turn steaks and cook until well browned on second side, about 3 minutes.
• Remove pan from heat and transfer steaks to hot baking sheet. Roast 3 to 5 minutes for rare, 5 to 7 minutes for medium-rare to medium. Transfer steaks to wire cooling rack and let rest, loosely tented with foil, for 5 minutes before serving.

Turkey Meatballs

Meatballs are a favorite of my husband’s. Using ground turkey makes them a lot more healthy. I serve them over whole wheat penne or sometimes roasted spaghetti squash to make them even more healthy.

1 slice whole wheat bread with crusts removed
1/2 cup grated Parmesan-Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup milk
1 pound ground turkey
1 large egg
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil

• Place slice of bread in the bottom of a medium sized bowl, add milk and break up with a wooden spoon
• Add the parmesan, garlic and parsley and stir until well-combined
• Add the turkey, egg, salt and pepper. Mix with hands until well-combined
• Form mixture into balls (I use an ice-cream scoop so they’re uniform)
• Heat olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat
• Working in batches, cook the meatballs until evenly browned, turning often (about 6 minutes for 1 1/2 inch meatballs)
• Transfer meatballs onto a paper-towel lined plate to drain excess fat and add to sauce
• Repeat with remaining meat
• Simmer in sauce for about 10 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through