Mussels with chorizo (Mejillones con chorizo)

Another way to cook mussels, it is a surf-and-turf combination, Spanish style: mussels with Spanish chorizo sausage. Another great staple for summer by the beach. In Spain the mussels are very fresh, with a great flavor of the sea. If they are boiled with sea water, it is just heaven.

Ingredients:

2 pounds of mussels
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 handful of parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil 
water to cover the mussels
1/2 hot chorizo "Palacios", cut in small pieces

In a pan, add the garlic and parsley, cook the garlic until it starts to change color, do not burn it. Remove the pan from the burner and let it cool. In the meantime, cook the chorizo in another pan. Add the mussels to the pan with the garlic and parsley, cover with water, and put a lid on and cook them until they open. They cook really quickly. Add the chorizo. Spoon them out of the pan and serve.

Pan Fried Walleye with Corn Salsa (Lucio con salsa de maíz)

The walleye is a fresh water fish from the Great Lakes and probably one of the finest. In Spain the closest fish to walleye is lucio, or Northern Pike in the USA, but it is hard to find in our supermarkets. The walleye has a small flake and is mild and sweet in flavor. It can be deep fried, pan fried, poached, grilled, or baked. It is very versatile.

Ingredients:


6 walleye fillets
1 cup flour
4 tablespoons Spanish sweet paprika 
salt 
fresh ground pepper
butter
3 limes


For the sauce:


1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 green pepper, finely chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, finely chopped
kernels of 2 ears of roasted corn
the juice of 3 limes
3 cilantro sprigs, chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt


Mixed all the ingredients for the sauce in a bowl and let it rest for few hours.


To pan fry the walleye, put in a plate 1 cup flour mixed well with the paprika. Season the fish with salt and pepper and dust with the flour mix. In a frying pan add 2 tablespoons butter and turn the burner to high heat. Add the fish. First fry the skinless side for a couple of minutes and drizzle with lime juice. Then turn it to the skin side, drizzle more lime juice and fry until the skin gets crispy. Serve with the sauce on top and lime wedges on the side. The result is a juicy and deliciously tasty fish.

Monkfish Donostiarra Style (Rape a la donostiarra)

The secret of this recipe is the amount of garlic used in the sauce. Its name comes from San Sebastian in the Basque Country, which in Basque, the native language, is Donostia, and the suffix rra, which means "from." So, "from San Sebastian." The sauce is used all over Spain now. In many of their sauces the Basque use garlic, dried cayenne pepper and parsley. We see this way of cooking in many Basque staples such as codfish, potatoes, and marmitako (tuna stew), and also in certain delicacies such as baby eels.

Ingredients:


2 monkfish tails
1 medium size onion, cut in julienne
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt


1 garlic head, cloves cut crosscut
2 dried cayenne peppers
1 tablespoon Spanish smoked paprika
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt to taste


In an oven pan place 2 tablespoons olive oil, the onion making a bed, and then the monkfish. Drizzle some oil on top and a pinch of salt. Put in a preheated oven at 355˚ for about 20 minutes.


While the fish is cooking, put in a frying pan 2 tablespoons olive oil, the garlic and the dried cayenne pepper. When the garlic starts getting lightly brown, remove the pan from the burner and add the paprika and the apple cider vinegar.


Remove the fish from the oven after 20 minutes and place the fish and onion on a serving platter. Then pour some of the liquid from the oven pan into the mix of garlic,cayenne, paprika and vinegar. Whisk well and pour over the fish. Garnish with parsley.

Scallop Crudo with Blood Oranges and Pistachio Sauce (Crudo de vieiras con naranjas sanguinas y salsa de pistachio)

This recipe is a new creation from my "cocina viva." I had some medium size scallops that were very sweet and tasty. I thought to make a "crudo" with the scallops, blood oranges, micro greens, pistachios and fresh basil from "Just Local." The result is very pleasant.

Ingredients:


1/2 pound scallops
2/3 pound blood oranges
4 or 5 drops of lemon juice
1 handful pistachios
1 garlic clove
7 fresh basil leaves
extra virgin olive oil
4 or 5 drops of lemon juice
salt to taste
Maldon salt to sprinkle

Put the juice of the blood oranges on a plate. (I added some drops of lemon juice because they were very sweet.) Cross cut the scallops very thin and lay over the juice of the oranges. Let rest for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator. In the meantime, in a blender put the pistachios, basil, garlic, olive oil and some drops of lemon juice, and mix everything well. After 30 minutes, take the plate with the scallops and turn them, add the mix from the blender, sprinkle some Maldon salt and arrange some orange and micro greens. Buen provecho!

Steamed Mussels with Garlic and Lemon Grass Sauce

This a very simple recipe but at the same time it has complex flavors because of the freshness and sweetness of the mussels and the salt of the sea, enhanced with the acidity of lemon grass and garlic.

Ingredients:


2 pounds mussels
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lemon grass
the juice of half a lemon
1 tablespoon parsley
salt

In a wide pan heat the olive oil and cook the garlic for about two minutes to get its flavor. Add the cup of water, the lemon grass, and parsley. Bring to boil and add the lemon juice. Then add the mussels and cover the pan. The mussels will be open in a couple of minutes. Serve in a bowl with lemon and parsley.

White Bean Stew with Codfish (Potaje de Viernes Santo)

This potaje stew is made for Good Friday since Spain is 95 % Catholic. Friday is a day when we don't eat meat and for this reason in Wisconsin there is the tradition of the Friday fish fry started by German Catholics. On Fridays the restaurants couldn't afford to lose clients so the alternative was fish to attract the Catholic population. 


In Spain, we used to eat fish every Friday but now this tradition is only during lent or just on Good Friday. For centuries, the traditional dish on these days has been a potaje of chickpeas with desalted codfish. I am going to use buttery white beans instead of chickpeas.

Ingredients:


6 pieces desalted codfish
1/2 pound white beans, soaked overnight
1/2 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1/2 green pepper
6 slices of roasted red pepper
2 whole dried cayenne peppers
olive oil


This is a dish you have to plan ahead because of desalting the cod. In a pot with cold water desalt the cod fish fillets at least 24 to 48 hours depending on the thickness. Change the water every 6 hours during the first 24 hours or follow the instructions of the vendor. Dry with kitchen towels or paper towel.


In a quart pan cook the onion, garlic and green  pepper. When the onions are translucent, add the white beans and let them cook on low heat until tender or they melt in your mouth. Set them aside.


To cook the cod I tried a new technique since it has to be cooked at a very low temperature, like a confit, and sometimes this is hard to do with certain stoves. What I did was use the oven at the lowest possible temperature as follows: 


First put oil, three of the sliced garlic cloves, one dried cayenne pepper and a pinch of salt in a large baggy. Then add the pieces of cod, get rid of the air, close the bag tightly, and put it in a pan with water. Them cook in the oven, checking often for doneness. The result has to be a flaky and juicy fish. 


To make the pilpil sauce, remove the cod from the bag. Transfer the oil and a few garlic slivers from the bag to a blender and blend on the lowest speed until creamy.


In a sauce pan with a little oil, cook the remaining slices of garlic and the other dried cayenne pepper. When the garlic turns lightly brown remove it from the pan and set aside.

To serve in individual pasta dishes, put beans and then the cod fish. Add the sauce on top, then the fried garlic, and top with a slice of roasted pepper. 

Lobster with Romesco Sauce (Bogavante con salsa romescu)

The place of origin of the salsa "romescu" is Tarragona, Catalonia. It is an area of almond trees, piñol pines, hazelnut trees, tomatoes, garlic, dried peppers (ñoras), and olive oil from the arbequina olive. The origin of the sauce is said to predate the Romans and it was used by fishermen to preserve their catch. The three main uses of the sauce are for fish or seafood, with calçots (grilled green onions) and the "Xató de Sitges" (an escarole salad with grilled red peppers and desalted cod fish).

Ingredients:

1 medium Maine lobster per person

For the sauce:

12 toasted almonds
6 toasted hazulnuts
6 toasted pinenuts
1 small grilled onion
4 grilled tomatoes, peeled
1 small grilled garlic head (remove the skin after grilling)
1 garlic clove
the meat of 3 ñoras or the meat of a dried pepper. The pepper has to be rehydrated, or you can buy the meat of the peppers in a jar (1 tablespoon)
1 teaspoon hot paprika
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
salt to taste

The traditional way of working with these ingredients is with a mortar and pestle but I use a blender. In the blender place the almonds, hazelnuts, pine nuts and grate them. Then add the meat of the peppers, the tomatoes, garlic, onion, hot paprika, olive oil and  vinegar. Blend everything together. It should be a smooth and thick sauce since the nuts work as thickeners. Taste it and add salt to your taste. Some people also add a slice of fried bread to thicken it.  If you don't like the sauce so thick, then add more olive oil.

To cook the lobster:

Grilled vs Boiled

I think it is a question of taste. I prefer to boil it and then use the liquid to make sauces. If you decide to boil the lobsters: Put water in a large pan (you don't need to add salt since the lobsters come from the sea and already have salt)and take the rubber bands of the claws before boiling. Bring the water to a boil, drop the lobsters in head first one at a time and bring the water to a boil again. Lower the heat and cook them for about 10 minutes until done. Remove the lobsters from the water and drain.

How to eat your boiled lobster:

Once the lobsters are boiled, you can serve them whole to your guests or you can do the work for them. Even when I serve them whole, I crack the claws with a rolling pin or the handle of a knife. Be careful!!!! Twist the claws and remove the meat. For the tail, bend the tail flippers and break them with the help of a fork. Push the meat from where the flippers used to be so the tail meat comes out in one piece, It will be tender and sweet.

The green part is the liver - you can eat it or discard it. As far as the knuckles, just bite them and, with the help of your teeth, squeeze out the meat. The body has 4 pokets. Crack it in the middle and you will find the meat on the joints where the 8 legs are attached. Dip the meat in the romescu sauce. Enjoy this delicacy!!!!

Spanish Rice with Lobster (Arroz con Bogavante)

This is a traditional dish from the Balearic Islands of Mallorca and Menorca in the Mediterranean but its popularity has extended throughout the Mediterranean Coast. A fishermen's dish, it is made with either warm water lobster (langosta) or cold water lobster (bogavante). The difference is that cold water lobsters have claws. The rice can be cooked with different ratios of rice to fumé or fumet (fish stock). "Caldoso" rice contains more liquid and "meloso" has some liquid while "seco" describes rice that has absorbed all the stock). I did a dry rice but whatever way you decide to cook the rice you should let it rest at the end.
The rice used in this dish is a special type from Spain but any short grain will work. The ratio is 1 cup rice to 2 cups fish stock for dry rice, 3 cups of stock for meloso and 4 cups for caldoso.

Ingredients:

3 fresh Maine lobsters (1/2 per person)

1/2 onion, grated

2 cups rice ("Calasparra" or "Bomba" or a small grain rice)

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika

1 cup tomato sauce

6 cups fish stock (If you live on the coast, you can make your own with fish bones, rock fish, crab, 1 onion, 4 garlic cloves, 1 celery stalk, 1/2 green pepper, 1 carrot and dried red pepper. It will be better.)

1 pinch saffron

salt to taste

Cut the live lobsters (cut the tails in medallions and the heads in half and pull off the claws). In a paella pan put 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the lobsters. Cook for about 5 minutes to get all their natural liquids and flavors. Remove them and add the garlic and onion to the pan, stirring for a couple of minutes. Then add the paprika, mix with the onion and garlic, add the tomato sauce and stir well to mix all the ingredients. Next add the fish stock, the rice (evenly) and the saffron. When the fish stock starts boiling, lower the heat and let it cook uncovered. Ten minutes before the rice is done add the reserved lobster and let the rice finish cooking. If you need to add more liquid, keep it hot. Taste for seasoning. 

Serve the rice on plates with 1/2 head lobster, 1 claw and 2 medallions per serving. Enjoy!

Monkfish with Spanish Sauce (Rape con salsa española)

This recipe features monkfish. One of my favorites, it is an angler fish that is sometimes called "poor man's lobster." The tail of the monkfish is often cut in medallions for cooking and serving while the head and bones are excellent for soup. 

In this case I simply seasoned the monkfish medallions with salt and pepper and then grilled them on a high heat - they cook quickly. I then topped them with the delicious sauce described below.

"Salsa española" (Spanish Sauce) is one of my Mom's many specialties. It is smooth and velvety and goes really well with fish or shrimp. You can also use it with meats and poultry.

Ingredients for the sauce:

1 Small Onion, chopped

1/2 Green Pepper, diced

3-4 Cloves of Garlic

5 Large Carrots, peeled and cut in small pieces 

1 Small Can Tomato Sauce

2 Teaspoons Salt

1/2 Teaspoon Pepper

2 Teaspoons Sugar 

1/4 Cup White Wine

1 Cup Chicken Broth 

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Chop the onion, garlic, green pepper and carrots. Sauté in a pan with olive oil. When the onion is translucent, add the tomato sauce, salt, pepper, sugar, wine and broth and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Then put everything in a blender or hand blender and purée until smooth. 

Pargo in Papillote (Pargo en Papillote)

"Papillote" is French for a parchment pouch where fish is steamed. Again, this is an easy way to cook and because it is steamed all the juices stay inside the fish.

Ingredients:

1 big leek, cut in julienne
1 red pepper, cut in julienne
1 yellow pepper, cut in julienne
1 green pepper, cut in julienne
1/2 onion, cut in julienne
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 lb. pargo fish
juice of 1 fresh squeezed lemon
sea salt and pepper to season

Cut a piece of aluminum foil about 2 inches longer at each end than the size of the fish. Lay the vegetables along the length of the foil and add salt. Lay the fish on top of the veggies and season with fresh lemon juice, sea salt and pepper. Cover the fish with another piece of aluminum foil and seal the foil pieces, forming a pouch. Preheat the oven to 425˚ and put the pouch in the oven on a baking sheet for 15 minutes. Remove the fish and let it rest in the pouch for 5 minutes. The fish should be juicy and flaky. Before serving I sprinkle it with some Hawaiian black sea salt. Serve with lemon wedges.

Tuna Stew (Marmitako)

"Marmitako" is a traditional dish from the Basque Country. The name comes from the word marmita (pot) and the suffix ko (from), so it means from the pot. It traditionally made with tuna but today salmon is also used. This is the food that was elaborated in a pot on the tuna fishing boats. A dish that the fisherman ate and still eat, but now it has passed along to everyone's kitchen and it is not exclusive of the fishermen. In Cantabria, a region bordering the Basque Country, it is also known as marmita or sorropotún. 
Marmitako is a very popular dish and in many towns and cities they have cooking competitions. Many men compete and there is a reason for this. In the Basque Country it is very typical that  groups of male friends organize themselves in what it is called txokos -  gastronomical societies where no women are allowed. The txoko is a place where men get together to cook and experiment in the kitchen. They have had a big influence in maintaining and promoting Basque cuisine.

Ingredients:

1 pound tuna (1 thick tuna steak) cut in bite size cubes

1 onion finely chopped

1 green bell pepper finely chopped

6 large yukon gold potatoes in chunks (tear off the pieces with a knife instead of cutting so you expose the starch)

1 dry choricero dried pepper or dried chile ancho

1/4 tablespoon sweet Spanish smoked paprika (I add a bit more because we like the smoky flavor)

1/4 tablespoon  picante Spanish smoked paprika

1 cup white wine

fish broth or water to cover the ingredients

Salt and pepper to taste

In a pot or "marmita" put a tablespoon of olive oil and cook the onion and green pepper until the onion gets translucent. Add the potatoes, stirring them well. Then add the paprika and stir well for a couple of minutes but be careful not to burn it. Otherwise it will give a bitter flavor. Season with salt and pepper.Add the glass of wine let it reduce. Then add the fish broth or water to cover the potatoes and then add the seedless dried pepper cut in half lengthwise to rehydrate. Cook everything on a medium to low heat. After an hour remove the dried pepper and spoon the meat out of the skin with a spoon, putting the meat back in the pot. When the potatoes are done, add the tuna cubes and turn off the heat.

Serve in a soup bowl or plate, add some homemade croutons or fried bread croutons, and some crunchy micro greens.

Oysters with Lemon Sauce (Ostras con salsa de limón)

Oh! Oysters...

Ingredients:


the juice of two to three lemons
hot smoked paprika
2 teaspoons tabasco or another hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste


Mix all the ingredients very well and pour over the oysters, serve with a lime or lemon wedges.

Clams with Artichokes in Garlic Sauce (Almejas con alcachofas)

Clams with artichokes is a traditional Catalan dish. It is probably one of my favorites. Baby artichokes are one of the star products. The plant can produce three harvests through the year. Clams are another star product. When you combine them you have an amazing, delicious and simple dish.

Ingredients:

2 baby artichokes per person

lemon juice

6 little neck clams per person

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/2 cup parsley

2 cups water with 1 tablespoon cornstarch, diluted

sea salt

olive oil

Start cleaning the artichokes by removing the outer leaves until you get to the lighter and tender part. Then cross cut the top of the artichokes and remove with a knife any dark green left around the heart because it is bitter. Cut them in quarters and place in a pan of boiling water with salt and a few drops of lemon juice. Let them cook until tender. Then remove them from the pan.

Put the olive oil, garlic and parsley in a sauce pan. Add the clams, the water with  cornstarch (to thicken the sauce),and the sea salt. When the clams start to open, remove them from the pan and set aside on a platter. Then add the artichokes and finally the sauce from the clams. Check for seasoning. Sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Sole with Lemon Sauce and Capers (Lenguado con salsa de limón y alcaparras)

Sole is a very delicate white fish. It is very common in Spain, as are the lemons and capers featured in this recipe. The Spanish word for caper is of arabic origin: "alcaparra." Spain is the largest producer of capers, a Mediterranean product. This recipe is quick and very simple to make.

Ingredients:

6 sole fillets

For the sauce:

1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
juice from one lemon
1/2 small red onion finely chopped
1/2 tablespoon mustard
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons capers
Salt and pepper

Mix all the sauce ingredients and heat in a double boiler.

In a hot pan put 1 tablespoon olive oil and add the sole fillets. When they are turning a golden color, turn them and cook the other side. Remove from the pan and season, place on a plate and add the sauce.

Halibut in Green Sauce (Mero en salsa verde)

There is a saying in Spanish: "De la mar el mero y de la tierra el cordero" ("from the sea, halibut, and from the earth, lamb.") This traditional Basque recipe is usually made with hake but because of the difficulty of finding hake where we live I used halibut. It is a very delicate fish with a sweet flavor but easy to overcook. Like codfish, it has to be moist, juicy and flaky. This is a North Pacific Halibut and unlike the ones you buy in Spain, which usually are no more that a foot and a half long, they are huge and therefore sold in big fillets.

Ingredients:

olive oil

4 garlic cloves

1 cup parsley

3 halibut fillets divided in half

1 can green peas with its liquid. It gives a lot of flavor to the sauce. 

1 jar white asparagus with its liquid

1/2 cup water with 1 tablespoon cornstarch

6 hard boiled eggs (1 per person), cut in half

salt and pepper to season

One bite full of omega 3, vitamin B,  B12, proteins
and veggies  

Season the halibut fillets and place in a pan with olive oil and garlic. When the garlic and halibut start changing color,  flip the fish to the other side and cook just enough to give some color to the halibut. Remove from the pan. Add the parsley, green peas and asparagus with their liquid. Then add the water with cornstarch and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the fish to the sauce and cook each side for a couple of minutes until the fish is flaky. Avoid  overcooking because otherwise it will be very dry. Add the eggs and serve, pouring the sauce over the halibut and eggs. My kids love this recipe. The fish is moist but not fishy and the sauce with the peas is a hit.

Cod with garlic and cayenne pepper (Cazuelita de bacalao al ajillo)

The cazuelita is another way to eat tapas in Spain. It is a small earthenware dish used to serve small portions of food that cannot be served on a piece of bread or on a stick because it contains a sauce or broth. In this case, the sauce is an infusion of olive oil with garlic and a cayenne pepper. This is a dish that we will always order in a bar in Gernika name "Forua" on our way home from the "Laga" beach in Urdaibai (Bizkaia).

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1.5 lb. cod fish, desalted and then rehydrated, torn into pieces
6-8 slices garlic cloves
2 whole cayenne peppers 
salt if needed

In a medium size earthenware dish (or if you don't have one use a regular pan), put the olive oil and then add the garlic and cayenne pepper. When the garlic is turning brown and the oil is hot, add the cod and remove the pan from the heat so the cod doesn't get overcooked. Let it rest for two minutes and serve in individual "cazuelitas."

Cod Salad (Esqueixada de bacallá)

La "esqueixada" is a Catalan salad of tomatoes, red onion, peppers, and the star ingredient: dried salted cod which has been desalted and rehydrated. The word "esqueixar" means to tear, and "bacallá" is cod. After the cod is desalted and rehydrated, tear the cod in pieces with your hands. This salad always reminds me of my aunt, Lolita, and my cousin, Alex, who one time made it with lox (salmon) instead of cod. Both of them got really excited when cooking and they produced great dishes from their hearts. This is a very refreshing dish.

Ingredients:

11 oz. desalted cod fish
4 medium tomatoes or 6 roma tomatoes
1 medium red onion cut very thin
3/4 green pepper cut in julienne
Kalamata olives

sherry or wine vinegar
good extra virgin olive oil (always have a good extra virgin olive oil for raw dishes, like salads)
Maldon salt (sea salt)

Mix all the ingredients. Then add the vinegar, olive oil and salt, and toss it.

Beans with Clams (Alubias con almejas)

This is a typical dish of northern Spain, especially Asturias and Galicia. My mom also makes it the Mediterranean way, being from Catalonia, with artichokes. The cooking is a little bit different and I like both ways.

Ingredients:

16 little neck clams (in Spain they will use smaller clams)
2 cans great northern white beans 
1/2 onion
1 - 2 garlic cloves chopped
1/4 green pepper
1 ripe tomato cut and peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
a pinch of saffron
salt and pepper
1 cup water
2 parsley sprigs
the liquid of cooking the clams

In a pan put the olive oil and start making the sofrito by adding the onions, garlic, green pepper, salt and pepper. When the onions become translucent, add the tomato and cook on low heat. In the meantime, put another pan with water, salt, garlic and parsley and add the clams. Cook them until they open, then remove from the pan. Strain the liquid and reserve to add to the beans.

When the sofrito is done, add the beans and  saffron, cover with the liquid of the clams, and cook for about 15 minutes. Add the beans to the clams. Serve in a bowl.

Clams in Green Sauce (Almejas en salsa verde)

This dish is a modified version of the typical Basque dish "almejas en salsa verde" or clams in green sauce. I used the same ingredients but instead created a pesto-like sauce, concentrating the flavor in the green sauce.

Ingredients for the sauce:

1 bunch of parsley

1/3 cup pine nuts

1 garlic clove

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt

Other ingredients:

4 to 5 littleneck clams per person

lemon wedges

water to cover the bottom of the pan

liquid of cooking the clams

lemon juice

In a blender put all the ingredients for the sauce, blend, and set aside. To make the clams just cover the bottom of a pan with water and season with salt. Boil, and remove the clams as soon as they open.  Take them out of the shell and set aside. When all the clams are ready add a bit of the boiling liquid and lemon juice to the sauce, stir. On a platter put the sauce and the the clams and add lemon wedges.