Moormans Menu

Breakfast Lunch and Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sat, 14 May 2011 18:54:00 +0000

Here are a couple rando dishes from the last month or so.

Jowl bacon and herbed mushroom frittata

Jowl bacon, 5 eggs, cremini mushrooms, green onion, red pepper, cilantro, garlic, onion

Grilled New York with Chimichurri

Happy Pork Sirloin over greens

Pan Broiled cod with lemon goat butter glaze

Part 3 of a pot roast ..adding mushrooms to the reduction.

Burger Time - Chipotle Bacon and Mushroom Burger

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sat, 07 May 2011 18:32:00 +0000

I’d been thinking about hamburgers all week, probably because I had a pound of Skagit River Ranch ground beef thawing in the fridge. Good meat deserves simplicity in preparation because it has so much flavor.

There is a small process but nothing too crazy.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients
4 slices of beef bacon or regular old pork bacon. I used beef because I had never had it before. I removed the fat at the end because it was really tough.
½ small Spanish onion sliced thin
3 tbs dry sherry

1 lb grass fed ground beef divided by 4 and gently pressed into 4 patties
Salt and pepper
¼ cup Mayonnaise
2 tbs ketsup
1 chipotle pepper finely chopped with adobe sauce from can about 1-2 tbs for preference
Whole wheat hamburger buns
Arugula

Pre-heat oven to 400

Form burgers and allow to get to near room temp. Salt and pepper.

Pan fry bacon and remove bacon leave fat.

In bacon fat over high heat nicely brown one side of your hamburgers, remove burgers and place in oven browned side up cook until med or med rare about 9 min. Do not clean pan.

In same pan that you cooked the burgers and bacon caramelize onions and mushrooms add sherry at the end and cook down for a minute or two.

Mix mayo ketsup an chipotle for sauce.

Toast buns last 4 minutes and assemble burgers. eat, smile

Sea Scallops with Arugula - Two nights in a row!

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 05:15:00 +0000

Here is a recipe for sea scallops (Large) with arugula that is quick, ridiculously delicious, bright and simple. I would like to share it with you, because it is very tasty!

There are ten reasons why I had to make this dish two nights in a row:

Reason 1&2: The ingredients are in season and on sale. (At the Ballard Market, Ballard WA)

Reason 2&3: It takes less than 30 minutes, and it's relatively simple to make, but there is proceedure.

Reason 4-9: It's beautiful, delicious, succulent, healthy and if you where making this for someone they would fall in love with you~!

Reason 10: It is so mother loving good!

So here it is, I will try make this as simple as possible:

You will need the following apparatus to pull this off:

A stove

Preferably a sharp knife

Preferably a non-stick pan (I know, I know)

A cutting board

and a bowl

Ingredients (Use less or more as your heart sees fit) : TBS = Table spoon, Tsp= Tea Spoon

6-8 Sea scallops (Bigger than bay scallops) almost a pound.

1 bunch arugula – A spicy, aromatic green that makes this all come together.

¼ lb bacon chopped to a small dice – this is why you need a sharp knife or you will end up with bloody strands.

For the dressing you will need the following:

Mix these ingredients in this order, the first part can be made ahead before adding the olive oil.

2 tbs fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 tsp white wine vinegar

2 tbs maple syrup

1 tsp your favorite course ground mustard

1 tsp of mayonnaise (This keeps it all together like magic!)

Little salt and pepper

1/8^th of a jalapeno minced

1 garlic clove minced almost to a paste

1 small shallot minced

7-8 tbs Olive oil (added last and gently)

Garnish:

1tbs cilantro

Preparation:

Place thawed scallops on paper towels, salt and pepper,

Turn on oven to med/med high(a 7 on my range)

Cook bacon in pan until lightly crisped. Then transfer to bowl leaving grease in pan.

Remove pan from heat leaving stove on.

Allow scallops to sweat letting towels absorb the moisture.

Add all dressing ingredients except oil to a deep bowl. Stir and allow to sit until the scallops are done.

Return pan to med high heat and add the paper towel dried scallops one at a time around the pan in the hot oil. It should sizzle but not burn!

Cook for about 2-3 minutes until golden brown, then flip each one in the order they were placed on the pan. Allow to cook until they are medium firmness and solid white not translucent, about 3 more minutes. You don't want to over cook them, just make sure they are not in the pan over 7 minutes and you should be fine. If your pan is at Med to med high you will be fine. Remove pan from heat now!

Slowly drizzle olive oil into ingredients bowl stirring vigorously, then add bacon bits.

Place scallops over arugula on a nice plate, spoon dressing ove rit all add chopped cilantro for garnish, enjoy!

Below is from day 1, I put the callops on top of everything.

Boletists

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 22:44:00 +0000

Mushrooms Everywhere!

This is my first post on this blog in over a year, not that I've slowed down with cooking, but I've changed directions a bit. Here are a few varieties of Boletes that we cooked into a Risotto with some sausage on a backpacking trip to Snoqualmie Lake this past weekend.

We brought a few home with us as well and sliced them up nicely to dry out for a few days. Looks like there will be a few mushroom dishes on the menu for the next few weeks!

Ginger, Honey Quinoa with Basil and Sundried Tomatoes..Oh, and Grilled Rib-eye

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:30:00 +0000

"I refuse to believe that trading recipes is silly. Tuna fish casserole is at least as real as corporate stock." ~ Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

Ok, so here's the recipe for this quinoa salad. Hands descending this is best quinoa salad I’ve ever had, and my extraordinary someone agrees, if only for the verity that it has addictive drug like traits without being bad for you. It’s actually soaring in everything good. The secret in my opinion lies in the sheer amount of dressing that’s added, and letting it bond overnight like new bff’s at a slumber party.

-Make the dressing a few hours before. Doing this tames the raw garlic, ginger and shallot.

Ingredients: 2 cups quinoa, 4 cups h2o. Dressing- 1 cup minced fresh ginger, 1 minced medium shallot, 1 tbsp mayonnaise, splash of champagne vinegar, juice and zest from 1 ½ large lemons, ¼ cup of honey, salt and pepper to taste, 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 jar of sun dried tomatoes chopped and 2 cups fresh basil chiffonaded.

Wisk garlic, shallot, mayo (which keeps it all from separating), vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper in your favorite bowl. Refrigerate for ½ hr+, meanwhile toast the quinoa until that nutty smell fills the air then cook 2 cups quinoa to 2 cups water for about 15 minutes. Removing the cover and taking off the heat and fluffing so it doesn’t over cook. Remove the dressing from the fridge and slowly add the olive oil whisking vigorously until well combined. Taste and add whatever you think might make it taste better. If it tastes good LEAVE IT. Combine dressing with the quinoa, allow to cool, then add the basil, sun dried tomatoes and zest. Refrigerate overnight and serve to anyone you want to win over. Oh, and the rib-eye........

I quickly grilled both sides of the rib eye room temperature, lightly seasoned rib eye and threw it into a pre-heated 250 oven for 15 minutes. I find this just makes a perfectly buttery medium rare steak. It breaks down the fat better than simply grilling it. You could always move it to a cooler area on the grill, but I was lazy and brain dead from the day and I wanted perfect results. You can always count on the oven. A little goat feta and pretty basil leaf tastes as good as it looks

Where there's Smoke theres Fire

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 22:47:00 +0000

Much smoking kills live men and cures dead swine. ~George D. Prentice
What started out as last minute potluck turned into a full on meat smoke fest, and it was good. This happened a few months ago so I'll try re-collect of what all went down. Brad was the man of the day. He brought over his smoker and and a few secrets too, his phenomenal BBQ sauce made with yellow mustard and coffee.

Smoked beer can chicken from Couch Man, Spice rubbed pork loin from Brad and spicy smoked chicken legs from S-Dog.

Couch's chicken was ridiculous, moist and packed with enough flavor to make Snoop Dog blush. The spicy tequila garlic grilled shrimp were bionic and only lasted minutes and Micah's Dr Pepper Ribs made me eat my words, because I had no idea they would taste this good.

Uma and Ward arrived with a fresh salsa salad made with corn, peaches, cilantro and some mystery goodness. Uma's steak style seasoned rib's were so scrumptious that even though everyone was stuffed I still only got firsts. Appetizers for desert perfect! The fresh from the Ballard market clams from Oyster Bob only needed a cup of wine and they too were lost to a mere memory.

What would a Sunday afternoon be if a kid didn't get to play on the roof. More kids need to be on roofs than in living rooms. Bravo

The Hills Have Grills

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 22:25:00 +0000

In summer, the song sings itself. ~William Carlos Williams

Summer is here and so far it's been...summer, it's about time we had one here in Seattle. I threw together some rando pics from camping on Orcas, Cleulum and Winthrop. To tell you the truth my online time has mostly turned into outside time, and the batteries on my camera never seemed to be charged. I like it! It's like forgetting about your cell phone for a week because your main concern is whether you can keep the temperature right on your ‘we made it ourselves with sticks and tinfoil smoker’(picture below) and hoping the alder you have soaking in the lake doesn’t float away to become a raft for a dragonfly. ( I did see a dragonflie floating on a piece of bark in a lake)

This was day two of smoking ribs, and I believe we got the technique down to a science. Coals on one side, ribs on the other, a tin foil shield resists any direct heat, soaked wood chips and a carefully woven tinfoil veil to keep all that smoke confined. Five hours later these things were unbelievable. They were scandalously juicy, affectionately tender and had a perfect cherry crust. Oh! I did forgot to take a picture, but they were hands down heroic ribs.

On top we have a wonderful Sturgeon fillet, kindly donated from the Wyatt and Theresa Stoppard family( We will miss you when you leave). Grilled with fresh garden herb, garlic, and lemon compound goat butter. Some ‘I forget what kind’ of breakfast sausage on the morning campfire, and some flank goodness that’s described in the picture below.

We returned to our campsite one afternoon after a leisurely ride up Mt. Constitution (not) to find a couple starting a fire in our fire pit. Turns out they were on there way out town and they just had to have some of their fresh little salmon they just caught. Lending a hand we grilled up some of the most succulent fish I have ever had. Adding only a dash of salt and pepper at the end, these smoked and grilled gifts were extremely delicate and moist. Once again food brings man together. Below that is the herb crusted flank steak with spicy Thai beans that Micah prepared to perfection.

At the top we have preparations for a very shiny desert which always tastes best under a full moon. We buried some marinated chuck in the ground with hot coals while we went on a five hour hike. When we came home..thats where my heart was, we were treated to fajitas en el suelo! The other picture is a sesame and shrimp cucumber salad that is actually crunchy!

"If I'm gonna smoke there better be ribs." jm

Lemon Pepper Lamb Chops with Fire Roasted Peppers

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:47:00 +0000

"I have never had so many good ideas day after day as when I worked in the garden." ~John Erskine
click to enlarge
This was a thirty minute meal, but I let the lamb chops hang out for a few hours with the salt and lemon pepper. I always remove them from the fridge at least thirty minutes prior. This way they cook evenly and the area around the bone is warm after cooking. A good pat dry before grilling is key for that nice dark crust.
I figured out a cool way of grilling onions and it looks appealing as well. I halved the onion going through the root, I then cut each half into four or five wedges with the root end still attached. This kept it all together on the grill and it made it easy to flip. Tedious-free operation! I grilled the peppers, and then coarsely chopped them, a little lemon juice, a bit more olive oil, salt, pepper, the onions and fresh lemon mint from the garden. The lamb chops were not very big, but they were tender and succulent. I ended up eating all five of them and the left over relish made for an excellent omelet filler this morning.

Spring BBQ

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 04:54:00 +0000

Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!" ~Robin Williams

~You gotta click to enlarge this picture - Touqe and Peter Man~
Sunny spring days at home are the finest as long as you’re outside. A walk through the neighborhood foraging for herbs showed its bounty. Thyme, lemon mint, lavender and plenty of rosemary was all abundant fresh as the day itself. I like where I live, friendly neighbors that talk to each other , houses and gardens each as individual as the people that live there, and folks kind enough not to mind the occasional herb that finds it’s way onto my grill. I am lucky to live on my street.

White Beach Mushroom, Hen of the Woods, King Oysters and Beach Mushrooms together with neighborhood herbs, rose wine, grape tomatoes, garlic, shallot and a hit of the ‘ole balsamic made for an excellent accompaniment to the red meat. I guess it’s called mushrooms à la grecque, who knew?

Today was a fun cooperative endeavor. Jackie had her vision days before of seared scallops with a mango and walnut chutney sweetened further with a maple syrup pan glaze. Then there was Scottie’s marinated asparagus, Micah’s from-childhood-style flank steak and Hilarie’s excellent choice in wine and spot on instinct of the perfect vino for the mushrooms à la grecque. There is so much more to a great meal than just sitting down and eating. From the enjoyment of unearthing great local ingredients, learning somthing new from somone else or taking the dog for a walk to locate the thyme bush on 64th and 9th, these are all just parts of the bigger picture.

That mango, cucumber, walnut salsa, and whatever other goodness Jackie threw in was amazing, but the best accompaniment to any meal is the people your with. Oh..and Rock Band 2 on Wii for desert.

Slowing things down..just a bit.

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 01:58:00 +0000

"Noncooks think it's silly to invest two hours' work in two minutes' enjoyment; but if cooking is evanescent, so is the ballet."
Julia Child

I'm going to slow things down a bit on Moormansmenu. I love the kitchen more than ever and I truly put my heart into most everything I make, but that's just it, I just feel I need to slow down because I don't want to feel pressure from myself to put something on this blog. I love food and require the therapy that time in the kitchen gives me. So on that note, I'm going to sit down and eat this Warm Asparagus and Lamb Salad with Raspberry and Walnut Vinaigrette and leave the camera in the camera bag. Salute! Let’s do dinner soon!

~Picture taken the following day. I just had to make it again.

Sayulita Mexico

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:05:00 +0000

“The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea.”~Isak Dinesen

Sunday

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 03:09:00 +0000

Do not let Sunday be taken from you If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes an orphan.~
Albert Schweitzer
P.D was on the guest list.. wait he always is. Below top left.

Food is always freshest on Sunday's, I dare not say the same for myself. It is the Lords day, and a day of rest, and should always be. Assembling provisions can be the most calming and unwinding thing to do. This is habit forming. Sunday night dinner with great friends is my sunny beach that I can't have on a dark February morning in Seattle. When a groggy friend calls and says, He has two fresh trout, and my only reply being that I have a braise in the oven, leaves only one question: "Where are we eating at!?" Executive decisions need to be made, because this late into the weekend the idea of a plan has long left with the 19 year-olds trying to get into the local bars. Last minute, my-house, sounds great.

Here we have the pan fried trout over a leek, homemade pancetta, apple, parsley, shallot, morojam and radicchio ensalade hit at the last minute with balsamic vinegar. Muchos gracias Big D. Below that a simple pork braise, made with left-over braising liquid from my last braise, a little more red wine, the last of the veal stock and chicken stock reduced nicley to a delctable sauce. A carmalized butternut squash with mint and basil dish was also present but my camera wasn't. Good food is always great, but superb friends, tired eyes and full belly's make it all taste a little sweeter.

A mixed Menu

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 20:57:00 +0000

The lazier a man is, the more he plans to do tomorrow.
The quote says it all. I have a bunch of dishes that i just haven't gotten around to posting. I have even forgotten what I actually did in a lot of these dishes. So I'm just going to post some pics and try my best to remember what I did. Click to enlarge.

Pork Tenderloin, accompanied with roasted brussel sprouts, fingerling potatoes and a rich red wine pan sauce. The tenderloin was my reward for an impromptu pasta lunch for 17 on the set of a new film Mike and Nick are working on. It was worth it. Thanks Nick and thanks to your Mom for hooking that up. Freaking Delicious.
Sunday Market Roasted Potato Salad with Cayenne Aoli. I used kalamata olive oil in the aoli which gave it a uniquely fresh taste and green appearance. Very tasty, plus making mayonnaise or aoli is really fun.

Orange Ginger Red Quinoa Salad w/ Arugula and Cherry Tomatoes.
I let the ginger and shallot marinate in lemon juice for about 45 minutes. I then added fresh squeezed orange juice, olive oil, lemon & orange zest, salt and pepper. I combined this with the quinoa while it was still warm reserving a little for the finished salad. Very light, fresh and vegetarian if you can believe that! ...now on to the lamb.

Roast Leg of Lamb
S-Dog in the Kitchen! Scottie has the passion, and patience to make things come out perfectly, here He demonstrates that with a flawlessly prepared leg of lamb. I'm looking forward to summer where we'll spend most our time outside on the Q, smoking ribs or boiling freshly caught crabs. I know Scottie will make the perfect baby backs with some S-Dog Extra love BBQ sauce! I can't wait!

Back to the Past - Many of us grew up with that dreaded-for-some or anticipated-for-others, Liver Night. I was one that actually really loved it. But I realized I had forgotten what it tasted like and I was having that. Excitedly, I purchased some locally grown calf's liver and prepared just like my mom did. It was great! And best of all it brought back many fond memories of my family sitting around our dinner table devouring liver!

Biltong! I missed you!

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 03:06:00 +0000

How to make Authentic South African Biltong coming soon. It was so good it took me back to my childhood living in JoBerg. This stuff is golden and it's ALL GONE!!!

Pork Confit w/ Sweet Potato and Delicate Squash Hash

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 17:50:00 +0000

The pig is "an encyclopedic animal, a meal on legs." ~ Grimod de La Reynière

I have a hard time naming a dish when there's a lot going on. I prefer the cooking and eating part and the conversation that follows. Here we have pork confit on a walnut crusted crostini with mustard greens couscous and a sweet potato and delicate squash hash topped with cracklings. For the pork confit, I ground up bay leaves, salt, coriander, pepper, herbs de provence and thyme. I cut the pork into three inch cubes and dredged it in the spice mix, and refrigerated it for two days. A couple sprigs of rosemary and two garlic bulbs where added to the duck fat. I brought the fat to a light simmer, added the pork and then put it in a 195 degree oven for four hours. The couscous was made with leftover goat stock, mustard greens and a little pork belly. The sweet potato's and delicate squash were finished with orange juice, maple syrup and the garlic from the confit. Finally I breaded some thin baguette slices with crushed candied walnut pieces and fried it.

A little crunch, a little sweet are right at home with pork confit.

The last of the Yellow Fin…And I made Ceviche!?

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 01:18:00 +0000

"Somtimes you can fit more on a spoon than a fork"~ JM
I was just making a simple salad, adding anything I could find in my fridge...all the while eyeing this beautiful deep red slab of ahi tuna. I was going to do what I normally do, A pat dry, a little honey-soy sauce wash and then coat it with sesame seeds. A speedy sear, a swift slice and over some greens it goes. What made this difficult was this also happened to be my last piece of ahi from the now defunct Sashimi-Outlet. These were the nice folks who used to reside next to the Levi outlet in Bellevue. I am sad that they are gone. One of those hole in the wall places that delivered the goods. If the masses only knew that less than one block from there prized Whole Paycheck grocery chain lived a freezer, that for a fifth of the price, held the kings gold.
I guess I broke some rules and added a few ingredients that I would never add to a ceviche- Dijon, honey, olive oil and celery to be primary examples. I also added shallot, cilantro, grape tomatoes, lemon and lime juice. I only let it hang out for about 15 minutes so it wouldn’t make the tuna soggy or let the olive coagulate. It was in reality quite good, but then again this fish is amazing raw with just a dab of wasabi. Will I make this again, probably not. RIP Sashimi-Outlet.

A Weekend Away - Whistler B.C.

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 01:26:00 +0000

"At the top of the mountain we are all snow leopards." — Hunter S. Thompson

At 50° latitude, 122° longitude lies a northern behemoth known as Whistler. Apart from the peacock blue skies, the fact that it's only four hours away from Seattle, or the 8100 acres of fairy-tail terrain, Adam, Harley and I managed to whip up a couple scorching dishes.
Using what our humble cabin provided and the local market we managed to eat like three kings. I was first up, giant prawns and steak where on the menu. Harley followed the next night with a pasta from Fantastica, you know that place from the Never-Ending Story.
Cilantro, shallot, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and a pinch of cayenne were all the prawns needed. The steak required a little more work - Salt, pepper and Adams keen eye on the grill. Chopped up bacon and scallions were all the chevre asked for and our Crown Royal from the duty free did our bacon grease fingerlings right.

Harley made an Amatriciana style pasta sauce, with Swiss sausage, chorizo a fresh garden salad with light a vinaigrette(I think with more Crown royal). Bravo!... and condolences to those who were not permitted to cross.

Sunday Market - Leg of Goat

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 05:55:00 +0000

"These are the beasts which ye shall eat: the ox, the sheep, and the goat." - Deuteronomy 14:4

I finally broke down and bought the goat. Most Sundays at the Ballard farmers market I visit Terry, and look at His delicious offerings of veal, lamb and goat. The goat has been calling my name for quite some time now. I’ve been window shopping, struggling to bring myself to the deed of actually buying some. I’m really not sure why, possibly due to the fact that I have never had goat? It’s been difficult, like a force field pushing me away, all the while building up my expectations of how succulent it will be. To keep a short story short, I bought a small pound or so piece of goat leg along with a bag of goat bones to make a stock.
My goal was to taste the goat, so I avoided any marinades. -Simply, salt & pepper, a quick sear and into 250 degree oven for about 25 minutes. I find this method to work great on tougher cuts that you want to eat rare to medium rare.

While this was slowly roasting, I had red wine, juniper berries, rosemary, thyme, carrot, and garlic gently reducing on a back burner. Later I would strain and add this to the roasting pan that I deglazed with veal stock, finishing it with goat butter and a dollop of maple syrup for a rich, glazy sauce.

I accompanied the goat with caramelized delicate squash with honey and balsamic glaze(my new favorite) and a goat butter & parsley couscous. The goat lived up to my anticipation. It did not taste like lamb, It did not taste like beef. It tasted like goat. I want more!

Ginger Beef Stew with Roasted Peppers and Shitake Mushrooms

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 05:32:00 +0000

“Talk of joy: there may be things better than beef stew and baked potatoes and home-made bread - there may be.” ~ David Gayson - 1905

Braises and stews, I just can't get enough of them this time of year. Browned the chuck, sautéed the mirepoix, added tomato paste, a chunk of ginger, soy sauce, red wine, veal stock and bouquet garni. Three hours at 300, I think, then finished it with grated ginger, roasted peppers and mushrooms. I had it for lunch again today...and probably again tomorrow!

Mixing it up

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:20:00 +0000

"Hunger is the best sauce in the world"
Between going on vacation, catching the flu and the holidays, I have to admit I've been slacking. Not that I haven't been cooking, It's just that I usually have a couple bites in me before I get around to taking any pictures. Food is usually better hot anyway, right? Below are a couple dishes that I managed to snap before digging in.
Hungarian Stew over Local Heirloom Fingerling Potatoes

This stew is very simple, the beef is not browned prior to cooking. Onions are sautéed first, then a puree of paprika (a half cup!), white vineger, and roasted red peppers are added. The meat and a cup of stock are the only other ingredients. The paprika really shines in this dish and served over crispy fingerling potatoes it's a match made in heaven, um I mean my kitchen.
Rosemary Lemon Ono

Thanks Mike and Dustin (pictured above gettin' busy)for this amazing piece of fish!
Ono also known as Wahoo, is a Hawaiian word meaning "good to eat,"and good to eat it was! Dustin marinated it with lemon, Rosemary, and pepper then seared
and baked it to perfection. This fish is similar to the King Fish I caught down in Florida however the meat is whiter, flakier and more delicate than the fast swimming King fish. It also has a sweeter milder less fishy taste than other fish in the Mackerel family.
A few more dishes..

Family, Fishing and Great Fresh Food in Florida♦

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 03:58:00 +0000

"How do you catch a cow?" - My niece Ashley

Lane Snapper Ceviche – Sweet peppers, cilantro, lemon juice,

orange and juice, onion and lane snapper.

Florida for nine days during a Seattle November is bliss, add my three sweet nieces, their families, a fishing boat, perfect weather and a cast iron pan, well that’s paradise. We had many great meals while I was there including Thanksgiving turkey with all the fixings, braised pork shoulder with fried risotto cakes, coq co vin and more. But what stood out to me other than the great company was the fish. The ocean-to-the-plate in the same day fish! My brother in law grew up in the area and knows the waters better than anyone. He also happens to be the director of the Loxahatchee River District. This river feeds almost immediately into the Gulf Stream which makes for incredible fishing. Thanks skipper!

Thanks to my brother in law’s expertise we caught over 20 fish on our first day. King Fish and Lane Snapper were abundant! King Fish or King Mackerel has a high oil content, it is a streamlined silver fish with vicious looking teeth (enlarge picture above). It is often smoked but when it’s this fresh it’s can be prepared however you choose. Lane snapper have a yellowish and pink tint that distinguish it from Red Snapper the meat is sweet and the fish is more often than not cooked whole.

Coconut striped sea bass, Sweat potato crusted king fish,
Mixed fried platter

Florida wildlife.

Coffee and Ale Braised Beef Shanks with Risotto

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:00:00 +0000

"A morning without coffee is like sleep"

Ah, it's that time of the year to begin braising again. One of my favorite ways of cooking. In this dish the coffee adds a lot of depth to both the color and taste. I used up all my duck bones from previous recipe's to make the stock which I used for the risotto. For the braise I browned the shanks added the mirepoix then tomato paste, thyme, garlic, IPA and coffee grounds. Yum!

Baked Lamb Chops with Olive Bruschetta

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:08:00 +0000

The Lamb was marinated in the same simple vinaigrette that was used on the salad. Hot Dijon, olive oil, rice wine vinegar, fresh lemon juice, S&P and maple syrup to sweeten things up a bit. The bruschette consists of black, green and brunette olives, tomato paste, and fire roasted red peppers(from a jar)

Goat Cheese and Prosciutto Rolled Roast

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 17:17:00 +0000

Primarily I'm a meat man, although once in a while I toy with a few vegetables. - Nat King Cole

Accompanied with roasted tomatoes with garlic, thyme and truffle oil. Maple glazed carrots.

I combined a couple cups of wine, carrots, thyme, rosemary, onion
and garlic and let it reduce for a couple hours never allowing it
to simmer or boil. It reduced to about a quarter cup. This was
added to the stock reduction that reduced for the same amount of time
The stock was added to the fond then the wine reduction was added
to complete the sauce.

A 4lb rump roast was cut about an half inch spiral, spread flat
then pounded. Goat cheese, prosciutto and herbs were added
before tightly rolling and refrigerating it overnight.

Duck Confit

noreply@blogger.com (Joe Moorman) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 18:19:00 +0000

"If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, talks like a duck,
it probably needs a little more time in the oven"

Thanks to Chef Dustin for the hook up on the Muscovy duck legs and the vat of duck fat. In true confit style the legs were first rubbed with a salt, garlic and herb mixture and refrigerated overnight. The following day the legs are well rinsed and added to the duck fat along with whole garlic, onion and thyme. The legs are poached until meltingly tender in a low heat oven all day. After removing and draining, the legs are roasted for a short time to make the skin crispy and delicious. The duck was accompanied with a serrano pepper risotto, roasted fingering potatoes, onions and brussels sprouts and topped with crunchy julienned shallot and bacon.