Search for fava - 14 results found

roasted monkfish, potatoes, bay, olives; fava greens, mint

It’s one of our favorite dishes. Last night I tweeted that it was the definition of savory. I think the pictures show us why. The one below is of the potatoes just before they went into the oven, preceding the black olives and the monkfish by 20 minutes or so.

  • twelve or 14 ounces of scrubbed, dried, and thinly sliced ‘red thumb’ potatoes from Norwich Meadows Farm, arranged, overlapping, on the bottom of a glazed earthenware oven pan, covered with 3 tablespoons, or slightly more, of a Chelsea Whole Foods house Portuguese olive oil, seasoned with sea salt, freshly-ground black pepper, a pinch of an Eckerton Hill Farm crushed dried hickory smoked Jamaican Scotch bonnet pepper, the same amount of a dried habanada pepper, and 9 whole Italian bay leaves from Buon Italia scattered on top, and then more oil (another 2 tablespoons or so) poured over everything, the pan placed inside a 400º oven for about 20 or 25 minutes, or until the potatoes had begun to brown on the edges, then almost two thirds of a cup of mostly pitted Sicilian black oil-cured olives from Buon Italia and a few kalamata olives from Whole Foods [fewer olives would definitely not make the flavors of the entrée suffer, but this amount is luscious] were scattered about them, and one halved 15-ounce monkfish tail from P.E. & D.D. Seafood was placed on top of everything, the fish sprinkled with salt and pepper, and the pan returned to the oven for another 15 minutes or so more (the ‘tails’ were pretty thick), or until the monkfish was tender but not overcooked (I used an instant thermometer and 140º as the final say), arranged on the plates garnished with a little micro purple mustard from Norwich Meadows Farm

  • a generous amount of fava bean greens, stems and leaves, from Keith’s Farm, washed in several changes of cold water, drained, gradually stirred into a large, heavy, antique copper pot in a tablespoon or more of olive oil already heated above a medium flame where a bit of spring garlic had been allowed to soften, and once the greens had wilted, a generous amount of roughly-chopped spearmint from Phillips Farms was tossed in, followed by a bit of sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
  • the wine was a French (Languedoc-Roussillon) white, Vin Blanc, La Patience 2017, from Astor Wines
  • the music was the Peter Eötvös album, ‘Concertos’ 

pasta, spring garlic, fava shoots, coriander seed, parmesan

I really love fava beans, but no matter how many I buy, it seems I always end up with only a few spoonfuls of the treat itself once I’ve removed the inedible parts.  An article in bon appétit even includes them in their list of ‘jerk vegetables’, where they’re concerned only with the amount of work they require to prepare, not the cost of purchasing a number large enough to be appreciated. In any event, their suggestion for dealing with the problem (just buy fewer fava beans) holds no attraction for me.

Since I discovered the fava bean shoot a few years ago, I almost never go back to the bean itself, because these treasures (which look a bit like giant clover leaves, how sweet is that?) offer everything the beans do, except for the texture.

I used a few handfuls of the greens in a simple meal last night. I’ve prepared them as a side vegetable and incorporated them in pasta dishes in the past, but this may be the first time I’ve wilted them for a pasta as I would other greens, and not just tossed a smaller amount into the mix at the end. The result, seen in the image at the top, looks very different this time, but it was at least as delicious as ever.

  • a few loose handfuls of fava shoots from Keith’s farm, newly-returned-to-the-Greenmarket on Saturday, washed, drained, and gradually added to a large antique copper pot in which one large green or spring ‘Magic garlic’ from Windfall Farms had already been heated and softened a bit before about a quarter teaspoon of slightly crushed whole Moroccan coriander seeds from Flatiron Eataly were added, plus freshly-ground black pepper to taste, the fava greens stirred and allowed to wilt only slightly before stirring in some lemon zest (from half of one Chelsea Whole Foods Market organic lemon) and a little lemon juice, then 8 or 9 ounces of cooked and drained Afeltra 100% grano italiano spaghetti, produced in Gragnano, from Eataly Flatiron, added and stirred over a medium-high flame with a full cup of the reserved pasta cooking water, until the liquid had emulsified, the pasta then arranged inside shallow bowls and finished with olive oil drizzled around the edges, a bit of Parmigiano Reggiano (aged 24 months) from Whole Foods grated on top
  • the wine was an Italian (Sicilian) white, Planeta – La Segreta White 2017, from 67Wine
  • the music was the album, ‘Laurence Crane: 6 Trios 2 Solos & 1 Quintet’, by the Ives Ensemble (and another after dinner

smoked mackerel toast; buffalo steak; fava; roasted potato

Oh my.

Yes, once again we have access to some wonderful smoked local fish. After a hiatus which had saddened many of their customers, the Karlin family’s P.E. & D.D. Seafood Company, is again selling this very special fresh delicacy that originates in the hauls from its boats out of Long Island’s North Fork, .

I was worried that I might not get around to doing something with the gorgeous whole copper-colored mackerel I had picked up almost 2 weeks ago, but smoked fish has serious staying power (in fact, food preservation was its original raison d’etre).

On Saturday I skinned and deboned the fish and it with some ingredients I already lying around, and I managed to come up with some delicious toasts for assembling a small course to anticipate a good steak. There was enough for two nights, so we will probably be enjoying the remainder tonight, 2 days later, after I finish writing this.

Another thing special about the whole meal was the fact that both courses included unconventional treats from a local producer on shore, Riverine Ranch, which raises water buffalo in New Jersey, far from waters fished by the Karlin family.

  • one 8-ounce smoked whole mackerel from P.E. & D.D. Seafood, skinned, its flesh removed from the backbone and the larger ribs discarded as it was broken up and placed inside a bowl, where it was joined by about a third of a cup of Riverine Ranch water buffalo milk labneh, a tablespoon or more of chopped Japanese scallions, a teaspoon of zest and a tablespoon of juice from an organic Chelsea Whole Foods Market lemon, a little freshly ground black pepper, and a complex powdered Nigerian cayenne, swiped onto toasted slices of a She Wolf Bakery miche, with lemon quarters served on the side
  • delicious peppery arugula from Norwich Meadows Farm dressed with Trader Joe’s very good  Italian Reserve unfiltered olive oil, sea salt, pepper, and a drizzle of lemon juice
  • the wine was a French (Gascogne) white, Mont Gravet – Côtes de Gascogne Blanc 2017, from Foragers Market Wine

The main course was a very different scheme from the first.

  • one top sirloin buffalo steak (13 ounces) from Riverine Ranch, rinsed and patted dry, seasoned generously with salt and pepper, allowed to reach room temperature, seared over a medium flame, cooked 2 or 3 minutes on each side, to medium rare, the time always dependent on thickness [being careful not to overcook, or the steak would be tough, and noting that the color of this lean meat is a lot redder than beef, meaning a medium-rare buffalo steak would be the same shade of an almost rare beef steak], removed from the pan, cut in half crosswise, arranged on the plates, drizzled with a bit of lemon juice, sprinkled with chopped fresh thyme from Chelsea Whole Foods, drizzled with a little olive oil, covered loosely and allowed to rest for a couple minutes before serving

  • more than a pound of red thumb potatoes from Norwich Meadows Farm, halved lengthwise, tossed with a little olive oil, salt, black pepper, a bit of crushed home-dried habanada pepper, and a pinch of crushed dried hickory smoked Jamaican Scotch bonnet pepper from Eckerton Hill Farm, arranged cut side down on a large Pampered Chef unglazed ceramic pan, roasted at about 375º for 20 minutes or so, tossed around on the pan, arranged on the plates and garnished with micro red mustard from Two Guys from Woodbridge

  • fava greens, the last from the boxes at the Union Square Greenmarket stand of Alewife Farm (the restaurants got there before me), washed, drained, and gradually stirred into a medium size heavy, antique copper pot in less than a tablespoon of olive oil until they had only begun to wilt, seasoned salt and freshly-pepper, the vegetable arranged on the plates and drizzled with some more olive oil
  • the wine with this course was a Portuguese (Dão) red, Casa de Mouraz Tinto, Dão 2014, from Astor Wines  

monkfish roasted with potato, olive, bay; fava greens, mint

It’s called Monkfish around here, but it’s also the delicacy the French call Lotte, the Italians Coda di rospo, the Spanish Cola de Rape, the Germans Seeteufel, and the English Anglerfish.  Whatever it’s known as, it’s a delicious fish, and not really like any other.

I love this dish, and the fact that the monkfish can be substituted with other firm white fish fillets, like sea bass or pollock. I go way back with it: The original recipe, from Mark Bittman, appeared in the New York Times almost 20 years ago; I still have his ‘The Minimalist’ dog-eared clipping in my files.

  • nine or ten ounces of scrubbed and thinly-sliced medium-size Peter Wilcox potatoes from Tamarack Hollow Farm, arranged, slightly overlapping, on the bottom of a glazed earthenware oven pan covered with 3 tablespoons, or slightly more, of a Spanish (Seville) house olive oil from Whole Foods Market, seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, 10 whole Italian bay leaves from Buon Italia scattered on the potatoes, and then more oil (another 3 tablespoons or so) poured on top, the pan placed inside a 400º oven for about 20 minutes, turning it back to front halfway through, and, when the potatoes had begun to brown, two thirds of a cup of pitted Sicilian black oil-cured olives from Buon Italia were scattered about them, and 4 monkfish ‘tails’ (a total of one pound) from P.E. & D.D. Seafood placed on top, the fish sprinkled with salt and pepper and the pan returned to the oven for another 10 minutes more, or until the monkfish was tender but not overcooked

  • one bunch of long fava bean greens, stems and leaves, from Gorzynski Ornery Farm, washed in several changes of cold water, drained, chopped roughly, and gradually stirred into a large, heavy, antique copper pot in a tablespoon or more of olive oil already heated above a medium flame, until they had wilted, a generous amount of roughly-chopped ‘Common’ or ‘Mojito mint’, from S. & S.O. Produce, tossed in, followed by a bit of sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, the vegetable arranged on the plates, drizzled with some more olive oil
  • the wine was a Spanish (Bierzo) white, Palacio de Canedo Godello 2016, from Foragers Wine
  • the music was the NOW Ensemble album, ‘Awake’, from New Amsterdam Records

lamb chops, lemon, thyme, green garlic; potato; fava greens

It was Easter.

  • four thick 7-ounce lamb rib chips from Greg and Mike of Sun Fed Beef/Maple Avenue Farms in the Union Square Greenmarket, brought to room temperature, dried thoroughly, cooked on a very hot enameled cast iron grill pan for a total of 12 or 13 minutes, turning them over twice, seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper after the first time, finished with a squeeze of juice from an organic lemon from Whole Foods Market, scattered with some chopped thyme from Phillip’s Farm and some thinly-sliced green garlic from John D. Madura Farm, and drizzled with a little olive oil

  • about 13 ounces of waxy ruby crescent potatoes from Mountain Sweet Berry Farm, halved lengthwise, tossed with a bit of olive oil, sea salt, freshly-ground black pepper, crumbled dried darker gold/orange habanada pepper, and rosemary leaves from Citarella, roasted at 450º for about 25 minutes, arranged on 2 plates and garnished with micro scallions from Two Guys from Woodbridge

  • a few handfuls of fava greens from Campo Rosso Farm, washed in several changes of water, tossed into a large antique high-sided tin-lined copper pot over high heat in a tablespoon of hot olive oil, stirred until they had quickly wilted, arranged on the plates, sprinkled with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, mixed with some chopped peppermint from Phillips Farms, drizzled with a bit of organic lemon juice from Whole Foods Market and some olive oil
  • the wine was a French (Rhône) red, Domaine Des Causses Syrah Reserve 2014, from Landmark Wines
  • the music was the re-engineered recording of Hans Knappertsbusch’s 1951 Bayreuth ‘Parsifal’, which was the opera and the Wieland Wagner production that reopened the Festspielhaus that summer after the war