We are living on an island, and although we have the best beef in Europe, we sometimes tend to neglect the wonderful seafood on our local shores. This week I have decided to share a few easy recipes with you, give them a go….
Steamed clams and mussels cooked in a chilli and bacon broth with rocket
Get your shellfish from your local shop, and make sure that you wash the mussels and clams in cold water before you cook them. If any of the shellfish are open, throw them out as they are dead and dangerous to eat.
Ingredients
½ lb mussels
½ lb clams
1 medium onion, cut in half and thin sliced
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
1 streaky rasher cut into fine strips
1 pinch red chilli flakes
Good splash of white wine
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped fine
1 handful of rocket leaves
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
Method
In a medium saucepan, add the olive oil and bring to medium high heat. Add the onion, bacon, and garlic, and sauté for a couple of minutes.
Add the wine, chilli, clams, and mussels to the pan and reduce the heat to medium and cover. Simmer for approximately five to seven minutes until the clams and mussels begin to open. Turn the heat off and add the butter, rocket leaves, and parsley and stir well. Do not overcook the fish. You just want to make sure they all open well.
Serve with crusty bread. I like to drizzle with olive oil and toast, and then rub with a garlic clove and a tomato. Just cut a tomato in half and rub over the bread. It has amazing flavour. The broth and onions in the broth are a great topping to the bread with.
Baked salmon fillet with asparagus spears and couscous
.
Baked salmon with asparagus and couscous salad is a great dinner for four people.
For all the fish lovers out there, here is a fat free delicious dinner for four, which is so simple to make.
Ingredients
4 salmon fillets
1 large bunch of asparagus spears
Salt and pepper
1 lemon
Knob of butter
300g couscous
2 vegetable stock cubes
Method
Heat your oven to 170C. Put the couscous in a bowl, sprinkle on the stock cubes, and cover with boiling water. Break the woody bottoms off the asparagus and get a large piece of tinfoil, with a piece of greaseproof paper on top. Place the asparagus onto the greaseproof, top with the salmon fillets, season with the salt and pepper, squeeze the juice of the lemon all over, and add the knob of butter.
Tie up the tinfoil parcel and cook in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Meanwhile stir the couscous which will swell up as it absorbs the vegetable stock. Serve the couscous on plates and top with the cooked asparagus and salmon. The butter will make a natural lemony sauce. As I said, easy and delicious, and a favourite in the restaurant.
If you would like a recipe for anything at all, or have a culinary question, please feel free to contact me on [email protected] and I will do my best to help you, Talk to you all next week.
