Pan-Seared Ahi with Lemon-Butter-Galangal Sauce

Willie and I bought an ahi sashimi tray from Costco. Some of the ahi pieces were not sashimi quality anymore, so we decided to sear those pieces. We placed the seared pieces on a bed of fresh baby arugula and poured a lemon-butter-galangal sauce over the whole thing. It tasted like one of those fancy French sauces you might get at a restaurant! Very tasty. The recipe was adapted from the Lime and Galangal Butter sauce recipe, found here.

Ingredients:

1 clove garlic, minced

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 tbsp minced galangal

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup butter, cut into 1 tbsp-size pieces

1 tsp grated lemon zest

2 tbsp lemon juice

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 tbsp freshly chopped cilantro

Directions:

Wash baby arugula and mound onto a plate. Pam-spray a small sauce pan. Salt and pepper the ahi pieces. Put pan on medium heat. Sear ahi pieces, 1-2 minutes per side. Arrange seared ahi pieces on the mound of arugula.

Place the garlic, shallot, galangal, and white wine in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce the wine to 2 tbsp. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter, one piece at a time, adding each piece after the last one has melted. Once the butter has been incorporated, whisk in the lemon zest and juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in cilantro. Pour over the ahi and arugula and serve immediately.

Street Tacos with Restaurant-Style Salsa

This is "Sarah's Salsa Recipe" for Restaurant-Style Salsa:

Throw the following ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend until the salsa is of the consistency that you like (I like it in tiny, tiny bits):

2 (14.5 ounce) cans of diced tomatoes

1 1/2 (10 ounce) cans of diced tomatoes with green chili peppers

2 tbsp lemon juice (Adrienne's note: I used lime juice)

1 fresh jalapeno chopped (Adrienne's note: The salsa is VERY spicy if you leave in the jalapeno seeds)

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 large yellow onion, chopped

3 drops hot pepper sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

Street Taco Recipe:

The key to authentic tasting Street Tacos is the tortilla. Mercado de la Raza sells 5 dozen fresh corn tortillas for $5.50. They're located at 1315 South Beretania Street. Take two of these tortilla shells, warm them with a little bit of oil in a saucepan, then fill with your favorite meats and toppings. We filled ours with lime-marinated flank steak, sour cream, cilantro, and the restaurant-style salsa.

The recipe for flank steak appeared in an earlier blog post, here: http://greenivoroushawaii.blogspot.com/2011/03/lime-marinated-steak.html.

You could also make a nice guacamole for your tacos. The recipe for guacamole appeared in an earlier blog post, here:

http://greenivoroushawaii.blogspot.com/2011/02/guacamole.html

Coconut Taro Leaf Soup

This is a Fijian recipe from fijitaro.com.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil

2 onions, chopped

3 cloves crushed garlic

4 cups taro leaves

salt to taste

2 cups coconut cream

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp chopped fresh basil, parsley, or cilantro

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock or broth

1/4 tsp crushed chili or chili sauce

Directions:

Clean and chop the taro leaves (pull the stalk out of the leaves and try to remove the central thick veins, then pinch off the tip of the leaf before chopping). (Adrienne's note: your hands might become very itchy doing this. I learned that there are calcium oxalate crystals in the raw taro leaves that act like little daggers entering your skin). In a heavy saucepan, cook onions and garlic in oil until very soft. Add all remaining ingredients except a cup of coconut cream, and cook for 30 minutes. (Adrienne's note: let it go for at least an hour to cook off the calcium oxalate crystals, or those same crystals might make your mouth and throat itchy when you eat the soup). Puree in batches in a food processor blender until smooth. Reheat before serving. Add a swirl of the reserved coconut cream to each bowl of soup. (Small cooked shrimp can be added if desired). (Flame Tree Cookbook by Sue Carruthers)

Easy Cod Ceviche

Willie is becoming a ceviche MASTER! For this ceviche, he used a combination of Meyer lemons and lime for the citrus and a combination of cod and shrimp for the seafood. Next time, he says he'll use just the cod (which we get individually frozen from Costco). We topped this ceviche with ripe avocado chunks, which provided a smooth and creamy contrast to the sharp and tangy citrus and onions. (Recipe from Claire Robinson, available on foodtv.com)

Ingredients:

2 lbs fresh sea bass or flounder fillets, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

1 cup chopped and seeded tomatoes

1 habanero pepper, seeded and finely minced

1 tsp salt

1/2 red onion, finely diced

Directions:

In a large glass bowl, combine all the ingredients, except the onion. Toss well and put the onion on top. Cover with plastic wrap and allow it to sit in the refrigerator for 1 1/2 hours, then stir to incorporate the onion. Let sit in the refrigerator for 1 hour and up to 3 hours.

Fennel, Apple, Celery Salad with Cilantro and (Meyer) Lemon

This recipe is delicious-- fresh, sweet, tangy, and herby all at the same time. The recipe comes from Food Network.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

coarse grained salt and cracked black pepper

2 large apples, julienned

1 medium head fennel, cored and thinly sliced

3 large ribs celery, sliced (about 1 cup)

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped or more to taste

Directions: In a large, non-reactive bowl, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Add the apples, fennel, celery and cilantro. Toss until well combined. Taste and adjust seasonings.

So far, this recipe utilizes the most (four) MA`O Farms CSA produce yet: Meyer lemons, cilantro, fennel, and celery. All of the produce was crisp and juicy!

The finished salad.

TGIF Cilantro-Lime Dressing

This recipe comes from allrecipes.com. This dressing is a little on the sweet side, but I imagine it would go well over a salad with grilled chicken, roasted corn, black beans, avocado, red onion, and cilantro.

Ingredients:

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 clove garlic

3/4 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root

1/4 lime juice

1/3 cup honey

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/4 cup packed cilantro leaves

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Directions: Place the jalapeno pepper, garlic clove, and ginger into a food processor or blender; pulse until the jalapeno and garlic are finely chopped. Pour in the lime juice, honey, balsamic vinegar, and salt, add the cilantro leaves; pulse a few times to blend. Turn the food processor or blender on, and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until incorporated unto the dressing. Season to taste with salt before serving.

Ginger-Scallion-Cilantro Pesto

This recipe comes from Grouprecipes.com.

Ingredients and Directions:

(all of these ingredients get thrown into a food processor and pulsed until done):

3/4 to 1 cup macadamia nut oil (I used Oils of Aloha);

1/2 cup chopped scallions;

1 cup loosely packed cilantro;

1/2 cup unsalted macadamia nuts;

3 tbsp chopped garlic;

1 tbsp chopped garlic;

the juice and the zest of 1 lemon;

salt and pepper to taste.

Adrienne's Notes: This would taste good on a grilled white and flaky fish like monchong or mahimahi. I was going to pair it with some roast duck we got (kind of like a cold ginger chicken sauce), but the taste is not like that. The grittiness of the ginger bits pairs well with the crunch of the macadamia nuts.

Shrimp Ceviche

Willie made a delicious ceviche a month ago (see "Cod and Clam Ceviche," adapted from "Red Snapper Ceviche," recipe here). This time around, we experimented with a fine, fine dice on all of the ingredients. The result is a delicate ceviche that can be eaten with tortilla chips as if it were a salsa-- a chunky, protein-filled salsa. Here is the recipe we adapted, from simplyrecipes.com:

Ingredients:

1 lb medium-small shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 tbsp salt

3/4 cup lime juice (juice from 4-6 limes)

3/4 cup lemon juice (juice from 2-3 lemons)

1 cup finely chopped red onion

1 serrano chile, ribs and seeds removed, minced

1 cup chopped cilantro

1 cucumber, peeled and finely diced

1 avocado, peeled, seed removed, and finely diced

Directions:

1. In a large pot, bring to a boil 4 quarts of water, salted with 2 tbsp salt. Add the shrimp and cook for 1 minute to 2 minutes max, depending on size of shrimp. (Overcooking the shrimp will turn it rubbery). Remove shrimp with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

2. Drain the shrimp. Cut each piece of shrimp in half or into inch-long pieces (Adrienne's note: even on the shrimp, we did a fine dice-- about 1/4 inch). Place shrimp in a glass or ceramic bowl. Mix in the lime and lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate for a half hour.

3. Mix in the chopped red onion and serrano chile. Refrigerate an additional half hour.

4. Right before serving, add the cilantro, cucumber, and avocado.

Serves 4-6.

Mom's Chicken Enchiladas

Mom's Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe is from Eating for Life by Bill Phillips, p. 114. So this is Bill's Mom's recipe, not either of our mom's. This is Willie's specialty dish. We used three MA`O ingredients for this dish: Tahitian limes, baby Romaine heads, and green onions. It was delicious, as usual.

Ingredients:
4 portions chicken breast (about 1 lb)
4 green onions, sliced
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
3 cans (10 oz each) green enchilada sauce
8 corn tortillas
1 cup reduced-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup salsa
1/2 cup light sour cream
1 tomato, diced
1 can (2 oz) ripe olives, sliced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9" x 13" baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Place chicken breasts in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until no longer pink in the center, about 15 minutes. Drain and let cool slightly. Shred cooked chicken by pulling apart with 2 forks; set aside.

3. Lightly coat a large skillet with cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Add green onion, cilantro and jalapeno; saute for 2 minutes. Add shredded chicken and 1 can of enchilada sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 5 minutes.

4. Pour the 2 remaining cans of enchilada sauce in a medium bowl and microwave until warm, about 2 minutes. Dip each tortilla in the heated sauce and fill with about 1/8 of the chicken mixture. Roll up and place, seam-side down, in the prepared baking dish.

5. Pour remaining heated sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until enchiladas are heated through and cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

6. Divide lettuce onto four plates and place a portion of enchiladas on top. Top with a spoonful of salsa, a dollop of sour cream, tomatoes, and olives. Serve and enjoy!

Adrienne's note: We also like a squeeze of lime on our Mexican dishes.

Cod and Clam Ceviche

Adapted from "Cherry Snapper Ceviche," recipe from Executive Chef Roger Ruch of the South Beach restaurant, 1220 at the Tides. The original recipe can be found on page 139 in The South Beach Diet book by Arthur Agatston.

Ingredients:

1 box of "Steamers in Ten" clams from Costco, cooked then shelled

2 cod filets in large dice, bought frozen in a bulk bag from Costco

3 limes, fresh juice of

1/2 teaspons sambal oelek

2 ripe Roma tomatoes, medium dice

1/2 yellow Spanish onion, medium dice

2 1/2 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Kosher salt

Black pepper

Directions:

Soak the diced fish and shelled clams in 3/4 of the lime juice for three hours. Drain off the liquid and discard. Mix the fish and clams with the sambal oelek, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and the remaining lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste. The fish is cooked by the lime's acidity rather than by heat. Serves 4.

Guacamole

Guacamole Recipe (from Willie and Adrienne)

Two avocados, pitted
1/4 white onion, finely chopped
1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tomato, seeded and diced finely
half a bunch of cilantro, leaves and stems finely chopped
juice of one MA`O lime
salt and pepper
5 dashes of hot sauce (like Tabasco)

Mash the avocado up (we use a potato masher), then stir in the onion, garlic, tomato, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper, and hot sauce.