Lemon Dill New Potatoes

When I saw these beautiful new potatoes in my box, I knew I wouldn't have to do much with them to make them taste great. I also had some dill and I thought a little butter and dill would be nice.

Since it is summer, I wanted to grill something to go wit the potatoes. Mark Bittman had a recipe for Greek-Style Fish with Marinated Tomatoes in his Minimalist column this week that looked good. I couldn't find a whole fish; so, I had to tie together a filet of trout to stuff it before I grilled it. I have included the fish recipe at the end of this entry. But, I really don't think you have to get that complicated with the fish. If you find some good fresh fish, you can just put some olive oil, lemon, and salt and pepper on it and grill it for a few minutes on each side. The marinated tomatoes were nice; so, if you have time I recommend making them and putting them on the fish and serving it with the potatoes. The dill potatoes go very well with the fish and marinated tomatoes.

If you want to make this a vegetarian dinner, you could make the potatoes, marinate the tomatoes according to Mark Bittman's recipe, grill some marinated tempeh or tofu, top the tofu or tempeh with the tomatoes and serve the potatoes on the side.

This is a perfect summer meal. And, like I said, if you just want to grill the fish without stuffing it you could save yourself some time and I think it would still taste great.

Note to reader: I'm sorry the presentation was a bit sloppy this week.

I think I need a new food stylist.

Lemon Dill New Potatoes

Ingredients

5-6 medium new potatoes

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon dill, chopped

Drop the potatoes into a large pot of salted boiling water. Boil until the potatoes are tender but not mushy (about 20-25 minutes). While potatoes are boiling, melt butter in a small saucepan. Add lemon juice and dill until they are warm. When potatoes are cooked, strain them and let them cool slightly. Slice potatoes into think slices and pour lemon dill butter sauce over them.

Greek-Style Fish with Marinated Tomatoes

From Mark Bittman's The Minimalist

Ingredients

2 cups of cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup of olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon minced fresh chile, like jalapeno, of more to taste

1 tablespoon fresh oregano, or 1 tsp dried

4 cloves garlic, sliced

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 large whole fish or 2 smaller ones (2-3 pounds total) like stripped bass, rockfish or trout;

preferably butterflied and boned, or simply gutted

1 lemon, sliced

4-6 fresh sprigs thyme

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees or prepare grill; heat should be medium high and rack about 4 inches from the fire. Combine tomatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, vinegar, chili, oregano, a few slices of garlic, and sprinkle salt and pepper in a large bowl; let sit at room temperature for 20 - 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, using a sharp knife, make three or four diagonal, parallel slashes on each side of the fish, just about down to the bone. Sprinkle inside of fish with salt and pepper, then stuff with remaining garlic, a layer of lemon slices and fresh thyme sprigs. Rub outside of fish with remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Note: If you don't have a whole fish, you can follow all of step 2 and then tie the fish together with kitchen twine. If you need help, just e-mail me and I can give you very specific instructions.

3. To roast, put fish in a roasting pan and cook for about 20 minutes (cooking time will depend on the size of the fish). If grilling, cook until firm enough to turn, 5 to 8 minutes. Turn and cook on second side for 5 to 8 minutes. Whether roasting or grilling, fish is done when exterior is crisp and a thin-bladed knife passes easily through flesh.

4. Taste tomato mixture and adjust seasoning, adding more oil if needed. Serve fish topped with tomatoes and their liquid.

Yield: 4 servings

Spicy Root Vegetable Tagine with Preserved Lemons and Olives

I had a bunch of root vegetables this week (turnips, carrots, and potatoes) and I wanted to do something special with them.

Epicurious had a recipe for Spicy Potato Tagine with Preserved Lemons and Olives by Paula Wolfert. Since, I had some turnips and carrots I decided to add those for some extra flavor and color. You could make this with just potatoes or add other hearty vegetables you have. I think winter squash, sweet potatoes, or eggplant would be nice additions to this dish. And, don't let the term tagine freak you out. You don't need a special pot. I used a regular pan. Just think of tagine as Moroccan for delicious.

I served this lovely tagine with some couscous. I have never made couscous before; but, I read that it is traditionally served with Moroccan food. The couscous was very easy to make (I just followed the recipe on the box). And, it went well with the tagine.

A note about the preserved lemon. I made my own preserved lemons for this dish. I will give you the recipe in my next post. It is super easy and they keep for 6 months in your fridge so it is worth the effort. If you don't feel like making preserved lemons you can just add some lemon juice and zest at the end.

Spicy Root Vegetable Tagine with Preserved Lemons and Olives

Ingredients

1 pound new potatoes

6 turnips, peeled and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and sliced into disks

2 onions, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tomato, chopped

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika

pinch of ground cumin

pinch of cinnamon

1 clove of garlic, chopped

1/4 fresh lemon

2 tablespoons of chopped flat-leafed parsley

2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro

salt

a generous pinch of saffron

1 1/2 cups chicken or veggie stock

24 kalamata olives, pitted

1/2 preserved lemon, chopped

1. Scrub the potatoes and thickly slice into a bowl of cold water.

2. In a heavy saucepan over moderate heat, cook one of the onions in olive oil until it is softened. Add the tomato, ginger, paprika, cumin, garlic, and cinnamon. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.

3. Drain the potatoes and add them to the pan along with the turnips and carrots. Add the other onion and the fresh lemon quarter. Toss to coat the potatoes, onion, and lemon with the parsley, cilantro and salt to taste.

4. Heat the chicken broth in a separate little saucepan and add the saffron into it so they saffron can bloom.

5. Add the saffron and hot broth to the pan with the potato mixture. Bring the pan to a boil. Cover the pan and reduce to a simmer. Cook until the vegetables are tender about 40 minutes. 6. Remove the vegetables from the pan and leave the broth and spices in the pan. Add the olives and bring to a boil. Cook at high heat until the broth reduces to a thick sauce. Pour the sauce over the vegetables and garnish with the preserved lemons.