Happy Birthday Dear Blog!

With Vincenzino in Ravello on the Amalfi Coast

It was a year ago today that I made my first posting and the Skinny Gourmet Guy was born.  What a ride it's been!  The most significant change for me has been all but giving up red meat and having fish for dinner 99% of the time.  This kind of happened by accident.  The core of the Skinny recipes were adapted from the philosophies Vincenzino taught me.  I studied with him at his house in Ravello on the Amalfi coast.  Every night I'd try out recipes and photograph the results.  Some recipes worked, some didn't - but they were all fish.  I had no idea before starting the blog that you could have fish for dinner every night and still have lots of variety.

 

My favorite new recipe - tuna steak

For some reason, before the blog I always messed up grilling tuna.  But after long hours watching the Food Network I caught an episode of Secrets of a Restaurant Chef and Anne Burrell solved the mystery for me. 

Anne Burrell of  Secrets of a Restaurant Chef

It's funny - Anne is a bit off-putting to me - with the crazy hair, unbridled sarcasm and bull-in-a-china-shop personality - but her recipes are great and she's a really good teacher.  Here's the link to the tuna recipe: http://www.skinnygourmetguy.com/2012/01/tuna-steak.html

Roasted vegetables have become a mainstay

I had also never roasted vegetables before the Skinny blog and now I do it all the time.  It's so easy to take your favorite vegetables, add olive oil, salt and pepper and throw it in a 450 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes, tossing the veggies with tongs halfway through.  Roasting really intensifies the flavors. 

I kicked the potato chip habit

Another major change in my diet was kicking the potato chip habit.  I would plow through chips every night when I got home from work and still eat a big dinner.  Now I opt for baked instead of fried and snack on Pop Chips or pita chips (I really like Trader Joe's pita chips) and really watch how much I have rather than sitting in front of the TV with bag in hand mindlessly gorging on chips.  Now I take a small portion, put it on a plate, and put the bag away. 

Cooking class in Barcelona

I was thin when I started the blog, mostly due to my punishing workout schedule, but I've lost about 10 pounds over the past year all due to changes in my diet (my workout schedule has remained the same).  It's all about the Mediterranean diet (thank you Vincenzino!), limiting carbs and cutting out potato chips.   But I also believe that every now and then you have to live a little.  So occasionally I have my old favorites: salt and vinegar potato chips and if you see me having dinner at Cafe Luxembourg you may just see me downing their excellent steak frites!

Skinny Gourmet Guy in Spain

I hope you'll join me for the second year of the Skinny Gourmet Guy!  Thank you for checking out my blog over this past year.  I'm constantly amazed at the number of hits I get from all around the world. 

Turkey Lurkey Burgers with Mushroom Sauce

Juicy turkey burgers

I was shopping at Trader Joe's the other day.  Usually, I go there to buy their Shredded Wheat.  You got over 17 ounces for $2.69 a box compared to $4.99 for a 16 ounce box from Post.  I like their Pita Chips, too.  But I passed their meat section and spotted a package of ground turkey.  There was almost 2 lbs in a package and it only cost $3.50.  Sold!

I've posted about chicken burgers in the past.  And tuna burgers.  And salmon burgers.  Any kind of burger other than ground sirloin which of course is delicious but not so good for you.  The key is to cook the burger but not have it dry out, which can happen with poultry burgers.

I like my burgers medium rare

Another secret to a delicious burger is not to overwork the meat (or in this case, turkey).  I nimbly put together four medium sized burgers from the package.  I worked quickly and didn't pat down the burgers any more than necessary.  The package said there was rosemary mixed in with the turkey.  Other than that and a little salt and pepper I added nothing.  I think when you add things like peppers, onions and an egg, you're forced to overwork the turkey in order to get everything mixed thoroughly. 

Just in case the burgers were dry I had a sauce at the ready

I got my trusty cast iron skillet super hot by putting it over a medium flame and letting it heat up for a good 10 minutes.  I cooked two burgers and froze the other two.  They took about 4 - 5 minutes on each side.  I removed them from the flame and covered the pan with tin foil.  They continued to cook while I made the sauce and asparagus on the side.  They were perfect.

This gravy would make a cardboard box taste delicious

I also bought a package of Baby Bella's at Trader Joe's.  They're baby portabello mushrooms.  The package cost $1.50.  I sautéed the mushrooms in a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil in my Le Creuset nonstick pan.  As they began to brown I added a 3/4 cup of white wine and the juice of one lemon and cooked it down.  And, yes, I added a pad of butter.  Just that little bit of butter really makes a difference and as I've posted before, there's only about 35 calories (yes, from fat) in a pad of butter.  I next added salt and pepper and dusted it with Wondra quick dessolving flour to give the gravy some texture.  It took about 5 - 10 minutes.  The longer you let it cook down and sit the better it will be. 

 

Pencil thin asparagus

I usually like to roast meaty spears of asparagus, but in the Spring the vegetable stands on the sidewalks have delicious, pencil thin asparagus.  They cost $1 - $2 a bunch.  You may notice the heads are missing.  I get two servings from one of the bunches by cutting them in half and cooking them over two consecutive evenings.  This dinner cost practically nothing and it is delicious!

Ingredients

For the Turkey Burgers

1/2 lb ground turkey per patty (the rosemary infused ground turkey at TJ's is really good!)

Cooking spray for your skillet

Salt & Pepper to taste

Method

Form the ground turkey into patties.  Don't over mix!

Sauté for 4 - 5 minutes per side.  I removed from the flame when you could see pink in the middle (from the side)

Cover in foil (in the skillet) and set aside.  Burgers will continue to cook and not get overdone.

For the Mushroom Gravy

Ingredients

1/2 package Baby Bella or your favorite mushrooms.  I bought them pre-sliced.

1 - 2 tspns extra virgin olive oil

1 lemon

3/4 cup white wine

1 pad butter

2 tbspns Wondra quick dissolving flour (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Eyeball the amount of mushrooms you'd like to use.  I used a half a package.  They shrink to about 1/2 their uncooked size.

Sauté the mushrooms in oil (the less oil the better - they really absorbent) until they brown

Add the butter and swirl around

Add the wine and salt and pepper

Add the Wondra flour

Squeeze the lemon and add juice to mixture.  I toss in the lemons themselves after they've been squeezed (optional)

Cook down over low to medium flame until you get the desired consistency - about 10 minutes or so.

Serve and enjoy!

I'm back!

Backstage with Christie Brinkley

The period surrounding the Tony Awards are always especially busy for me and this year has been no exception.  I try to see as many Tony-nominated shows as possible so I can enjoy the awards, but also to be able to recommend shows to clients.  A big part of my job is arranging house seats for agents in the WME offices and our clients.  Many out-of-towners don't know what they want to see, so it's helpful for me to see everything to be able to give good suggestions.  I've been so busy that my creative energy has been sapped and it's been difficult if not impossible to get creative about Skinny recipes - but I'll be back on track soon.

Chicago isn't up for Tony Awards this year - it walked away with six Tonys back in 1996 - but I caught one of Christie Brinkley's last performances in the long running musical the other week. She is as gorgeous in person as she is in pictures and a genuinely nice person to boot. Her daughter Alexa Ray Joel was in her dressing room too - she was very sweet as well. Christie was wearing a dress designed by Victoria Beckham. I never thought much of Victoria's dresses, but this one was a knockout - and Christie has the rocking body to pull it off!

Christie went to see the new musical Once at my suggestion and really loved it.  In fact, she went to see it a second time shortly after she said it the first time!  I'm seeing Once on this Saturday night and will post my two-cents-worth next week.  My crystal ball says it's going to clean up at the Tony Awards, taking in Best Musical, Best Actor in a Musical and others.  It has 11 Tony nominations.

Tracie Bennett in End of the Rainbow

I saw End of the Rainbow a few weeks ago.  It's not exactly a happy musical.  It boils down to the Judy Garland character begging Mickey Deans (her last husband) for pills for two hours.  Tom Pelphrey gives Deans a decidedly masochistic edge to his character though Tony winner Michael Cumpsty does well as the long-suffering accompanist.  Bennett paints a heartbreaking portrait of a women drowning in pills and alcohol. Except in profile, she didn't really look all that much like Judy.  Come to think of it, she didn't sound all that much like Garland either (I've seen drag queens do better).  But I think her Tony nomination was well earned as she gives a riveting portrayal of a woman who is out of control and has lost any grip of reality.  And she has the Garland moves and poses down pat.  My vote for Best Actress in a play goes to Stockard Channing in Other Desert Cities.  I understand Cynthia Nixon was riveting in Wit but that play is no longer running and Tony voters tend to have short memories.

Megan Hilty is a star!

On a much lighter note, I saw Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Megan Hilty of Smash fame.  This was the final show in this year's Encores series at City Center.  Megan is so hateful on Smash that I was prepared not to like her in this show.  But she was wonderful.  Also great was Rachel York as second-banana Dorothy Shaw who almost stole the show out from under Hilty. As a teenager I was an usher at the South Shore Music Circus in Cohasset, Massachusetts.  Carole Channing did a week of the nearly identical musical Lorelei during my tenure and I saw every performance.  Hilty didn't channel Channing or, for that matter, Marilyn Monroe (who starred in the Blondes movie).  She just played the part and made it her own.

The Tony Awards air on Sunday, June 10th on CBS at 8 PM.  Postings may be spotty until then, but more Skinny Gourmet recipes to follow when things calm down - I promise! 

Calamari-Ghetti!

Quick sautéed squid with spicy marinara

When Vincenzino and I went shopping in the tiny fish market in Ravello on the Amalfi Coast in Italy he asked if we should pick up some squid.  I reflexively said, "No - yuck!"  I'm sorry I was so closed-minded about it.  Recently, Janel, a friend from the Y, told me about a calamari dish she had prepared and liked very much.  (Even calamari sounds more appetizing than squid.)  So I figured I would try out a recipe of my own.

Squid instead of spaghetti = squid-ghetti

I thought I'd do a do a quick sauté of the squid and serve it with a spicy marinara sauce.  Over the weekend I watched an episode of David Rocco's cooking show - and he was preparing squid.  He advised that you cut the squid into 3/4" rings - he advised that you don't make the rings to narrow.  I bought a little over a half pound of squid - which cost under $5 - and chopped the flat part of the squid into the rings.  I left the parts that look like small octopuses as is. 

Dry with paper towels

Despite never having cooked squid, I knew that it should be dry, so I blotted the excess moisture with paper towels.  After that, I dredged the squid quickly through flour and was sure to shake off the excess flour.  Ann Burrell of the Food Network advises that you quickly dredge items quickly and don't leave them for any period of time in the flour. I think lumps of flour can stick when you leave them sitting in it for too long. 

Dredge quickly through flour

Doctoring up jarred marinara

I wanted to cook everything in the same non-stick skillet so I started with the marinara sauce.  I love Mario Batali's cherry tomato sauce that comes in a jar.  But to make it my own I sauté my own cherry tomatoes in extra virgin olive oil.  When they are nearly done I add chopped fresh garlic. 

Set the tomato and garlic mixture to the side

When the tomatoes and garlic are done I push them to the side of the pan.  I crank up the heat, add some more olive oil and when the pan and oil are really hot, I add the squid.

Cooks in two minutes

As you can imagine, the calamari cook very quickly.  Swirl them around in the hot pan - mine took about 2 - 3 minutes to cook through.

Add the marinara

At the very end I add the jarred sauce.  I put it in a bowl and heated the marinara in the microwave and then added to the pan.  I dust it with red pepper flakes and squeeze a lemon into the mixture. The calamari were cooked and I didn't want to overcook them by cooking the marinara in the pan. 

Everyone in the pool!

Roasted asparagus

I'm trying to limit my carbs so instead of serving over pasta, I served over roasted asparagus.  It was really delicious and low in calories and fat.

Et viola!

But if you insist . . . the calamari tasted great over rigatoni, too

Ingredients

1/2 lb squid per person

1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes

4 cloves of garlic chopped

1/2 cup flour (to dredge calamari through)

2 - 3 tbspns extra virgin olive oil

1 lemon

1/2 cup jarred marinara per person

Salt & pepper to taste

Method

Chop squid into 3/4" rings; leaving the octopus-looking pieces as is

Dry with paper towels - set aside

Chop the cherry tomatoes and garlic

Heat non-stick skillet, add 1 tbspn oil

Start with the tomatoes - swirl around in pan until they start to cook through

Add the chopped garlic - swirl around and set to the side

(You can push the tomato and garlic mixture to the side of the pan or put in a dish)

As you're ready to cook, quickly dredge the squid through flour

Making sure pan is very hot, add another tbspn or 2 of the oil

Quickly fry the calamari - it should only take about 2 minutes

Heat the jarred marinara in a bowl in the microwave

Incorporate the tomato and garlic

Add the marinara and mix everything together

Serve over roasted vegetables or pasta

Enjoy!

A

French Bistro Salad

French bistro salad with roasted potatoes, cauliflower

and a wonderfully runny poach egg

I have a tradition of buying a rotissierie chicken with all of the fixings on Friday nights.  It's kind of ironic when you consider I was raised a Catholic and was taught to eat fish on Fridays - and now I have fish for dinner every night except Fridays.  It's because my cleaning lady comes every other Friday and I try not to mess up the kitchen by cooking something splattery.  And I have leftovers for the rest of the weekend.  I like it so much I do this even on the Fridays that the cleaning lady doesn't come.

If you're not adept at poaching eggs you can always go with fried

The fixings include things like roasted potatoes, roasted cauliflower and broccoli rabe.  Over the past few weekends I've made a salad with the leftovers and it's really delicious.  I start with my old standbys of arugula and cannellini beans at room temperature.  Meanwhile, I heat some of the leftover chicken, potatoes and cauliflower and toss in cherry tomatoes and kalamata olives.  The pièce de résistance is a runny poached egg.  If you can't swing the poached egg, a soft fried egg is just as good.

Arugula and cannellin beans - a nice start to any salad

I was a bit apprehensive about poaching an egg, so the first time I tried this recipe I fried an egg and it was great.  But I thought a poached egg would be better.  My friend Alan told me about an egg poacher he uses.  You just crack your eggs in the poacher and microwave them.

My $3.99 egg poacher

I found the egg poacher at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $3.99.  It works great but I'm still fine tuning how long to microwave them and at what power level so they come out perfectly.  I'm still in the trial and error phase with that.  The instructions that came with the poacher weren't very helpful.

I just love the warm egg yolk oozing down over the warm potatoes, roasted cherry tomatoes, chicken and other ingredients.  If you're squeamish about a runny egg yolk just cook the eggs the way you like them.  People with compromised immune systems also have to be careful about eating eggs this way.  It sounds a bit strange but I squeeze fresh lemon juice over the salad, too.  It compliments all the ingredients, giving the salad a fresh kick.  So, next time you're looking for something different for lunch, say oui oui to my French bistro salad. 

Saturday lunch

Ingredients

1 cup arugula - I buy it cleaned and chopped

1/2 cup cannellini beans - from the can but rinse before serving

1/4 cup kalamata olives (buy them pitted or take the pits out before serving)

1 or 2 eggs - poached or fried with runny yolk

I used the following leftovers and heated them in the oven

1/2 cup diced rotissierie chicken

1/2 cup chopped roasted potatoes

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes - chopped in half and roasted

1/2 cup roasted cauliflower and red onion

Juice of half a lemon

Extra virgin olive oil, champagne vinegar to taste

Drizzle of sesame oil

Method

Start with the base of arugula and cannellini beans and you can improvise from there.  I listed the ingredients I used above.  But you're going for the mixture of textures and temperatures - the crunchy, warm roasted potatoes, the delishiously soft roasted tomatoes, the warm chicken contrasting with the room temperature arugula and beans.  The soft egg and tangy lemon juice pull the whole thing together.  Be sure to dress the salad and add the egg and lemon last.  

Enjoy!

Portobello Filets

Portobello mushrooms so meaty they can be a stand-in for steak!

As many of my readers know, I am always looking for a new variation on the slider or mini hamburger.  I've done tuna and salmon burgers - not to mention chicken sliders - so a portobello burger seemed to be a natural progression. 

Mushrooms "before"

I picked up two meaty looking portobello mushrooms at West Side Market.  Unfortunately, when I peeled off the plastic wrap, parts of the mushroom skin were pulled off.  It didn't matter - they were still delicious in the end.  But I could tell that it wasn't a great idea to sauté the mushrooms whole, as was my original intent.  They were just too big. 

Drizzle a small amount of extra virgin olive oil

Mushrooms cut down to size

I decided to quarter the two large portobello mushrooms.  They cooked evenly that way.  And I'd say two portobello mushrooms per person is a good serving size.  They really shrink down considerably!

Toss in a half a lemon halfway through cooking

I cooked the quartered portobellos in my trusty cast iron skillet.  I cooked them in extra virgin olive oil and I added a generous squeeze of lemon juice about halfway through the cooking process.  First, I got the skillet extremely hot - heating it over medium heat for about 5 - 10 minutes before adding the oil and mushrooms.  If you don't adhere to the vegan diet, you can add a pat of butter in with the extra virgin olive oil to make them really decadent. 

Served with roasted eggplant and tomatoes

With roasted eggplant and tomato on the side this dish makes a delicious dinner.  Just be aware that there isn't much protein in this meal.  Portobello mushrooms have 5 grams of protein per serving and eggplant has 2 grams.  So if you're having this for dinner make sure that you got protein at breakfast or lunch.  I intentionally thought up this recipe with practically no other ingredients than the mushrooms and eggplant.  The portobellos are so flavorful they really don't need garlic or hot peppers to make them taste interesting.  Give it a try!

Ingredients

two medium to large portobello mushrooms per person; quartered

2 tbspns extra virgin olive oil

1 tspn salt

1/2 tspn freshly ground pepper

1/2 lemon

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Pre-heat cast iron skillet until over medium heat for 5 - 10 minutes

(If you don't have a cast iron skillet use any skillet)

Add the extra virgin olive oil

Add the mushrooms

Cook until they are tender - if you want the grill marks avoid turning too much - about 3 - 5 minutes per side

Squirt with fresh lemon juice about halfway through

Note:  My cast iron skillet has lines across the bottom which look like grill marks as if you cooked your mushrooms on a charcoal grill.  Worth the investment!

As they are almost done season to taste with salt and pepper

The portobello mushrooms even look a bit like steak filets!

For Goodness Hake!

Hake is great for steaming

I have noticed hake at the fish monger over the years but was never interested in trying it.  But the other day I decided to give it a try - and now, I'm a convert!  Not only is it inexpensive, but it's ideally suited for steaming. 

Line casserole dish with fresh basil

The whole thing with steaming fish is to surround it with flavors that will be absorbed as it cooks.  I'm always on the lookout for banana leaves - but they are really hard to find.  So my go-to is fresh basil.

Place the hake on the bed of fresh basil

You can let your imagination go wild when coming up with ingredients to use with your hake.  I chose some favorites - sundried tomatoes, cilantro, sour figs and yellow peppers.

I sprinkled meyer lemon zest over the top of the chopped ginger and garlic

Feel free to omit any ingredients that don't appeal to you - for example, there are two types of people in this world:  Those who like cilantro and those who don't.  So skip the cilantro if you are in the latter category. 

Finish the nest

When you have all the ingredients in the casserole dish, cover the filet with more basil and cilantro.  You want to create a cocoon for the fish to nestle in while it's steaming.  After you've through with the dry ingredients, cover with teriyaki or soy sauce and sesame oil.

Multi-task: cook your vegetable along with the fish

I have a steamer with two levels so I can cook the vegetable along with the filet.  In this case, I used broccoli rabe and grape tomatoes. 

Et viola!  Garnish with spring onions

The half pound filet of hake I used here cost just over $5.  The broccoli rabe was $3.89 - both purchased at Citarella, not known for it's thrify prices.  But even at an expensive store, I bought dinner for under $10 (take that Melissa d'Arabian!!!).  My friend Martena purchased the sour figs in Chinatown and I had the basil, cilantro and other ingredients in my pantry.  Cooking time was 5 minutes.  No matter how you slice it, that's nothing to "hake" a fist at!

Ingredients

1/2 lb hake per person

1/2 bunch fresh basil

1/8th cup chopped ginger

3 - 4 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped

1 tbspn meyer lemon zest (optional)

Few sprigs cilantro to taste (optional)

1/2 yellow pepper, julienned

3 - 4 sour figs, squished (optional)

1/8 cup soy sauce or teryaki

2 tbspns sesame oil (optional)

1 lemon sliced into rings

3 - 4 sundried tomatoes, chopped

Garnish with pring onions to taste

Method

Line casserole dish with basil

Place hake filet on top

add all the dry ingredients

Save lemon rings for last, then cover with remaining basil and cilantro

Steam for five minutes

Serve and enjoy!

Note: for intensified flavor, put a liberal amount of salt in the water, along with chunks of ginger (no need to peel), garlic clovers (again, no need to peel) and lemon rinds.  No need to use salt on the hake filet - the soy or teyaki sauce has plenty of salt.