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Sunday, May 24, 2015

Whole Fish Branzino on the Big Green Egg





Oftentimes, restaurants will offer a whole grilled fish and it is always excellent when we get it. We decided to try and do our own grilled fish on the Big Green Egg. Not to skip ahead but the bottom line result is that you MUST make this if you have an Egg.

This thing turned out great! Nice low calorie, fresh and delicious. I am going to need to figure out how to flip it without tearing the skin though... See update  below for flipping advice.

Let's get started.

Research:

We googled around to find a recipe for our Branzino that we purchased at the Buford Highway Farmers Market. If you ever find yourself in Atlanta, you should make it a point to stop in. It is one of the secret sources that notable chefs around town use for inspiration. They stock produce from all over the world and have a large fish market. Truly a treasure.

A Branzino is a european sea bass.

Anyway, We needed a recipe with limes and not lemons because we only had limes... We found this one and it is highly recommended. GRILLED BRANZINO except we left out the ginger.

Ingredients:

1 bottle of wine
5 limes
Fresh basil
1 shallot minced
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
2 nice Branzinos (1 per person is more than enough)

Plan:

Pour a glass of wine.

Heat the Egg to 400ish, make a marinade, stuff the fish and cook. It is cooks very quick. About 5-7 minutes per side.

Follow along...

Execution:

In a bowl, make up the marinade.

Add shallot, zest of two limes, 0.25 cups of olive oil, salt and pepper. Prepare to stuff the fish with limes and basil.


Simply stuff the gutted and cleaned fish with lime and basil. Then generously salt and pepper.


Brush the fish with the marinade


and place on the grill. In retrospect we should have oiled the grate more...



After 7 minutes I flipped with a large spatula and tongs


The skin stuck a little. Need to work on that. Probably should have oiled the grate more and probably brushed the fish down with a little more oil. Also, at the end I opened up the Egg top to try and get a nice char.

Just an update. We have made this again a time or two and figured out that if you let the fish cook a little longer, the skin will release from the grill. So give it another minute or two, Check with a spatula. A little more crispy skin but the fish doesn't overcook.




Verdict:

This is excellent or should I say EGGcellent (I know... so funny). Could have been a little prettier but that gives us something to work on.

The skin was crispy and flavorful, the fish meat moist and tender. Make sure to drizzle a little more marinade on the fish before serving.

Also, learn how to fillet that fish on the table. So impressive. And don't forget to have a bowl to place the fish head and bones.







We would love it if you would drop us a note and let us know how your cook went in the comment section. We are always looking for suggestions and improvements! We have opened up the comments so that anyone can post now, so please do. I'll try not to delete anything unless it is spam or stabs me in the heart.



Please help support our site, buy something you like on Amazon. Simply click through the link below and we get a small percentage of what you pick. Though you can pick anything, I suggest the thermometer below:


So apparently Thermoworks doesn't sell through Amazon anymore. You must buy direct. Still the thermometer to have. Go here and order direct. 


Saturday, May 16, 2015

Spinach and Artichoke dip




Some of our dear friends are big fans of Spinach and Artichoke dip. We have made this one many times and thought we should document it here so we would have a place to go next time we needed the recipe. Plus, it is great.

If you have ever been to Houston's or many similar places that offer a spinach and artichoke dip, that is the mark we are trying to hit.

Let's get started.

Research:

We've ,made this a few times in the past so we have a starting point. It is here. Martha Stewart with a few modifications.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion diced
2 garlic cloves
2 lbs of spinach coarsely chopped
0.5 cups of milk
6 oz cream cheese
3 dashes worcester sauce
3 dashes tabasco
0.75 cups mozzarella
course salt and fresh ground pepper
and 1 can of artichoke hearts


Plan:

You need to have having a party because not only does this make a lot, it is also a lot of calories so you will want to spread it around or get fat.

Preheat the oven to 425

Follow along...

Execution:

In a large dutch oven sauté the onion and garlic over medium heat until lightly browned. 5-7 minutes.

add and cook down the spinach. 5-8 minutes.


Meanwhile, heat the milk on high heat



Add the cream cheese and whisk for about 3 minutes until smooth



After wilting, pull out the spinach and press in a colander to remove as much moisture as possible.


In the milk, add the worcester and tabasco



and 0.25 cups of cheese and season with salt and pepper



Combine and mix



And add the artichokes





Pour in a lightly oiled 1.5 quart baking dish and sprinkle the top with remaining cheese.

Bake until brown and bubbly about 20-25 minutes.





Verdict:

This is a big hit although I thought it could have used a little more salt and maybe something else? Go make this especially on a football day.







We would love it if you would drop us a note and let us know how your cook went in the comment section. We are always looking for suggestions and improvements! We have opened up the comments so that anyone can post now, so please do. I'll try not to delete anything unless it is spam or stabs me in the heart.



Please help support our site, buy something you like on Amazon. Simply click through the link below and we get a small percentage of what you pick. Though you can pick anything, I suggest the thermometer below:


So apparently Thermoworks doesn't sell through Amazon anymore. You must buy direct. Still the thermometer to have. Go here and order direct. 


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