Passion fruit Ceviche

Passion fruit Ceviche

Ceviche is one of my favorite appetizers. I love the texture, the tanginess and in this version, the sweetness from the passionfruit. It all comes together in a perfect combination.

This time I served the ceviche with wonton chips, but even potato chips or crisp pita bread will work.

Eating Raw Seafood - What You Need To Know:

It's always best to cook seafood thoroughly to minimize the risk of food-borne illness. However, if you choose to eat raw fish anyway, one rule of thumb is to eat fish that has been previously frozen for 24 hours. FDA

Serves 4 as an appetizer.

Ingredients:

• 400 g halibut, salmon or a mix of both, cut into small cubes
• 2 passion fruits, the juice of
• 2 limes, the juice of
• 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 Serrano chili finely sliced
• ¼ red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 avocado chopped

Directions:

Combine the lime, sieved passion fruit, and chili in a bowl. Add to the fish and make sure that it gets thoroughly coated. Cover the bowl  and let the fish marinate in the refrigerator  for 20-30 minutes.

When ready to serve, add the rest of the ingredients and mix it gently.

Serve the ceviche with crispy wontons or chips. 
Enjoy!

The Danish version:

Forret til 4 personer.

Passionsfrugts ceviche

Ingredienser:

• 400 g frisk hellefisk, laks eller en kombination
• 2 passionfrugter, saften fra
• 2 limes, saften fra
• 1 spsk friske koriander blade
• 1 Serrano chili, i tynde skiver
• ¼ rødløg. i tynde skiver
• 1 avocado i tern

Fremgangsmåde:

Bland limesaften, passionsfrugtssaften med chili i en skål. Tilsæt fisken  og sørg for at den bliver blandet godt med saften. Det er saften der tilbereder fisken, så det er vigtigt at al fisken er vendt i saften. Dæk skålen til og sæt den i køleskabet i 20-30 minutter. 

Lige før serveringen, blandes resten af ingredienterne i. Det hele hældes i en serveringsskål og serveres med chips.

Velbekomme!

Grilled Salmon Kebabs

Grilled Salmon Kebabs

Salmon kebabs are light, delicious and a perfect dish for a summer night BBQ. The kebabs are very easy to make, especially if you have double skewers, otherwise I will recommend using two single skewers for each kebab, so the fish doesn’t turn on the skewers.  I served the kebabs with boiled fingerling potatoes and a creme fraiche dip with fresh dill, salmon roe and lemon.

Ingredients:

Kebabs:

• 1 pound skinless salmon fillet, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces

• 1 lemon, sliced very thinly

• 1 tablespoon fresh dill

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• pepper

• olive oil 

• 4 bamboo skewer soaked in water for at least 1 hour

Dip:

• 8 oz (226 g) creme fraiche or sour cream 

• 1 bunch fresh dill, chopped

• 2 tablespoons salmon roe or other roe

• lemon juice

• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Dip:

Season the creme fraiche with pepper, lemon juice and dill, wait with the salt, because the roe is salty. Fold in the roe, and season with salt if needed. Set dip aside in refrigerator until ready for serving.

Kebabs:

Prepare grill for medium heat.

Beginning and ending with salmon, spear salmon and folded lemon slices onto 4 double skewers. Drip with lemon juice and brush with oil. Season with salt, pepper and dill.

Grill, turning twice, until fish is opaque throughout, about 5-8 minutes.

Steak Rolls - Benløse Fugle

Steak Rolls - Benløse Fugle

As a child we sometimes had steak rolls, or “benløse fugle" (directly translated: Birds with no legs - sounds weird, right?) This was thin slices of meat wrapped around a piece of smoked speck. To be honest that was not one of my favorites. But the thought of swapping the speck with a smoked cheese might be a way to give this old-school dish a new life. 

It totally worked. The spiciness from the chili and the smoked cheese with the meat, made a perfect flavorful combination. It won't be the last time I make these steak rolls.

Ingredients:

• 4 thin slices skirt steak like the meat you use for carne asada
• 4 small blocks smoked gouda, the size of string cheese
• 1 handful spinach
• 8 small slices sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 jalapeño, divided in 4, lengthwise 
• salt & pepper
• oil for searing

Directions:

Season the steak pieces generously on both sides with salt and pepper.

Take a strip of the steak and lay it with the short side towards you. Place some spinach leaves, a slice jalapeño, 2 pieces of tomatoes and one block of cheese in the middle and roll the steak up over the filling, securing it with a toothpick along the length of the roll. Repeat with the last three steak rolls.

Preheat the oven to 400℉ (200℃)

In an ovenproof skillet, heat a splash of grape-seed oil over medium-high heat. When hot add the steak rolls, sear them on all sides. Place the skillet in the oven and let it roast for about 15 minutes, until the steak rolls are done, when the cheese are expanded out of the rolls. Serve the rolls with your favorite sides.

Enjoy!

The Danish version:

Benløse fugle

Ingredienser:

• 4 tynde stykker oksekød såsom flanke- eller flapkød
• 4 bjælker røget gouda, på str. med ostehaps
• 1 håndfuld spinat
• 8 små stykker soltørrede tomater
• 1 jalapeño, delt i 4, på langs 
• salt & peber
• olie til stegningen

Fremgangsmåde:

Krydder kødet med salt og peber.

Læg et stykke af oksekødet på skærebrættet, med den korte side henimod dig. Læg lidt spinatblade, ¼ jalapeño, lidt soltørret tomat og en ostebjælke på kødet, tættest dig selv. Rul kødet rundt om fyldet og "lås" rullen med en tandstik eller kødnål. Gentage med de sidste 3 kødstykker. 

Forvarm ovnen til 200℃.

Brun rullerne på alle sider i en pande, der kan gå i ovnen, i lidt vindruekeneolie. Sæt panden i oven i ca. 15 minutter, indtil rullerne er møre og osten er "vokset" lidt ud af rullerne.

Server de benløse fugle med dine foretrukne grøntsager. 

Velbekomme!

Grilled Espresso Tri-Tip

Grilled Espresso Tri-Tip

I had never heard about a tri-tip roast befor moving to California. And even though I have seen the cut in the stores, I didn't know how to cook it. My dear neighbors changed that, when they invited us for a BBQ, and served tri-tip. Now tri-tip is on my cuts to buy. It is so good and flavorful. Now I have to get my neighbor's secret rub, to get the perfect tri-tip for summer.

The tri-tip is a cut from the bottom of the sirloin, and is a close cousin of the culotte roast. 

Since the tri-tip is a lean cut, you have to be careful not to over cook it, particularly when preparing the full roast. You don't want to cook it to more than medium. 

This time the tri-tip became a little more done, than I would have liked, but I still turned out great. The deep flavor of the coffee worked perfect with the spice from the pepper and the beef. 

Ingredients:

• 1 tri-tip roast
• 3 tablespoons finely ground espresso coffee beans
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:

Combine espresso beans, brown sugar, garlic powder, black pepper, and chili powder. Rub mixture onto the roast and place in a large dish. Let the roast marinade covered, in the refrigerator for at least an hour. 

Preheat grill to medium heat (400℉/200℃).  

Remove roast from fridge and place on grill/BBQ, use indirect heat. Cook for 15-18 minutes turning occasionally. When done, remove from heat allow to sit for a few minutes before carving into  thin slices. 

Enjoy!

Maple Plank Salmon

Maple Plank Salmon

Have you ever grilled salmon on a plank? It's actually really easy, and it brings a lot of great flavor to the salmon. The most important thing is to soak the plank for one or two hours before grilling. You can soak the plank in water, cider, or even wine. 😃

I have had planks lying in the my kitchen cabinets for a very long time, I've totally forgot all about them. But on my last few runs to Whole Foods Market, I've wanted to try their Cedar Plank Salmon. But I opted to try making my own, Hawaiian inspired salmon.

Here is my take.

Serves 2-3 people

Ingredients:

• 1 food-safe maple plank (you can use any kind of food-safe planks)
• 1 salmon fillet, or 2-3 portion sized
• salt & white pepper
• lemon juice

Topping:

• 2 thin slices fresh pineapple, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon curd
• ½ jalapeño, minced
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• ¼ cup macadamia nuts
• salt & white pepper
• sprinkle of red pepper flakes

Directions:

Soak the plank in water for about two hours, making sure that it stay submerged.

Abut 15 minutes before you are ready to cook, preheat the grill/BBQ to 375-400℉ (190-200℃). You want to cook the salmon over direct heat.

Maple Plank Salmon ready for the grill/BBQ

Remove skin and bones from the fillet. You can let the skin stay on the fish, but I always remove it.
Drip some lemon juice over the fish, and season it with salt and white pepper. Place the fillet on the plank, and make the topping. If the filet has a thin tapered belly edge, tuck the edge under to get a more even thickness of the filet. This prevent the thin part to overcook. 

Mix the topping and spread it evenly over the fillet.

Cook for about 12-18 minutes with the lid closed, until the salmon is done (when the salmon is no longer translucent but uniformly pink in the center. Small fillets will cook more quickly than larger cuts. 

(Check the doneness by inserting a knife in the center and peek inside.)

You can reuse the planks until they become overly charred, cracked, or impossible to clean. 

Enjoy!