It’s been nearly a decade since I last ate canned tuna (and that was once … the time before that? About five years prior). I don’t eat it. I don’t like it. Usually the smell grosses me out, and honestly I would rather have fresh. But when I recently told you about the Salmon Cakes that my kids and I adore, I discovered that canned fish does have its (awesome) uses. In well-seasoned patties, it’s great.

Ever since those Salmon Cakes, I have been considering being a little more open-minded about seafood in cans. It’s inexpensive, it’s accessible and if I can create something that the kids and I like? Then that’s another serving of fish for us each week. Gotta love those Omega-3s.

So, these Tuna Cakes? Well, I wouldn’t be telling you about them if I didn’t love them. They have a strong rosemary flavor, with a wonderful meaty texture. I ate mine on a slice of French bread (open-face sandwich style). Delish! They would also be great served on a bed of salad greens.

As for my kids? They both ate every last bite without complaint.

Just try ‘em. Read the rest of this entry…

What do you eat for lunch? People always talk about how important it is to have a good breakfast, but it’s also really important to have a good lunch — one that is filling, satisfying and healthy. For me, lunch is sometimes a sandwich or pasta, but more often it’s a salad. Salads served topped with warm proteins, like this salmon, are comforting, waist-friendly and can be really easy to make. Seriously. I mean it.

This particular roasted salmon is so ridiculously easy that I almost feel bad calling it a recipe. You basically toss salmon in a pan, drizzle just a bit of olive oil, sprinkle some salt and pepper and lay some thyme across the top. Toss it in the oven and 20 minutes or so later, you are ready to sit down and eat a healthy lunch. Easy peasy.

But I am sharing it because some people don’t realize just how easy and simple it can be to cook fish — or how unscary it is. (Yes, I really did just make up that word. Shh!)

I used to be scared to cook salmon. I also used to be scared to feed it to my two-year-old daughter. Earlier this week, while I was writing about salmon for my Tablespoon column, I reminisced about a year ago when I was so freaked out to give Paige fish that I couldn’t bring myself to do it. She was just over a year old, and it was time to try. But the threat of fish allergies (the ones I read about in some parenting magazine) had me downright terrified. It’s funny how in this information age, too much information can make us question our instincts.

I turned to mom friends and asked advice. I read more about it. Then I finally bit the bullet and just made fish. She loved it. No more fear necessary.

These days, we typically have fish about twice a week. Since Shawn isn’t a fan, we either have it when he’s working late (henceforth known as “fish night” in our house) or for lunch. It used to horrify my mother that I actually cook at lunchtime, but that’s one of the perks of being a work-at-home freelance writer. And really, why shouldn’t you cook when you have a chance?

Frankly though, when the fabulous lunch is as easy as this one, it needs no justifying.

So, spill! What’s your favorite lunch? Do you ever cook at lunchtime?

Read the rest of this entry…

A few weeks ago, I started thinking of fall flavors (seriously, when did seasons become flavors to me?). Apples, pumpkins, squash, Brussels sprouts … I started to scheme about how I could use them to create new dishes.

The first thing that came to mind: Apple Cider Vinaigrette.

Not a dressing that just uses apple cider vinegar, though: One that uses actual apple cider to create a sweet, tangy lettuce-coating dressing. Something that could bridge the light foods of summer with the bone-warming foods of winter. Could cider in a dressing even work?

I’ve been working on this recipe ever since, trying to get it just right. And guess what? I did. It’s earthy and lightly sweet, with that tinge of tang I wanted. Even Shawn, who isn’t a vinaigrette fan at all, liked it a lot.

As for the salad above? It’s romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size bits with half a Haas avocado sliced, about eight medium shrimp that were just steamed, two slices of pancetta fried until crisp and about an ounce of Danish blue cheese. Yum.

Next time though, I would choose a lettuce with a less aggressive taste like a Boston Bibb. I think that would make this salad — and dressing — absolutely perfect.

P.S. The cute bottle? It’s a glass flask from The Container Store. I bought it on a recent trip into New York and absolutely love it for dressings like this. It stores in the fridge well and is absolutely airtight. I use a small funnel to help ease the dressing in without spilling. Both are awesome to have in your cupboard if you love to make your own dressing. Read the rest of this entry…

A few weeks ago, I made dinner for Will and Paige – something balanced with some meat, veggies, pasta and the like. It was a Will and Paige meal — something simple, but tasty, with a healthy sized serving of pasta. For me, I quickly whipped up some Romano encrusted shrimp (I really need to share that recipe too). Will took one look at my plate and requested a taste. Then another taste. Then another. Before I knew it, he’d eaten his food and half of mine.

He had never eaten shrimp before but one single taste left him positively smitten with the meaty little sea-dwellers.

Earlier this week, when I went to go make myself some shrimp with dinner, I was smart and made a lot more … and after taking one bite of this recipe I was in love. Is it terrible that I secretly wished Will wouldn’t finish his serving? Is it even worse that I was disappointed when he cleaned his plate?

It’s true. I was. But these are just oh so good. Truly. Read the rest of this entry…

This is, in a word, decadent. I am not a big fan of risotto but this one is awesome. But it’s not for the faint of heart or wallet.

For the lobster meat, I buy cooked and preshelled meat from Stew Leonard’s here in Connecticut. If that is not available in your area, substitute meat from a 1.5 lb lobster or canned lobster meat (though that would be my last choice).

Be sure to use extra light olive oil as it has a lower smoking point that extra virgin or virgin. If you don’t have that, you can substitute something like grapeseed oil or canola (again, last choice).

2 1/2 tbsp butter
1 1/2 cup cooked lobster meat, cut into chunks
2 tbsp extra light olive oil
2 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup white wine
4-6 cups chicken broth or stock, simmering
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the lobster and cook for 5 minutes, stirring all the while. Remove from heat and seat aside.

Using a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the rice and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in white wine and cook until absorbed, still stirring constantly.

Now, it’s time to add the stock. It should be in a nearby pan on a burner and be warm. Use a ladle to add about 1/2 cup at a time to the rice. Stir occasionally and let cook until fully absorbed. Continue this process until almost all the broth is used – then check the rice by taste. If it’s still a little undercooked, then add the remainder of the broth as well as the lobster. Cook until liquid is fully absorbed and then remove from heat and pour into a serving dish.

Stir in the Parmesan and parsley. Serve immediately. For a pretty presentation (and added flavor) serve with lemon wedges on top.

Last week, we relaxed by the Connecticut shoreline. It’s something I have done summer after summer since I was a baby. And it’s something that I hope Will looks back on with fond memories when he’s an adult, just like I do.

Some things have changed since childhood though. For instance, whereas my grandmother used to do 90 percent of the cooking herself (with the other 10 percent being my grandfather barbecuing), my stepfather and I split cooking duties these days when I am there. But more on that another day (he’s quite a cook).

For the Fourth of July, which was rainy for the first time in memory here in Connecticut, I planned to barbecue on the brassiere out back. But torrential rains had other ideas. Fortunately, I am resourceful and was able to quickly change up my cooking to be done on the stove instead (there was no way those briquettes would light and stay lit in weather like that).

Like spending summers by the shore, these clams are something of my childhood. But I’ve adapted the cooking method so you get more hoppy taste with the little delicious clams. Why change it up? Because at home I have a gas grill and while gas is easy and great for a lot of things, it isn’t suitable for pouring beer over the flame, as you could in a brassiere with briquettes. As it turned out, the clams came out so well that this is the only way I cook ‘em nowadays. Special thanks to Curt of Bucky’s Barbecue Blog for talking me through the development of this method.

Beer Steamed Clams
serves 6 as an appetizer

2 dozen clams (I prefer little neck for this)
1 can or bottle of beer
1 tbsp butter

Preheat your pan over a grill, brassiere or stove over medium heat. If you are using a grill or brassiere, be sure to use cast iron.

Pour in beer (all of it) and add clams in a single layer. (It will likely take several batches to do all the clams – usually three batches for me.) Cover and cook, checking regularly, until the shells open wide.

Once the clams are all cook, in a small pan, melt butter and add two spoonfuls of the broth from the clam pan. Whisk together and then pour over the clams just before serving.