Wednesday, July 12, 2006

I Should Be Fishing For Blue Marlin

Having never tried blue marlin, and getting Alan Jackson stuck in my head every time I see it, I decided it was high time to try it, especially with the lack of mahi-mahi in the fish department. Man-o-live, is that fish good!!! I knew it had a similar mellow flavor, but with a touch less firmness than mahi-mahi. What I didn't know was that it would blow me away! And it was half the price of the gorgeous red snapper they had in, as well as being much less expensive than the grouper. The whole dinner tonight was easy, easy and with minimal dishes or mess.

Marlin with Butter & Lime
1/4 c. flour
4 marlin loin steaks/mahimahi fillets, about 1" thick
Salt & pepper
3 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. lime juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Salt & pepper the fish & lightly dredge in flour. Melt 2 tbsp. butter in an ovenproof skillet (I used my trusty cast iron baby) over medium-high heat. Add fish and cook until very pale golden brown on one side, 2-3 minutes. Turn over, place skillet in oven and roast until butter is golden and fish is just cooked through, 6-8 minutes. Remove fish from pan and keep warm. Add lime juice and 1 tbsp. butter in same skillet. Heat through, scraping up all the little bits in the pan. Add salt & pepper to taste, then serve over fish. Serves 4. This is my adaptation of a recipe in the fabulous Gourmet Cookbook.

Our first course was Paula Deen's artichoke soup, which I served in beautiful little flowered porcelain cups. Here's how:
Cream of Artichoke Soup
2 (14 oz.) cans artichoke hearts, chopped
1 1/2 c. chicken stock
1 c. chopped onion
1/2 stick butter
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. heavy cream
Salt & pepper

Bring the artichokes & stock to a boil. Sauté onion in butter & add to mixture. Gradually add mushroom soup, just to desired thickness. Slowly add the cream, stirring. Heat through, taking care not to boil. Salt & pepper to taste & serve hot. Serves 6.

With our marlin, we had steamed broccoli and Georgia cracker salad, another Paula Deen recipe and unlike anything I've ever had before in my life. Dee-licious!

Georgia Cracker Salad
1 sleeve saltine crackers, crushed
1 lg. finely-chopped tomato
3 finely-chopped scallions
1 1/2 c. mayonnaise
1 finely-chopped hard-boiled egg

Mix everything together and serve pronto! Paula says this is especially good with fish dishes. It sure was tonight! Serves 6.

My Beloved says that she is no longer going to cook for me because she can't hold a candle to me. I hope that's not true because she is an excellent cook...I had her wonderful pasta with marinara sauce and Italian sausage last night, with a superb antipasto & romaine salad, and I know for a fact that her candle burns brightly.

I am off to bed with some amaretto slush, to which I was introduced by a friend of ours who used to work for J. She is one of the girliest girls I know & this is certainly a girly-girl drink! Cheers to my Italian Margarita drinking buddy & cheers to you all, too!

Amaretto Slush
46 oz. pineapple juice
3 c. amaretto
18 oz. frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
1/3 c. lemon juice
3 liters 7-Up

Mix all but 7-Up and freeze for 8 hours, stirring twice during that time. To serve, combine equal parts amaretto mixture and 7-Up.





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