Recipe - Broiled Salmon with Crispy Shallot

Thank goodness interview season is over! Don't get me wrong, I loved flying around the country seeing programs and meeting people, and who can complain about being wined and dined? But towards the end of "the trail" I was ready to sit back and enjoy the deluge of east coast snowstorms. This recipe has come to mind repeatedly since an especially delicious interview dinner. I wonder what it says about me that I fantasize about recipes...

Ingredients:

2 salmon filets

4 small shallots

Butter

Salt & Pepper

Rice pilaf

Asparagus

1. Turn on the broiler and let it preheat. Wrap a shallow pan in tinfoil and arrange the salmon fillets so they aren't too close to each other.

2. Season liberally with salt and pepper and top with generous slices of butter.

caveat - I put shallots under the slices of butter before broiling the salmon. Unfortunately the shallots burned and I had to take them off and replace them with fresh ones, hence the recipe change.

3. Place in the broiler for about 8 minutes. At this time arrange slices of shallot on top of each fillet, then place back under the broiler. You may either use fresh slices of shallot or sautee the shallot quickly in butter before arranging on the salmon.

4. Remove fillets when the fish is crispy and cooked through. Serve with pilaf and veggie of choice!

Recipe - Guatemalan Banana Pancakes

Barry and I just got back from a month-long rotation in Guatemala. It was wonderful and exhilirating in so many ways, and not at all what I expected. First we spent two weeks in Quetzaltenango (also known as Xela (Shay-la) ) learning Spanish. We met some amazing people and traveled to some of Guatemala's hidden treasures, like high altitude hot springs and an active volcano nestled among the jungle highlands.

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Antigua, the former capital, was filled with ruined cathedrals dating back to the 16th centry, georgeous volcano-backed views, and many oddities.

In Xela we investigated the local foodie scene with our roommate Alex. This was our FAVORITE taco stand, which sadly we only discovered a few days before leaving. Best. Tacos. In the world.

The next two weeks of our trip were spent in Santa Cruz, a nearly vertical town of a few thousand native Guatemalans tucked away in a cozy ring of villages circling Lake Atitlan. It looked like Utopia, but the people lived in horrible poverty and had almost no access to healthcare. We worked with Dr. Sinkinsin, an American ER doc who opened a clinic at the lake 5 years ago with his wife Carmen, a Guatemalan pediatrician. They travel by boat two days a week to other towns around the lake and provide healthcare to whoever shows up. In tow they bring a nurse, three Spanish-to-native language translators, and however many students happen to be working with them at the time.

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Barry and I could see patients on our own (using our fabulous medical spanish and much arm gesturing), discuss cases and treatment with one of the docs, get the medicine on our own from the pharmacy (the suitcases full of meds we brought with us), and administer them ourselves. It was like nothing I've ever done before. Incredible.

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Here's a brief glimpse of the gorgeous lake...

We stayed at a place called La Casa Rosa. Our place had a little kitchen with a mini fridge, stove top and a sweet little view of the garden.

We spent our first weekend at the lake with our UVA/Guatemala coordinator, Jessica. She took us to her favorite breakfast joint where we ate the most delicious banana pancakes (in Guatemala they're called panqueques). Since we were on our own for three meals a day we decided to give them a try.

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Ingredients:
1 cup of pancake mix
1/2 cup of water
1 egg
1 tsp of sour cream (optional)
1 tsp butter
1 banana
butter & syrup

1. Let me start out by saying that cooking in Guatemala is quite an experience. Before you can cook anything you have to take a boat to the main town, hike up to the grocery store, trek everything back to the boat and hold onto it tightly for the harrowing trip back. From the camp stove that nearly caught fire whenever we lit the big burner, to the algae bloom at the lake requiring us to only use bottled water, to the many, many, many bugs, every day provided us with new and unusual challenges. But often in a good way.

We didn't have measuring cups so I used a soup ladle to measure mix and water (2:1 ratio). It worked ok, but you'd probably be better off following the instructions on the box.

2. After combining the mix, water and egg, I decided to add a little sour cream. There is a story behind the sour cream but I will wait for another recipe to tell it.

3. I don't know how well this picture conveys the batter consistency... It shouldn't be too runny or too stiff. Adjust accordingly.

4. Now, heat a small pat of butter in a pan over low-medium heat. Once it's hot add enough batter for your first pancake.

5. Slice your banana at an angle so you get oblong pieces. While the pancake is cooking, add a few slices to the still-batter side.

6. Carefully flip your pancake over onto the banana side. It will take about 2 minutes to really cook. I have heard you're only supposed to cook a pancake once on each side but I usually toss them back and forth a couple of times to make sure they're cooked through. You'll know they're done when they bounce a little bit as you flip them.

7. Double time!

9. Serve with butter and syrup, or whatever you prefer! These are already one of my favorites.....

10. Yum!

Recipe - Sweet Soy Tofu

During a recent trip to the Asian grocery store to buy soy sauce I decided to go out on a limb and get tofu. I've never cooked tofu before and had no idea what to do with it, but Barry came to the rescue!

Ingredients:
1 carton of tofu
1/2 cup + 1 Tbs sweet soy sauce (syrup)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup olive oil + enough to fry the tofu
1 tsp sugar
4 green onions
3 cloves of garlic
3 carrots
1 cup frozen green beans (Trader Joes)
2 cups cooked white rice

1. First the marinade. I've never bought this soy sauce before and was surprised to find out it has a consistency more like maple syrup than the regular stuff. It has a balance of sweet and savory with rich, complex flavors, so this sauce will add depth to whatever you use it in. What a find!

Manis Sedang Export Quality Medium Sweet Soy Sauce 20.9 oz, Indonesia

Combine 1/2 cup of soy sauce with 1/4 cup water and 1/4 cup of olive oil. If you want to use regular soy sauce you can omit the water. Add 1 tsp sugar and whisk to combine. For this type of marinade I like to keep the garlic fairly large but you are free to cut it however you like.

2. Chop four green onions and add to the marinade. Technically you won't be using the marinade until the final stages but making it first will allow the flavors to really meld.

3. Next the side dish. My friend Vivek's grandmother always sends him home with amazing leftovers and I noticed she cuts green beans into tiny little pieces. I loved green beans already but this new use for them is definitely worth trying, it really changes the character of the dish. I like Trader Joe's green beans because they're so delicate. No need to defrost first, just cut into tiny pieces and set aside.

I cut the carrots at a diagonal so they wouldn't fall apart with all the tossing and stirring.

4. Heat 1 Tbs of olive oil in a sautee pan over medium heat and add 1 clove of finely minced garlic. After a minute or two add the carrots. Stir them regularly so they don't burn or caramelize. When the carrots begin to soften you can add the green beans.

5. When your vegetables are as soft as you want them add 1 Tbs of soy sauce and toss to coat evenly. I'm not sure the action in this shot came through, but tossing vegetables in the pan is a great way to distribute everything evenly and it's a lot of fun! I highly recommend it.

6. Next the tofu. Barry followed one of his sister's recipes which goes something like this.

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Cut the tofu into cubes

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Fry in oil until crispy brown. We used olive oil but I'm sure there are better fry oils out there.

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Dry briefly on a paper towel.

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Transfer carefully to the marinade and let stand for a few minutes.

Then pour everything into a pan and heat another few minutes to concentrate the flavor.

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7. Serve with rice and enjoy!