Lent And Fish

Today is Ash Wednesday which starts off Lent. It's when some Catholics and other Christians give up meat completely,Fish is allowed by the church so it's also a good time to try a pescatarian diet.

Alison Roman gives us a good fish recipe in today's New York Times Food section,It is salmon with whole lemon dressing.It's an easy dish to make on any fasting days like Wednesdays and Fridays.The fillet is dressed with a blend of lemon, white wine vinegar, shallots and olive oil. Herbs such as oregano, marjoram and thyme give the salmon a lovely green flavor.It's mixed and then poured  over the fish . After the fillet is baked for fifteen to twenty minutes or until the flesh is an orange-y pink.It's served on a bed of butter or Little Gem Romaine lettuce. Ms. Roman also has sliced cucumbers and radishes for crunch but you can omit these if you want.

You could easily make any kind of fish for this Lenten season. Cod is good and it can be prepared a variety of different ways. The simplest is buttered cod cooked in a skillet. The fish is first seasoned with paprika, salt, pepper and garlic powder then sauteed. Serve with a side of steamed spinach for a light, yet filling supper. Try it Greek style where it's lightly coated with flour spiked with coriander, paprika and cumin. It's first seared then baked with lemon  juice, olive oil and a lot of minced garlic.One of the best fish to eat during this Lenten season is salmon. It's chock full of Omega 3s and Vitamin B's along with reducing the risk of heart disease. Try them in steak form with a marinade of Worcester sauce , lemon juice and butter. You could also try air fried salmon patties for a different spin on the fish.

Lent is a time of fasting and giving up. It's also a time for discovering healthier eating and healthier foods. Try the fish diet during this period. It may be the first step towards better eating.

Big Meal Little Kitchen

Thanksgiving can be the most stressful meal to make for any home chef. Imagine preparing and cooking in an apartment, where space, especially kitchen is rare. Alison Roman will do just that. How? Consider it kitchen magic.

Ms. Roman's battle plan was the main topic of today's New York Times Food section. Ms. Roman, known for her Instagram pictures of drool worthy dishes, is a well known internet chef along with being a regular contributor to the Food section. Cooking is her life and she has turned it into alchemy. That alchemy involves cooking in a small Brooklyn apartment. Can it be done? Yes!!! There are clever ways to store food and serve it cooked.There is also a practical plan on when to buy and prep certain dishes along with recipes that can take you from the first course to dessert with ease.It pays to heed her advice. It starts with planning the menu, three days ahead (although you could start planning the weekend before). Then,, of course there is the actual grocery shopping. Ms Roman strongly advises
also stocking up on aluminum foil, plastic wrap, paper towels and resealable bags for leftovers. Also it's a good time to order the wine you'll drink too.  She recommends something sparkling and festive and later on light reds.The day before should be all about the prep, from tearing bread for the stuffing to making the crust for the pies and galette. Another must - going to bed at a reasonable hour to be ready for the big day. The next day she chronicles what to do from eating a sustaining breakfast with coffee to finally sitting down to the eat.

Ms.Roman has a good handful of recipes that anyone can make. Her turkey is dry brined with sheet pan (!) gravy. The brine is more of a rub made with salt ,pepper , brown sugar and red onions along with garlic and onions. Keep it dry brined for a day or at least eight hours in the fridge. The gravy starts with Ms. Roman's own Cheater's Stock or chicken stock with the leftover roasted bits from the turkey. An unusual ingredient, soy sauce is used for saltiness and vinegar is used for tang. What goes with this? Buttered stuffing with celery and leeks. This is a traditional savory bread pudding, made even better by using such crusty bread as sourdough or ciabatta and flavored with a typical stuffing ingredient  - celery and a not so traditional one - leeks. It's a buttery, crunchy delight spiked with celery leaves.Of course there has to be potatoes and Ms. Roman makes hers with sour cream, chives and dill. She also takes the traditional squash dish and caramelizes it with maple syrups. Some home chefs would stop there but she then adds red pepper and smoked paprika for zing. Hazelnuts are also tossed into the mix for crunch.There is the traditional green bean recipe but brightened with kale and shallots. Other sides are fancy canned cranberries zested with oranges or tangerines and red onion and a mixed herb salad with spicy greens such as arugula, mizura and mustard greens. The piece de resistance is the dessert - a deep dish honey apple galette with homemade crust. The crust is buttery with a slightly spiced apple filling, There are even sesame seeds sprinkled on for crunch.

Imagine making all this in a small apartment's kitchen. Ms. Roman has - and quite successfully. It can be made  in a larger with the same results - good food with good flavor.

The Best of 2018 Issue

What was the best recipe of 2018?Or the best restaurant? Or the best wine? The answers are in today's New York Time Food section. Foodies and readers may agree or may have a few of their own choices. Let's see if your choices were in the top.

So, what where the best recipes? One turned out to be the one that was my biggest disaster Julia Moskin's chicken franchese. Done right it must be magic.I realize that some recipes just don't translate to vegan. It is a great dish,perfect to make for a holiday dinner party with friends. Add some fettucine along with a flute of Prosecco for a really festive meal.Another chicken recipe also became a Times reader fave - Melissa Clark's sheet pan chicken , Even novice chefs can make this tasty mix of chicken, bell peppers and sweet potatoes. It's spiked with sage,paprika , and cayenne. If you prefer mild then try Alison Roman's baked mac and cheese -  creamy with sharp cheddar and given texture with a sprinkling of bread crumbs. There is also Sam Sifton's adaptation of Jonathan Wu's beef and broccoli using chuck steak, and butter! End with salted chocolate chunk  shortbread cookies, from Alison Roman . These new classics won hands down as one of the best recipes, as it married everyone's favorite flavors dark chocolate and butter.

The best restaurants and quick bites are internationally varied. Reviewers went wild over Lagman House that produces the varied noodles, from Gulshat Azimova. a Dungan cook. She is from a small minority from southern Kazakhstan. with ancestral influences from the Muslims who traded on the Silk Road and the Han Dysnasty. Bab Marrakesh gave reviewers  a taste of Morocco. with lamb shanks amid prunes and almond and the meat pie, bastilla, dusted with confectioner's sugar. Ho Foods has its; lu  rou fan, pork belly soaked in a combination of Taiwanese beef and rice wine, along with orange peels. What wines were the stars of 2018? Eric Asimov cites the grand  Chateau Lafite Rothchild Pauillac 1868 (!), He was fortunate enough to attend the 150th anniversary celebration of Lafite's acquisition by the famed Rothchild family. According to Mr. Asimov,this was the wine of a lifetime. For more down to earth wines, there's the Noel Verset Cornas 2004, a syrah and the Italian La Stoppa Emilia Macchione from northwest Emilia -Romana,known for its' purity and depth.

These are some of the best - tastes and flavors that made 2018 sing . Will they continue on in 2019?Or be replaced by even better and tastier foods and wines. Time will tell.