radish | the petite beet

Last night my friend Meghan and I cooked another epic meal for the books. We did our usual “I’ll bring whatever I have, you bring what you have, and we’ll just make something up!” – which more often than not ends in some pretty delicious meals. There was a lot of wine, and a few hysterical rounds of drunken UNO after dinner. All in all it was a successful Wednesday night…

Ingredients: (Serves 3)

Chicken:
(3) bone-in, skin on, chicken breasts
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Radish Cucumber Salad:
2 large black radishes, thinly sliced and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 large cucumber, thinly sliced
10 asparagus, blanched and cut into 1 inch pieces
Large handful microgreens
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 teaspoon horseradish
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 small lemon
Salt and pepper, to taste

Smashed Potatoes:
10 baby potatoes
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
3/4 cup fontina cheese, shredded
3/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup chives, chopped
1 cup Greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash the potatoes well and toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast in oven for 30 minutes or until fork tender. While the potatoes cook, start the chicken.

Salt and pepper the chicken well and drizzle lightly with some olive oil. Heat a large cast iron pan until nice and hot, then add the chicken skin side down and cook for about 8 minutes or until the skin is browned a bit. Flip over and cook on the other side for about 2-3 minutes, then place the pan right into the oven to cook for about 15 minutes.

To finish the potatoes, smash each potato by pressing down on each one with the back of a fork or spoon so that they burst. Melt the butter and add the garlic, then pour it over the potatoes. Top with thyme, both cheeses, and the chives. Put back in oven for 10-15 minutes until everything is melted and magical. Place the Greek yogurt in a side bowl, and add a little fresh black pepper and chives.

For the salad, place the radishes, cucumber, and asparagus in a large bowl. Mix together the mustard, vinegar, lemon, salt and pepper. Pour over the vegetables and toss well. Top with the microgreens.

TA-DA! Dinner is served…

Fish tacos are one of my favorite things. I could easily eat 10 of them at Rockaway Taco in the summer time, I don’t care how long the line is! Frying fish isn’t something I do often, but if you’re going to make a fish taco I think it’s definitely the way to go. The toppings are key too, so in this recipe I made a quick and easy slaw with some spicy mayo as well.

Ingredients: makes about 5 tacos

Slaw:
4 small radishes, cut into matchsticks
1 large ripe pear, cut into matchsticks
2 kale leaves, julienned
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Pinch red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste

Fish:
1/2 lb cod fish
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2/3 cup beer (I used Red Stripe lager)
Salt and pepper
Canola oil, for frying (I used a part canola part coconut oil mix from Whole Foods)
Corn or flour tortillas, small

Spicy mayo:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons sriracha
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Start by making the slaw. Julienne the kale, then cut the pear and radishes into small matchsticks. Add to a bowl and set aside. Place the other 6 ingredients in a separate small bowl and whisk together. Add it to the slaw and mix well (I did a little at a time until I thought it had enough dressing.) Place in the refrigerator until needed.

Next make the batter. Mix together the flour, salt, and cayenne pepper in a bowl. Whisk in the beer. It will look like pancake batter. Cut the fish into 4×1 inch slices. Season with salt and pepper. Heat about 1/2 inch worth of the canola oil in a pan over medium heat. To test if it is ready, dip the tip of a wooden spoon in, if it bubbles right away then it is hot enough to fry the fish. Dip each fish piece in the batter and cover well. Shake any excess batter off gently, then add to the pan of oil. Repeat with all fish. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown. If they look like they are cooking too fast, simply turn down the heat. Once ready, remove from the pan and place on paper towel lined rack or plate.

To make the spicy mayo, simply add the mayo, sriracha, and lemon juice in a small bowl and mix well. Now assemble your tacos! Place a little spicy mayo on the tortilla, add some fish, then top with the slaw. Enjoy!