Garides Me Domata Ke Spanaki (Prawns, Tomato Sauce & Spinach)

You know when you browse through a cookbook or food magazine and say, hey, this is something I have to make? Well, this dish caught my eye and I was hooked! Another recipe from Jamie Oliver's new magazine. Did you know that researchers have identified at least 13 different flavonoid compounds in spinach that function as antioxidants and as anti-cancer agents? The anticancer properties of these spinach flavonoids have been sufficiently impressive to prompt researchers to create specialized spinach extracts that could be used in controlled studies. So Popeye was onto something good and not just to build strong muscles!

Serves 4
recipe from Jamie Magazine

500g spinach, coarse stalks removed
175ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
a pinch of grated nutmeg
12 king prawns, peeled and deveined
4 tablespoons ouzo
4 tablespoons white wine
500g tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Cut any large spinach leaves in half. Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a small pan. Add garlic and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown. Add spinach and nutmeg, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, till spinach has wilted. Remove pan from heat, cover, and set aside. Heat remaining oil in a frying pan. Add prawns and cook over high heat, stirring frequently for 2 minutes. Pour in ouzo and cook for 2 minutes more, then pour in the wine and cook for a further 2 minutes until the alcohol has evaporated. Transfer prawns to a plate. Add the tomatoes and sugar to the pan and boil over high heat for 5 minutes. Return prawns to pan and sprinkle with oregano. Shake pan to distribute the sauce, then remove from heat. Divide spinach among warmed plates, place 3 prawns on each and pour the sauce over them. Serve immediately.

The Culinary Chase's Note: Simple to make and the flavors from this fresh dish tantalize the taste buds. I enjoy cooking with alcohol and the ouzo in this case added just a bit of anise to spice up the tomatoes. As is sometimes the case in Bangkok, fresh spinach was limited so I had to buy frozen. But never mind, that didn't hinder the taste. Cheers!

Greek Style Tuna Carpaccio

Having just returned from a glorious 10 day cruise around the Eastern Mediterranean (which included 4 ports in Greece), this recipe seems to be so appropriate for a couple of reasons. One, I just discovered Jamie Oliver (my all time favorite chef) has a new magazine out called, 'Jamie Magazine'. I've been a Jamie fan ever since his cooking show (The Naked Chef) was aired back in 2000. Jamie now has 12 cookbooks and out of these cookbooks, I have 8 of them. So you can well imagine my delight when I was in the bookstore the other day and saw his magazine! The other reason this recipe is appropriate is that The Culinary Chase is moving back to Canada! Yay! Anyway, all of my cooking gear is enroute to Canada so we're living in a serviced apartment which means cooking paraphernalia is shall we say, limited. So bear with me, dear reader, while I try to be creative enough to be able to post more recipes.

Serves 4
recipe from Jamie Magazine

400g sashimi-grade tuna loin
1/2 cucumber, sliced into matchsticks
4 tablespoons good quality Greek yogurt
2-3 lemons
8 sprigs of baby mint, leaves picked
extra virgin olive oil

Slice the tuna as thinly as you can - this dish is all about a delicate touch. Lay the tuna slices on 4 plates, then sprinkle over the cucumber. Loosen the yogurt with squeezes of lemon juice to taste, then spoon tiny pools of it onto the plates. Scatter over the mint, and finish with olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

The Culinary Chase's Note: Wow! So simple and this dish oozes freshness! I have one kitchen knife which isn't very sharp so put the tuna loin in the freezer for around 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. If I had my Global knives, I wouldn't have to do that. By the way, have you ever wondered what sashimi-grade means? Me, too! So I searched the web and found Chow Hound had exactly the same question. Click here to read what he found out and you decide. Cheers!

On Vacation!

Summer time........a two week vacation for The Culinary Chase! Cheers!

Tuna and Egg Panzanella

Panzanella is a bread salad popular in the summer months. This Italian dish originated in the regions of Tuscany, Umbria, Marche and Lazio. It is quick to make, requires no cooking (unless adding boiled eggs), and is the perfect thing to enjoy on a hot summer day, especially at a picnic. The beauty of panzanella is that is can be made well ahead of time to allow the flavors to develop and the bread to absorb that combination of tomato, olive oil and vinegar.

Serves 2
recipe from TasteItalia

300g two day old Tuscan white bread or ciabatta, torn apart (bite size pieces)
6 basil leaves, torn
3 ripe plum tomatoes, sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 spring onions, trimmed, finely sliced
1/2 a cucumber, sliced
70g tuna preserved in olive oil, crumbled
3 tablespoon flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, shelled, quartered
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons pesto
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place bread in a salad bowl. Mix the rest of the ingredients, except for the eggs and pesto, into the bowl and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Scatter the eggs over the top and drizzle with the pesto.

The Culinary Chase's Note: If the bread is dry, dip into cold water, then pat dry with a towel (don't crush it to a pulp). You can always add some olive oil to the pesto for a more pourable consistency but I like mine to be more on the chunky side. Add shaved Parmesan for added flavor and enjoy the salad with a glass of New Zealand's sauvignon blanc. Beautiful!

Pasta with Leek and Bacon

A meal ready to serve within 25 minutes! Pancetta (sometimes referred to as Italian bacon) is a type of dry cured meat. It is pork belly that has been salt cured and spiced (nutmeg, pepper, fennel, dried ground hot peppers and garlic are often featured), and dried for about three months (but usually not smoked). For more pancetta recipes, click here. Leeks have a more delicate and sweeter flavor than onions, and add a subtle touch to recipes without overpowering the other flavors that are present.

Serves 2
recipe from TasteItalia

15g unsalted butter
120g pancetta or other thick-cut streaky bacon
2 small leeks
70ml double cream
180g farfalle pasta (bow-shaped)
80g Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the pancetta into 1cm cubes, then trim the leek and cut in half lengthways, rinsing any dirt out from beneath the layers. Cut the halves into thin strips lengthways. Melt butter in a frying pan and sauté the pancetta and leeks for about 5-6 minutes. Add the cream, mix well and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to packet instructions, then drain. Add the bacon and leek mixture tot he hot pasta and season well. Mix together and serve immediately, top with Parmesan.

The Culinary Chase's Note: YUM! An easy dish to make and with lovely flavors making you want a second helping. Enjoy!

Prawnarama!

What a lovely appetizer to show off to your family and friends! Radicchio is a garden plant from the north of Italy and is also known as red Treviso or red chicory. It offers a spicy bitterness that can add a bite to dishes when used raw, or that can be tamed through grilling or roasting. Radicchio is a good source of vitamin B and vitamin C, calcium and phosphorus. Check out Epicurious for more radicchio recipes.

Serves 8 (as an appetizer)
recipe from Australian Gourmet Traveller

16 cooked king prawns, peeled and intestinal track removed
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 egg yokes
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
125ml (1/2 cup) olive oil
16 inner radicchio leaves, trimmed and washed, to serve
thickly sliced avocado (about 2)
1 bunch fresh tarragon leaves, finely chopped

Whisk egg yokes, mustard and vinegar in a bowl. While whisking, gradually add oil, starting with one drop at a time, then in a thin steady stream until thick and emulsified (season to taste). Fold through tarragon. Place a prawn in each radicchio leaf, add a slice of avocado and dress with tarragon mayonnaise. Serve immediately.

The Culinary Chase's Note: So easy to make and the flavor of the tarragon mayonnaise helped to reduce the bite out of the radicchio. Enjoy with a ripe, tropical-fruity verdelho. Cheers!

Drunken Fennel

A beautiful way to enjoy fennel and fish. Fennel is a highly aromatic and flavorful herb with culinary and medicinal uses. Fennel is crunchy and slightly sweet, adding a refreshing contribution to the ever popular Mediterranean cuisine. It's also a good source of fiber, folate, and potassium. Hiramasa kingfish has a delicate texture that is similar to tuna. The lemon from the fennel helps to slightly cook the fish (just like ceviche).

Serves 8 (as an appetizer)
recipe from Australian Gourmet magazine

2 baby fennel bulbs
juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 tablespoons ouzo, or to taste
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley
200gm sashimi-grade hiramasa kingfish fillet
1 tablespoon salmon or ocean trout roe (optional)

Shave fennel bulbs on a mandolin into a bowl. Dress fennel with lemon juice, oil and ouzo. Add parsley, season to taste, transfer to a plate. Thinly slice kingfish across the grain, toss and dress in a bowl with salmon or ocean trout roe. Arrange on top of fennel and serve immediately.

The Culinary Chase's Note: So delightfully fresh and light! If you can't find Hiramasa kingfish, use sushi-grade tuna or the very freshest wild halibut. You could omit the fish and dress the salad with shaved Grana Padano.