Fish en Papillote

No recipe for this dish. You basically put dig through your fridge and see what you have. I always try to season with salt and pepper then add something acidic and something aromatic. Sometimes I use more herbs and spices but most of the time it is just salt and pepper. For the acidic ingredient, I usually use a splash of wine but this time I decided on lemon slices. I also like julienne leeks but I didn't have any so I did julienne carrots and added flat leaf parsley for color.

Preheat your oven to about 375 degrees. Cut heart-shaped parchment.

Place the fish on one half of the heart. Pretty much any fish will do.

Season with salt and pepper. I added a pat of butter because I was feeling it.

Top with slices of lemon, julienne carrots and some parsley leaves.

Fold over, crimp the edges and cut a few vent holes. Put the packets on a baking sheet and put them in the preheated oven.

Bake about 10 minutes.

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MIA (on vacation)

I haven't been posting because I have been on vacation and didn't take the little MacBook with me. Whenever I take my computer, I am tempted to work. I wanted to have a relaxing vacation so the computer stayed at home. (I did check emails on my phone but that was about it.)

I highly recommend the breakfast buffet at Duke's. It is located in the Outrigger Waikiki and right on the beach.

What a great way to start the day. We woke up at the crack of dawn, showered, walked on the beach and then ate breakfast. We were done by 9:00 am, leaving the rest of the day for other activities.

After laying out on the beach and swimming with the fishies, we had my birthday dinner at the Top of Waikiki restaurant. Of course I had the duck. The menu description: Tea Smoked Ginger Duck l'orange: organic free range Long Island duck with prosciutto, mascarpone, mesculin greens wrapped in a corn crepe with blackberry balsamic syrup, ginger-orange sauce & duck au jus & crispy sweet potato.

The bf had the fish special. Sorry the pictures suck because I was trying to be discreet by using the camera on my phone instead of a real camera.The next morning we climbed to the summit of an extinct volcano and then rewarded ourselves with the best snow cone in the world. This snow cone truck is located at the base of Diamondhead.

After waiting all morning at Pearl Harbor and taking the guided tour, we were famished. (The tour is definitely worth the wait. I'm a sucker for history so this tour was up my alley.) My buddy Scott took us to a local place he likes to dine at. It is called Wally Ho's Garage and Grill. It is a gas station/auto repair shop/grill. The food was really good. I thought the Coca Cola bottle shaped slat and pepper shakers were adorable.

I've never seen pineapple growing before. I loved the Dole plantation.

Me and my pineapple soft-serve in a waffle cone.

My fresh coconut I bought from one of those famous shrimp trucks on the side of the rode in North Shore. We didn't have the shrimp because we were still very full. The shrimp is supposed to be really good. This place had their own shrimp pond where they harvested their shrimp fresh daily.

Just some food posts. Maybe some other posts later. I am still tired.

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Whole Foods Tuna Salad with Sun-Dried Cranberries and Lemon - revisited & tripled

My good friends welcomed a baby boy a few days ago and I've been trying to help the new parents by coordinating and cooking meals for the family. Co-workers and friends have all been eager to help with meals. Yesterday I dropped off the food and they were so thankful. My friend delivered via cesarean and the baby is feeding every few hours so cooking is the last thing on her mind. She said she was so exhausted that she would even consider eating tuna noodle casserole. I assured her that no one made tuna noodle casserole.

I noticed that everyone was doing dinners and I wanted to make sure she had some things for lunch. I know how much she loves the Whole Foods Cranberry Tuna Salad. I haven't made it in a while. It is easy enough. This time I tripled my recipe (which was already doubled the original recipe). Original recipe can be found published on this Boulder website. http://www.boulderclassifieds.com/food/recipes/04frecq.html

Whole Foods Tuna with Sun-Dried Cranberries and Lemon

6 cans solid white albacore tuna
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
juice from 2 fresh lemon
3/4 cups finely chopped yellow onion
1 1/2 teaspoon unrefined sugar (I found that you need a little more approximately 3 tablespoons)
3/8 cups coarsely chopped unsweetened sun-dried cranberries (I like it with a little more.)
kosher salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients except for the tuna. Drain the tuna and add to the other ingredients. Combine gently, making sure to not overmix. (This helps keep the tuna in more solid pieces.)

The tuna salad tastes wonderful with the Whole Food Country boule.

The shrinking can of tuna. A can of tuna used to be 6 ounces, now it is 5 ounces. I didn't have enough cans of the Whole Foods 365 brand tongol tuna so I picked up some Bumble Bee albacore fillet.

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Whole Foods Tuna Salad with Sun-Dried Cranberries and Lemon

Whole Foods Tuna with Sun-Dried Cranberries and Lemon

2 cans solid white albacore tuna
6 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
juice from 1 fresh lemon
4 tablespoons finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 teaspoon baker's sugar
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped sun-dried cranberries (not craisins)
kosher salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients except for the tuna. Drain the tuna and add to the other ingredients. Combine gently, making sure to not overmix. (This helps keep the tuna in more solid pieces. Hey you are paying more for the solid pack white albacore.)

Lately I've been spending a small fortune on the tuna salad with cranberries at Whole Foods. I saved on of the lids with the ingredients list and then I searched for a recipe. I found one. I made this for dinner tonight. This is the best tuna salad ever.

For some ingredients I believe it is crucial to use the Whole Foods 365 brand.  I really like the 365 canola mayo and believe it really makes a difference.  The other important ingredient is the sun-dried cranberries. In the bulk food section of Whole Foods there is a product called sun-dried unsweetened cranberries. They also sell the sweetened cranberries right next to it.  On occasion Whole Foods has run out of the unsweetened sun-dried variety and I've used sweetened and reduced the amount of sugar I add.

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Salmon, Guacamole and Lime Chips

I cooked this tonight but I didn't have them together. I was in the mood for guac and the lime chips that Lisa got me hooked on. The salmon is for lunch tomorrow. I am planning on having that with a cesar salad or something.

I also took pictures of the roses I bought for myself. I needed to cheer myself up so I bought some pink roses.

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Teriyaki Salmon Burgers with Strawberry Mango Salsa on a Bed of Lemon EVOO Spinach

I totally cheated this time around by picking up the salmon burgers from Whole Foods. Strawberries are in season are oh so sweet right now. I made a nice salsa for the burgers.

Strawberry Mango Salsa
- mango, diced
- strawberries, hulled and sliced
- hot house english cucumber, diced (i think i will leave this out next time)
- green onions
- jalapeno pepper, diced
- cilantro, chopped finely
- salt
- lemon juice (or champagne vinegar)

Teriyaki Salmon Burgers
- Salmon, chopped
- whole wheat bread crumbs
- sesame seeds (black and white)
- green onions, chopped
- soy sauce
- ginger
- garlic
- splenda
- cilantro
- salt
- black pepper
- sesame oil

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