Paz

Every Monday I have a date with New York – a slice of that lovely city photographed by Paz. So I thought to start this post I’d share a photo of my city, Melbourne at night, taken at the banks of the Yarra River.

2008 © Haalo – All Rights Reserved

When Paz asked if I would guest post while she recovers I immediately had to say yes. Paz is one of those truly lovely people, a friend to all, she’s always there with a cheery word and encouragement.

So for this post I thought I’d make something with her favourite fruit which has just come back into season here – Mango!

2008 © Haalo – All Rights Reserved

While it is perfectly acceptable to just indulge in the fruit in its unadulterated form I really needed to do something more. Various ideas were floated but ultimately I wanted something simple and uncomplicated that wouldn’t compete with the fruit but rather compliment it.

So I turned to a forgotten ingredient -

2008 © Haalo – All Rights Reserved

Pearl Sago or Pearl Tapioca or Tapioca Seed – it is known by various names but refers to virtually the same product. Sago comes from the Sago Palm while Tapioca is made from cassava.

Sago itself has a neutral flavour but does work as a carrier of flavour and as a textural element. To complete the dish, another friend of mango comes into play, coconut cream to bind it together.

The end product, a lusciously delightful Mango and Coconut Sago Pudding!

Mango and Coconut Sago

Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once

½ cup pearl sago

1 cup coconut cream

1½ – 2 cups water

½ cup sugar

1 mango

Prepare the mango:

Cut the cheeks from the mango – slicing close to the central seed.

Using a large metal spoon, drag it around the edge of each cheek to scoop the flesh out in one piece.

Cut each cheek into small dice.

Remove the skin from around the seed and then scrap off as much of the mango flesh as you can – collect this in a bowl and then mash to form a puree. This will be used as a topping.

Make the pudding:

Put the sugar, coconut cream and 1½ cups of water into a saucepan and place over a gentle heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and then add the sago.

It’s important that you don’t allow the mixture to boil as that will cause the coconut cream to split.

Keep stirring to ensure the sago doesn’t form clumps. The sago will swell and the mixture will become quite sticky as the starch is released – if it becomes too thick, just add a little more water.

The sago is cooked when it becomes translucent. When you see this happening, gently fold through the diced mango.

The pudding can be served from cold to hot – my preference is to serve it warm.

Pour the pudding into serving glasses and top with the reserved mango puree.

Thanks again to Paz and we all hope to see you back at the helm very soon!

My number one favorite fruit is a mango (Cherries come next, then guavas…).  Laurie from Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska recently featured a Mango and Feta Salad  on her blog.  What an excellent salad for the summer.  The mango and basil taste cool and sweet, while the feta cheese lends a salty taste.  It’s a winning combination and so easy to throw together.  I’ve made this salad several times now.  I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it.  Thanks, Laurie!

Paz

Mango and Feta Salad

Serves 1 as a meal and 2 as a side salad

Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska

1 ripe mango, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks

1/4 cup crumbled feta

1 tsp minced basil

1 Tbsp. best quality olive oil

Sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

Lightly toss the mango, feta, basil, and olive oil together.  Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Serve immediately.

Making Southwest Spice Mix

Things do not always go according to the plan during my cooking adventures. Making this Spicy Grilled Salmon with Mango was one of those times where my cooking adventure took a wrong turn. Even my photo didn’t turn out right. I’ve mentioned several times that I love mangoes — preferably green mangoes. When I saw celebrity chef’ 911 Tyler Florence’s recipe involving mangoes, I jumped at the opportunity to prepare it. I eagerly ran out and bought all the ingredients that included more of my favorites — salmon, red onion, cilantro. The menu was relatively easy to put together. I had fun making the Southwest Spice Mix. The ingredients for the spice involved ancho chili peppers (which, I’d never heard of before), cumin, corriander, cinnamon and paprika. Everything turned out well, till I tasted my salsa. It was horrible! I think the problem was that I’d used unripe, green mango, which spoiled the taste of the salsa and made it taste almost bitter. No one ate the salsa, which they pushed to the side of their plate. Later, it went into the garbage can. Overall, I liked the recipe. The Spice Mix tasted really good on the salmon. So, I’d like to try it again. Next time, I’ll make sure to use ripe mangoes for the salsa and perhaps, I may leave out the lime. I think the lime made the salsa too sour. Any salsa makers out there: What do you think? Any suggestions? Thanks!

Paz

Spicy Grilled Salmon with Mango, Radish, and Lime Salsa

Tyler Florence – Food 911

Salsa: 2 mangoes, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks 1 red onion, chopped 6 red radishes, chopped, plus 1 sliced for garnish 2 limes, peeled and cut into segments 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon Southwest Spice Mix, recipe follows 1 (2 to 3 pound) salmon fillet Extra-virgin olive oil Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper For the Salsa, put all the ingredients into a food processor and pulse until finely chopped; set aside.

Heat the grill to medium high. Drizzle some olive oil over the salmon and season it with salt and pepper. Gently rub 2 tablespoons of the Spice Mix into the salmon. Pour some olive oil onto a paper towel and rub the grill with it – this will help to prevent the fish from sticking. Grill the salmon flesh side down for about 12 to 15 minutes.

To serve, spread most of the Salsa onto a platter and place the salmon, skin side down, on top. Garnish with more Salsa, radish slices, cilantro, and a drizzle of olive oil.

Southwest Spice Mix: 2 ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded 2 tablespoons whole cumin 2 tablespoons whole coriander 1 cinnamon stick 1 tablespoon sweet paprika Put the ancho chiles, cumin, coriander, cinnamon stick, and paprika into a small dry skillet over medium-high heat, and toast the spices just until they begin to smell, about 1 minute. Empty into a spice mill and grind to a powder.

Making the salsa — the ingredients in the food processor

A really bad photo of the Spicy Grilled Salmon with Mango

I watched Tyler Florence on his Food 911 Show as he traveled to Miami, Florida to help a physical trainer learn to make a new and healthy dish. He came up with Swordfish Baked in Foil, Zucchini Carpeccio, and  Mango Strawberry Snow Cones recipes for her.   The menu was practically fat free and non-carb.

Hey, I wanna eat healthy, too! I decided to try the recipes. I’d never prepared or eaten swordfish before. Oh, this was going to be an adventure indeed.

Finding the ingredients for the Swordfish Baked in Foil went without an event – well, almost: The ingredients included baby artichokes (I went to two stores and I couldn’t find them and ended up buying large artichokes), tomatoes, lemon, black olives, fresh basil, fresh thyme, extra virgin olive oil, and of course, swordfish fillets. I also needed foil to make the pouch in which to bake the foil.

Making the fish was easy. I just needed to salt and pepper it. I put the artichokes, tomatoes and other ingredients together before adding to the fish in the foil pouch. The hardest work – not that it was really hard work – involved trimming the artichoke. That was another first for me and I wasn’t sure if I did it properly, but I did trim it in my own way.

Once everything was put together in the foil pouch, I put it in the oven according to the instructions for 20 to 25 minutes. Not long. I set the timer on the microwave to remind me when the time is up. Thank goodness for timers. I always loose track of time, especially when cooking.

At this point, one of my brothers came into the kitchen asking whether the food was ready. I pointed to the timer and told him to come back in 20 minutes. From the look on his face, I could tell that he wanted to complain that he was hungry but didn’t. Instead, he looked around the kitchen and then left. One of the dogs followed him out. She was also waiting for food.

Next, I started the Zucchini Carpaccio, a zucchini salad. It basically consists of zucchini, salt, pepper, extra virgin oil, lemon juice, leeks, Parmesan cheese and fresh mint leaves for garnish. That’s all!

Zucchini Carpaccio

Just when I was about to dish the food, my brother returned to the kitchen. “Relax,” I told him. “Go back and have a seat, the food’s ready.” He returned back into the living room, trying to be patient.

On to the Mango Strawberry Snow Cones! This involved of course, mangoes, strawberries and limejuice poured on top of crushed ice.

I pulled out the ice crusher but couldn’t figure out how to use it. We’d had it for quite some time but hadn’t used it in a few months. I called my sister to take a look at it, since she’d used it more often than I.

After playing with the parts for a while, she finally figured it out. She put some ice in the crusher and turned the machine one. It made a weak, tired sound. No ice came out, and after fiddling with it a bit longer, she gave up.

Reluctantly, I decided to use the blender to try to crush the ice. It didn’t crush it completely but the results were better than nothing – better than whole ice cubes.

I blended the fruits and poured them over the pathetic, semi crushed ice and garnished it with the lime wedges and mint. Not bad-looking. Now it was time to see if it would taste good. Yes, it did despite my little ice problem.

Dinner was served, to my brother’s relief. He bent his head down and shoveled the food into his mouth.

“So, how does it taste?” I asked.

After munching a few more seconds and swallowing, he barely lifted up his head to acknowledge me. “Very good.”

I had to agree; the swordfish tasted quite good. Delicious juices formed in the foil pouch from the combination of the fish, tomatoes and herbs.

The zucchini carpaccio had a nice bite to it.

We capped our dinner with the Mango Strawberry Snow Cones. I have a confession to make about them. In all the commotion, trying to crush ice unsuccessfully, I forgot to add one ingredient to the mango and strawberries – lime juice. I forgot the lime juice! But no worries – no one seemed to notice. The slice of lime that I used for garnish covered my mistake, I think.

Oh, well, I’ll do better next time. This is all part of the cooking adventure, isn’t it?

All in all, everything was, as my brother said, “Very good.”

Paz

Mango Strawberry Snowcone