Halibut With Porcini Crema Morels And Fava Beans Recipes

Steps:

• In a wide sauté pan, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over high heat until it just starts to smoke. Add the porcini in a single layer, working in batches if necessary, until the mushrooms are nicely roasted. Remove them and drain excess oil. In a wide saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat until it foams. Add the onion and garlic, and sweat them until soft and translucent. Deglaze the pan with Madeira and reduce by one-third. Add the bay leaf and the roasted mushrooms and stir to combine. Heat the heavy cream in another saucepan until warm, and add it to the mushrooms. Simmer until the flavors are blended and the cream is reduced by half. Season with salt and pepper. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a wide sauté pan, and add the shallots and thyme. Cook until the shallots are softened and translucent. Add the morel mushrooms and toss to coat with the shallots. Cook until the morels are slightly wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Toss in the fava beans and warm through. Season the fish on all sides with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Heat a grill or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. When the grill is hot, brush with oil, and place the fish presentation-side down. Cook, turning once, 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until the fillets are cooked through. Spoon the warmed porcini crema among 4 plates, then top with a halibut fillet. Spoon the morels and fava beans over the fish. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and serve.

Steps:

• Mix milk, flour, 5 whole eggs, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon of salt and freshly ground pepper and minced garlic until the dough forms. Allow to rest for 30 minutes. Over a pot of salted boiling water, pass the dough through a perforated pan or spaetzle maker. Once the dumplings float, strain out of the water and place them on a tray until room temperature. Moisten with a little oil and store for up to 2 days, refrigerated.
• In a pot place 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 shallots, 1 cup of leeks and 1 cup of mushrooms and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes. Then add the fish stock and reduce by half. Add your 1-quart of cream and reduce by another two thirds. Place in a blender until smooth and pass through a strainer. Adjust with salt and pepper.
• You will need 2 pans for cooking and a small pot for your sauce. In a pan on medium-high heat, add the oil and allow 30 seconds to heat up. Then place the fillet of fish away from you in a pan so it doesn't splash you. While the fish is cooking, put the other pan on high heat, place half of the butter and allow to brown slightly. Once slightly brown add the spatzle and allow to cook for about 1 1/2 minutes. At this stage add the fava beans and lobster; allow to cook for no more than 2 minutes.
• Your fish should be almost cooked by this point with a nice golden brown crust, flip and finish for 1 minute. Place the sauces on warm plates with the spatzle saute in the middle and the drained fish on top.

Steps:

• Cook fava beans in large saucepan of boiling salted water 2 minutes; drain. Transfer to large bowl of ice water. Cool beans; peel if using fresh beans. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
• Mix 2 teaspoons mint, 1 teaspoon lemon peel, 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt, and 1 pinch of red pepper in small bowl. Arrange fish on large rimmed baking sheet. Rub mint mixture all over fish. DO AHEAD: Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add fava beans. Sprinkle with coarse salt, black pepper, and pinch of red pepper. Cook until heated through and tender, stirring occasionally and adding water by 1/4 cupfuls if dry, about 5 minutes. Using potato masher, mash beans to coarse puree, adding water by 1/4 cupfuls if dry. Season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD: Can be made 4 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
• Dredge fish in flour, shaking off excess. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in each of 2 heavy large skillets over medium-high heat. Cook fish until lightly browned and just opaque in center, about 4 minutes per side.
• Meanwhile, rewarm fava bean puree. Stir in remaining 1/4 cup mint, 1 teaspoon lemon peel, and 3 tablespoons olive oil.
• Divide fava bean puree among plates. Top with fish and serve.

Steps:

• Heat canola oil in a pan over medium heat and add prosciutto and shallots. Sweat until shallots are soft and translucent. Cover with stock and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir in truffles. Set aside.
• Blanch the peas, sugar snaps, asparagus and fava beans separately in boiling water, until tender, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and immediately plunge into an ice-water bath to stop the cooking. Set aside fava beans, 1 cup of sugar snaps and asparagus. Place peas and 1/2 cup of sugar snaps in a blender or food processor and puree. Force puree through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any lumps or strings. Set aside in a small pot.
• In a heavy casserole large enough to accommodate 6 fillets, bring 1/4 inch of salted water to a simmer. Salt and pepper each fillet on both sides. Gently poach for 3 to 5 minutes, until the halibut is just cooked through. Test for doneness by inserting a skewer in thickest part of fish for 5 seconds. Skewer should be warm upon removal.
• Bring the chicken-stock-and- truffle mixture to a boil and carefully whisk in 4 tablespoons butter. Add remaining snap peas, fava beans and asparagus, along with oregano, and hold over low heat. Reheat pea puree and stir in remaining butter. Spoon some puree down center of plate in a line and top with a fillet, crosswise over puree. Squeeze lemon juice over halibut and a pinch of sea salt. Spoon over sauce. Repeat 5 times. Serve.

Steps:

• Prepare a medium-hot fire (450°F) in a wood-fired grill.
• Combine the fennel seeds and olive oil to create a paste. Add the salt and pepper. Rub each fillet with the mixture and set aside at room temperature.
• To make the ragout, bring the white wine and stock to a low boil in a small nonreactive saucepan. Add the saffron threads, remove from the heat, and set aside.
• Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté until soft, about 3 minutes, then add the leeks and mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the thyme sprigs. Add the saffron liquid and stir to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, the fava beans, and carrots and cook over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until the favas and carrots are tender. Remove the thyme and add the parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside and keep warm.
• Oil the grill grids and add the halibut. Cover and cook on one side until the flesh is opaque throughout, 8 to 10 minutes. (With the lid closed, the delicate halibut does not need to be turned over and cooked on both sides.) Transfer to a warmed platter, grilled side up, surround with the ragout, and serve.
• Cleaning Leeks
• Leeks add an incredible depth of flavor to homemade soups, but they are like sand traps. Trim off the root ends, then make two perpendicular cuts down the entire length of the dark green leaves. Swish the leeks in a bowl of warm water (I find that cold water makes the sand cling), separating the dark green leaves to expose any sand. Then chop them and swish around in a fresh bowl of water. Lift out chopped leeks with your fingers, allowing any sediment to sink to the bottom of the bowl
• steaming fava beans
• Rather than the tedious three-step method of shelling, blanching, and peeling fava beans, try this time-saver from Paula Wolfert.
• Place unshelled fava beans in a steamer rack over boiling water; cover and cook until wilted, about 15 minutes. Remove from the steamer and let cool to the touch. Remove the pods, then remove the skin from each fava bean.
• If the beans will be cooked further, cut back a bit on the steaming time so the beans will be slightly undercooked when skinned.

Steps:

• Season the halibut with the lemon zest, thyme, and parsley. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Remove the fish from the refrigerator 15 minutes before cooking to bring it to room temperature.
• Place the potatoes in a medium pot, cover with cold water (by at least 4 inches), and add 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat, and simmer gently for about 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender when pierced. Reserve a cup of the water and strain the potatoes. When the potatoes have cooled, slightly smash them with the heel of your hand.
• Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the butter, smashed potatoes, and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Stir to coat the potatoes with the butter. Add the fava beans and a few tablespoons of the reserved potato water to the pan. Turn off the heat and cover while you cook the fish.
• Heat a large sauté pan over high heat for 2 minutes. (You may need to cook the fish in batches or in two pans.) Swirl in the olive oil and wait 1 minute. Carefully lay the fish in the pan and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until it's lightly browned. Turn the fish over, lower the heat to medium-low, and cook a few more minutes until it's almost cooked through. Be careful not to overcook the fish. When it's done, it will begin to flake and separate a little and the center will still be slightly translucent. Remember, the halibut will continue to cook a bit more once you take it out of the pan.
• Turn the heat under the potatoes up to medium, uncover, and heat the potatoes and favas until hot through. Toss in the pea shoots and cook about 1 minute, stirring to combine until the pea shoots are just wilted. Taste for seasoning. Spoon the potatoes onto a large warm platter, dot half the crème fraîche over them, and spoon half the lemon salsa on top. Arrange the halibut over the potatoes and spoon the remaining crème fraîche and lemon salsa over each piece of fish.
• Using a mortar and pestle, pound the savory leaves to a paste. Add the crème fraîche and use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides and combine well. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a pinch of black pepper.
• Cut both ends off the Meyer lemons. Place the lemons cut side down on a cutting board. Following the contour of the fruit with your knife, remove the peel and white cottony pith, working from top to bottom and rotating the fruit as you go. Then, one at a time, hold each lemon in your hand and carefully slice between the membranes and the fruit to release the segments in between. Discard the seeds and reserve the juice. You should have about 1/4 cup of segments and 1/4 cup of juice.
• Place the lemon juice in a small bowl and add the shallots and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Let sit 5 minutes and slowly whisk in the olive oil. Stir in the lemon segments, savory, mint, and parsley. Taste for balance and seasoning.
• You can make the Meyer lemon salsa and the savory crème fraîche earlier in the day. You could also boil and smash the potatoes ahead of time.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a shallow baking dish.
• Rub the halibut fillets with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, then season with salt and pepper. Place the fillets into the prepared baking dish, then press the cilantro leaves onto the top of the halibut. Bake the halibut in the preheated oven until the fish flakes easily with a fork, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the green onions, red bell pepper, garlic, and red pepper flakes until the vegetables have softened, about 5 minutes. Pour in the white wine, and season with dill and tarragon. Simmer for 2 minutes, then add the chicken broth, half-and-half, Parmesan cheese, and remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice; season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then dissolve the flour into the water, and stir into the boiling sauce. Return to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 10 minutes. Spoon the sauce over the halibut to serve.