Semolina Crusted Tillapia with Dukkah

I was introduced to dukkah by a woman I worked for at Little Nest, and instantly fell in love with it. It’s a beautiful thing dukkah, rich with fennel seeds and cumin drenched in olive oil, and in this version with loads of parsley and cilantro chopped in too. People will tell you that it isn’t dukkah, and they’re sort of right, this is a totally bastardised version, but also the version that I was introduced to, and so now the one I prefer. Traditionally it doesn’t have fresh herbs in it, but it turns what is essentially a spice blend into something to dip bread in, pour over poached eggs, and in this case spoon on top of fish.

Semolina Crusted Tilapia with Dukkah

2 fillets Tilapia

1/4 cup Semolina Flour

Salt and Pepper

Dukkah

1/2 cup Hazelnuts

1/4 cup Toasted Sesame seeds

1 tsp Fennel Seeds

1 tsp Cumin Seeds

1 tsp Corriander Seeds

1 cup Flat Leaf Parsley Leaves

1 cup Cilantro Leaves

1/2 cup Olive Oil

Salt Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Put the hazelnuts in the oven and cook for about 15 minutes, tossing them every few minutes until they are toasted all the way through.

In a small pan over low heat toast the fennel, cumin and coriander seeds until they are fragrant but not smoking.

Put them into a food processor, a spice grinder, or a mortar and pestle and grind until fine.

Add in the hazelnuts and the sesame seeds and crack them but you want them still coarse.

If your using a food processor add in the leaves and the olive oil and blitz until the leaves are broken up but not pureed. Or you can cut them by hand.

Add in the salt and pepper and check your seasoning.

Turn your broiler on high and let it warm up a bit.

Mix the salt, pepper and semolina together on a plate and dip the fillets in making sure they’re well coated. Put them on a lightly oiled pan and then on the top shelf of the oven.

Keep them in until the tops are slightly browned and they are cooked all the way through.  

Sunday Staples- Poached Salmon and Soba Noodles in Miso Broth

This is one of those amazing meals that takes under half an hour to make but is absolutely nice enough to serve company. It is also deeply satisfying without being heavy at all, it’s downright healthy actually.

Soba noodles are my favourite thing right now. Don’t get me wrong I’ve been eating and cooking with them for years but for some reason they’re all I want lately. In salads, in stir fries, and now in a soup of sorts. This is also a recipe that is very forgiving and can take nearly any substitution. Not the right time of year for salmon? A white fish would be delicious. Can’t get fresh fish? Chicken it is!- although that will need longer to cook. The vegetables are also loose, bok choy, broccolini, gai laing would all great alternatives. 

Poached Salmon with Soba Noodles in Miso Broth

Broth

5 cups Water

1 bunch Green Onions

Handful of Cilantro

1 stick Lemongrass

1 1inch knob of Ginger

2 tbsp Soy Sauce

1tsp Sambal Olek

1 tbsp Sesame Oil

1 tbsp Miso Paste.

Fillings

2 Fillets of Salmon

1 Head Broccoli (Bok choy would also be great!)

2 sticks Celery

2 Bundles of Soba Noodles

6 Shiitake Mushrooms

Using the back of your knife bruise and cut your lemongrass until it will fit in your pot and is very aromatic.

Cut your green onions- use the white parts for some pretty little slices and then roughly chop the tops.

Add the tops of the green onions, the lemongrass, and all the other ingredients for your broth into a medium pot. Bring to a simmer. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes, then strain it into another pot. Bring it up to a simmer again.

Meanwhile bring a large pot of water up to a boil and season with salt.

While thats all happening cut your broccoli into little florets and slice your mushrooms and celery.

Once your water is boiling add your soba noodles, broccoli, celery and mushrooms and boil for about 6 minutes.

Add your salmon to your broth and turn the heat very low.

Once your noodles are cooked strain them and then place some of the soba and the vegetables into your bowls.

Add the salmon and ladel some of the broth on top. Add your slices of green onions and your done!

Aunt Loretta's Tomato Panzanella Salad

 

My Aunt Loretta is an amazing cook. Truly terrific. The sort of woman who teaches healthy cooking classes to cancer patients, raised an incredible cook for a son, and makes the marshmallows from scratch that she uses on top of her sweet potato cassorole for Thanksgiving. She does this all with a huge smile on her face, immaculate nails and hair, perfect clothes and just the right amount of southern sass. She is a force to be reckoned with, let me tell you.

She emailed me a while back about a tomato bread salad that she did up with cod, and it sounded amazing because, well, I’ve never had anything shes made that wasn’t spot on.

So when my favourite neighbours dropped off some tomatoes from their community garden last week I could think of nothing else beside big chunks of bread fried in olive oil, big juicy pieces of local tomatoes and big leaves of basil all bound with lemon juice and capers. I bought some local mackerel because I love mackerel and it’s local here and cod isn’t but use whatever you can get!

So here it is, Aunt Loretta’s Panzanella.
Serves 2

1/2 a thin Baguette of 1/3 of a big one

2 Roma tomatoes, 1 beefsteak, or a big handful of cherry tomatoes cut into wedges.

1 tbsp Capers, I like the teeny tiny ones but use whatever you like best

Half a bunch of Basil

Juice of Half a Lemon

A handful of Arugula

2 Herring, Mackerel, or good fresh fish

1/4 cup Flour

Zest of half a lemon

Salt and Pepper

Olive Oil
Turn your oven onto warm or 180F

Mix together the flour, the zest and a tespoon of salt. Dredge the fish in it.

In a small frying pan over medium high heat and add in a tablespoon of olive oil and fry the fish. Put the skin side down first and cook it almost all the way through then flip them and finish cooking the flesh side. Keep them warm in the oven.

Cut the baguette into 1 inch cubes

Warm a large skillet over medium heat. Add in 1/4 cup olive oil and fry up the bread flipping it reguarly until the bread is a glorious golden brown.

Meanwhile Mix the lemon juic, 1 tbsp olive oil, capers in the bottom of a large bowl.

Add in the tomatoes, arugala, and the basil and toss to combine.

Add in the bread and toss again, serve immediately with the fish on the side.