1 pound ground lamb

Spice Mix:
4 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons grated onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Freshly ground black pepper

Mix all the spices, mix with the ground lamb.  BBQ and enjoy.

Out favorite sauce for grilled Flank Steak or Skirt Steak.  Also good on potatoes, salad, any grilled meat.  I often put the chili in some olive oil on the side for those of us who like it hotter.

1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more
3-4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced or minced
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 Fresno chile or red jalapeño, finely chopped (optional)
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

I am LOVING Chimichurri with steak for a fun easy summer BBQ.  Works great with skirt steak, flat iron, hanger, even spread on corn on the cobb or in your pasta.

Steak:

Season with kosher salt and pepper.  BBQ on a nuclear hot charcoal or wood fire Seriously, bring out the bellows if you need it – these are thin steaks, you need a char without overcooking.  If you have hair on your hands after cooking, the BBQ is not hot enough.  Not really – don’t sue me.  Just trying to prove a point be safe out there….

Cook to medium rare and let rest.  Cut across the grain.

Chimichurri:

1 cup flat leaf parsley (Italian)
1/2 Cup mint leaves
2 TBS thyme leaves
Optional:
Any other lighter herbs i.e. sage, basil, etc
2 anchovy fillets (don’t like anchovy?  Just get over it.  Can you say Umami?)
2ish cloves garlic.  More is probably better
2 thai chilies (in america you can use the Fresno or whatever hits your heat level)
1 TBS Honey
4 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Cup white wine vinegar

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped and combined

This is one of the top couple of pasta recipes in the Soganich family.  Especially when the pasta is freshly homemade.

14 oz fresh pasta (spaghetti or angel hair)
2 TBS Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 Thai chili seeded and chopped
2 TBS Capers
1/2 lb Prosciutto, sliced (best to get them to slice it a little thicker)
1 container rocket (Arugula)
zest from 2 limes
juice from 2 limes
6 oz goats cheese or marinated feta (I like goats cheese)

Cook the pasta.  While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large sauce pan.  Sweat the garlic for a minute of two, add the prosciutto, and cook.  Add the lime zest, chili, capers, cook for one minute.  Add the rocket and stir until it wilts.  Add the lime juice just before adding the past.  Toss together and heat through.

Serve with goats cheese sprinkled on top and season with salt and pepper.

Slow Cooked Ocean Trout with Tomato and Asparagus

Tomato and Asparagus:

500g Tomatoes seeded and chopped
1/3-1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt, to taste
Pinch fennel seeds, crushed, optional
2 bunches asparagus
Handfull of basil leaves, shredded
l-2 tbsp red or white wine vinegar

Fish:

4 ocean trout fillets
Olive Oil
Butter

Garnish:

fineiy sliced red onion;
small black oilves,
basil sprigs,
lime wedges

1 Put tomatoes in bowl with olive oil, salt and fennel seeds. Mix, then set aside in a cool spot.

2 Remove obvious fish bones with cooking pliers or tweezers.

3 Wipe a little oil over base of ovenproof frying pan or sturdy oven tray. Add fillets, skin-side down. Put pan into cold oven then heat to 120�C. The fillets take about 25 minutes to cook.

4 Just before fish is ready, trim the woody bases from asparagus spears then peel lower part of the stalks if skin seems tough. Slice into 4cm lengths and add to a frying pan of lightly salted, simmering water. Cook for 2 minutes or until just tender but still green. Meanwhile, stir basil into tomatoes. Drain asparagus and return to pan. Add a few spoonfuls of tomato mixture and toss to mix.

5 Transfer fish to warm plates and gloss with butter. Scoop some asparagus mixture on top. Stir vinegar into remaining tomato mixture, then spoon over. Garnish with onion slivers, olives, basil

This one is a favorite – everything can be made on a  BBQ.

4 Salmon (or Ocean Trout) fillets, skinned
2 red peppers (capsicum), sliced
olive oil
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 butternut pumpkin (squash), peeled and thinly sliced
Arugula (rocket) leaves to serve
Zested rind of 1 lemon blanched
Zested rind of 1 orange blanched
Zested rind of 1 lime blanched

Citrus Butter Sauce:

1 tbs white wine vinegar
125g butter
1 tbs each of lemon, lime, orange juice

Spice Mixture:

1 tbs dried thyme
1 tbs dried rosemary leaves
1 tbs dried oregano
1 tbs paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 tablespoon sea salt

Citrus Butter – combine juices in a sauce pan and reduce by half.  reduce heat to low and whisk in butter.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Spice mixture – grind until smooth in food processor or mortar pestle.  Rub spice mixture on skinned side of each fillet.  Let stand at room temperature for 30 mins.

Place red peppers in an oven dish and sprinkle with olive oil and brown sugar.  Roast at 350(200) ish for 30 minutes ish until browned.  Or grill on the BBQ (my preferred method).  Brush pumpkin (squash) with olive oil and grill.  Heat a cast iron skillet (or flat plate) very hot.  Sear salmon, spice side down until blackened.  Turn, drop heat, and cook until fish just turns opaque in the center.  Rest for 5 minutes.

Layer rocket (arugula) then pumpkin, then capsicum then salmon on plates.  Drizzle with the citrus butter sauce, top with the zest mixture.  Serve and enjoy.

Shish Tawook Sandwiches

Shish Tawook sandwiches (or something like that).  I first ate these at “The Sheik” in Hamilton.  It took me over 5 years of trial and error to figure out how to make them.

1 boneless chicken breast
a couple of tablespoons of olive oil
1tsp lemon juice (more or less)
1tsp vinegar
paprika
ground cumin
curry powder
1 onion
2 tomatoes
4 pickles
pita bread
Tahina sauce (optional) or hummus

Yoghurt Sauce

1/2 cup (ish) Yoghurt
juice from 1/4 lemon
1 clove garlic crushed
a small handful of fresh parsley chopped

 Cut the chicken into long strips, and marinate in olive oil, vinegar, lemon juices, and spices. Use enough spices to generously cover the chicken in roughly equal portions, or to taste. Let sit for 1 hour or more if possible. Cut the onion into long strips. Sautee the chicken over medium heat in a frying pan for a few minutes until white, add the onion, and continue to cook until the onions are soft, and chicken is cooked. On a pita, dollop a couple of tablespoons of the yoghurt sauce on the pita, and spread a tablespoon of tahina (or hummus). Add some chicken, tomato, and pickle in equal proportions. Repeat with the rest of the pita until ingredients are finished. Roll up the pitas, and wrap some tinfoil around the bottom half to keep them together. Place the sandwiches in an oven at 160C (350F) ish for 5 minutes ish, or until the pita is just starting to get crisp. Remove and serve immediately with lots of napkins.

Should serve four, but actually serves two because it is so yummy.

Oh yeah – yoghurt sauce – mix all the stuff together.

This recipe comes with a license to make a mess (-:

Ocean Trout with Squid Ink Pasta and Soy-Chili Dressing

This is one of our very favorite recipes.  Feel free to substitute salmon for ocean trout if you can’t find it.  Also – fresh spinach fettucini makes a good substitute for squid ink pasta as it is hard to find in most stores.

Original Recipe:

500g squid-ink pasta
Olive Oil
4 Ocean Trout fillets (about 200g each), skinned
8 Green onions, thinly sliced diagonally

Soy-Chilli Dressing:

1/4 Cup soy sauce
2 fresh small chillies, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons grated ginger
3 Cloves Garlic, Crushed
2 Tablespoons chopped coriander (cilantro)
1 cup olive oil

For dressing, combine ingredients and mix well. Cook past until al dente. Drain and stir in one third of the dressing. Heat a little olive oil in a frying pan and pan fry fish until tender. Serve pasta topped with fish and green onion, with remaining dressing spooned over.

Mikey’s Variation:

I find the soy-chilli dressing a bit “in your face” if you follow the recipe directly. To soften it a bit, I combine the garlic, ginger, and chillies with some of the olive oil, and GENTLY cook in a prying pan until light brown. This takes the bite out and gives a more mellow flavour. The coriander should be added in when the sauce cools to luke
warm.

Barbeque Pink Snapper with Olive and Anchovy Sauce

2 x whole pink snappers
1 clove garlic
4 anchovy fillets
200g pitted olives
200ml extra virgin olive oil
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 bunch thyme
salt and pepper

Turn your barbecue hot plate onto high. Rub your fish with some extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Combine olives, anchovies, zest, juice, thyme and olive oil into a blender. Put your fish on the barbecue and cook until the skin is crispy – then flip over. Serve on a plate with the sauce drizzled over the top.