Ostreoidea Adventure 
or Fried Bivalves on Fruity Slaw
(Breaded oysters on a slaw of lettuce, kiwi, green apple and avocado)

According to my friends at Wikipedia: "The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of different families of saltwater clams, bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackishhabitats. In some species the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not all, oysters are in the superfamily Ostreoidea."
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I love oysters.  I love them raw, cooked, in stews, fried, and served in cardboard trays outside dockside diners.  In fact, I even like the oysters served at the Waterford, CA Car Wash. . . seriously.  My kids grew up knowing how to slurp oysters raw with a dash of lemon or hot sauce after picking them by the buckets in British Columbia. It's the family clan challenge:  do you like oysters?  yes or no.

Living inland can present some challenges to procuring a ready supply of fresh oysters, though.  Hence, I've come to appreciate the grocery store jarred oysters.  They are great for chowder, stuffing, and  a Hang Town fry. 

Tonight was a Friday, and my training as a good Catholic school teacher just overwhelmed me at the grocery store.  Now, this is something, as I'm Lutheran. . . but I did teach for years in a Catholic school, and this fish on Friday thing definitely has legs. .  . or fins. . .  or in the case of oysters. . . adductors (?). So, into my cart went the oysters and a whole bunch of other useful things.  When I got home, I told Mr. Artifact that we were having oysters for dinner.  Then. . . I scrambled for a complete meal from what was on hand.  After a  glass of wine, I came up with this recipe.   I have to say:  I rock!

Ostreoidea Adventure 
(serves 3-4)

Ingredients:

for the oysters:

• 1 jar fresh oysters
• 1/2 C sunflower (or peanut) oil

dredge:

• 1/2 C flour:
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• dash of cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper

wet soak:

• 1/2 C buttermilk
• 1 egg

breading (mix all in food processor):

• 2 C fresh bread crumbs (I used leftover sourdough bread that I pulsed in the food processor)
• 1/4 C parsley
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 T chopped  red onion
• 1/2 C Parmesan cheese
• zest of lemon to taste
• 1/2 t salt

Salad:

• 2 C shredded iceberg lettuce
• 1 avocado chopped
• 1 green apple, sliced thinly
• 2 kiwis, sliced thinly
• 1/4 C red onion sliced thinly into rings
• drizzle of lemon juice for apples and avocado

Salad dressing:

• 1/3 C lemon juice
• 3 T sugar
• 1/2 t dried ginger
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/8 t white pepper (or more to taste)
• 1 t Dijon mustard
• 1/2 C olive oil
• 1/4 C mayonnaise

Method:

Make the salad first.   Chop all the veg and put into a bowl.  Drizzle lemon juice over apples and avocado to prevent browning.  Set aside.

Make salad dressing by combining all ingredients except mayonnaise and oil.  Whisk together.  Whisk or blend in mayo and olive oil to form emulsion.  Set aside.

Preheat the oil in a large frying pan.
Put oysters into the dredge (or drop into a plastic bag and shake with the dredge).  Dip in buttermilk and egg soak.   Roll in breadcrumb mixture, then fry for about 3-4 minutes. Salt them more if you like when you take them out of oil.   Put on wire rack and keep warm in 250 oven while you get the salad plated.

Assemblage:  plate salad, dress with sauce. Place warm oysters on top of greens, add more sauce.  

Serve, Eat, Enjoy.

Fig O Nut Crisps

Adapted from SkinnyJeansFood’s Raincoast Crisps
(makes about 40 crisps)

We had a wonderful trip to Puget Sound for fishing recently to celebrate my dad's 80th birthday.  After pulling in some awesome ling cod, we got interested in snacking.  At a local store, we bought some scrumptious Raincoast Crisps at an exorbitant price.  Figuring that these could be made just as yummy for much less, I set about searching for internet recipes.  This one below is based on a recipe I found, but with a twist of adding dehydrated leeks.   And, they were even better than the ones we bought!

DRY INGREDIENTS

2 C all purpose flour

2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1/4 C brown sugar

WET INGREDIENTS

2 C buttermilk  (Bulgarian)

1/8 C honey

1/8 C maple syrup

ADD-INS

1 C dried calimyrna figs, large chopped

1/4 C red wine

2 T balsamic vinegar

1/3 C brined kalamata olives, sliced

1/3 C dehydrated diced leeks or green onions

1/2 C chopped walnuts

1/2 C raw pepitas

1/4 C white sesame seeds

1T chia seeds

Set oven at 325.

·         Before you get going, put figs, wine and balsamic vinegar into a saucepan and reduce over low heat to infuse the figs and rehydrate them.  Reduce til most liquid is gone.

         

       Meanwhile, separately combine the wet and dry ingredients.

·         Then add them together.  After stirring to combine, add the olives, nuts,  figs, and other stuff.  Stir.

·         Grease (coconut oil) 2 medium loaf pans (8 x 3).  Divide mixture and put into oven.

·         Bake for 40 minutes.

·         Cool completely.

·        

      Slice very thin and put on cookie sheet (ungreased).

·         Bake at 325 for 3-4 min per side or until desired browning and crispness. (If they do not crisp to your desire, you can always crisp them immediately prior to serving.  But, do not overcook.  Better to have them underdone.)

Serve with a cream cheese spread or goat cheese and jam.   

I used Jezebel spread:  2T horseradish, ½ cube cream cheese, ½ C peach preserves, 2 T brown sugar:  blend and spread. 

Blonde Kimchi

Because we have more fun. . .

Why can't kimchi be blonde?  Why not!

My friend-in-law, Debbie (mother of the man who married my daughter) spent time recently in South Korea. One of the many thoughtful things she has done for me is to send me a Korean kimchi pot.


In honor of Debbie, another blonde, I made this kimchi.  But don't be misled, it is hot and spicy!    

This is awesome on scrambled eggs or a chicken salad. or some broth . .  or just by itself.  This is the first time I made a rice paste mixture to flavor the kimchi. So far, so good.

Vegetable mix:

3 small heads (16 C) of savoy or Napa cabbage, chopped large
8 carrots (3 C) peeled and sliced thin on the diagonal
5 C sliced leeks on the diagonal
1/2 red onion sliced thin
1/2 C sliced dried seaweed
6 T kosher salt

Mix all the above together, smush around and let set for at least an hour.  After which, rinse off the excess salt and drain.

Paste/spice:

1/2 apple
1/2 cup rough chopped garlic
1/2 white onion
1/3 C cooked white rice
1/3  or more water  (add water as you need to puree in food processer)
1 inch ginger rough chopped
1/2 inch horseradish rough chopped
1 fat sardine with oil from tin
1 T fish sauce
5 T Nanami togarashi or other pepper flake spice
1 T dried red pepper (or 1 T diced jalapeno/or other hot fresh pepper)

Mix the spice/ paste ingredients in a blender, juicer or food processor.

Then, mix the paste into the cabbage/veg mixture.  You may want to wear gloves.  Pack it into a kimchi pot or into mason jars.  This recipe makes about 3 quarts.

Weight down or push down to ensure kimchi is covered with liquid.  I use small plastic lids pushed down with synthetic wine corks (cut to size if needed).  Cover with a lid. . . but release gas 2-3 times a day--otherwise, you will have an explosion.

Leave on your kitchen counter for 1-3 days, depending on how fizzy you like your kimchi.  After that, put in frige.

It should last 6-12 months, if you an resist it that long.