chimichurri, visitors, cooking, and honey

becca sent me an awesome sounding chimichurri recipe which i will share with all of you. you can thank me (or her) in cash. boys, she's single. from becca:

I found a recipe for Chimichurri sauce...it was delicious. Although not as delicious as at that steak place :)

1 bunch parsley (about 1 cup firmly packed), chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3/4 cup olive or vegetable oil
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

In blender or food processor, place all ingredients. Cover and blend on high speed until will blended. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours.

in other news, i have been very busy entertaining guests. heather was here 2 weekends ago and we mostly went to places i have already written about i think (song long, jean ro bistro, beth and jim's house... good luck getting reservations there).

heather at jean ro bistro... she showed that chicken who was boss

then this past weekend bryan was here. we mostly cooked but we did go to green papaya (a neighborhood thai place in hyde park/oakley which offers tasty and fresh food, a fun atmosphere, an excellent selection of seafood options, and quirky service... in other words a typically good cincinnati thai place) and honey (one of the best restaurants in cincinnati).

bryan gives honey thumbs up. he had the citrus glazed salmon special. it came with lobster ravioli and had yummy wasabi roe on top. mmmm...

my lamb was amazing... it came with lentils and string beans and had a delicious coffee sauce

with honey you just can't go wrong. the food (which changes seasonally) is awesome, the service is always attentive, knowledgeable, and friendly, the prices are totally reasonable, and the atmosphere is both sophisticated and low key. if you have not been, go there immediately.

anyway, as i said, we cooked most of our meals. bryan told me before he came that he wanted to cook which made me happy of course. plus he did all the dishes!

food lessons learned during bryan's visit:

• fresh pesto > frozen pesto (even when homemade)
  
• cooking chicken to the "recommended temperature" makes for a dried out piece of crap instead of a meal... salmonella here i come
  
• excellent guacamole becomes life-alteringly awesome when sun dried tomatoes are added
• the proper pinkish white sauce for fish tacos remains elusive (any recipe recommendations?)
• i am a kick ass griller (oh wait, i already knew that one)

here are the best recipes from the weekend:

the best guacamole ever

4 ripe but not rotten avocados (avocado ripeness is KEY to this recipe)
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 to 1/2 sweet onion, chopped or minced (depending on your preference)
juice of 1 to 3 limes (again depending on your preference)
chopped fresh cilantro (enough to make it taste good which is about 1/8 to 1/3 of a bunch, depending on the size), washed, stems removed, and chopped
EITHER 1 or 2 chopped, seeded tomatoes OR about 4 oz. chopped sun dried tomatoes
plenty of salt

peel and pit the avocadoes (i usually do this by quartering the avocadoes, sticking my knife in the pit, pulling it out, and then pulling the skins off). put them in a bowl. squeeze some lime juice over them. add garlic and onion and salt and mash up. add cilantro and mix. then add tomatoes and mix. taste for salt and lime and add more if necessary. i rely very much on my taste when making this. serve with whatever or just eat it with a spoon. bryan called the sun dried tomato version "crack on steroids." mmmmm...

grilled tuna

i know this recipe seems silly but i include it for the grill novice who does not understand how simple and easy and within your reach excellent rare grilled tuna is. and if you don't want it rare, just cook it longer (but that is kind of missing the point in my opinion).

2 albacore tuna steaks
juice of 2 to 4 limes (and/or lemons)
4+ garlic cloves, minced
salt

mix the lime juice, garlic cloves, and salt. marinate the tuna for 5-10 min per side. turn the grill on high. once the grill is hot, either baste a little oil on the grill or drizzle it on the tuna steaks. grill the steaks for 2-3 min. per side. use a spatula to flip them so you don't break them apart. take them off the grill and let them rest under foil for about 15 min. slice against the grain. eat. die of happiness.

once you make this, which really is excellent just as it is, you can mess around with the marinade ingredients. you can try other citrus juices, or soy sauce/hoisin sauce/black bean sauce, or add some spices like chinese 5 spice powder or cayenne or ginger. the possibilities are endless!

what we did with our tuna was make it into tacos, but since we didn't love the pink sauce we made, it may have been better to eat the tuna on its own or in a salad.

happy eating!