Quick Weeknight Fish Stew with Olives by Alison Roman

“Are there any recipes you’re really not looking forward to making?” - at least 100 people 

“Yeah, there’s this fish stew recipe with olives.” - me 

(360 days later)

“Really, you’re gonna let a stew stand between you and accomplishing your goal? Suck it up.” - this project 
“........................................... Fine.” - me 

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the makings of a good broth

If I sound like a broken record, I’m sorry. But I have to tell the truth! Once again, this stew was surprisingly better than I thought it would be. Will I make it again? Probably not. But at least I didn’t suffer while eating it. (If you’re new to the blog, please know that if you love seafood stew, you’ll probably love this — seafood stew just ain’t my thing.) 

What I liked most was the tomato-based broth. I chose to use a ripe, medium-sized tomato instead of a can of diced tomatoes (Alison gives us the option). Fresh tomato was definitely the way to go. It gave a subtler tomato taste and color to the stew than canned would have, which I found to be just enough to brighten things up. The broth also contains toasted shallot rings and garlic slices, reduced white wine, chili flakes, bay leaves, and water. Just reading that ingredient list tells you it’s got to be a solid broth base. 

The seafood part, now that’s where I falter. The recipe calls for cod (which we’ve established tastes too fishy), mussels (my first time buying my own mussels!), and shrimp (yes, more shrimp). Mussels are cooked first using the same method as you’d use with clams — nestling them in hot liquid and covering your pot with a lid to create steam. Within five or so minutes, those babies were opened. Cod and shrimp also need time to cook in the broth with the lid on, which took only another six minutes. 

The olives and herbs really brought everything together. I opted for crushed Castelvetrano olives over black olives for their obviously superior flavor. Finely chopped parsley and dill added an element of freshness and vibrant color that really helped with appetite appeal. I made a half-recipe and ate about a fourth of it. Jordan had a few bites too, but we got no where near to finishing it. 

As far as the recipe title goes, this recipe is relatively “quick” when it comes to stews, but it still takes a good bit of ingredient preparation and comes together in about 45 minutes. I guess it all depends on your definition of “quick.” 

Thank God that’s over with. 

220 recipes cooked, 5 to go.

Littleneck Clams with Green Garlic and Leftover Wine by Alison Roman

I started this project as a complete clam novice: how to cook them, how to eat them, the fact that there are different kinds of clams — I hadn't the slightest idea. I remember feeling very intimidated by the task of ordering them at the grocery seafood counter. Even more intimidating was the thought of cooking them. And then, after just one attempt, I realized that clams are perhaps the most foolproof seafood I could ever cook. 

As long as you’ve scrubbed their shells (they tend to have gunk stuck to the outside that will come off with a little handling under cold, running water), placed them in a hot pot with a lid and a bit of liquid to create steam, and can physically shake a pot back and forth a few times, clams are a piece of cake. (Cake is better than clams, tbh, but let’s not get into semantics.) 

The parsley butter took more work than the clams in this recipe. I already had my food processor on the counter from making green romesco for Alison’s four-bean salad, so I opted to use it for smashing the butter, parsley and garlic clove together. Some people have asked how I decided when to make certain recipes. One answer is laziness. “You mean I don’t have to dig out my food processor and clean it a second time?”

Once my clams were cleaned and ready, I started by sizzling a finely grated garlic clove in some olive oil in my Dutch oven. After it released its fragrance, I poured in some leftover Sav Blanc (and yes, this was like 6-day old wine from the fridge that honestly tasted just fine for this purpose.) Once the wine had reduced, I placed the clams in the pot and fit the lid so they could steam. I made just a half recipe, which reduced the wine needed to just two Tbsp. But even that little bit of wine was enough to cook the clams and infuse them with plenty of flavor. Once opened, the clams were ready for dollops of parsley butter. It took some coaxing to get the globs to land into each open shell. 

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Pro tip: when removing hot clams from a pot, don’t be foolish. Wear an oven mitt or use tongs. You will burn your fingers otherwise. Just ask my thumb and forefinger. 

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The remaining melted butter and clam juice provide a nice warming liquid for the can of cannelini beans added at the end. I served it all with lemon wedges and sourdough bread, along with a lemony kale salad. 

Jordan didn’t love this dish — he said it was too salty, which must have come from the clams themselves because I added very little salt myself. I felt that there was a bitterness to the dish, a sort of soft sourness that’s hard to describe otherwise. Maybe the wine was too far gone? Maybe this needed something creamy to balance the bitter? I think I’ll stick with Alison’s other clam recipes in the future, particularly her Clams and Cod in Heavy Cream (minus the cod - just the clams) and her Clam Pasta with Chorizo and Walnuts. 

214 recipes cooked, 11 to go.

Ricotta-Stuffed Shells with Burrata, Mushrooms, and Herbs & Perfect Herby Salad

I put this recipe off for as long as possible. Not because it didn’t sound good, but because it has more dairy than anyone should eat in a single meal. I’m talking heavy cream, ricotta, parmesan, and mozzarella all filling every imaginable nook and cranny of a 2 quart dish. A delicious stomach ache just begging to happen. 

Well I certainly wasn’t going to eat this one alone. We invited two dear friends over, Elli and Christian, to help us eat it and make it. Why not make the Great Dairy Assembly, as I’m now going to call it, a communal activity? 

Before our friends arrived, I went ahead and started the mushrooms roasting in the oven as well as bringing a pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. Alison recommends a variety of mushrooms, but I just went for the straightforward pre-sliced baby Bella mushroom cartons at TJ’s. I’ve cooked a lot of her mushroom recipes lately, and I was honestly over spending $7 for 5oz. of little shiitakes. 

I scored some gluten free shells on Amazon, Tinkyada Brown Rice Grand Shells. The packaging says to boil the shells for 15-16 minutes for al dente, so that’s what I did. The edges of the shells were very cooked by that point, but the centers were a little tougher, harder. I definitely didn’t cook them perfectly, but once you’ve poured out the pasta water, it’s hard to go back. Oh well. I did as Alison instructed and poured the newly cooked shells onto an oiled baking sheet to help them cool and not stick together. This mostly worked. 

Now for the Great Dairy Assembly. Elli took each shell and filled it with the Great Dairy Mixture, consisting of ricotta, heavy cream, shaved parmesan, salt and pepper. One by one, she placed them in the baking dish while I desperately tried to arrange them without letting them tip over and spill their filling. Which turned out to be very difficult. Despite the rather al dente state of the pasta, the shells wanted desperately to let the cheese run out. We made a valiant effort to keep them all intact, but it sure was messy. With the shells filled and haphazardly arranged, we stuffed torn pieces of a mozzarella ball into whatever crevices we could find. Next, we poured heavy cream over the dish, followed by the roasted mushrooms. We baked the dish as instructed, about 35 minutes in total. 

Meanwhile, Elli and I prepared the herbs and lemon zest for topping the pasta, as well as Alison’s Perfect Herby Salad. We used lots of parsley, tarragon, and chives. For the salad, I threw in a bag of mixed greens. Alison’s perfect salad dressing is exactly how I dress my salads 90% of the time anyway: olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. It’s truly all I need to enjoy a salad. 

The shells came out bubbling hot and the mushrooms had turned an even richer brown. We topped them with the fresh herb mixture, and yes, more parmesan. The four of us finished off every shell but one, which wasn’t a Minnesota-nice move, I swear — we were just too full to fathom eating one more shell.

206 and 207 recipes cooked, 18 to go.

Crispy-Skinned Salmon with Spicy Radishes and Green Romesco by Alison Roman

There are two noteworthy X-factors in this recipe that make it stand out from other salmon. And since cooking this recipe a few weeks ago, I can’t seem to get these X-factors out of my head. Jordan is having the same issue. I know this because he’s asked me no less than three times if I can make it again. And when recently asked about his favorite meal from the project, he mentioned this salmon, and his reasons were these two X-factors: 

• Green Romesco

  • What is romesco? A quick trip down Wikipedia Lane tells me: “Romesco is a tomato-based sauce that originated from Valls, Tarragona, Catalonia. The fishermen in this area made this sauce to be eaten with fish. It is typically made from any mixture of roasted tomatoes and garlic, toasted almonds, pine nuts, and/or hazelnuts, olive or sunflower oil, and nyora peppers.”

  • What is Alison’s Green Romesco? Rather than roasted tomatoes, this sauce, made in a food processor, consists of parsley, olive oil, toasted almonds, garlic, jalapeno, red wine vinegar, and smoked paprika. It still maintains the nuttiness and pepperiness of a regular romesco, but boasts more herbal and spicy notes. Leftovers of this romesco make wonderful sandwich additions and salad dressing. 

• Crispy Skin

  • Just a tablespoon of vegetable oil, some salt, and pepper is all it takes to make an irresistibly crispy filet of salmon. I seared each piece of fish, skin side down, for roughly 6 minutes before flipping it over to briefly warm through on the other side. 

  • Warning: Someone please call the Splatter Patrol! Who knew only a tablespoon of oil could make such a mess! I had oily splatters across my entire kitchen floor, I kid you not. If you have one of those splatter guards, now would be the time to use it. If you, like me, don’t own a splatter guard because you don’t like the idea of cleaning one, then prepare thyself. 

  • If you thought you didn’t like to eat the skin on salmon, think again. Crispy skin rules!

The final element to this dish consists of spicy, marinated radishes with vinegar, shallot, and red pepper flakes. They added a nice, bright crunch to everything, and while I enjoyed them, I still would have loved the dish equally as much without them. 

Given that this crispy-skinned salmon is the fourth and final salmon recipe from Alison Roman on this blog, I find it necessary to provide you with a power ranking. You may be wondering what sort of criteria were considered to determine the power rankings. Well, reader, mostly my taste buds. Which salmon did I enjoy eating the most. They are all on the more low maintenance side of cooking – fish doesn’t take long as a general matter. So it comes down to which did I enjoy most. And for me, the answer is pretty clear… 

ALISON ROMAN SALMON POWER RANKINGS

1. Crispy-Skinned Salmon with Spicy Radishes and Green Romesco

2. Slow Salmon with Citrus and Herbs

3. Buttered Salmon with Red Onion and Dill

4. Salmon with Soy and Citrusy Charred Scallions

126 recipes cooked, 99 to go.

Baked Eggs with Chorizo, Chickpeas, and Bread Crumbs by Alison Roman

As I lay in bed this morning, I thought about the day ahead. Admittedly I have very few things to accomplish today – I’m on vacation in Colorado. One item on my short to-do list is making this dish. We already bought all of the ingredients and it’s our last full morning here; today’s the day to do it. But I felt tired and not super jazzed about spending 45 minutes cooking breakfast. I could feel perfectly satisfied with just some eggs and toast. 

And yet, every time I make an Alison recipe that I’m not necessarily in the mood for, it’s as if I can hear her say, “do you trust me?” 

My answer is always “yes.” It’s part of my Rules, and that answer hasn’t led to disappointment yet. 

Well, today’s “yes” was surely rewarded – this meal is amazing. I’ll take you through a brief step by step… 

Diced onion, cumin and chorizo spend the first few minutes together, softening and sharing flavor. This recipe calls for dry chorizo, and try as I did, I couldn’t find it. So I used wet pork chorizo instead. No way of telling if that severely altered anything, but let’s just say that I didn’t notice anything wrong. 

Next, diced fresh tomato joins the pan and cooks until it releases its juices and softens nicely. Then, a can of chickpeas and a bit of water go into the pan to simmer until the liquid reduces substantially. Alison instructs you to break the chickpeas a bit with your spatula, which helps them cook faster and turn out softer for eating purposes. 

Meanwhile, and this is the most ingenious part of the recipe in my opinion, Alison has you make her Spicy Bread Crumbs, which are just fresh bread crumbs fried in oil and aleppo pepper. This step was crucial to the overall texture of the dish. Without the crunchy breadcrumbs, the final thing is a softer, dare I say mushy, mixture that is, yes, delicious, but wanting in variety. Bread crumbs are the answer to this, and therefore cannot be skipped. 

With most of the liquid evaporated, four pockets are created in the pan and an egg fills each one. The pan is supposed to bake in the oven so that the eggs can cook, but none of the pans available in our cabin were oven-safe. Instead, I turned the stove’s heat down to medium-low and covered the pan to steam-cook the eggs. This worked perfectly, and only took about 6 minutes! Before plating I sprinkled the bread crumbs and fresh parsley over the top. 

This breakfast thoroughly exceeded all my expectations. The flavors and textures were vibrant, but not overpowering. It felt filling and satisfying, but not heavy. It paired perfectly with sliced avocado. 

Next time I have someone over for brunch, I will make this – without hesitation. 

75 recipes cooked, 150 to go. (ONE THIRD OF THE WAY TO MY GOAL!)