A Dish for the New Year
I love a special meal for New Years Day but I don't like to
work too hard. So I usually have something that can be prepared a day or two
ahead and just heated while concentrating on Strauss and Champagne! For 2014 I
chose to make some Bacala (dried Cod), but in a couple unusual ways. When I
noticed that one recipe was red and
the other white, I decided that with
a bright green vegetable I could have
the Tricolor flag of Italy, in an edible form. Whimsy befits ushering in the
New Year. This is also very delicious.
You must reconstitute the cod in a bath of cold water which you
change several times a day. After about two days, keeping it refrigerated of
course, the cod is ready. Make sure any skin left on is removed and check for
any bones. There's normally not much of either. I used 2 pounds of Bacala (dry). About one pound for each recipe.
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| Cod, reconstituted and drained |
Squeeze them out dry with paper
towels and I like to gently pound the fish a bit which tenderizes them. I'll
now divide the story into four parts: the wine, the red, the white and the
green.
The Wine
Cédric Bouchard's Champagnes are always a treat, when you can
get your hands on some. This is the 2010 Inflorescence
and it makes a special occasion yet more special. If you are a Champagne lover
and you don't know of him, do a little research and then do your best to track
down a bottle or two. You won't be disappointed
The Red
We're basically going to fry up bite sized
pieces of Cod and bake them with pasta and sauce. If I had a lot of Cod to fry,
I would use a deep fryer at 375F. Since this is only a little Cod, I'll use a
small cast-iron pan and cook them in batches. A small pan because I want the
oil to be deep, "Fish gotta swim!" (I
used a Canola and Olive oil mixture)
You can make up your own recipe and use whatever
tomato sauce you like (preferably your homemade). I've chosen to make a richer
and more aggressive sauce to contrast better with the White recipe.
First run a can (28 oz) of good quality
Italian Tomatoes through the blender, but not too much. Leave a little lumpy.
For the rest of the sauce I used 4 oz. Tomato
Paste, 4 cloves of Garlic chopped, a Hot Banana Pepper sliced into rings, a
small Sweet Onion stuck with a few Cloves, several small Mushrooms quartered,
and about 2 teaspoons of crushed Capers.
Sauté the Garlic in Olive Oil for a minute
or so, then add the Mushrooms and Pepper rings.
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| Sauce ingredients, starting Garlic |
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| adding Mushrooms and Peppers |
Cook down, stirring, until
Garlic starts to color. Now add the Tomato Paste and blend in thoroughly. Continue
cooking for about 5 minutes, this will help caramelize the Paste. Then add the
crushed Capers, 2 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Sugar and some ground Pepper and stir in.
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| adding Tomato Paste |
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| Add Capers and seasonings |
Now
add the Tomatoes and mix everything together and bring to a boil. Reduce heat,
add the Clove-stuck-Onion and let simmer, uncovered, for at least an hour,
adding a little water from time to time to keep at a good consistency. After an hour, correct seasoning.
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| Sauce ready to simmer |
While the sauce is cooking, prepare the
Bacala. Cut into cubes about 1½ inches on a side. Prepare a bowl of 2 eggs,
beaten. Place some seasoned Bread Crumbs on a small plate, and get the oil to
375F. Dip the fish in eggs and roll in crumbs. Then fry until golden and remove
to paper towels. Remember, small
batches.
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| ready to fry |
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| frying Bacala |
Cook Pasta until a few minutes less than
being done. I used a small corkscrew shaped pasta, with a central hole. This
manufacturer called it Cavatappi,
which is Italian for (unsurprisingly) Corkscrews.
Drain thoroughly.
Now we're ready to begin assembly in an
ovenproof casserole. Start with a layer of sauce, then half the fish, then half
the pasta. Then repeat: sauce, fish, pasta. End by pouring the rest of the
sauce covering all the pasta on the top layer.
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| ready to assemble |
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| half asssembled |
RED part is ready for the oven, or (as I did) refrigerate and bake
in a day or two.
The White
There is a common Codfish
Portuguese style recipe that sort of resembles what we Americans call Scalloped Potatoes, but with garlic and
Cod as added ingredients. You could say this recipe is based on that, but I
have chosen to mash the potatoes and infuse this with the Cod and Garlic, you'll
want to use a food processor. This can all be done ahead and baked along side
the RED casserole. That meets my
needs for New Years Day, exactly. This is also a very, very delicious way to
prepare Bacala and could be a side dish or a main course. I really like this
dish!!
Peel about 2# Potatoes, quarter them and boil until tender.
Meanwhile cut the Cod into small pieces. Chop 3 cloves of Garlic. Have some
Sour Cream ready. slice two small Scallions into thin rings.
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| Cod and Garlic chopped |
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| Boiling Potatoes |
Generously butter
a Casserole (with Butter). When
Potatoes are done, drain them well. Then mash them up pretty good.
Place the Cod and Garlic
in the food processor, with steel blade. Add a couple of big dollops of mashed
Potatoes. Also a couple dollops of Sour Cream. Process well. Scrape down sides
and process again.
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| Ready to process |
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| Finished processing |
Now mix this back into the rest of the mashed Potatoes, add
the scallions, some salt and pepper and mix well.
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| Everything mixed |
Place in the casserole and you're ready to bake, or place in
the refrigerator for a day or two, as I did.
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| Ready to Bake |
The Green
Use any bright green vegetable you prefer. I chose Asparagus
because it is quick to prepare, has a beautiful color, and I like it a lot!
You
can steam it, of course, but for this little amount I prefer placing it in a
small Pyrex® container with lid, add a few drops of water, and
Microwave on low for 4 minutes.
It emerges bright green and with just a little
bite. All microwaves are different, so it is wise to check on it after each minute
to get the right consistency. I hate overcooked Asparagus. Also, I always peel
my Asparagus before cooking it.
Bake these casseroles in a 350F oven 45 min - one hour. If you have refrigerated them, remove and let stand at room temperature for about an hour first.
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| Finished and out of the oven |
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| Starting to bake |
My final New Years Day plating:
