Sea Bass with Pea Tendrils and Shallots

In three weeks I need to be poolside, and so it’s time to clean up my act at the table. That—and my sister and I are running Bay to Breakers in San Francisco this weekend so now is as good a time as any to take a break from the gin and tonics and focus on feeling great. To get my head in the game, I loaded up on bunches of broccoli rabe, pea tendrils, spring onions and some gorgeous sea bass and local hamachi at the Plummer Park farmers market in nearby West Hollywood yesterday morning. Check out these pea tendrils—only $1/bunch.

I sautéed some shallots in a little olive oil and then added a handful of pea tendrils at the last minute, tossed and set aside. Meanwhile, I steamed a bunch of broccoli rabe, which got tossed with some pepper flakes and a little grated pecorino. For the sea bass, I cooked it stovetop for a couple minutes over medium heat in a Le Creuset grill pan, then put the whole pan in the oven at 425 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Pea tendrils are just so good. Kind of like a cross between snap peas and spinach. I love how sweet and fresh this piece of sea bass tasted along with the crunch of the pea tendrils. I noticed, however, that Mr. Foodinista left a few tendrils on his plate. I guess you can lead a steak-and-potatoes guy to pea tendrils, but you can’t make him eat.

Sushi Roller Derby

We had been planning for weeks to go to dinner at my sister’s fab new apartment in Santa Monica off Montana, but when the moment arrived we were totally unprepared for the CRAZY sushi spread she had prepared. I mean seriously. Gorgeous sushi-grade hamachi and ahi, fresh crab and salmon roe—all from Santa Monica Seafood. Claire had prepared sticky sushi rice and julienned cucumber and sliced up avocados. My husband was particularly excited about the spicy tuna Claire had made by mixing together mayo and Sriracha:

From there it was an all-out sushi derby as we raced to create our ultimate rolls. Here’s Mr Foodinista spreading rice onto a seaweed wrapper, while my sister cuts one of her expert rolls:

Yours truly is obsessed with salmon roe and so was particularly smitten with these ikuro avocado rolls, while Mr. Foodinista scarfed most of my sister’s spicy crab and cucumber creations:

And what did she serve with this spectacular spread? One of my all-time favorite bubblies, Lucien Albrecht Cremant d’Alsace Brut Rose ($20). It’s a sparkling rosé from the Alsace region, made from 100% Pinot Noir using the Champagne method but because it’s from a region outside of Champagne it can’t legally be called that. It is a perfect sushi wine. And thank you, Claire, for a PERFECT evening! xx

Go Fish

The holiday 5 lbs seem to have crept on already, and we’re barely in December. So I’m taking a break from marinating myself in eggnog and stuffing and such, and sharing this compartively light meal we enjoyed the other night, based on an Alfred Portale recipe, but using WAAAAY less butter, waaay more wine and one big filet. My sister picked up an enormous halibut filet at Santa Monica Seafood. Gorgeous. Sprinkled with salt and pepper and sautéed over high heat in some canola oil, about 4 minutes a side.

Meanwhile, I par-boiled some green beans and set aside on a platter. When the halibut was seared on both sides, I set on top of the green beans and covered it, then deglazed the pan with some white wine. Okay, quite a bit of white wine, which I cooked down for about 2 minutes. Then added a little bit of butter and some lemon juice for an additional hit of acid and tart, and then threw in some cherry tomatoes, chopped green onions and capers. Enjoy, and pretend there wasn’t butter involved.