I know you missed me! Heck, I missed myself! Tough go the past couple of months as we wade through the passing of my dear mother, whom I miss terribly. It goes without saying that the holidays just aren’t, nor ever will be, the same.
The good news is that I am back in the kitchen, back eating and drinking, and note-taking, and so on as I commit my family to more meals around the table, cooking with whole ingredients, all with dramatically less waste.
Remember when I told you about the boys and I going fishing? Do you also remember that we had 150 pieces of fish??? I gave some away of course, and then hit up several fish and chip recipes, mostly because I had various packages of breading/seasoning etc that people had suggested I try or had given me. Honestly? They were OK, not great, and not as fun as I wanted. Don’t get me wrong, it WAS fun loading up the fish on a brown paper bag and dashing malt vinegar all over, but the taste, well, it was pretty bland. Rock fish tends to be that way I guess.
But, since I am not interested in wasting all this great fish, and since I don’t have one of those fancy food-saver-thermo-nuclear-oxygen-sucking toys, I had to store the fillets in the trusty old Ziploc, which give us about 90-120 days before we start getting some serious freezer burn.
So, I started poking around…
My DALS friend (although she doesn’t know me), turned me onto an old Bon Appetit fish “stick” recipe that looked like something the boys would enjoy. Dead simple, 3 ingredients, and simple prep, plus a little store-bought Skipper’s tartar (embarassing but true…talk about memories!), made for a perfect Thursday night dinner.
Panko Crispy Fish Sticks
3-4 fillets of your favorite white fish (cod, flounder, rock fish)
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup AP flour
2 cups panko bread crumbs (Japanese)
kosher salt and pepper
3/4 cup veg oil
Cut fish into 3/4 inch strips (against the grain seems to best). Place eggs, panko and flour into 3 separate bowls (I like to use cake pans). Season fish with salt and pepper and then add to flour. Shake off excess and then dip into egg. Shake off excess and then dip into panko, ensuring even coat. Set aside until all fillets are done. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and place fish sticks into oil and cook for about 3 minutes per side. Set onto paper towel covered plate. Season with salt again. If can’t finish in one fry session, go ahead and add another 1/4 cup of oil between batches.
Serve with your favorite tartar, malt vinegar, or other dipping sauce!
The wood is screwed totegher (evenly spaced) with large 6” screws designed for joining landscaping timbers. The corners are then drilled using a long wood bit and 110v drill. Also drill three holes on long side and two holes on short evenly spaced. Hammer rebar into holes down into ground. You may want to trim rebar depending on length so it goes at least 2’ into ground below wood.
I find this piece very compelling. It’s trlnugaair shape works for me formally, calling to mind the trinity represented in the church, yet the shape of the leaf is paganistic, like the Birth of Venus. It makes me very melancholy and nostalgic, as if it’s reminding me of a time when religious idols and sexual attraction weren’t divorced (something we now are forced to find in pop-idols). I’m still trying to figure out what to do with the face in the window. But I do know that it’s necessary. It’s what upsets the gentleness of the image and keeps me enraptured. Nice.