10 foods that cleanse the liver

In the past, I talked about my favorite food cleaning. This list is a bit more specific and mainly focuses on foods that can help cleanse the liver. Besides taking a supplement liver cleansing and applying at least two year clean liver and gallbladder, eat the following foods is the best way to keep your liver healthy and work the way you...

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How to Sleep like a Baby

It’s 3:00 a.m. where are you? Most people would probably be asleep. However, for a large majority of people, it is near impossible for them to get a good nights rest. Without it, they are unable to focus well, they have low energy, and let’s face it, they are usually in a not so good mood. Is there anything that the sleep deprived can do...

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New England Steamers

Steamers! Add these clams to the list of foods fun to eat. I was first introduced to steamers, or steamed soft shell clams, when I lived in Boston years ago. Unlike hard shell clams (known here as quahogs, cherry stones, or little necks, depending on their size), steamers have rather thin, brittle shells, so you have to be gentle...

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Panko-crusted Salmon

Panko is a Japanese type of bread crumb that is especially light and crunchy, popular these days with chefs because it doesn’t get soggy. What I love about this way of preparing salmon is that the panko topping seems to hold in the salmon’s moisture while roasting, so the salmon doesn’t get dried out at all. The salmon is perfectly...

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Manhattan Clam Chowder

According to food historian and blogger Janet Clarkson, the very first printed recipe for chowder appeared in the Boston Evening Post in 1751. Written as a poem, it described a stew with onions, pork, fish, herbs, and biscuits (hard tack, I think). Over the years “chowdah” evolved into a dairy-based stew in New England, and during...

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Crab Dip

Winter is fresh crab season here in Northern California. When our local Whole Foods gets in a shipment, we’re first in line for the biggest (anything greater than 2 lbs) fresh, cooked crabs, already cleaned and broken. Dad calls it “nature’s fast food”. We’ve been known to go through a couple 2 pounders just for lunch. Note that...

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How to Make Shellfish Stock

Years ago, on a little island off the coast of Marblehead, Massachusetts, a friend’s aunt showed me how to eat a lobster, including the fine art of sucking the tender meat and juice out of the spindly legs. It was July, when lobsters are in season, and we had a huge pot of them for our gang. Aunt Judy then explained that one makes...

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Honey Apple Cider Glazed Salmon

A lovely way to prepare salmon is with a simple glaze made with honey and apple cider. You might think that this combination would make the dish too sweet, but it just adds a delicious caramelized flavor to the fish. First you make the glaze by boiling apple cider (or juice) and honey together until well reduced. Then you pour...

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Grilled Wild Salmon with Preserved Lemon Relish

My father walked through the door the other day with half of a fresh whole wild salmon, announcing to me that he would like me to grill it. Sure dad! When someone presents truly fresh fish to you, there really isn’t a “save it for another day” option. The thing to do is to keep it chilled and cook it as soon as you can. Save for...

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Homemade Tartar Sauce

Confession time. I am a lover of tartar sauce. I think the seafood eating world is divided into two camps, those who enjoy tartar sauce with their fish, and those who will have nothing to do with it. I am happily in the first camp and love nothing better than any fish fillet my dad buys (he can spot the freshest) and my mom prepares...

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Fish Tacos

In Mexico, practically every meal is accompanied by a stack of fresh warm corn tortillas, much in the way that bread is served here in America. As you eat, you can wrap whatever is on your plate in a fresh tortilla, and voilá, you have a taco. Almost everything tastes good in a taco smothered with fresh salsa, and that goes for...

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Cilantro Lime Shrimp

One of the things I love about shrimp is that it cooks up so quickly on the stovetop, perfect when you have hot weather and you don’t want to use the oven, or have the stove going too long. Case in point, this cilantro lime shrimp. If you have shrimp fresh and ready to go, it takes 10 or 15 minutes to cook, tops. If you are...

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Crab Mango and Avocado Salad

I first encountered a crab mango salad at Fringale, the exquisite French-Basque restaurant on 4th St. in San Francisco. Recently at a restaurant in LA I had another delicious crab mango salad, this time with avocado and surrounded by peeled ruby red grapefruit sections. I’ve been dreaming about it ever since. ...

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