Organic Goodness

I recently watched the documentary film called "Food Inc." I'm not one for preachy documentaries but I have to say I was immediately grasped by this in terms of conviction and empowerment. I had no idea of the huge food conspiracy going on in this country by corporate foodies to keep hidden from us what we are actually eating. We have a right to know! Let's just say, Don and I have been persuaded to switch entirely to only pasture raised, antibiotic free meat products and fresh organic produce with sustainable agricultural practices. One of the first things I did was sign us up for weekly deliveries of fresh organic produce from Dandelion Organic Delivery in Bellingham. I have been so excited about this and our first Harvest Box arrived the other day! I have lots of fun meals planned for the week. Below is what we tackled for our first meal. It was fun and delicious!

Root Vegetable Hash with Horseradish Cream
This first recipe is from the Food Network website. Surprisingly there were no reviews or ratings on this one so it was a complete unknown for us trying this one out. The hash was delicious and I really cannot wait to eat the leftovers for my breakfast tomorrow. But the horseradish cream sauce is just amazing! Don doesn't like sour cream so we used plain organic yogurt instead. Also we added some fresh graded horseradish root to the hash itself that we had leftover in the fridge. I'm quite happy with our substitutions as I think they were an improvement on the original recipe. Also, trying to press the hash into individual cakes didn't really work so I left that part out. A simple standard hash is fine for this recipe. Below is the recipe as we made it and recommend.

Ingredients

Horseradish Cream:

• 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
• 1/2 cup plain organic yogurt
  
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Pinch freshly ground pepper

Hash:

• 4 tablespoons butter, diced
• 1 onion, sliced thinly, 1 cup (4 ounces)
• 2 springs fresh rosemary
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pound Yukon gold or other waxy potatoes, skin on
• 1 large carrot (2 to 3 ounces)
• 1 large beet, peeled (4 ounces)
• 1/4 cup fresh grated horseradish root
  
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

For the horseradish cream, whisk the prepared horseradish into the yogurt and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large (10-inch) nonstick skillet over moderate heat. Add the onion and rosemary and cook, stirring occasionally until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic to the onion and cook another minute.

Meanwhile, with the shredding blade of a food processor, or with a box grater, grate the potatoes into a colander. Rinse and pat very dry. (Giving them a turn in a salad spinner helps, too.)

Stir the potatoes and grated horseradish root into the vegetables in the skillet. Cook the potatoes, undisturbed until they get crusty on the bottom. Then, stir the crispy bottom into the tender potato, and continue to cook to re-crisp the bottom. Continue this browning and periodic stirring until the potatoes are almost cooked through, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, shred the carrot and beet.

Remove the rosemary sprigs. Stir the carrot and beets into the potato hash, and cook until slightly soft, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in bits along the sides of the skillet, and then brown the hash over high heat. Turn the hash in large sections with a spatula to brown the other sides, another minute.

Divide the vegetable hash among 4 plates and serve warm with the horseradish cream.

Mustard-Roasted Fish

So very good and so very simple! It's hard to do wrong with this recipe. The sauce is light and flavorful and appeals to a broad range of pallets. Make with just about any white fish fillet. We made with fresh Dover fillets from Vis Seafood in Bellingham. The recipe was inspired by the Food Network with our own modifications. The fish not only cooked well on the parchment paper but cleanup was a breeze so we were able to conserve water during dishwashing.

Ingredients

• 4 (8-ounce) fish fillets
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 ounces heavy cream
  
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots
• 2 teaspoons drained capers

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. (You can also use an ovenproof baking dish.) Place the fish fillets skin side down on the sheet pan. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Combine the cream, 2 mustards, shallots, capers, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl. Spoon the sauce evenly over the fish fillets, making sure the fish is completely covered. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish, until it's barely done. (The fish will flake easily at the thickest part when it's done.) Be sure not to overcook it! Serve hot or at room temperature with the sauce from the pan spooned over the top.

By the way, in case you were wondering, the Root Vegetable Hash with Horseradish Cream tastes excellent the next morning with a Fried Egg on top (Organic Free Range of course!) and Crispy bacon on the side. Finish it off with a half a banana and a glass of Orange Juice. The breakfast of champions!