2. When it hits a boil cover the pot and remove it from heat. Let it sit for 8-10 minutes.

3. Drain and serve.

Coat the flesh of the salmon liberally with the blackening spice.

Place salmon into the hot skillet. Cook 3-4 minutes per side, or until coating is blackened and forms a nice crust and salmon is cooked through (we like ours medium-well for tacos, just slightly pink in the center). Remove salmon from the skillet onto a plate. Allow salmon to rest for 5 minutes, then flake with a fork. I seasoned my salmon with a pinch of kosher salt just prior to serving.

For the salsa:
In a bowl, gently stir together the avocado, corn, tomato, red onion, cilantro, lime, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

For the dressing:
Add yogurt, mayo, buttermilk, lime juice, garlic, green onions, cilantro, salt and pepper into a food processor. Process until smooth. Add more buttermilk as needed until desired consistency is reached (you’ll want it to be thin enough to drizzle, but not so thin that it slides off the tacos). Refrigerate until ready to serve.

To assemble the tacos:
Choose a warm corn tortilla or cabbage leaf as your taco shell. Place flaked salmon in the shell, followed by some of the avocado corn salsa. Drizzle with the cilantro ranch dressing. If using a corn tortilla, sprinkle some shredded cabbage on top. Serve with lime wedges.

Notes
The salsa can be made up to an hour in advance. The dressing can be made several hours in advance.

Adapted from Cooking Classy.

Form your crab cakes into 1½ inch (in diameter) patties. If you find they are not holding together, then add more panko, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you reach a consistency thick enough to form a solid patty. Lay them out on a large plate and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour or until you are ready to fry.

Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the cakes (making sure to not overcrowd the pan) and cook for about 4 minutes on each side, or until they turn a golden brown color. Do this in batches if you need to. Transfer the crab cakes to a paper towel-lined plate to drain any excess fat.

For the sauce, combine the plum sauce, chipotle peppers and chopped plum in a small saucepan. Warm over low heat until ready to serve. Season with a dash of salt and pepper if you find it is overpoweringly sweet.

Serve cakes on slider rolls or on a bed of lettuce and top with the sauce. Enjoy!

For the fish, separate the flour, buttermilk and cornmeal into three separate shallow bowls. Season the fish generously with salt and pepper, then dip each fillet into the flour, then in the buttermilk and lastly into the cornmeal. Lay them out on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet until you are ready to fry.

In a heavy bottomed non-stick skillet, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, gently place the fillets into the oil, making sure to not overcrowd the pan. Do this in batches if you find they are overcrowding. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side or until crispy and just beginning to brown. Remove the fish from the heat and place on a paper-towel lined plate to soak up any excess grease.

Serve fish on a bed of arugula and top with the mango salsa. Enjoy!

For the succotash:
In a medium skillet over medium heat add oil. Once heated add all of the succotash ingredients. Let the mixture cook for about 5 minutes then add a little salt and pepper to taste and keep heat on low.

For the chipotle cream:
In a small bowl combine yogurt and chipotle powder, and squeeze in lime juice. Taste and add salt or pepper if desired. Set aside.

For the assembly:
In a large cast iron skillet add oil and heat over medium high heat for about 1 minute. Add salmon cakes, and cook for 3 minutes on the first side, until golden brown and crispy then flip and cook another 3 minutes. Remove cooked patties to a paper towel lined plate.

Once cooked, place succotash with salmon cakes on top and a dollop of chipotle cream on top of that. Enjoy!

2. In a large bowl, toss the shrimp with the beaten egg.

3. On a large plate, mix the coconut flakes and panko.

4. Press shrimp (one at a time) in the coconut/panko mixture until well coated. Place on the baking sheet.

5. Sprinkle shrimp with cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.

6. Bake for 6 minutes. If not golden enough, broil for additional 1-2 minutes.

When you buy tilapia, ask the butcher to cut open the fish for you. Make sure not to cut it through and through, since we are going to stuff the fish with a filling later on. Another way of prepping the fish is to ask the butcher to cut a 5-inch incision in the fish’s belly. That should also hold the filling while cooking.

Wash the fish and drain it in a strainer while you prepare the vegetables.

Mix the garlic, onions, tomatoes, ginger, and parsley in a deep bowl. Season the mixture with a dash of salt. Insert or place them inside the tilapia.

Place the long green beans, 2 green chilis and any remaining filling (if all did not fit inside the fish) in a deep pan or a wok.

Wrap the tilapia with cos lettuce. Place the fish on top of the vegetables. Pour in all the coconut milk. Season with fish sauce and ground pepper.

Cover the dish and start cooking over medium to high heat. Check the dish after 20 minutes. When the fish eyes pop out, the fish is cooked. When the fish is cooked, let the dish boil without the lid. Cook for another 15 minutes.

Taste the sauce. Add fish sauce or salt, according to your preference. Add the remaining 2 chilis, turn off the heat and cover the pan. This one’s ready to serve!

Whew! Enjoy!

In a medium sized bowl toss tomatoes and garlic cloves in enough olive oil to coat them, then season with salt and pepper. Roast them in the oven on a rimmed sheet pan for 15 minutes or until tender. Remove pan from the oven and let the mixture cool. Remove garlic cloves from the skins and place in a food processor or blender with the tomatoes. Blend until smooth.

Heat the stock to a simmer in a medium saucepan.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the onion. Sauté for 2-3 minutes or until it is slightly translucent. Add the rice to the pot and stir it briskly with a wooden spoon so that the grains are coated with the oil and melted butter. Sauté for another minute, until there is a slightly nutty aroma. But don’t let the rice brown.

Add the tomato paste and vodka and cook while stirring, until the liquid is fully absorbed and the tomato paste is completely incorporated. Add a ladle of the hot stock to the rice and stir until the liquid is fully absorbed. When the rice appears almost dry, add another ladle of stock and repeat the process.

It’s important to stir constantly, to prevent burning, and add the next ladle as soon as the rice is almost dry.

Continue adding a ladle of hot stock and stirring the rice while the liquid is absorbed. As it cooks, you’ll see that the rice will take on a creamy consistency as it begins to release its natural starches.
Continue adding stock, a ladle at a time, for 30 minutes or until the grains are tender.

At this point add the tomato garlic puree and stir in. Keep stirring until risotto is thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Turn heat off and prepare the scallops.

Make sure the scallops are completely dry. Pat them dry with paper towels. Slice the prosciutto slices in half lengthwise and wrap the scallops. Season the scallops with salt.

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a skillet or saute pan on high heat. The pan needs to be screaming hot in order to properly sear the scallops. Add the scallops to the pan and cook 1 1/2 minutes on each side. Scallops should have a brown crust on the outside. Remove them from the pan when done.

Serve risotto and scallops immediately and garnish with plenty of chopped basil.

Mix together asparagus, lemon zest, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl.

Spread asparagus out in the center of the parchment paper. Place salmon over the asparagus, then top with shallots and lemon slices.

Seal the parchment and bake from 10-12 minutes. Carefully open the parchment paper after removing from the oven to allow steam to escape.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Magazine, May 2013.