date night. spanish heat.

Lo and I haven't spent time in Spain, but we imagine it's a beautiful country filled with beautiful people all lisping their z's and sipping sangria on topless beaches. I hope we're not disappointed when we finally go. The things we do know about Spain we love (except that whole conquering the Aztecs thing).

Spanish cuisine's most famous dish has to be paella. Lo and I love paella, it's terrific fun to make and deliciously rewarding to eat. The unfortunate part of paella is that it's always too much food for two people. It's not uncommon for us to be eating piles of rice, seafood and sausage for days. Which doesn't sound that bad as I type this...but let's be honest, paella is better when prepared for a group.

For this date night we wanted to connect some of our favorite Spanish influences and make a creative yet light take on paella, something perfect for a couple enjoying a summer night at home.

Spanish influence one: our take on paella. A prosciutto wrapped sole with brown rice, shell peas, clams, tomato, and pickled chiles in a white wine saffron sauce. It carries many of the same great flavors with a lot less effort (or excess). Click on the link below for our original recipe.

Deconstructed paella

Spanish influence two: sangria. Sangria always sets the mood. It tastes like juice, yet packs a boozey punch, so make a small batch if it's just the two of you. Again, you can select the link below for our mix.

Sangria

And lastly, Spanish influence three: flamenco music. We love Spanish flamenco music. Lo and I had Paco de Lucia playing while we got married. It's romantic, soulful feel is perfect for a hot summer night. We've added a selection of some of our favorite tracks from a great Paco album for you to sample.

 We hope you enjoy this meal as much as we did. Salud!

spring are you there? it's me justin.

The calendar might say it's Spring, but tonight it's going to snow again. It's truly sad. This is why we are mostly crazy and somewhat hearty people here in the Minnesota. Spring just never seems to get here fast enough. I am dreaming of an afternoon hunting morels - it's only a few short weeks away, right?

In homage to a Spring that will eventually get here, Lo and I are gonna be cooking up some lighter dishes. Here is our recipe for a nice grilled piece of Mahi. We marinated it in a fresh fennel parsley and orange marinade and served it up with an orzo, roasted grape, black olive and kumquat salad.

If you have never roasted grapes before, finish reading this post and then go to your kitchen and roast some grapes. They are amazing with a little salt and olive oil roasted for about 20 minutes. They become sweet and savory little juice bombs of wonder. Am I overstating their deliciousness? No, I am not.

For the salad we incorporated sweet and salty through black olives, kumquats and roasted grapes. The texture from the al dente orzo is the perfect carrier for the sweet and savory elements. Along with the grilled fish this whole dish is a winner.

For the salad.

1/2 cup orzo, cooked

a small handful of roasted grapes

2 kumquats, sliced and de-seeded

4 or 5 black olives, sliced thinly

Italian parsley, finely chopped

Olive oil, just a drizzle

salt and fresh-cracked pepper to-taste

Heat your oven to 325º. Toss your grapes in a mixing bowl with some olive oil and salt. Place in an oven safe dish and roast for about 20 minutes. (The juice left in the pan with the grapes is amazing! Perfect for a vinaigrette down the road)

Follow your directions for cooking orzo in salted boiling water, about 8-10 minutes. Strain and cool the pasta slightly. Toss the ingredients in a mixing bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with grilled fish.

For the Mahi.

Makes 2 servings

1 12-16oz piece of Mahi. (Swordfish would be a good substitute)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice

1 small bulb of fennel, sliced thinly

1 shallot, sliced thinly

Italian parsley, roughly chopped

salt and fresh-cracked pepper to-taste

Combine the ingredients (excluding the fish) in a mixing bowl and whisk until evenly mixed. Place the fish in a shallow dish or large ziploc baggie and pour the marinade in. Massage the marinade into the fish a bit and place the fish in your refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.

Get your grill nice and hot. Remove the fish from the marinade and place it on the hot grill. You want to make sure the grate on your grill is really hot and well oiled before placing the fish onto it. Cook skin side down for the first few minutes and then flip it over to finish cooking the fish, probably 5 minutes more or until the fish is cooked through to your liking. Season the fish with a bit of flake salt before serving.