Gwyneth Paltrow's Grilled Halibut with Mango-Avocado Salsa

I'm going to kind of gloss over the Gwyneth-ness of this recipe and the June 2011 issue of bon appetit. Because the really important thing is that I really like this halibut, and actually really loved this peach barbeque sauce too.

The halibut is prepared simply in the way that you can when you have expensive ingredients like halibut and mango and avocado. But it's also prepared simply in that way that screams that you're eating something incredibly fresh and healthy and a only little pretentious. So very Gwyneth, and so very delicious. But maybe next time, with some jalapeno to make it a real salsa?

Perfect Pan Roasted Chicken Thighs

Sometimes it seems like all I do is make chicken for dinner. I do make chicken for dinner pretty frequently (twice a week or so)-- it's easy, and cheap, and slightly more healthy than other animal proteins. It's the original white meat! But it gets boring. I could eat a nice NY strip with just salt and pepper (like my husband grilled last night!) one a week, every week, but even my favorite chicken recipes get stale unless 6 weeks or so pass by in between each preparation. Thus, why I'm always seeking new ones, and therefore blogging about them.

The much talked about Gwyneth bon appetit had a bold cover advertisement for the crispiest chicken EVER. Once I got past the Gwyneth-ness of the issue, I spent some time with the recipe for perfect pan roasted chicken thighs, which is less a recipe and more a guide to perfect technique. The instructions jump around like chicken calisthenics -- cook skin-side down in skillet -- lower heat -- roast in oven -- flip -- rest. Instead of going with my instincts, I tried to follow the recipe to the letter the best I could. On my own, I definitely would not have gone the full 12 minutes in the pan; I was terrified the chicken would burn, but it actually just turned a deep, golden brown. End result? Restaurant worthy chicken thighs. And I may not be able to wait another 6 weeks for this one...

Shrimp with Spiced Masala and Coconut Milk

Shrimp masala is a recipe from a friend that originated in an old bon appetit. Two great things about this recipe: first, you can make the masala the night before, which means dinner comes together in a snap when you get home on a weeknight, and second, you could easily substitute another protein for the shrimp. The gravy is fragrant and mild, very typical of what you'd find at an Indian restaurant in the U.S. Serve with naan, and you're done!

Stir-Fried Beef and Sugar Snap Peas With Sesame Oil and Seeds

First, to get this out of the way, the point of this Good Appetite recipe from the NY Times is that you, at home, should make it with humanely-raised, grass feed beef. Right. My sell on this really is, good Asian food you can make yourself at home with fresh ingredients you can control, which may or may not include the beef.

As with the large difference in price between grass-fed and other beef, there was a large difference of opinion in our household on this one... we both loved the green, fresh, crunchy sugar snap peas, which are really the star here. We both loved the light, delicate pan sauce and pairing it with the hot sriracha sauce. I loved the dish overall; my husband thought the meat needed more flavor (I think maybe he wanted the grass fed). He suggested that the origin of his problem was the size of the beef strips: the recipe dictates 1/4" thick, and mine were probably more like 1/3". Next time (there will be a next time!) I'm letting him slice.