I remember as a young fella going fishing with the boy scouts (ahh, I was Angelic looking as you can imagine) and on occasion catching a catfish. We’d always just throw them back in as we were told they were inedible, though the people in Texas would beg to differ! There are Catfish Parlours all over the map there. According to Wikipedia, the most commonly eaten catfish species in the States are the channel catfish and blue catfish, both of which are common in the wild and increasingly widely farmed. Farm-raised catfish became such a staple of the diet of the United States (I’m pretty sure Texas played a substantial role in it) that on June 25, 1987, President Ronald Reagan established National Catfish Day to recognize “the value of farm-raised catfish.” Catfish is eaten in a variety of ways; in Europe it is often cooked in similar ways to carp, but in the United States it is typically crumbed with cornmeal and fried. Now, how ’bout that for some good info?

I think usually catfish is one of those fish that we don’t always gravitate to in the store because some people just don’t know what to do with it but once you get the hang of it, you’ll really enjoy it especially since it’s not expensive and it’s sustainable. I’ve made some delicious fish tacos with catfish and most recently Cajun spiced with Chard & Leek Saute. This is another tasty way to whip up a quick n’ easy dinner. How times have changed!

Serves 4

RECIPE:
4 x 5-6 oz local farmed Catfish portions

DIRECTIONS:

Combine the marinade ingredients together in a mixing bowl and marinate the catfish for up to 2 hours. Once ready preheat a non-stick skillet and sear the fish on one side for 4-5 minutes on medium heat. Once nicely golden flip over and reduce heat to medium low. When fish is cooked it should be opaque and firm to the touch.
Serve with rice ‘n’ beans and sauteed spinach. Yeehaw! (as they say)

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

I’m really diggin’ our CSA box delivery service. So far the produce has been great and in order to use it all we’ve had to use our noggins and think outside the box a bit, so to speak! Who said you can’t have looks and brains?

This week our box contained organic Fuji apples, spinach, leeks, rainbow chard, broccoli, Valencia oranges & mixed peppers. I turned to old faithfuls for some of these—I used the oranges for Jerk sauce and the mixed peppers went into a pot o’chili.

Each week when our box arrives there’s a newsletter inside from the farm talking about what’s in season and giving tips and such about the fruit n’ veg. They also give a recipe highlighting one of the veggies. I was intrigued by this particular chard recipe not only because I really like leafy greens but also because it used the entire bunch of chard, stems & all. Usually one would remove the stems and either put them in the stock pot as I do or into the compost heap. Either way they’re getting used but I’d much prefer to eat them. They have a lovely peppery flavour and they add brilliant colour to the sauteed chard. I can’t take any credit for this but it did turn out great and I combined it with a rice recipe (below) which uses up some of the apples. Usin’ my noggin!

CHARD & LEEK SAUTE
RECIPE
Serves 4

2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cup sliced leeks – white part only, washed & drained
4 minced garlic cloves
1/4 cup low sodium chicken or veg broth
1 bunch rainbow chard – washed
salt
freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Pull the leaves from the stalks and chop finely. Set aside. Chop the leaves coarsely and rinse thoroughly in cold water. Drain.

Preheat large skillet on medium heat for 1 minute. Add 1 tbsp olive oil. Saute leeks for 3 minutes approx, stirring.
Add garlic and chard stems to leeks and saute for additional 3-4 minutes until softened. Add broth and chard leaves and saute for 4-5 minutes until tender and stock reduced.
Taste and season with S&P.

RICE WITH LEEKS & FUJI APPLE:

RECIPE:
Serves 6-8

2 cups uncooked Brown & Red Rice Mix (I like the Texmati Royal Blend)
2 cups Fuji apple – small dice
1 cup leek – white only – chopped
2 cloves garlic – minced
3 cups low-sodium chicken/veg  broth
2 cups water
1 tsp fresh thyme – chopped
1/3 cup walnuts -toasted & chopped
3/4 chopped walnuts – toasted
1 tsp olive oil
S&P to taste

Directions:
Preheat large saute for 30 seconds on medium heat. Drizzle 1 tbsp olive and saute diced apples for 6-7 minutes until soft. Once softened, remove from pan and add another tbsp olive oil. Saute leeks for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add garlic and continue cooking for another 30 seconds. Add broth, water, thyme and rice.  Stir and cover with lid. Bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes approx or until rice is cooked through.
NOTE: If additional liquid is needed add 1/2 cup at a time.
Once cooked, drain any excess liquid and return rice to pan. Fold in apple and walnuts.
Taste and season with S&P.

SERVING SUGGESTION:
Cajun Catfish or Grilled Organic Chicken Breast
I was able to purchase pre-seasoned cajun catfish at Whole Foods and it was damn tasty! (Even headdaball enjoyed it.) Definitely a meal worth trying!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients.