Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Creamed Cod and Spinach Salad

Tonight we move from South Carolina to the rockbound coast of New England for Creamed Cod. Creamed Cod is made from salt codfish, which comes in a cute little wooden box, and is available at the fish store. In the days when cod swarmed off the Georges Banks of Newfoundland in their millions, this used to be poor people's food. Thanks to overfishing, it is no longer cheap.
When I was in my 20s I had a subscription to Time Life Foods of the World Cookbooks. They were supremely glossy and fun to read, if not fun to cook out of. They were full of full color pictures of picnics and beautiful landscapes and food. In the Spain and Portugal book, there was a recipe for salt cod, fried potatoes and scrambled eggs, all mixed together. We used to have that a lot.
So, having had history with salt cod, I did not fall into the "Night before.." trap. I knew it had to be soaked, and therefore, I soaked it. This dish probably contains about 1,000 calories per person, as it uses half a cup of butter and two cups of cream. And, as the BF's husband pointed out, it is somewhat bland. One boils the cod until it is flaky, makes a white sauce, and then cooks the cod for 5 minutes in the sauce. Traditionally this is eaten with boiled potatoes (we did) and pickled beets. (Nope.)

Spinach Salad

This is an easy to make salad. You take a garlic clove, and rub it all over a salad bowl. Next make the dressing, dry mustard, Tabasco sauce, 3 tablespoons wine vinegar,
7 tablspoons oilve oil, and two hard cooked eggs along with the spinach.

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