Broiled Shark With Pesto Trapanese Recipes

BROILED TILAPIA AND EGGPLANT WITH MOROCCAN PESTO

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler. Bring 3/4 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Put the couscous in a medium heatproof bowl and stir in the boiling water. Cover the bowl and set aside until the couscous is tender, about 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
• Meanwhile, puree the garlic, cilantro, 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1/4 cup water in a blender. Pulse in the lemon zest, cumin, coriander, paprika and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Score the eggplant flesh in a 1/2-inch crosshatch pattern and place cut-side up on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush with 2 tablespoons of the cilantro pesto and season with salt and pepper. Broil the eggplant, without turning, until browned and softened, 10 to 14 minutes.
• Lay the tilapia on another foil-lined baking sheet. Brush with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Broil until the fish is cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes. Brush each fillet with about 1 teaspoon pesto.
• Divide the fish, couscous and eggplant among plates. Mix the yogurt with 1 tablespoon water and drizzle on the eggplant. Top the fish with the remaining pesto and more cilantro. Serve with lemon wedges.

BROILED SHARK WITH PESTO TRAPANESE

Steps:

• With processor running, drop garlic through feed tube; process until chopped. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add basil and almonds; chop finely. Add tomatoes, oil and olives; process using on/off turns until mixture resembles coarse paste (do not purée). Season with salt and pepper. (Pesto can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and chill.)
• Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly oil large baking sheet. Arrange shark steaks on prepared sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread 3 to 4 tablespoons pesto over each steak. Cover each with 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs. Bake until fish is just opaque in center, about 10 minutes.
• Preheat broiler. Broil fish until crumbs on top begin to brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer fish to plates. Serve, passing remaining pesto separately, if desired.

LINGUINE WITH PESTO TRAPANESE

Steps:

• Sauté the almonds in a little olive oil until tan.
• Put basil, garlic, and salt in food processor and chop. Put aside.
• Put in almonds and pulse until size of orzo.
• Put tomatoes, almonds, basil garlic, cheese, and olive oil back in food processor and whir briefly. Add some fresh-ground coarse pepper.
• Boil linguine. If you are Sicilian, become hysterical at the prospect of overcooked pasta. Break open a strand every 60 seconds, and when there is one tiny white speck at the center, drain instantly. Save a cupful of pasta water.
• Put pasta in with pesto and mix quickly. Add a little pasta water if necessary. Serve lukewarm or at room temperature.

SPICY BROILED SHARK STEAKS

Steps:

• Rinse fish; pat dry with paper towels.
• Cut into serving size pieces.
• For marinade, in a shallow bowl combine the green onions, orange juice, chili sauce, basil, gingerroot, soy sauce, and chili oil.
• Add the fish; turn to coat with marinade.
• Cover; marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes.
• Spray the unheated rack of a broiler pan with nonstick coating.
• Drain fish, reserve marinade.
• Place fish on prepared rack.
• Broil 4 inches from the heat for 5 minutes.
• Using a wide spatula, carefully turn fish over.
• Brush with the reserved marinade.
• Broil for 5-7 minutes more or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

PASTA CON IL PESTO ALLA TRAPANESE (TOMATO AND ALMOND PESTO)

Steps:

• Cover the almonds with boiling water for a few minutes to loosen their skins, then slip them off with your fingers when they are cool enough to handle. Try not to cut corners and use ready blanched almonds, as nuts quickly lose their flavour without their protective skins. Toast the almonds in a non-stick frying pan, stirring frequently for a few minutes until they are pale gold.
• Whizz the basil, garlic and a little coarse sea salt in a food processor and tip into a large bowl. Process the almonds, again with a little salt, using the pulse button, until they're the size of small grains of rice.
• Peel the tomatoes, de-seed by halving and squeezing over the sink, then chop into medium dice. Mix the tomatoes and the almonds into the basil and garlic, add the grated cheese and olive oil and mix well. Taste and season with pepper and - only if needed - a little salt.
• Boil the pasta in the usual way, taking care to keep it very al dente, especially if you are planning to serve it cold. The Sicilians are probably the most fussy of all Italians about pasta, and they are very quick to declare it scotta, which means overcooked. To judge when to drain the pasta, cut a piece of pasta open: when it has a tiny uncooked white speck at the centre, drain it. It will be perfectly cooked all the way through by the time you serve it.
• Drain the pasta but reserve a couple of ladles of the pasta water. Tip the pasta into the bowl with the pesto and mix it gently but quickly, so that the melting cheese is well distributed. Add a little pasta water if necessary so the sauce lightly coats each pasta corkscrew. The pasta can be served now, lukewarm, or at room temperature, but don't chill, as this dulls the heady aromas which are the joy of this dish.