Art of the Odd

When NovySan posted a description of our Mardi Gras dinner to Twitter, Slackmistress asked for pictures.

It was, alas, too late.

So, in lieu of pictures, here’s the recipe (more or less) for spiced date and pecan-crusted catfish and balsamic greens.

Start with about a cup of pecan halves. Add three dates (sans pits – does that sound like romantic advice?), two or three cloves of garlic, a dash of salt, and a generous measure of garam masala. (I have two varieties in the cupboard. One contains more cumin, the other more black pepper. For sweeter dishes, like this one, I use the one with more pepper. If you don’t have garam masala, it’s a mix of sweet and savory spices – pepper, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, clove and cardamom, maybe some saffron or nutmeg. It’s like a shortcut to yummy.) Pulse in a food processor until everything’s mixed – but try not to completely pulverize the pecans. Spread the mixture in a baking dish – mine’s 11X7. You might want to drizzle a little olive oil in there first, just to make sure nothing sticks. Lay two catfish fillets on top of the pecan mixture, then flip them over a couple of times until they’re completely coated. You might need to dig some of the mix out from under them and ladle it over the top. I sprinkled them with some peppercorns, fennel seed and a little more salt. (I’d stick with black pepper – I used a peppercorn mix, and we discovered the white pepper was still a bit crunchy at the end.) Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes, covered.

As for the greens, they were cooked over a medium flame in a cast iron skillet with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and a bit of salt, until they wilted. These were collards, but any greens you like would do. (And actually, I think the collards do better to be slow cooked – they don’t have a lot of moisture in them, so they don’t soften in the pan the way chard or spinach will.)