My Herb Garden

Now that summer is in full swing (and I just got a job), I'm not doing any cooking that's too fancy but I am using the herbs from my garden and absolutely LOVING them. I have made a sauce using a large handful of various herbs blended into some yogurt that is really good. The first time I made it I used thyme, tarragon, rosemary, parsley, basil, and oregano - a lot of strong flavors that for some reason really worked together. I just pureed them in a food processor and added some plain yogurt with some salt and pepper. I used that sauce on both grilled salmon and grilled vegetables.
Another time I went heavy on the tarragon and omitted the rosemary and basil. I put that sauce on some pan-fried halibut - delish.
I tried another fresh herb sauce that was kind of a chimichurri but with an Asian flair. I used mint, Thai basil, chives, and lemon balm chopped up with some garlic and mixed in some olive oil. It was a nice sauce on some pork that I marinaded in a store bought Asian marinade (the horror)

Homemade Viniagrette

The front page article in the Chicago Tribune today featured several recipes for making vinaigrette. (It was actually the front page of the Good Eating section but to me, on a Wednesday, that is the front page.) I make my own vinaigrette all the time. It is a great way to save money and get a fresh, great tasting, preservative free salad dressing that tastes so much better than any bottled dressing.
There are so many different varieties of vinaigrette one can make. Just changing the vinegar or adding an herb makes a new dressing. I even made my own herb vinegars by purchasing bulk vinegar and flavoring it with herbs from my garden but one has to wait until the end of summer when the herbs are plentiful to do that so I'll save that for another time.
To make it, I start with some vinegar (balsamic, white wine, red wine, Champagne, sherry...the options are endless), add Dijon mustard, chopped shallots, garlic, or onions, a chopped herb if I am using one, salt & pepper, and combine. Then I whisk in some oil. I almost always use a canola oil as it has a very neutral flavor and as I usually make extra to have in the fridge, it does not solidify like olive oil would. The standard ratio is one part vinegar to 3-4 parts oil. Many times I use less oil than that to make it a little healthier. This does make it pretty acidic but it also forces me to use less - even healthier.
The dijon and shallot, garlic or onion act as emulsifiers. Adding those will help your vinegar and oil from separating. It is not necessary to add either of them but they add a lot of flavor also.
Some other additions that I like are lemon, lime or orange juice, chipotle, blue cheese, avocado, yogurt, and black olives.

Vinaigrette

1/2 cup Vinegar (any good quality vinegar will work: balsamic, white or red wine, sherry, Champagne)
1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
1 tablespoon Shallots, Onions, or Garlic, chopped (you may want to use less garlic)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh herbs (optional) - My favorites are tarragon or rosemary
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups canola oil (can use less if desired)

Mix all ingredients except oil together. Slowly whisk in oil and continue whisking until mixture is emulsified (totally combined). Taste and make any necessary adjustments. Let stand for 1/2 hour for flavors to mix. Can be refrigerated for up to two weeks.
Any other additions can be added. For example, whisking in some blue cheese and yogurt makes a creamy blue cheese vinaigrette. If you add the citrus juice, you will not need as much vinegar.

Fresh herb vinaigrette

When things come out of hibernation and start growing in my garden it makes me happy. In particular I love my herb garden. Growing fresh herbs is so easy and is a great way to save money. I try to grow a large variety every year. There is not much action yet but a few of the perennials (those that come back every year) are back in full swing - the chives and oregano. I decided to use these two herbs in an olive vinaigrette to put over a whole roasted red snapper.
A great place to buy fresh fish is Isaacson & Stein Fish Co. on Halsted and Fulton. They have a great selection of very fresh seafood and their prices are good. Last time I was there a couple weeks ago they had a special on frozen whole red snappers for $4 a pound so I stocked up on a couple of them. Fresh is always better than frozen but it is very convenient to have some fish in the freezer that I can defrost whenever.
Roasting a whole fish is so easy and delicious. All you have to do is heat up the oven to a high temperature, add a little salt and optional herbs to the fish, and roast it in the oven for about 20 minutes. That's it.
Here is the recipe:

Whole Roasted Red Snapper with Fresh Herb Olive Vinaigrette

For Fish
1 whole red snapper
salt & pepper
fresh herbs for stuffing fish (optional)

For Vinaigrette
2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs - Chives and Oregano are great
6 black olives, pitted and chopped
1 tablespoon capers
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar (can also use red or white wine vinegar)
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt & pepper (optional - taste first)

For fish, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash fish, dry, and place on baking sheet (I put it on tin foil so the fish skin does not stick to the baking sheet). If using fresh herbs for stuffing, put them in the fish and salt and pepper the outside of the fish generously.
Roast the fish in the oven for about 20 minutes. The fish should fall from the bone easily when it is done.
For vinaigrette, combine all ingredients and let sit for 20 minutes to 2 hours.
When the fish is done, spoon vinaigrette over it and it is ready to eat.