Juniper in Hastings on Hudson

It is a special occasion when our family is all together at home.
So on Friday night, we went out to our favorite restaurant- Juniper!
The meal began with two appetizers. The soft shell crab was a dream- cooked perfectly with a moist center and crispy shell, it was served with vegetables and a light cilantro and mint dressing. The firm and flavorful pasta carbonara with english peas was so fresh it brought us to think of our travels in Italy.
My entree of the Dorade with smoked potatoes and vegetables was pan seared and served over a light and flavorful broth dousing the smoked potatoes and vegetables. Just perfect!
The other entrees we had were skate, grilled chicken and pork with fava beans. All were excellent.
For dessert the panecotta with strawberries and rhubarb was amazing. The bread pudding was served with delicious and rich chocolate syrup and vanilla ice cream. Outrageously good!
We are so lucky to have such a great eating spot nearby.

New England Pollock

I was so pleased to see "fresh unfrozen" fish offered at Stew Leonard's yesterday. I inquired and learned that the fish, a reasonable $6.99 per pound, was pollock from New England. It was a heavy white fish looking a bit slimmer than tilapia so I had to try it. How delicious! When I encrust it with a pecan coating it crisps nicely in the cast iron skillet. The side dish prepared above is red onion sauteed with portobello mushrooms and spinach. I also added french salt my good neighbors brought back for me from southern France, and lemon at the end. Yum. Pecan crusting is just awesome, but the fish has to be heavy.
This was ideal. Good for Stew's!