Unwelcome Emails, Unwelcome Company and A Week Long Feast of Seven Fishes

Hi Fish Fans,

2015 is the year of technology for Kathleen's Catch.  We've got lots of ideas about how to make seafood shopping easier in 2015, but the first order of business is to get a handle on inadvertent email. By this I mean those two weird emails that accidentally got sent out over the last two weeks.   I really love our Christmas card this past year but there is no reason for me to send it out on a weekly basis.  I promise to do my best to get a handle on this blog and do things correctly.

If you were in our store on Christmas Eve and (let's face it, who wasn't?), you know that we had huge crowds!  All our best made plans went out the window when so many people came at the same time.  Luckily everyone seemed to handle the chaos pretty well, and there was holiday cheer to spare!.

Jim Daunais from Johns Creek Wine and Crystal sent me a picture of his Christmas Eve dinner.  I bet our rope-cultured black mussels from Prince Edward Island tasted just as good as they looked!

We sold boatloads of lobsters, mountains of cioppino kits and all kinds of fish to make up the Feast of Seven Fishes for your Christmas Eve dinners. At my house I am trying to do a week long Feast of Seven Fishes.  Here's my dinner plan for the week:

Monday -  Hawaiian Garlic Salmon
Tuesday - Rainbow Trout in Hazelnut Brown Butter (use up those leftover holiday nuts!)
Wednesday - Crab cakes from Kathleen's Catch
Thursday - Catch to Go Swordfish with Lemon Caper Sauce and Baked Zucchini
Friday - Oven Fried Catfish
Saturday - Beef fillets and lobster tails
Sunday - Seafood Stew

Why Eat FIsh?
I ate way too much over the holidays and now I am having to carry around some extra "company" on my hips - and I don't mean a new baby.  Everybody knows that to lose weight you have to cut back on calories, exercise more, drink less alcohol, drink more water and eat more fish.  But good healthy living is not all about the size of your jeans.  Here's a list of health benefits besides weight loss that are linked to eating seafood compiled from notable institutions such as the Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins University and and other hospitals and universities worldwide:

The omega-3 fatty acids in seafood have been found to:

• Aid infant development
• Reduce childhood asthma
• Lower risk of breast cancer and curb breast cancer growth
• Protect against coronary disease, including sudden cardiac death, congestive heart failure, acute coronary syndrome
• Prevent stroke
• Reduce risk of age-related macular degeneration
• Slow progression of Alzheimer's disease
• Halt mental decline (My primary reason for eating fish)
• Reduce depression
• Reduce tissue inflammation and alleviate the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis
• Improve overall health

Oops
Here's a contest for you:  One free lobster roll to the first person to comment on this blog with the problem (inaccuracy) found at this link:

http://tracker.dailyburn.com/nutrition/fish_salmon_atlantic_wild_raw_3_oz_3_oz_85g_calories

What's New This Week?
Triggerfish from North Carolina has a firm white flesh that is almost sweet in flavor - closer to crab than fish.  Besides being a delicious substitute for crab meat, they are interesting fish. The spiney fin of the trigger can be held in place by a second spine to make the fish  more threatening.  They back into a hole when they feel threatened and lock their trigger up so that it catches on the hole.  This keeps them from getting pulled out by predators.  And if they do get yanked out, swallowing those extended triggers is an unpleasant experience for a bigger fish.  

This week trigger is $24.99/lb.

This Week's Special

Petrale sole - it's a flatfish - thicker like flounder with the texture of West Coast Dover sole.
$10.99/lb

Epicurious for Petrale Sole with Lemon-Shallot Brussel Sprouts

from Epicurious

To prepare the brussel sprouts before cutting them, be sure to pull of the tough outer leaves.  Thin slicing and simple seasonings with convert those who aren't fans of brussel sprouts.  Petrale sole, a Pacific Coast fish, is prized for its delicate flavor and thick fillets.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
• 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper plus additional for seasoning
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 12 ounces petrale sole fillets
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
• 6 ounces Brussels sprouts, trimmed and thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh Italian parsley

PREPARATION

Combine flour, lemon peel, coarse salt, and 1/2 teaspoon white pepper in shallow bowl.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in each of 2 large skillets over medium heat.  Coat fish in flour mixture and shake off excess.  Add fish to skillets and cook until opaque and golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side.  Remove from heat and season to taste with salt.  Cover loosely with foil and set aside.

Wipe out 1 skillet, add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and heat over medium heat.  Add shallots and saute until almost translucent, about 2 minutes.  Add Brussels sprouts and broth, increase heat to medium high and cook, stirring occasionally, until Brussels sprouts are tender and liquid is almost completely absorbed, about 8 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir in butter,  Season to taste with salt and white pepper.

Spoon Brussels sprouts onto plates.  Top with fish.  Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve.

Catch to Go
We have two selections this week:

Swordfish with Lemon Caper Sauce and Baked Zucchini

and

Chipotle Salmon with Pineapple Avocado Salsa 

In The Discount Freezer
What doesn't sell in two days gets vacuum sealed, frozen and sold at a discount.  

Pacific cod

Walleye

Grouper

Catfish

Halibut

Opah

Wreckfish

Pollack

Branzino

Wreckfish

Sheephead

Hake

Hamachi

Swordfish

Rainbow Trout

Barramundi

Black drum

Mahi

Covia

Corvina

Kampachi

Striped bass

Flounder

Snapper

Black bass

And Finally
My Christmas gift turned into my New Year's resolution.  There's no better encouragement for getting outside for a walk than big, brown, begging, puppy eyes. Even in these bitter cold temperatures, we are managing a few minutes every day outside for making poopsicles.

Here's to another successful year of fish selling!  We couldn't do it without you.  

Oh, and by the way, hope you got enough scarves, gloves, hats and heavy coats for Christmas.  You are going to need them this week.

Blessings,
Kathleen