B
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
The Observer & Baker City Herald
BOB’S
THOUGHTS
From The Freezer To Your Dinner Table
BOB BAUM
Memories
of an old
newsman
On the Sunday that Mount St. Hel-
ens blew 40 years ago, I was working
on the desk at the Associated Press’
Portland bureau.
The man who was working with
me took off toward the exploding
mountain while I stayed at the desk
fi ling copy that was pouring in from
various sources. He was gone for two
days, spending the night at an evacuee
center then hitching a ride in a govern-
ment helicopter to survey the incred-
ible destruction.
When I went home, I gathered my
kids and drove to the top of Rocky
Butte and watched the ash billowing
from the summit.
It was an amazing event that I was
lucky to be a part of.
You see, I never started out to be a
sports writer. I was, fi rst and foremost,
a journalist.
A few days before the mountain blew,
I was covering Sen. Edward Kennedy’s
presidential campaign. I was on the
campaign plane for the short fl ight
from Portland to Eugene when Ken-
nedy asked the pilot to fl y over Mount
St. Helens. I looked down at the sum-
mit that was scorched black and ready
to blow.
After graduating from the University
of Oregon in 1973, I got a job at The
Bulletin in Bend, where my fi rst beat
was Deschutes County government.
After a year of that, I was switched to
covering the U.S. Forest Service.
See Newsman/Page 3B
BETWEEN
THE ROWS
WENDY SCHMIDT
Admiring
roses and
dealing
with aphids
There are nice buds on the rose bush.
I can even see a hint of pink, so you
know how big the buds must be and
how closely I looked at them. But there
are also aphids the color of the buds,
hardly noticeable, but there for sure.
Rose aphids (Macrosiphum rosae)
are sap-sucking insects in the family
aphididae. They ingest rose bushes as
their main host in spring and early
summer, congregating on the tips of
shoots and tender new buds.
Often the aphids aren’t alone. Ants
and aphids have a well-known sym-
biotic relationship. The ants eat the
“honeydew” the aphids excrete, and the
ants offer the aphids some protection
from predators. It has been likened to
farmers keeping herds of dairy cows.
To rid yourself of the unwanted
herds of honeydew-extruding, sap-
sucking “cows” from your roses there
are numerous things you can do:
• You can pick them off by hand
and delight in squishing them. This
will help with some of your pent-up
pandemic anxiety and anger.
• Sevin or malathion will kill them.
Follow the directions on the container.
Be sure to get the spray on the under-
side of the leaves. Spray early in the
day when there is no wind.
• Mix a teaspoonful of dishwashing
liquid with a quart of water and spray
the aphids. Or use insecticidal soap and
follow included directions.
See Garden/Page 3B
Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune-TNS
Frozen salmon fi llets are quickly sauteed in a skillet then paired with an herb butter and served with farro, the Italian grain.
N O R EASON T O
F EAR F ROZEN F ISH
■ As long as it’s thawed properly (read: refrigerator), frozen fish can maintain flavor and texture
By Jeanmarie Brownson
Chicago Tribune
My freezer and pantry shelves overfl ow.
And not just during a health crisis. The
pantry shelves of most food professionals hold
a variety of grains, canned chiles, condiments
and broth. We utilize freezers for a convenient
supply of fi sh and poultry, as well as to stock
up on the season’s best fruits, vegetables and
herbs.
Frozen fi sh in many cases proves far
superior to the “thawed for your convenience”
items at the supermarket. I prefer to have
control over the defrosting. Thawed properly,
in the refrigerator, seafood maintains its
fl avor and texture all the way to the dinner
table. I regularly stock frozen salmon, cod and
halibut fi llets as well as shrimp and scallops.
Look at the labeling for frozen fi sh: Ideally
it says frozen at sea. That way, you’ll know
the fi sh was frozen at its peak fl avor and
texture. Always, and I mean always, thaw fi sh
in the refrigerator — never at room tempera-
ture or under running water as this quick-
thawing seriously destroys the fi nal texture.
We look forward to a variety of Alaskan fi sh
from a CSF (community supported fi shery),
called Sitka Salmon Shares (sitkasalmon-
shares.com), arriving on our porch. Sitka
features sustainable, responsibly fi shed wild
Alaskan sockeye and King salmon, plus other
fi sh, that are shipped directly to the house.
wildalaskancompany.com is another excel-
lent mail order source. Be sure to have freezer
space available for when the item delivers
— the more you order the lower the cost per
pound.
I like boneless fi llets of wild Alaskan
sockeye in the sauteed fi sh recipe that follows.
Other options include fl ounder, cod, tilapia,
haddock, snapper or halibut. Nearly any fi sh
fi llet will work as long as it’s not too thick or
too thin; ½ -inch thick cooks beautifully in a
skillet.
Always check the fi llets for bones by run-
ning your fi nger over the fi llet; use tweezers
to remove the bones. Remove the fi sh skin if
you wish. To enjoy crispy skin, start the cook-
ing skin side up to brown the fl esh, then fl ip
the fi llet skin side down to fi nish the cooking.
Start the reduction for the butter sauce before
cooking the fi sh, then fi nish the sauce by
whisking in the butter after the fi sh is cooked.
Slow-simmered, nutty textured farro makes
an excellent companion to mild, tender fi sh.
Farro, a type of wheat high in protein and fi -
ber with lots of minerals and vitamins, proves
Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune-TNS
Canned clams reach their peak potential in an easy creamy sauce you can throw
together to coat spaghetti.
more nutritious then white rice or refi ned
grains. Look for farro in the natural food sec-
tion of large supermarkets. If stores are sold
out, try ordering it online from Bob’s Red Mill
or Rancho Gordo.
Farro cooks easily by simmering in water
or broth until tender. To season it, stir in a
generous amount of any fresh herbs on hand
— new spring chives, parsley, cilantro and dill
or simply the tops from green onions.
I use tinned fi sh when the freezer stocks are
low and to avoid a trip to the store. Canned
clams, seasoned with white wine, garlic, Par-
mesan and a bit of cream make a restaurant-
quality pasta dish we enjoy all year long.
Optional tinned green chiles and anchovy
fi llets add salt and umami satisfaction.
SAUTEED FISH WITH FRESH
HERB BUTTER AND FARRO
1 cup loosely packed tiny sprigs and
leaves from fresh cilantro
¼ cup each: fl at-leaf parsley leaves, fresh chives
Salt
1½ cups farro grande (spelt) or pearled farro
3 to 4 green onions, trimmed, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little for the fi sh
3 medium shallots (or 1 small white onion),
halved, very thinly sliced, about ¾ cup
½ cup dry white wine or dry white vermouth
½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced
1¼ to 1½ pounds frozen fi sh fi llets,
about ¾ to 1 inch thick, thawed
Freshly ground black pepper
Expeller pressed canola oil, sunfl ower or
saffl ower oil for high-heat cooking
7 to 8 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
1. Use a very sharp knife to thinly slice all the
fresh herbs. Mix them in a bowl. Refrigerate
covered with a damp towel until needed or up
to 2 days.
2. Heat 4 cups water to a boil in a medium
If farro is unavailable, substitute 2 cups
saucepan; add 1 teaspoon salt and the farro.
cooked brown rice or Israeli couscous (cooked Cook uncovered, stirring often, 4 minutes.
according to package directions). Always use Reduce heat to very low. Cover the pan and
a very sharp, thin-bladed knife to slice (rather simmer, stirring once or twice, until tender but
than chop) fresh herbs; this prevents bruis-
still a bit toothsome, about 30 minutes.
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
ing which causes the leaves to turn brown
quickly.
See Fish/Page 2B