rhubarb pickles, smoked bluefish pate

This pate is so easy and so delicious it has become a new must have in the fridge favorite.
There is a fish monger at the market that sells house smoked blue fish for about $6 a pound. It is also available at the Chelsea Market from the Lobster Place for $9.95 a pound.

In this instance I used a pound and a 1/4. This was not made in a very scientific way so please feel free to adjust this to your own taste.

Smoked Blue Fish Pate

Remove skin from the fish (1-1/4 pounds) and break it pieces into the container of a large food processor. Add 1 T horseradish, 2 t Dijon mustard, juice from half a lemon, 1/4 t cayenne pepper, 1/2 t celery salt and 8 ounces of cream cheese at room temperature (organic, or if you can the best cream cheese I've ever had is from Russ and Daughters). Process until well combined, make sure the cream cheese is thoroughly mixed in, if it's not quit room temp it can be lumpy. You could also had a few mild onions to this if you were so inclined, but I prefer the pickled ramps on the side.

Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and adjust seasonings to your taste. Spoon into a serving container and refrigerate. I used a 50's style square glass refrigerator box (storage container) it would also look nice in one of those fancy European preserving jars with the resealable glass lids and the metal hinges (is there a name for them?)

Served with pickles and some good bread this is a wonderful way to start a warm weather meal.

Rhubarb Pickles

Slice into bites size pieces (1-2") a pound or so of fresh rhubarb. Place it in a non-reactive bowl and toss in 3 T of salt, put a side for an hour to let the rhubarb sweat.

Meanwhile, roughly chop 2-3 good sized onions and finely chop 2 green Thai chili peppers with seeds (without seeds makes it less hot or use only 1 or use Jalapeno which are milder) saute the onions and peppers in 1/4 cup of canola oil until the onions are golden (about 10 minutes).

Add to the onions 1 t ground cardamom, 1 t dried ginger, 1 t ground cloves, 1/2 cup white seedless raisins (I used Sunview which are available at Whole Foods, but you could use regular raisins as well) stir over medium heat for a minute to incorporate the spices. Set aside.

When the rhubarb has finished sweating, discard the liquid that has accumulated in the bowl, rinse the rhubarb, dry it off with a towel and place in a clean, sterilized jar for preserving (in truth I just use a jar hot from my dish washer and because this is not such a large amount and is highly acidic I just keep it in the fridge, but if you are going to make this in larger batches or in smaller containers and are going to water bath process it, please make sure to sterilize your jars).

To the onion spice mix add 1 cup sherry vinegar, 1 cup white grape juice and 1 cup dark brown sugar and bring just to a boil over medium high heat, stirring to make sure the sugar has completely dissolved, remove from heat and pour over the rhubarb. Cool to room temperature then cover and put in the fridge or process if you're putting them up.

Great with smoked blue fish pate or cheese!