Oak-Grilled Swordfish with Roasted Almond-Garlic Butter

Prep time: 20 minutes
Marinating time: 1 to 2 hours
Grilling time: 8 to 10 minutes

Marinade
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil grated zest and
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
4 swordfish steaks, 8 to 10 ounces each
and about 1 inch thick

Butter
2 dozen whole almonds (about 3 tablespoons)
3 large garlic cloves, peeled and left whole
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 small handful oak wood chips, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
4 lemon wedges

1. In a small bowl mix the marinade ingredients

2. Place the swordfish steaks flat on a plate large enough to fit them in a single layer. Spoon the marinade over the steaks. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.

3. In a medium skillet over medium heat, toast the almonds and garlic until darkened, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove the almonds and garlic from the skillet and let cool. Chop the almonds and garlic into tiny pieces. In a small bowl combine the almond-garlic mixture with the remaining butter ingredients. Mash with the back of a fork until the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout the butter. Cover and refrigerate until about 1 hour before serving.

4. Fill a Weber RapidFire® chimney starter to the rim with charcoal and burn the charcoal until it is lightly covered with ash. Spread the charcoal in a tightly packed, single layer across one-half of the charcoal grate. Put the cooking grate in place, close the lid, and let the grill preheat for 10 minutes. Leave all the vents open.
5. Scatter the drained wood chips over the lit charcoal. Brush the cooking grate clean. Lift the steaks off the plate and let the excess liquid drip onto the plate. Grill the steaks over direct high heat, with the lid closed as much as possible, until the color at the center is opaque but the flesh is still juicy, 8 to 10 minutes, turning once. Remove the steaks from the grill. Serve warm with butter and lemon wedges.

Makes 4 servings

© 2007 Weber-Stephen Products Co. Recipe from Weber’s Charcoal Grilling™ by Jamie Purviance. Used with permission.

Getting In Shape
Band & Olufsen reinvents the remote control

Somewhere along the way, we came to know the remote control as a long, black rectangle covered with 70 buttons and cryptic acronyms. Leave it to Bang & Olufsen, the company where home entertainment and high design intersect, to roll out something completely different. Introducing the Beo5, a touch-screen remote control that is anything but clunky. In fact, it knows how to simplify your life. For example, your favorite TV stations don’t show up on the touch-screen as forgettable integers, but as the channel’s logo. It also serves as a universal remote for all audio and video, and can link rooms so the rights menus and functions are available in the right areas. For more information, please visit www.bang-olufsen.com.

Shiatsu Happens
Panasonic’s high-tech massage lounger brings the Swedish masseuse to you

We have phones that are cameras, cameras the size of ballpoint pens, and ballpoint pens that digitally record what we’re writing. So why can’t technology create a massage chair that doesn’t feel like a hyperactive Cuisinart? Panasonic answers that question with the Real Pro Elite Massage Lounger, the first chair approved by the American Chiropractic Association. When you sit down, the body scanner reads the contours of your shoulders and spine for a more accurate massage. From there, users choose from the four 14-minute and one five-minute pre-programmed massages including Swedish, deep tissue, stretch and shiatsu. The LED voice-guided touch screen eliminates the need for cryptic, cumbersome remotes. $3,499. For more information, visit www.panasonic.com.

Happy Hour
Spa-ktail

The spa craze is in full swing, and the holistic trend has even reached libations. Chopin, the Polish potato vodka, recently unveiled its new “spa-ktail,” a fusion of mint and cucumber that creates “a vital combination for the body and soul.”

2 oz. Chopin Vodka
1 oz. fresh squeezed lime juice
3/4 oz. simple syrup
1 oz. fresh cucumber water*
Finger pinch of fresh mint leaves

Pour Chopin and other ingredients into mixing glass. Add ice and shake vigorously for 7 to 8 seconds. Strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with three cucumber slices and pinch of fresh mint leaves.

* Fresh cucumber water: put one large cucumber into a blender and set it on juice. Strain the juice and discard the pulp and rind. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

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