At the sushi bar, we always order an uni sushi or two. If they were less pricey, we would toss down half a dozen.

Uni is the Japanese word for sea urchin, an ancient shellfish, found worldwide. In the U.S., sea urchins are harvested in the oceans off California, Florida and Maine. They’re expensive to gather, and the price is passed along.

More than a few of the world’s sea urchin sites have been overfished. But in the waters off of Norway lie a king’s ransom of sea urchin.

Evidently, Norwegians are not as fond of sea urchin as we are, and until Roderick Sloan began to develop a trade among Europe’s fine restaurants, they had no market. Once cursed as a pest by lobstermen, they were routinely smashed with hammers and tossed overboard.

Sloan, a 44-year-old émigré Scot, lives 88 miles north of the Arctic Circle, outside the town of Nordskot (population 55). It’s one of Norway’s darkest, bleakest, most remote coastal villages. He is the only full-time sea urchin diver in Norway, with one employee to tend the boat.

Sloan dons scuba equipment and swims down to depths of 50 feet, diving among treacherous waves and gutsy squalls. The local species, called Norwegian greens (for the hue of the shell—the binomial name is Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis), are at their prime from November to the end of February (imagine how cold the water is!).

Sea urchin, fresh from the sea. Photo courtesy I Love Blue Sea.

More than 100,000 tons of the delicacy are consumed a year worldwide. France and Japan are big consumers; the Japanese exchange urchins as gifts during New Year celebrations.

In the center of the hard shell is a row of five roe or coral (sometimes called tongues), which are the gonads of both males and females. Exotic, briny and grainy, the meat has nuances of iodine and metal and a custardlike, pillowy consistency. Uni is a love-it-or-hate-it food.

Of the 800 species of sea urchin, some are much more palatable than others. As a sea urchin lover, we are chagrined that the flavor of expensive sushi bar uni can be wildly inconsistent. It is based on gender, season, terroir and even the particular seaweed the animal eats.

When all the factors are united, uni are celestial. At other times, they are as are as bland and disappointing as a mealy apple.

Sea urchins brought up from the floor of the
ocean. Photo by Karoline O.A. Pettersen |
Smithsonian.

Here are culinary ideas from around the world for how to enjoy sea urchin:

 
It’s up to the cook to decide how to use them in recipes. Think baked, ceviche, chowder/soup, croquettes, custard, grilled fish, mousse, oyster stew, pasta, sauce and tempura.

Here’s an interesting surf and turf: raw sea urchin wrapped in roast beef. Just as it sounds, wrap a thin slice of roast beef around a raw sea urchin or two; lay on a bed of boiled spinach and serve with ponzu (a combination of soy sauce, vinegar and citrus juice).

For a delightful hors d’oeuvre or first course, make uni toast: Spread crostini with quality unsalted butter and uni, garnished with scallions and a sprinkling of sea salt.

Uni burrata combines creamy burrata cheese with with the briny flavor of uni, then sides it with button mushrooms and yuzu for balance.

Here are some sea urchin recipes.
 
ABOUT SEA URCHINS

Sea urchins, sometimes called sea hedgehogs (for their protruding spiny needles) and krakebolle, “crow’s balls,” in Norwegian, are among the earliest known forms of life. The fossil record dates back some 450 million years. The creatures can be found in almost every major marine habitat from the poles to the Equator, and from shallow inlets to ocean depths of more than 17,000 feet.

Sea urchins “look like squash balls encased in pine thistles” according to Franz Lidz, who wrote the Smithsonian article (you can read it in full here).

The shell is round and spiny, typically from 1.2 to 3.9 inches in diameter. The colors vary: black, blue, brown, green, olive, purple, red. The animals lack brains.

Sea urchins have hundreds of adhesive tube feet and move slowly over the sandy sea floor pursuing a diet of kelp. They are members of the botanical class Echinoidea, and are cousins of sand dollars (there are some 950 species of echinoids, and 800 species of sea urchins).

And the pricey critters will no doubt get pricier. The French and Irish exhausted their resident stocks of sea urchin years ago. In Maine, Nova Scotia and Japan, urchin populations have been drastically reduced by overfishing and disease.

They are not always welcome: The colonies can be destructive. Off the coasts of California and Tasmania, overfishing of the animal’s natural predators and large-scale change in ocean circulation (believed to be an effect of climate change) have turned vast stretches of the sea floor into moonscape-like “urchin barrens.” The urchins multiply, chew down the kelp and devastate marine ecosystems.

No doubt, those species are not among the tasty species, or divers would appear to reap the wealth on the ocean floor.

Now trending in an ice cream case near you: fruit and vegetable ice pops—all natural, dairy free, gluten free, fat free and packed with vitamins A and C. They’re a better for you option for a sit-down snack or on-the-go refreshment on a hot summer day.

From major producers like Outshine (from Dreyer’s) to mom & pops like Ruby Rockets, recipe developers are combining vegetables and fruits into frozen snacks that support attempts to get kids and others to eat more veggies.

Are you really getting your daily allotment of vegetables through ice pops?

Not really. Neither company claims that you can substitute an ice pop for a half serving of vegetables. But there’s an important idea here: If you look for ways to add more fruits and vegetables into your diet, you’ll find them, and they’ll add up (Outshine offers tips below).

The government recommends 10 one cup servings a day of fruits and veggies (double the portion if it’s leafy greens, halve the portion if it’s dried fruit). Don’t do it for them; do it for you. Here’s the full story from the Harvard School Of Public Health.

Targeted to moms who want healthier options for their families, Ruby Rocket’s pops are low calorie, better-for-you options for everyone. Photo courtesy Ruby Rocket’s.

RUBY ROCKETS

At Ruby Rocket’s, 70% of the veggies and fruits are organic, all are GMO free and there’s no added sugar, leading to a claim of the lowest amount of sugar in any frozen pop (4g in a 1.75-ounce pop). They add an extra boost of probiotics, too. The new line debuts in three flavors:

 
Just slightly sweet—all from the natural sugar in the fruits and vegetables—and with so few calories per pop, they are truly guilt free. Those accustomed to normal sweetness levels will notice the missing sugar. But, like cutting back on the sugar you add to a cup of coffee, you may find that you’re just as content without it.

Learn more at RubyRockets.com.

OUTSHINE FRUIT & VEGGIE BARS

Following Outshine’s successful launch of frozen fruit bars, the new Outshine Fruit & Veggie Bars line blends fruits and vegetables.

Not surprisingly, this mainstream product is sweetened with added sugar, to the level most customers expect. This raises the calorie count to 60 (14g sugar in a 2.45-ounce bar). The five flavors include:

With the majority of flavors, the vegetable components are not highlighted on the box (perhaps so vegetable-avoiders won’t turn away?).

The bars contain at least 25% vegetables. The line is certified kosher by OU. Learn more at OutshineSnacks.com.

MORE WAYS TO GET FRUITS & VEGGIES INTO YOUR DIET

Even with the endless benefits known to the public, seven out of 10 Americans are failing to meet the daily-recommended serving of fruits and vegetables. Outshine recommends these 5 easy ways to get more fruit and veggies into your diet:

 
To these we add: look for ways to substitute vegetables. There are many. Start with:

 
You can have your veggies and still have fun, too.
  

She used Peanut Butter & Co.’s Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter to make the ice cream, and sandwiched it between two layers of brownie.

You can also use the homemade chocolate peanut butter ice cream: >Between cookies. Try butter cookies, chocolate chip, graham or peanut butter cookies, or pizzelles.

 
Prep time for the ice cream in the recipe below is 15 minutes. The total time with freezing is 4 hours and 15 minutes.

You can bake your own brownies (recipe below) or buy them.

July 23rd is National Peanut Butter & Chocolate Day.

[1] The best thing since the peanut butter cup (photo © Isabelle Boucher | Crumblog).

Ingredients For 16 Sandwiches

For The Ice Cream

 
For The Brownies

1. MAKE the ice cream. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together 1-1/2 cups cream, 1/2 cup sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Heat until wisps of steam start to rise from the surface, then remove from heat.

2. WHISK together the egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a large mixing bowl, until smooth. Pour in a ladleful of the warm cream, whisking vigorously to keep the eggs from curdling. Slowly pour in the remainder of the cream, one or two ladlefuls at a time, whisking constantly as you go. Once all of the cream has been incorporated into the eggs…

3. POUR the mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula and scraping the bottom of the pan, until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spatula.

4. REMOVE from heat and whisk in the peanut butter, vanilla and remaining 1-1/2 cups cream until smooth. Pour the finished custard into a mixing bowl, and cover with plastic wrap, resting the wrap directly on the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until thoroughly chilled.

6. BAKE the brownies. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 11″ × 17″ jelly roll pan with cooking spray, and line with parchment paper.

7. STIR together the chocolate and butter in a small saucepan set over medium heat, until melted and smooth, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.

8. COMBINE the chocolate mixture in a large mixing bowl with the sugar, vanilla extract and salt; and stir until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add the flour and stir until just barely combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and smooth out the top to create a very thin, evenly distributed layer.

9. BAKE in the preheated oven for about 8-10 minutes, or until the brownies are set and shiny on top, but still slightly undercooked. Remove from oven and set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.

10. CUT the brownie layer in half lengthwise to create two long, skinny rectangles, and place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to firm up.

11. ASSEMBLE the sandwiches: Run a knife along the edge of the pan to loosen the brownies. Carefully lift one of the rectangles out and transfer to a wire rack, leaving the other half on the cookie sheet.

12. USING the parchment, carefully flip over the brownie layer in the pan, so that it’s now top-side down. Remove the parchment paper.

13. WORKING as quickly as possible, spread the ice cream in a smooth, even layer onto the brownie in the pan. Carefully place the remaining brownie on top of the ice cream, doing your best to align the two layers. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and transfer to the freezer for at least 2-3 hours, or until completely frozen. When ready to serve…

14. USE a sharp knife to cut into 8 rectangular pieces, then slice each one diagonally to create 16 triangular sandwiches. Serve right away. Wrap any sandwiches you’re not eating immediately in plastic wrap, and store in the freezer until ready to serve or up to 1 month.
 
 
Find more delicious peanut butter recipes at ILovePeanutButter.com.
 
 

You don’t have to turn on the stove or the oven to make this refreshing dessert: fruit soup.

Made from fresh or dried fruit, served hot or cold, fruit soups are underrepresented on American menus. Yet, they offer variety year-round.

Fruit soup in a footed bowl. Photo courtesy Driscoll’s.

Prep time is 5 minutes. Serve with a piece of shortbread on the side.

Fresh blackberries. Photo © Ninette Luz |
Dreamstime.

RECIPE: BLACKBERRY FRUIT SOUP

Ingredients For 4 Servings

1. PURÉE blackberries, wine and sugar in blender or food processor until smooth. Press through a strainer to remove the seeds. Discard solids.

2. STIR in lemon juice; season lightly with salt and pepper. Cover and chill several hours or overnight.

3. LADLE soup into chilled bowls, footed glasses or wine goblets. Drizzle or spoon sour cream on top, and scatter with raspberries and blueberries.

4. GARNISH each serving with a mint sprig or coarsely chopped mint.
 
MORE FRUIT SOUP RECIPES

There’s enough red, white and blue here for Independence Day; but take advantage of summer’s lush blackberries to whip them up all season long.

The Mojito (pronounced moe-hee-toe) is Cuba’s most famous cocktail. This variation adds fresh fruit to the original recipe.

It is important that the blackberries and mint are gently muddled—never crushed—to release their flavors but not release harsh or bitter tannins into the beverage. A wooden spoon or a firm silicone spatula can be used in place of a muddler.

RECIPE: BLACKBERRY MOJITO

Ingredients For 2 Drinks

Beautiful and delicious: a Blackberry Mojito. Photo courtesy Driscoll’s.

1. MUDDLE blackberries, mint leaves, sugar, lemon juice and lime juice in a tall glass until berries are mostly crushed.

2. ADD seltzer, vodka, and ice. Stir well and serve.

 
WHAT’S A MOJITO?

The mojito (mo-HEE-toe) is a quintessential Cuban cocktail. The name derives from the African voodoo term mojo, to cast a small spell.

According to Bacardi Rum, the drink can be traced to 1586, when Sir Francis Drake and his pirates unsuccessfully attempted to sack Havana for its gold. His associate, Richard Drake, was said to have invented a Mojito-like cocktail known as El Draque that was made with aguardiente, a crude forerunner of rum, sugar, lime and mint.

Around the mid-1800s, when the Bacardi Company was established, rum was substituted and the cocktail became known as a Mojito. Here’s the original Mojito recipe.

Always popular in Cuba, the drink made a short journey to Key West, and then into American cocktail society. Under the radar for many years as wine apéritifs topped cocktails in popularity, the Mojito has enjoyed a renaissance in the last 20 years thanks to the growing popularity of Latin American cuisine.