Grilled Tuna Steaks with Pine Nut Chilli Crust and Braised Fennel

We have been cooking fennel recently and this dish was absolutely delicious. I lightly fried sliced fennel (quite big chucks) with salt and pepper. When it was starting to moisten I threw in some white wine and chucked it in the oven. Then I got working on the rest. I chopped up pine nuts, garlic, chilli and parsley. When the fennel was looking pretty tender (after about 20 minutes) I grilled the tuna steaks, aiming for medium rare. Then when they were resting I threw in olive oil and fried the pine nut chilli mix til crunchy. This came together so easily and sounds pretty posh but it's still humble home style food to me!

Grilled Baby Squid Salad

This I made for my sister before she flew off back to London recently. Currently on a strict gluten, yeast, dairy free diet and heading back to the UK where good seafood is tough to find I thought this would be tasty. Dead simple and healthy. A huge mixed green and purple cabbage salad was mixed with some roasted cherry tomatoes (which I seasoned with salt, pepper and fennel seed). I grilled the baby squid, marinating them with white wine and parsley, salt, pepper and a bit of chili. Everyone ended up piling their plates with the salad then topping it with the freshly grilled squid. Delish! But I must admit I wish the squid was grilled on a barbie for that smokey flavour, a griddle pan just aint the same.