Grilled Gulf Shrimp w/ Mango Salsa

On a recent vacation to the Emerald Coast, a.k.a. the Panhandle, a.k.a. the Gulf Coast, I was asked by our hosts if I would cook dinner for everyone one night.

Not too much pressure.
Hey, I thought I was on vacation.

What could I make for 8 people? It was not my kitchen, and I had no idea what kind of markets they had in that part of Florida. It was going to be dinner on the patio, and since I have a food blog, they figured I could just "whip something up".

I took a bike ride and got lucky and found a fantastic little fish market on Route 30-A that closes its doors when the fresh fish runs out. They had beautiful Red fish, Grouper and fresh Gulf shrimp, stuff we NEVER see in the NYC area. This was fresh caught stuff and CHEAP! I was excited.

I decided to make grilled Jumbo Gulf Shrimp and some kind of fresh salsa to go with.
I was winging it.
I paired it with my beet and orange salad on arugula (which is always so easy), and it was a big hit with everyone. I came out looking like a star!

Next time I am staying at a hotel!



Shrimp and Marinade:

1 lb. of jumbo shrimp, peeled but tail left on

1/4 cup of soy or teriyaki sauce
juice of 2 limes
3 cloves minced garlic
3 tbsp of sesame oil

Marinate your cleaned shrimp in the marinade for about 30 minutes and not more than an hour.



Mango Salsa:

1 ripe mango, peeled and diced (good luck cutting the mango, what a pain)
1 ripe avocado, diced
a tsp of kosher salt
1/4 cup of minced red onion
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced (or 1/4 of a red bell pepper, diced)
juice of a lime
handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

You can make your salsa 2 hours ahead and keep to the side.



Grill your shrimp on medium high heat for 3 minutes on each side.



Place your shrimp and salsa on a platter and serve with either black corn tortilla chips or rolled up in warm flour tortillas.



Enjoy!

No More Sufferin' Succotash!

I just realized how the expression "Sufferin' Succotash!" from the cartoon characters Daffy Duck and Sylvester came about.

Growing up in a house of frozen vegetables and tater tots (not the good Ore-Ida Crispers!), punishment and suffering was being served lima beans. That was a fate worse than brussels sprouts.

That is how I learned to use my gag reflex, eating those pale green, dry, yet mushy legumes with my baked potato in foil, no sour cream allowed. My mom was mean. Look out.

I have made peace with brussels sprouts and actually LOVE them, roasted, or sauteed with bacon........so I think it was about time to make friends with lima beans.
Hell, I've never met a bean that I didn't like.



The June issue of Bon Appetit had a succotash recipe and I figured I would give it a try. I skipped the green beans and bought real lima beans and soaked them overnight.

Frozen corn, red pepper, a bit of butter and Old Bay Seasoning made this a delicious side dish.



No More Sufferin' Succotash: (adapted from Bon Appetit)

1 cup of frozen defrosted corn
1 cup of frozen defrosted lima beans (I used dried beans)
3/4 cup of red bell pepper, diced
1 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 tsp of Old Bay Seasoning (I used a whole teaspoon)
2 tbsp of butter
1 tsp salt

Heat olive oil on medium-high heat in a heavy sauce pan and add your vegetables, saute a few minutes until crisp. Add in butter, Old Bay and season with salt.



Served along with this delicious recipe for Orange & Garlic Roast Pork Loin from bitchincamero, there was no suffering eating this meal!

Birthday Party Post

It was my sister's birthday (and brother's birthday, they are twins) this week and I cooked all of her favorites.......click on the links for recipes.



Seared tuna on seaweed appetizers with an avocado mash.



A great and easy Chinese Chicken Salad.



Steamed asparagus, shredded chicken breast, green onions, Napa cabbage, toasted sesame seeds, and mandarin orange slices in a simple Asian style dressing, and you have a healthy, delicious salad.





And my Deadhead Bread, made by deadheading the herbs from the the garden and stuffing the inside of a loaf with mozzarella cheese and garlic. Can't believe it's been one year since I have made this.





Happy Birthday Eden!

Weekend Bachelor Eats: Chicken Livers on Polenta?

I got an email from my husband's cousin Rich, who is a transplanted New Jersey guy, professional photographer, living in Cave Creek, Arizona in the desert with his wife and daughter.
(He doesn't actually live in the desert, he does have a house, complete with big kitchen and big man grill outside).

He mentioned that his wife and daughter were going on a school trip for 2 weeks, and he would be home alone.
He was excited to cook all the foods they don't like or eat.

He has an obsession with all things bacon.
Chocolate covered bacon, bacon cookies, etc.
I sent him Kat's post this week, bacon gelato and her dark chocolate bacon cupcakes! So, I figured he would be living on pounds of Oscar Mayer fried bacon strips, hot dogs, burgers, pizza and crap for 2 weeks of bachelor cooking.

But no.......this dude made Crostini di Polenta con funghi Trifolati. Sauteed chicken livers and onions on polenta! Grilling his polenta in that 105+ degree heat ("but it's a dry heat").

A man after my own heart.

I guess living in the desert makes you do weird things.
His Italian roots are clearly showing thru.

Thanks for guest posting this weekend! Here is Rich's recipe.

Crostini di Polenta con funghi Trifolati

Recipe is fairly simple... Even a guy could do it! Remember, this is a recipe for one, with one leftover.

Polenta:
3 cups of water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 cups yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon olive oil

Mushroom Topping:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4-5 white mushrooms, sliced
1 pkg shitake mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (you can subtitute any variety of mushroom)
1/4 Vidalia onion sliced thinly
1 clove garlic sliced very thinly
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped, plus 1 sprig for garnish
Pinch sea salt
Pinch cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Sherry (I used Harvey's Bristol Cream)
Shaved or shredded Parmigiano Reggiano

For the Polenta:

In a 2 quart saucepan, bring the water and salt to a boil over high heat. Slowly add the cornmeal in a thin stream, stirring constantly to prevent lumps. When all the cornmeal has been added, reduce the heat to low and cook the mixture, stirring constantly, for about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the olive oil.
In a 13"x9"x2” baking dish, lightly spray PAM or coat with olive oil. Spread the cooked polenta into the dish and even out. Put in refrigerator and cool for 20-30 minutes.

While the Polenta is setting, fire up the grill to medium. After the polenta has set, coat very lightly with olive oil and put on grill, 4-5 minutes per side.



For the Mushroom Topping:

While the Polenta is grilling, heat a large sauté pan on med-high heat. Add olive oil then sliced onions. Cook for a minute or two and then add the mushrooms, cooking for another 2-3 minutes. Then add the garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary and cook until the mushrooms are golden brown.



While the mushrooms are caramelizing, fire up another sauté pan and add 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter. Then add the chicken livers and cook until done, about 2 minutes per side.

Just as the livers are done, add the 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter to the mushroom mixture and then give it a shot or two of sherry and cook for another 30 seconds.

Plate the polenta and cut into triangles if desired.
Add the mushroom mixture on top of the polenta.
Plate the chicken livers and add the sprig of rosemary for garnish.
Sprinkle the Parmigiano Reggiano on top of the crostinis
Get a glass of wine, turn the ball game on, and enjoy.

Bruschetta

Here is my basic tomato bruschetta recipe.

Pronounced BRU-SKETTA, please.

This is probably one of the first things I learned how to make when I was a teenager.

You can use any variety of tomatoes. Cherry, Heirloom, Roma or whatever you have.
I like to use Roma (also known as plum) tomatoes because they don't seem to get mushy, they have less moisture than other tomatoes.



I have seen people add kalamata olives or onions. Not me.
Here is my recipe. SO good and SO easy.

Simple Tomato Bruschetta: makes a lot

6 Roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
1-2 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt

Add your chopped tomatoes to a bowl and sprinkle with kosher salt.



Add the rest of your ingredients and mix together. You can make this hours ahead and keep on the counter at room temperature.



For the bread:
Slice a good baguette or ciabatta on the bias into slices, and drizzle with a little olive oil.
On a baking sheet, toast your bread slices at 400 degrees for a few minutes, watch that they don't burn.

Split a peeled garlic clove in half and while the toasts are still warm, rub the garlic half all over the top of the toasts. This will release the oil from the garlic and coat the bread.



Now you are ready to spoon your tomato mixture on top of the toasts.

Arrange on a platter and serve!



The perfect summer appetizer!

Cherry Clafoutis

This is as simple as they come.

A French rustic pudding baked in a gratin dish or next time in a cast iron skillet for a more rustic look.

The French leave the pits in for a more bitter taste, but I didn't want anyone to crack a tooth, so I removed them!

I found a few different versions of clafoutis in my French cookbooks, the only difference being the amount of eggs used. Some used 4, 5 and even 6 eggs in the recipe.
I chose this one on Simple Recipes, because this recipe called for only 3 eggs, and it sounded lighter. It also had an addition of slivered almonds, which I think I would omit next time, you don't need the crunch.

Crunch aside, this was a fantastic dessert. The only hard part was pitting the cherries. Hey, that's what I have a husband for!



Cherry Clafoutis: recipe from Simply Recipes

2 cups of fresh sweet cherries, pitted
2 tablespoons of slivered almonds (I am leaving them out next time)
3 eggs
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
1/2 cup of all-purpose flour, sifted
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of whole milk
2 teaspoons of Amaretto -or- 3/4 teaspoon of almond extract
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
Powdered sugar for dusting



Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and lightly flour a 9X9 or 10X7 baking dish. Toss in the cherries and slivered almonds.

Whisk the eggs, sugars, salt, and flour together until smooth.

Add the milk, Amaretto (or almond extract, if using), and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth. Pour into the baking dish.



Bake for 40-50 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. When you pull it put of the oven it will wiggle a bit which is normal. Place on a wire rack to cool. The clafoutis will have puffed up quite a bit and will deflate while cooling. When cool dust the clafoutis with powdered sugar. Serve.



I ate this hot out of the pan, because I have no patience and have to try all of my cakes HOT off the presses.
I know this is wrong, because cake always tastes better the next day, after all of the flavors have mellowed and it has cooled, but I can't help myself.



This one tasted great hot out of the pan, a half hour while still warm, and the next morning for breakfast at room temperature.

No complaints from this cherry orchard.

Pan Roasted Eggplants w/ Shallot Vinaigrette

Ok. This is by far, my new favorite way to make eggplant.

If I only make this one recipe from this new cookbook Two Dudes One Pan, then it was worth the purchase of the book.



Terrific.

Pan Roasted Eggplants w/ Shallot Vinaigrette: (from Two Dudes One Pan)

6 small Japanese or Italian eggplants, cut in half horizontally
3 shallots, sliced thin
3 garlic cloves, sliced thin

canola or grapeseed oil for frying
kosher salt for the eggplants

2 tbsp of fresh basil, chopped
2 tbsp of fresh parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp of capers, drained
1.5 teaspoon of sugar
1 tbsp of butter

Sprinkle your eggplant halves with kosher salt and set aside.

Heat your canola or grapeseed oil (don't use olive oil, because it will burn) on medium high in a heavy stainless steel skillet and face down, place your eggplant halves and cook for 5 minutes without moving them.

Now turn them over and cook another 3 minutes until cooked thru. Remove eggplant halves from the pan and place them on a platter.



Add another tablespoon of oil and lower the flame a bit and cook your shallots and garlic for about 2 minutes until fragrant, pushing them around with a spoon while cooking.

Turn off the heat and add your vinegar, sugar, herbs, and capers, swirling in your butter last. Mix together and pour this sauce over your hot roasted eggplant.

This is best served right out of the pan, but trust me, we enjoyed this cold in an antipasto with red peppers the next night and it was FABULOUS!

Winter Food in June

It has rained 18 out of 22 days in N.J., no joke, so I figured why not make a winter comfort dish? It sure doesn't feel like June and I have been getting way too wet grilling outdoors lately.

So, tonight it's comfort food. Straight from December.

This is sort of like a cassoulet, but without the sausages and duck. So, I guess it's not like a cassoulet, except for the beans. duh.

I saw this yummy dish on this blog and figured this would warm us up!
The original recipe is from Gourmet magazine and can be seen here.

It was excellent and easy (those 2 E's again!).

I doubled the amount of chicken and I pulled the meat off the bone with the extra chicken to make a great leftover stew.

I think this dish also needed some fresh herbs to give it color and more depth.
I chose rosemary sprigs, but thyme would be a good choice too.

Don't forget to use your splatter screen. Most important!



Baked Chicken with White Beans & Tomatoes: (from Gourmet Magazine):

6 bacon slices (1/4 lb total), cut into 1-inch pieces
4 large chicken thighs with skin and bone (I used 8 thighs)
2 medium onions, chopped (1 1/2 cups)
1 (14- to 16-oz) can stewed tomatoes including juice
2 (15- to 16-oz) cans small white beans, rinsed and drained
a few fresh rosemary or thyme sprigs

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.




Cook bacon in a 10-inch heavy ovenproof skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, reserving fat in skillet.

While bacon is browning, pat chicken dry and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Brown chicken in fat in skillet over moderately high heat, turning over once, about 8 minutes total, then transfer chicken with tongs to paper towels to drain.

Pour off all but 3 tablespoons fat from skillet and reduce heat to moderate. Cook onions in skillet with 1/4 teaspoon salt, stirring and scraping up any brown bits, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir tomatoes and juice into onions and boil, uncovered, 3 minutes, to concentrate juices slightly. Stir in bacon and beans and bring to a simmer. Nestle chicken, skin side up, in beans and bake, uncovered, until chicken is cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes.



I will save this delicious recipe for my winter repertoire, but in the mean time, SUN PLEASE COME OUT I need my vitamin D!!!!