Crab and Cantaloupe Soup

Hmm. You know those food combinations that taste good for a bite or two, but you really don't want more than that? This recipe fits into that category. The cantaloupe and crab tasted pretty good together, but an entire bowl of it was just way way too much. I did enjoy the contrast of the lemony crab with the mellow sweetness of the cantaloupe, and it certainly felt healthy. I think this would work better as an amuse bouche, served in a little dumpling spoon. One bite would have been perfect!

Hobo Packs

Grilled out with the rest of America for Memorial Day. I cooked some Shrimp and Mussel hobo packs, recipe from this month's Food and Wine. Honestly, they were just ok. The mussels especially weren't that great. Hmm. There's nothing wrong with the recipe per se. It's simple and has potential, but I don't think it was worth it for the cost.

Red Wine Salmon

We usually think of fish only going with white wine, but this red wine shallot butter works very nicely with salmon. I've made this Epicurious recipe before, this time as part of Mothers Day. On the side, I served some arugula tossed with a lemony vinaigrette and some grilled cherry tomatoes. It was delicious and easy to make.

Broiled Trout with Bacon, Onions and Raisins

So, frustratingly, Gourmet hasn't posted the recipe I recently tried - the Broiled Trout with Onions Raisins and Bacon from the March issue. It was pretty good, but, hmm, I probably won't cook again. It was exciting - I cooked my first head-on fish. Not sure why that's exciting but it was, and it wasn't bad, just not great. I think more of the sauce would have been good, and I might play around with it. I served it with some arugula with a lemon-y vinaigrette, and my sweet made some sweet cornbread, which nicely offset the vinegar and the tartness of the sauce on the fish.

Have you made this recipe? Tell me what you think.

BROILED TROUT WITH BACON, ONIONS AND RAISINS
Serves 4

The sweet and savory flavors coaxed from the bacon, onion, raisins and vinegar in this dish complement the delicate trout without overpowering it.

4 thick bacon slices (7 oz) cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-wide strips
2 cups coarsely chopped red onion
1/2 cup golden raisins (3 oz)
1/2 cup red-wine vinegar
2 tspn sugar
1/2 tspn salt
4 (10- to 12-oz) whole rainbow trout, cleaned and boned, leaving heads and tails intact, (butterflied), or 8 fillets
2 tspn olive oil plus additional if necessary
1/4 tspn black pepper

Special Equipment 2 (15- by 10-inch shallow baking pans)

Cook bacon in 10- to 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, then pour off all but 1/4 cup fat (add additional olive oil if bacon doesn't render enough fat). Add onion to skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened and beginning to brown on edges, about 6 minutes. Stir in bacon, raisins, vinegar, sugar and 1/4 teaspoon salt and boil until liquid is reduced about 1/3 cup, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and keep warm, covered.

Preheat broiler and oil baking pans.

Arrange 2 trout, opened and skin side down, in each pan. Brush flesh of fish with 2 teaspoons oil (total) and sprinkle with pepper and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Broil 1 pan of fish about 4 inches from heat until just cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes, then loosely cover with foil to keep warm and broil second pan of fish in same manner. Spoon bacon mixture down center of each fish and drizzle with remaining juices from skillet.

Shrimp Chowder on a cold day

Yum! As I've said before, I'll take chowder anytime of the year, regardless of the season or temperature. The latest edition of Saveur has a whole spread on the glory of shrimp, and a nice simple recipe for Maine Shrimp Chowder. We had it for dinner last night, and I'm sitting here eating the even better leftovers for lunch today. It was good and simple, though I'm not listing it under Quick because it just takes some time to peel the shrimp. By the way, wasn't able to get Maine shrimp, so got what I could. Also, I love bacon, way way too much, and I wish the bacon flavor had come through a little more. Maybe next time I'll just have another piece that I cook and can crumble on top of each bowl. Otherwise, it was very nice. Moe and Bean, our cats, approved of the shrimp as well.

Unfortunately, I don't see the recipe on their website yet, so I have written it out below:

Maine Shrimp Chowder
Serve 4

Maine chowder differs from other New England chowders in that it's often not thickened with flour. This results is (sic) a light soup perfectly suited to delicate Maine shrimp. This dish comes from Sam Hayward, the chef of Fore Street in Portland, Maine, and an all-around champion of Maine's foodways.

3 lbs shell-on, head-on Maine shrimp
1/4 oz. slab bacon, cut into 1/4" pieces
3 medium russet potatoes (about 1 lb), quartered lengthwise and sliced crosswise into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large leek, white part only, cut into 1/4" pieces
3 tbsp butter
3/4 cup heavy cream
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch cayenne pepper
2 tspn snipped chives

1. Peel the heads and shells off the shrimp, reserving both for the shrimp broth. (If the shrimp are in the middle of their spawn, says Hayward, clusters of gray eggs may be present that will not adversely affect the broth.) Transfer the shrimp to a bowl, cover and refrigerate them until the chowder base is completed. Place the shrimp shells and heads in a large pot and add 10 cups cold water. Bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce to low and gently simmer for 5 minutes, skimming off any foam that rises to the surface. Strain the broth through a fine sieve and set aside.

2. Now made the chowder base. Cook the bacon in a small pot of simmering water for 1 minute. Drain. Heat a medium pot over medium heat, add the bacon, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it releases some of its fat. Add potatoes and leeks, stir well, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add 3 cups of the reserved shrimp broth (freeze remainder for another use) and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, 8-10 minutes. Remove the chowder base from the heat and cover to keep warm.

3. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Raise the heat to high, add the chilled shrimp and cream, stir well, and bring to a boil. Let boil for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp mixture to the chowder base and stir gently to combine. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Season with salt, a generous amount of black pepper and the cayenne. Ladle into warm soup bowls and sprinkle the chives on top of each.

Linguine with Crab

Do you want to hear about the failures? Or things that just aren't that good? I'm not sure if I should write about them, but this one falls in that category. I started with a Nigella Lawson recipe and tweaked it based on what I had in my fridge, but I honestly don't think my minor change was the reason this dish was fairly unsatisfying. Her recipe is Linguine with Chilli, Crab and Watercress from her Forever Summer cookbook. I replaced the watercress with steamed asparagus pieces (I understand they are completely different) because we had some and I wanted more veggies. I thought it would be light and flavorful, but it was extremely bland. Drew said it was, hmm, ok, but I won't be making it again. I tried to think what would have made it better, and made the flavors come together better. I considered a white wine/butter/lemon sort of reduction, but I just think that would have overpowered the delicate crab. Her original recipe is below. Let me know what you think, if you've tried it, how I might have improved it, etc.

Thanks!

Linguine with Chilli, Crab and Watercress

2 cloves garlic
1 scant tbsp Maldon or other sea salt
1 large red chilli
2 lbs 11 ounces undressed crab, to give you 7 ounces white meat and 4 ounces darker meat
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 lb linguine
handful of fresh parsley, chopped
handful of watercress leaves, roughly torn

Put a large pan of water on to boil for the pasta.

In a large pestle and mortar pulverize the peeled garlic cloves with the salt, so that it make a smooth paste. Then add the chopped and seeded chilli and crush again until you have a gloriously red-tinged mixture. Tip in the crabmeat, breaking it up gently with a fork, and pour in the oil. Zest the lemon into the mortar and then add the juice.

Using a fork, beat well to mix, and then you are ready to cook your pasta. So do so, and then drain the pasta and tip into a warmed serving bowl. Immediately pour over the crab sauce and toss the pasta about in it, then throw in the parsley and watercress and toss again.

Serves 6 as a starter; 4 as a main course.

Woohoo! More Shrimp!

Still using up this shrimp I was given. Yay! Last night we had quick and easy spicy shrimp with spaghetti in a chunky tomato sauce, along with some garlic bread.

olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tspn red pepper flakes
2 medium cans diced tomatoes
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 tspn dried oregano
salt

1/2 lb dried spaghetti

10 medium shrimp, fresh or frozen, peeled and deveined

In a large skillet, heat 1-2 tbsp oil. Saute garlic, onion and pepper flakes over medium to medium low heat - don't burn the garlic! Cook until onion is soft. Add tomatoes, herbs and black pepper. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for approximately 30-35 minutes, stirring occassionally.

Meanwhile, cook spaghetti in boiling salted water.

When pasta is just shy of al dente, add shrimp to tomato sauce. Stir gently and cook until shrimp is pink - about 5 minutes. Add salt to taste.

When pasta is cooked through, drain and transfer to large bowl. Pour sauce over top of pasta and toss. Serves about 3, or 2 with leftovers.

Thanksgiving Inquiries

A few people have asked me what I am making for Thanksgiving. To be honest, we are doing Thanksgiving at my Mom's and it's pretty difficult to find anything to fit in with all the dishes that are already made. I smiled when I read this comment in a New York Times article last week: "After filling out an application in triplicate and pleading my case before the committee, I received probationary approval for a dish of string beans..."

We have so many dishes on our table, and tinkering with them is just not allowed. Mom and Dad make the turkey, Mom makes stuffing, gravy, cranberry relish and mashed potatoes, along with homemade bread and hot cross buns; Dad makes brussels sprouts; and Grandma makes green beans with ham and sweet potatoes with marshmallows. For dessert, Drew is making an apple pie and a pumpkin pie, and Mom is making creme brulee.

I have lots of thoughts of how we could update some of these dishes, make them lighter, etc., but tradition will not allow it (at this point). So, what else can I fit into this meal, particularly something healthy that can be made ahead so I am not using up kitchen space? I thought about a salad, but, unless it is served ahead of the dinner (which it wouldn't be), I just don't think it fits in.

So, in the end, I have decided to make a couple of snacks for before the dinner. I am going to make this Camembert mushroom dish from Food and Wine. Also, I got ahold of a lot of shrimp, so will probably make some sort of cold shrimp appetizer.

I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving, and please send me recipes, comments or pictures of your Thanksgiving.

Update

Yup, ended up making the cheese/mushroom appetizer from Food and Wine. I also made a shrimp salad of shrimp, tarragon, celery, green onion, cayenne, salt, pepper and a tiny bit of mayo. I served them with french bread toasts. Both were a hit, especially the first one - who doesn't love melting, gooey cheese?

Soup Dumplings

I LOVE making dumplings, ravioli, etc. -- they are like little gifts that you bite into for a surprise of ground meat, cheese, beets, whatever. With so many types of wrappers sold today it can be relatively quick and easy. You also can make them ahead of time and pull them straight from the freezer and into whatever you are cooking them in.

I'd love to hear about any type of stuffed goodie any reader out there likes to or wants to make. Send in a comment!

Last night I tinkered with a dish I've made a few times before -- shrimp dumplings in broth, sort of a seafood take on wonton soup. Previously I have added some mushrooms to the broth, but last night I went a step further and really made it a deep mushroom-flavored broth. It was a very satisfying hot soup on a chilly night. The recipe is pretty simple, though the dumplings can take a little time assembling. It makes enough for soup for two, plus dumplings left over that make terrific appetizers. Who doesn't like dumplings?

1 lb medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
2 green onions, chopped
1 egg
4-5 water chestnuts, diced
1 tspn soy sauce
1 tspn sesame oil
1/4 tspn chili garlic sauce*

Put three-fourths of the shrimp and all the other ingredients in the food processor. Pulse until blended and transfer to medium size bowl. Chop the other 1/4 lb of shrimp into 1/2 inch pieces, add to bowl and mix thoroughly.

Fill a small bowl with cold water. On a clean surface place one wonton wrapper (Cover the open wonton wrapper package with a towel to keep from drying out). Place one heaping tablespoon of shrimp mixture on the wrapper, slightly toward one side. Brush edges of wrapper with cold water, and fold one side over the filling, to create dumpling. Press down on all sides to seal, and make sure to get all the air out or the dumplings will open when cooked. Place dumpling on a lightly floured cookie sheet, and cover with a wet towel (not terry cloth). Continue making dumplings until all the filling or wrappers are used up. Cover tray (sans towel) with plastic wrap and place in freezer.

1/4 cup dried mushrooms
8 ounces mixed mushrooms, sliced or roughly chopped
4 cups vegetable stock
2 green onions, finely chopped
pinch of salt

In a small bowl, pour one cup boiling water over dried mushrooms. Let sit for 30 minutes. Remove mushrooms and finely chop. Pour water in small bowl through a paper towel into another small bowl to remove any grit or dirt.

In a medium pot, heat one tablespoon vegetable oil over medium heat. Add fresh mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add stock, chopped reconstituted mushrooms and liquid from small bowl and simmer for 30 minutes. Add green onions and salt.

Fill a medium pot with water and bring to a boil. Carefully put 10 dumplings into water. Using a slotted spoon, remove dumplings when they float to the top and place 5 into each soup bowl. Spoon mushroom broth and mushrooms over dumplings.

Yum!

Shrimp and White Bean Salad

It's probably a little summery, but who cares! Last night we had a cold white bean salad and a couple of shrimp skewers with some pancetta sprinkled on top. It was tasty and relatively light (except for the pancetta of course). It also only took under 30 minutes to make the entire meal. We had it with a nice bottle of Pouilly Fuisse.

Here's the recipe:

1 medium can white beans (canellini, great northern, etc)
6-8 cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
dozen calamata olives, pitted and hlaved
one celery rib, washed and finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

20 medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
olive oil
half a lemon

3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
olive oil
2 ounces pancetta, roughly chopped

Drain beans in a strainer, and run water over them to get rid of as much of the juice as possible. Transfer to a bowl and mix well with the remaining ingredients. Cover and refrigerate.

Heat ridged side of grill pan over medium heat. Skewer shrimp (I put about 4-6 on each skewer). Brush each skewer with olive oil and squeeze lemon juice on top. Grill each skewer 3-5 minutes per side, until pink and cooked through.

While shrimp cooks, heat 2 tbspn olive oil in small pan or skillet. Add garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add pancetta and cook until pancetta is just starting to get crispy.

Plate skewers and white bean salad and sprinkle pancetta/garlic on top. Serves 2.

Salmon + bruschetta - bread = dinner

We had a fabulous long weekend in New York/Connecticut where I sampled sushi at Tomoe, pasta at Lupa, bellinis at Cipriani, and lobster rolls at Lennys. In other words, time to go back to a few less calories.

I bought a salmon filet, a little under a pound, along with some arugula. When I got home, I put together what I usually make for bruschetta: diced tomato, minced garlic, minced basil, salt, pepper and olive oil. For the tomatoes I used a big yellow tomato we had and about 10 cherry tomatoes (quartered). Also, I added a thinly sliced shallot. I mixed all this together and let it sit for an hour or so.

I made a simple vinaigrette (balsamic, dry mustard, sugar, pepper, olive oil) which I tossed with about 1.5 cups of arugula.

I sprinkled salt and pepper on the salmon and put it under the broiler for about 10 minutes, without turning it.

Once the salmon was done (it was a little crispy on top), I put it on top of the bed of arugula, and spooned the bruschetta mix on top. Delicioso!

Chowder in the Summer

Last night I made a corn and fish chowder that was particularly tasty. Some may think its weird to make a warm soup in the middle of the warm Kentucky summer, but I think its the perfect time to cook the season's sweet sweet corn and fresh seafood.

I started by cooking some strips of pancetta in a large pot. When they were cooked and crispy, I removed them from the pot and left them sitting on a paper towel. I added a diced onion and a couple of minced shallots to the pot with the pancetta fat. Once they softened, I added about a cup and a half to two cups of chicken stock (I would have used seafood stock, but didn't have any on hand), about a cup and a half to two cups of white wine, 7-8 small red potatoes diced into 1/2 inch pieces, and the corn from two ears. This cooked for about 20 minutes. I stirred it occassionally, scraping the bottom to get any brown bits from the pancetta. Next, with the potatoes almost done, I added the fish - 1 lb of cod filets cut into 1-inch pieces. I also salted it just to taste. About 5 minutes later, I stirred in 1/3 cup cream. This cooked for another 2-3 minutes. Then I added about an 1/8 a teaspoon of black pepper and a dash of cayenne. After spooning this into our bowls, I spinkled the pancetta bits and a little fresh parsley on top of each serving. We ate this with some leftover crusty bread to dip into the soup. Even I thought it tasted delicious!