Oyster Stew

When we first got to Virginia we had an amazing oyster stew at a local restaurant.  We later returned to the same restaurant with the intent of trying to duplicate it.  Unfortunately it was not the same that night.  It was mediocre at best.  I have tried a few recipes since and not been elated.  

Fast forward a few months and my husband finds a recipe in Garden and Gun Magazine.  I look at it, we get the fresh oysters to shuck along with a few ingredients.   Of course there are a few modifications along the way.  So, here it is.

OYSTER STEW for two
1 dozen salty oysters
4 t butter
1/4 t celery seed
1 T shallot
1 c milk
1 c heavy whipping cream
1/2 t chulula
1/4 t Worcestershire
1/4 t pepper


DIRECTIONS
1). Shuck the oysters, saving the juice and straining it through a coffee filter
2). Mince shallots and saute in pan with celery seed and 2 t butter, until tender
3). Add milk, cream, oyster juice and bring to low simmer
4). Cook oysters in base for 2-3 minutes and remove, dividing between two bowls.
5). Add 1 t butter and 1/8 t black pepper to each bowl
6). Add Worcestershire and Chulula to soup and cook for 1-2 minutes before dividing between bowl

NOTES
1). Most people recommend oyster crackers.  My husband and I prefer a good cheesy bread, and a nice white wine, like a Pino Gregio.

1).  Where I love the Chulula, my husband finished it with some Chipotle Tabasco.

Fish "the Feast Hall Ginny Rub"

This recipe is great for just about all fish.  We have tried it on Salmon, Ahi, Halibut.  It has turned out great every time.

INGREDIENTS
1 lb fish of choice
1 T butter
1 lemon
1 t Ginny Rub

DIRECTIONS
1) Preheat oven to 350
2) place fish in baking pan
3) juice lemon over fish
4) sprinkle "Ginny Rub" evenly over fish
5) chop up butter and drop pieces evenly over fish
6) bake until fish is done

NOTES
How low the fish takes depends on the size and shape of cut.
Knowing when it will be done means you need to know your fish.  The general rule is 10 minutes per 1" of thickness.  If you are unsure I would suggest searching the web to find a technique that works for you.  Not all fish should be cooked to medium well or well done.

SPIN-ART-CRAB stuffed BABY BELLAS aka spinach, crab, artichoke stuffed mushrooms

Fish Friday rolled around again and two of the people I am feeding are fickle teenagers.  One does not like sea food and the other does not like greenery.  So I have a challenge sent forth.

I could not find a similar recipe that did not contain bacon.  I would have loved to add bacon but that would require confession and I try to go into that little box as infrequently as possible.

Spin-Art-Crab-Shrooms

INGREDIENTS

12 stuffing sized portabella or other mushrooms of choice, about 2" across

1 lb (16 oz) crab meat

1 10 oz package frozen, chopped spinach

1 (14 oz can) artichoke hearts

1 small sweet onion

4 oz asiago or other hard Italian cheese

1 c panko, Japanese bread crumbs

1 t garlic

1 t salt

1 t pepper

1 t dill weed

1/2 t nutmeg

2 eggs

1 lemon

DIRECTIONS

       Preparations

*  Mushrooms-pull stems and spoon out gills, reserve

*  Crab-put in colander to drain as much liquid as possible and sift for shells

*  Onion-small dice

*  Spinach-thaw and squeeze as much moisture as you can from it

*  Artichoke Hearts-drain and chop as finely as possible

*  Asiago-grate

*  Lemon-juice

     Assembly

*  Preheat oven to 350

*  Place mushrooms, cap side down in a large casserole pan, putting stems between

*  Combine all ingredients except mushrooms and half of Asiago and mix until evenly combined

*  Evenly stuff mushrooms with mixture and top with remaining Asiago

*  Bake for 30-60 minutes, until the tops are golden brown

*  Let cool for 5 minutes before serving

NOTES:

Everyone loved this except for my husband.  He did not think the crab came through.  But with the success of feeding two finicky teenagers foods they do not like and having them want it again I will call this a success.

• 
  
• 
  

Pasta with Sardines

Today I am practicing "pantry cooking".  What that means is that I am only going to purchase things as *absolutely necessary*.  Since we do meatless Fridays and most of the canned fish in our panty is sardines I decided to look through an Italian cookbook and find a sardine pasta dish.  I of course modified it due to ingredients and now my husband has a suggestion for the left overs.


PASTA with SARDINES

INGREDIENTS:
4 4 oz cans of whole sardines in olive oil (wild planet is preferred)
1/2 c flour
12 oz whole wheat pasta
2 T prunes, chopped
1/2 c pine nuts
1 T dill weed
1 lg sweet onion
1 t garlic, minced
Olive oil
salt
2 oz Parmesan grated


DIRECTIONS
*  Bring Pasta water to boil with 1 T salt
*  Soak prunes in 1/2 c hot water
*  Drain sardines in a colander
*  Dice onion and saute in 2 T olive oil until you get moderate carmelization
*  Add garlic, dill, pine nuts, prunes with water and stir while cooking until water evaporates then remove from heat
*  Cook Pasta then drain and mix with above mixture
*  Heat pan and add 2 T olive oil
*  Dredge sardines in flour
*  Cook sardines on each side until golden brown
* Plate pasta, top with Sardines to desire then grated Parmesan

I suggest serving this with a nice Chardonnay or a sweet Riesling.
In a few days I will reheat the left overs with a nice cream or alfredo sauce, per my husbands tastebuds and I will update then.


I hope this inspires you to modify dishes to work with your pantrys stock.

Anthoinette

Clams in Vodka Sauce with Linguine

Ever since I have heard of "vodka sauce" I have really wanted to find a recipe and try it.  Today was just the day.  It had cooled down enough so that crab cakes were off the menu, but it was still too warm for Cioppino.  Not to mention the Raging Mr. was stuck on clams.

Clams in Vodka Sauce with Linguine
This batch serves 8

INGREDIENTS
1 lb linguine
1/2 c butter
1/4 c salt
1/4 c cornmeal
1/2 T crushed red pepper flake
1 medium red onion
6 large Roma Tomatoes
1/4 lb crimini mushrooms
1 T minced garlic
1 T capers
1 c Vodka
1 c heavy whipping cream
5 lb clams in shells
1/4 lb Parmesano Regiano-grated
1 loaf favorite rustic bread

DIRECTIONS

*  Put clams in a large bowl with 3 T salt, 1/4 c cornmeal and enough cold water to cover
*  Dice onions and slice mushrooms then saute in butter
*  Dice tomatoes and add to onions and mushrooms
*  Add 1 t salt, 1/2 T crushed red pepper, 1 T capers along with 1 T minced garlic
*  Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes stirring every couple of minutes
*  Put pasta water on to boil with 2 t salt
*  Add Vodka continue to cook for 20 minutes or until vodka flavor mellows
*  Add whipping cream to sauce and bring to boil
*  Drain and rinse clams and stir into sauce
*  As clams open pull from sauce
*  Cook pasta until al dente, rinse and lightly coat with oil
*  Pour sauce and clams over pasta to serve
*  Serve with grated Parmesano Regiano and rustic bread

CRAB CAKES

Not only do I need to be inspired by the food I cook with, but I need to love the final product.  I have had several trials with crab cakes that I have been told were good.  I did not love them.  I finally have the recipe I LOVE!  It is a inspired by the Chicken of the Sea recipe.  These crab cakes are good with either cocktail sauce, or just a touch of lemon.  They are moderately seasoned, moist on the inside and crispy on the outside.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb lump crab meat
3 egg whites
1 egg
2 T mayonaisse
1 T horseradish stoneground mustard
1 t mustard powder
1 t Old Bay
1/8 t cayenne
1 lemon
1 c panko
3 T bacon drippings

DIRECTIONS
1)  Put crab in a colander to drain

2)  Mix mustard powder, old bay, cayenne and egg whites together and whip until soft peaks form

3)  Juice 1/2 of lemon over crab, wedge remaining half for service

4) Fold mayonnaise, mustard and egg yolk into egg whites

5)  Fold crab and 1/2 c panko into egg mixture

6)  Preheat pan on high

7)  Make crab mix into 2 T patties, then gently roll in remaining Panko

8)  Melt 1 1/2 T bacon dripping in pan, put half the crab cakes in and cover until the first side is golden brown.   Flip the crab cakes and once again cover until golden brown and remove from pan.

9)  Repeat step 8 with second half of crab cakes

10)  Serve with lemon wedges and cocktail sauce

Miso Mahi Mahi

Continuing on with the Friday fish tradition this week I was inspired by a beautiful Mahi Mahi a wonderful Miso soup mix I found.  Thank you Trader Joes.  This is a well balanced meal in itself and does not require more courses or accompaniments.

Miso Mahi Mahi

Ingredients

1 lb Mahi Mahi
1 lb parsnips
1 small red onion
1 lb asparagus
1 T sesame oil
6 c Miso soup (enough mix to make)
2 T sriracha or other pepper/garlic sauce
1 T hoisan
1 t grated fresh ginger
1 t garlic
100 g rice noodles

Directions

1) julianne onions, peel and cut parsnips into coins, cut asparagus into 1 1/2" lengths after snapping the ends

2) Saute onions and parsnips in Sesame oil until onions become partially transparent

3)  Bring Miso soup to a boil, turn off heat, put fish in and cover

4)  Mix sriacha, hoisin, ginger and garlic into parsnips and onions

5)  Evenly spread asparagus on top of parsnips and onions and cook for 3 minutes more then stir to combine

6)  Evenly divide parsnip mix into 4-5 bowls, topped by equal amounts of uncooked noodles then fish then miso and serve

NOTES:

I realize that some of these items may be seasonal in your area or just hard to get so here is a substitutions list:

Miso soup-fish or vegetable stock

Parsnips-carrots

Mahi Mahi- just about any fish, rock fish, salmon, cod, halibut

Rice noodles-speghetini

I hope you enjoy this detour into fusion cuisine as much as my friends and family did.

Anthoinette

Cocktail Sauce

Last Friday we did crab cakes with cocktail sauce, springtime spinach salad sans bacon, and artichokes.        I still need to play with the crab cake recipe.  But, the cocktail sauce was wonderful.  The easy way to make cocktail sauce is equal portions of ketchup and horseradish, which works well but...
I got a little creative and it was worth it.

Cocktail Sauce

Ingredients

5 T Ketchup
5 T Horseradish
1 t Worchestershire Sauce
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cayenne
1/2 t garlic
1 t lemon juice

Directions

1)  mix all ingreidients

2)  let sit for at least 15 minutes to meld all the flavors before serving

I hope you try this next time you need some cocktail sauce.

Anthoinette

Fish Wild v. Farm raised

My last post discussed how I really only want to eat wild caught fish.  The reality is that some farmed fish, especially salmon, are less nutritious than farmed fish.  My husband pointed out that some fish are actually farmed in their native environment.  So, I did some research...

When the topic of wild v. farm raised fish is brought up there are a lot of concerns about the nutrition of the seafood, the sustainability and the impact on the environment.

From what I have found clams, mussels and oysters are fine if they are farmed.  The consensus is that they are raised in their native waters and clean the water around them.  Like many other fish you really want want to avoid these shellfish if they are from China or Latin America due to pollution.

I have found this link to pocket guides that I think give you the best option for making the best decision for your seafood purchases.  It is called the pocket seafood guide and they are made for different regions.  You can get them here or it also comes as a smartphone app at no cost.  

I hope this helps make you happier about the seafood you eat like it will for me.

Anthoinette

Fish on the rocks a.k.a. drunken rockfish

Every Friday from now until perpetuity we will be having fish.  I will say that living on the coast I expect to be able to find fresh, wild caught fish all the time.

Not so much....

Today my choices were either Ahi or Rock Fish.  The Rock fish was not only much more affordable, but also something I had not cook with before, so the adventure begins....

Fish on the Rocks

Ingredients

2 lb rockfish
1 T olive oil
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1 lemon, zest and juice
1/2 c vodka
1 t dill
1/2 t garlic
1/2 t chipotle
2 T capers
3 T butter

Directions

1)  preheat oven to warm

2)  heat olive oil in a large saute or fry pan on med high heat

3)  lightly season both sides of fish with salt and pepper

4)  cook fish on each side for 3 minutes on each side

5)  turn off oven and put fish on a cookie sheet in the oven

6)  turn off heat and mix remaining ingredients in pan until butter is melted

7)  put fish on a platter and serve with sauce over the top


This dish as been described as lightly savory with a touch of natural sweetness.  I hope you enjoy trying it in your kitchen as well.

Anthoinette

Cioppino a.k.a. Italian Seafood Stew

Cioppino has been a favorite for my husband and myself for well over a decade.  With the weather turning cold and once again being where we can get good seafood our hunger has been renewed.

Chioppino

Ingredients
1    16 oz can diced tomatoes
1      8 oz can tomato paste
1 c            water
2 T           oil
1               red onion, diced
5 t             garlic, minced
1/2 lb        mushrooms, sliced
1 T           basil
1/2 T        oregano
1/2 T        fennel seed
1 t            thyme
1 t            marjoram
1 t            salt
1 t            pepper
1 lb          clams
1 lb          shrimp
1/2 lb       mussels
1/2 lb       fish(salmon is preferred)

Directions
1)  heat stock pot and add oil

2)  saute onions and mushrooms until onions are transparent, then add garlic and saute for a few minutes more

3)  add diced tomatoes, tomato paste and water along with basil, oregano, fennel, thyme, marjoram, salt and pepper, bring to a boil then drop to a simmer

4)  cut fish into 1" cubes, peel and devein shrimp, pull the beards from your mussels

5)  once the broth has simmered for at least 15 minutes add the mussels

6)  wait 5 minutes and add the clams

7)  once the mussels are mostly opened add the fish and shrimp, cover the pan and let cook for 3 mintues

8)  when the shrimp are pink and all of the clams and mussels are open your stew is ready to serve

I encourage serving this with sourdough bread.  Feeds 6.

NOTES:
Any kind of shellfish can be used, crab, clams, mussels, oysters, etc...  With the fish you need to be more selective.  The fish needs to be firm.  Salmon is our first choice.  Shark, tuna, halibut are all good options.

Gumbo

This delightfully simple stew is next to impossible to mess up, unless you burn the roux. CATEGORY: Soup Recipe Name: Gumbo Ingredients: 1/2 c flour 1/2 c butter 2 T oil 3 stalk celery, diced 1 green bell pepper, diced 1 red onion, diced 6 clove garlic, minced 3 14.5 oz cans chicken broth 1 T sage 1/2 t cayenne 1 t thyme 1 lb andouille, cut into rounds 2 lbs chicken, cut into bite size pieces 2 lbs shrimp, raw, peeled 3 c rice, uncooked 1 T file powder Steps: * in a small fry pan combine flour and butter in pan to make roux, and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until it turns a deep brown then remove from heat * In a 6qt stock pot put temperature to HI and add oil, onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic and stir occasionally. Once you get it hot lower heat to MED-LOW and put the lid on for 10 minutes to sweat the vegetables. * Mix roux in to coat vegetables and bring back to HI heat * Whisk in chicken stock and bring to boil. Once at a boil drop to MED-LOW heat again * Add sage, thyme, cayenne, andouille & chicken, stir occasionally * In another pan start rice: 3 c rice, 6 c water and 1 T oil, bring to boil, drop to simmer and cover for 20-30 minutes * 5-10 minutes before service remove gumbo from heat and add shrimp and file, stirring well to mix NOTES: Gumbo is a creole stew that has a different variation for just about every family. Summer gumbo has Okra for thickening and winter gumbo has File or ground sassafras root. The dark Roux is not a thickening, but a flavoring agent. Proper gumbo is usually served over a bed of rice and as the entire meal. Some people will serve it over potato salad. In Louisiana the shells are left on the shrimp and eaten. In most other areas people are a little weirded out by this.

Coconut Shrimp Puffs

I had some left over cooked shrimp and my son wanted coconut shrimp. Unfortunately all the recipes I found called for frying it and I was afraid of turning the shrimp to rubber if I were to cook it again at such a high temperature. So, I came up this this recipe. The batter is a cross between a pancake and a traditional tempura recipe. It was a hit. CATEGORY: Appetizers/finger food Recipe Name: Coconut Shrimp puffs Ingredients: 3/4 c flour 1/4 c corn starch 3/4 c water 1 egg 1 T baking powder 3/4 c coconut 1 t red pepper flake 2 c shrimp Steps: * mix all dry ingredients * add in all wet ingredients, mixing until smooth * mix in shrimp * put in greased and floured mini muffin tins (2) * bake at 350 for 20 minutes