Grilled Shrimp and Roasted Pear Salad

I had the best salad EVER at the Metro Deli in Chicago's Union Station while waiting for our train. It was very much like this one, which I found here and in several other places around the Internet. It seems like everyone has posted the same recipe, so I don't really know where it originated online. 

16 jumbo (U/15) shrimp

2 whole fresh pears of your choice, cut in 1/2 (core and stem removed)

2 Tbs olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 oz dried cranberries

2 oz candied cashews

12 oz mixed baby greens 

5 oz balsamic vinaigrette

1/2 Tbs pure maple syrup

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 oz croutons made with cinnamon and raisin bread

Directions

1. Mix 1 ounce balsamic vinegar with Dijon mustard and 1 tablespoon oil and coat shrimp. Season with salt and pepper, grill 1 1/2 minutes per side until done, then keep warm.

2. Toss pears with remaining oil, season with salt and pepper and roast in 450° F oven for 14 minutes and allow to cool.

3. Mix remaining balsamic vinegar and maple syrup in a medium sized bowl and toss in mixed greens and gently coat, add croutons, cranberries and cashews.

4. To serve: Divide greens onto 4 plates, arrange 4 grilled shrimp per plate and top with a sliced roasted pear half and serve.

My note: Add some gorgonzola, crumbled

Grilled Sea Bass with Tropical Salsa

• I have no idea who started the idea that men do the grilling, but I love it. Grilling has changed Beez from a man who only ate hamburger, steaks, and pizza into a culinary adventurer.

This recipe came from the Bon Appetit Magazine Millennium Special, Sept. 1999.

• 
  
• 1 cup 1/4-inch pieces peeled, cored pineapple
• 3/4 cup 1/4-inch pieces peeled, pitted mango
• 2/3 cup 1/4-inch pieces red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup 1/4-inch pieces seeded tomato
• 1/3 cup 1/4-inch pieces seeded English hothouse cucumber (guess what? I'm betting you could substitute regular old every day cucumber)
• 1/3 cup 1/4-inch pieces red onion
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh mint
• 2 tablespoons minced seeded jalapeño chili
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

• 6 6-ounce sea bass fillets
• Olive oil
• 
  

Combine first 10 ingredients in medium bowl; toss to blend. Season salsa with salt. Chill to blend flavors, at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours, tossing occasionally.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Brush fish with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill until just opaque in center, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to plates. Top with salsa and serve.

Oyster Stuffing

I am such a traditionalist when it comes to Thanksgiving that I never want to fool around with the menu. I like Sausage Cornbread Stuffing for the turkey, but if I ever chose to experiment I might try this recipe from Seasoned with Grace; My Generation of Shaker Cooking, by Eldress Bertha Lindsay. Making it would remind me of the lovely Canterbury Shaker Village in New Hampshire that we visited when the kids were little.

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

3 cups bread crumbs, soft

1 pint oysters, chopped

2 - 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Pour milk and butter over crumbs. Add oysters and seasonings. Spoon the stuffing into the turkey and roast.

Shaker Village, Canterbury, NH

Grandma Elva's Clam Chowder

How my mother loved a good chowder! She was born in New Brunswick, and lived in Maine and Massachusetts before moving out west, so I guess she knew a thing or two about making one. Of course, she probably started out making her earlier versions from freshly shucked clams, but I remember her making do quite nicely with canned clams from our inland grocery store. I don't seem to have my mom's directions written down, but I have watched her make it many times. This version from Allrecipes comes the closest. 4 slices bacon, diced 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 1 1/2 cups water 4 cups peeled and cubed potatoes 1 1/2 teaspoons salt ground black pepper to taste 3 cups half-and-half (half of this can be whole milk) 3 tablespoons butter 2 (10 ounce) cans minced clams Place diced bacon in large stock pot over medium-high heat. Cook until almost crisp; add onions, and cook 5 minutes. Stir in water and potatoes, and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender. Pour in half-and-half, and add butter. Drain clams, reserving clam liquid; stir clams and 1/2 of the clam liquid into the soup. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until heated through. Do not allow to boil. **Now, here is where Grandma Elva added her own particular touch. After the chowder was heated through, she insisted that it should sit on the stove (off the heat) for at least an hour to develop its full flavor. Then she would carefully reheat it (no boiling, very important!) and serve it with oyster crackers. Common crackers, split and buttered, are wonderful, too.

Shrimp, Avocado, and Mango Salad

I just saw this on Desert Candy and I want to eat it.

--1 Mango
--1/4 of medium-sized Red Onion, finely diced
--2 tbsp finely diced Red Bell Pepper (or Hot Chili Pepper)
--A few Cilantro leaves, finely chopped
--3 tbsp Fresh Lime Juice
--1 Avocado, chopped
--1/2 lb Shrimp, peeled
--Salt and Cayenne Pepper to taste

Peel and slice the mango, working over a bowl. Squeeze the juice from round the pit of mango into the bowl. Add the onion, pepper, cilantro, lime juice and toss to combine.

Boil a pot of water with a little salt, then turn heat down to a simmer. Add the shrimp and cook until just opaque and curled in 3/4 circles. Don't overcook! Immediately transfer shrimp to a colander and run cool water over them to stop cooking. Dice the shrimp. Add the shrimp and avocado to the mango mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Barbecued Shrimp

When I first met Beez, he ate only pizza, hamburgers, and steak. He was not interested in anything else, especially vegetables. After almost 30 years now, he has turned into a wonderful cook. He will try cooking and eating almost anything (and sometimes even vegetables), indoors and out.

Last night, we prepared a superb meal together--barbecued shrimp, carrot salad, and focaccia. It was just one of those memorable meals that comes together with the perfect company, the best conversation, and the tastiest food.

The shrimp recipe is actually called "A Fine Mess of Barbecued Shrimp," and it comes from Bill and Cheryl Jamison's wonderful cookbook, Born to Grill. There is an online version of the recipe on The Global Gourmet.

Creole Barbecue Sauce
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons Creole mustard
Juice of 1 medium lemon
5 plump garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Super Wooster Sauce or other Worcestershire sauce
1-1/2 teaspoons fresh-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce or other hot pepper sauce, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled but with tails left on and, if you wish, deveined

Super Wooster Sauce or other Worcestershire sauce, or Tabasco sauce or other hot pepper sauce, or both.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and stir to heat through. Place the shrimp in a plastic bag or shallow dish, pour the sauce over them, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Fire up the grill, bring the temperature to high (1 to 2 seconds with the hand test).

Remove the shrimp for the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

Transfer the shrimp to a well-oiled grate or, preferably in this case, to a well-oiled small-mesh grill rack. Grill the shrimp uncovered over high heat for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes per side, until just opaque with lightly browned edges. If grilling covered, cook the shrimp for the same amount of time, turning once midway.

Serve the shrimp hot, with Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce on the side for customizing the flavor.

Something Else That Oma Does With Shrimp

I don't know if this is a Dutch thing or an Oma thing, but I still think about these delicious meatballs. We seemed to only have them when camping with Oma and Opa.

2 slices stale bread, soaked in a bit of milk and drained

1 lb. ground beef

1 cup tiny shrimp

1/2 cup finely minced onions

Dash of nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all together and form into largish meatballs--about the size of a big lemon. Flatten slightly, and saute in a frying pan until done. 

Oma's Shrimp Cocktail

Oma* has a way with shrimp. Opa** has a way with "Happy Hour," which was always observed at their house when I was a guest. 

Best of all, Happy Hour always happened when we were all camping together in the Canadian wilderness. It helped us all get over the inevitable crankiness that arose when Opa was parking the trailer and Oma was giving the hand signals to guide him in backing up. 

This is the best and easiest shrimp cocktail you will ever have. 

Ingredients:

1. Lots of fresh shrimp

2. Sauce: Bottled chili sauce (the kind that looks like catsup), mixed with a LOT of sherry. Don't hold back, because the sauce is meant to have quite a kick

3. Lemon wedges to garnish

That's all there is to it. 

*Oma is Ben's Dutch grandmother

**Opa is Ben's Dutch grandfather

Fried Fish New Orleans

This recipe comes from Jeff Smith's The Frugal Gourmet Cooks With Wine. It is one of those dishes that you can cheerfully chow down on when you are young. You know your digestive system is aging when, as happened with me the last time I ate this, you are up all night with a really impressive case of heartburn. Ben may already be at the borderline age for this, but he keeps remembering it fondly...

2 lb red snapper or whitefish; cut 1 1/2" square pieces 

Tabasco sauce to taste

2 eggs; beaten

3/4 c water

3/4 c flour

1/4 c cornstarch

1/4 tsp. baking powder

Salt to taste

Freshly-ground black pepper

Peanut oil for deep-frying

Place the fish and Tabasco sauce in a stainless-steel bowl. Let marinate for 20 minutes. 

Mix the batter by whipping the eggs, adding the water. Blend the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and pepper together in a dry bowl, using a fork. Gently stir this into the egg/water mixture. Do not try to get out all the small lumps. It will not matter. Do not overmix. 

Heat 4 cups of peanut oil to 375 to 400 degrees. Dip the marinated fish squares into the batter, then deep-fry until light brown, about 4 minutes. This recipe serves 4.

Stuffed Fish

Dry toasted bread, cut up

Finely chopped onion

Finely chopped celery

Chopped fresh parsley

Thyme (dried or fresh)

A dab of butter

Fish bouillon

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix the bread, onion, celery, parsley, and thyme. Lightly moisten the bread mixture with fish bouillon in which you have melted a bit of butter. 

Use as stuffing for a whole fish, or place between fish steaks or fillets. Bake at 350˚ until the fish flakes easily with a fork. 

Sole With Rosemary

As I've flipped through my food-spattered paperback copy of The Frugal Gourmet, by Jeff Smith, I've taken a culinary trip down memory lane. We cooked with whitefish a lot. We only made this a couple of times, but it's worth posting:

--1 1/2 lbs of Sole Fillets
--2 tbsp Olive Oil
--1 tbsp Lemon Juice
--2 tbsp White Wine
--1 tbsp Fresh Parsley, chopped
--1/2 tbsp Fresh Rosemary leaves, chopped (or 1 tsp Dried Rosemary if you must, but remember that rosemary is the star of this dish, so go for broke and get the fresh stuff)
--Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the sole in a baking dish so that the fish fits snugly. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, wine, parsley and rosemary. Pour over the fish and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the fish begins to barely flake.

Spicy Beer-Battered Fish Tacos

Of all my experiments in the kitchen, this recipe has benefited from the most disasters. Once, I spilled salt into the mix. Another time, I spilled cayenne pepper. I tried using corn meal once, but that may have been the time I spilled the salt. Oil too hot; Oil too cold. Each time, I just kept trucking along, churning out one culinary horror after another. In the end, I stopped messing around and simplified. Of course, I might mess up remembering the recipe (don't trust my measurements)...

--1 to 1/2 lbs Whitefish fillets, cut into small pieces
--Canola Oil
--1 cup White Flour
--1/2 tsp Salt
--1 tsp Fresh-Ground Black Pepper
--1/2 to 1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
--1 bottle Dark Beer (I liked using a thick Stout)

Mix flour, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper in a bowl for dredging. In another bowl, pour the beer. You may not need the whole bottle, so take a sip! Dip the pieces of fish into the beer, then dredge them in the flour. Dip in the beer again, then dredge in the flour one more time. Pile up your battered fish on a plate to prepare for frying. Heat a frying pan on high and pour in a lot of oil (I'd deep-fry the fish if I had the equipment). Remember that if you heat the oil to hot enough, the batter will cook almost instantly and the food won't absorb all that bad oil. Carefully place the fish into the hot oil and fry until it's golden brown. Drain on paper towel. Recommended: Serve on lightly pan-heated corn tortillas with a squeeze of lime juice, piled with mild cheddar cheese, sour cream, and a salady mixture of chopped tomatoes, avocado, salt, black pepper and a little bit of olive oil. Sometimes I like sliced radishes on the side.

Parchment-Steamed Fish

Marsha introduced me to parchment paper. I'd never seen anyone use it in the kitchen before I met her. It turns out that parchment paper is quite useful. Especially if you want to steam something. Like fish.

Marsha was very open about the ingredients to this dish. She prefers using tilapia, but recommends any mild fish that will absorb flavors well. As for the other ingredients, she just says to "add any of your favorite things". Here's her version:

--Tilapia (or any fish you prefer), as many fillets that you intend to serve
--Olive Oil
--Kosher or Sea Salt and Fresh-Ground Black Pepper
--Red or Yellow Pepper, small dice
--Fresh Oregano
--Lemon (a couple slices, plus a good squeeze of the juice)
--Parchment Paper

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. On top of a cookie sheet, lay out enough parchment paper to make a giant "paper dumpling" with all of your ingredients inside (I never quite trust "paper" holding liquid, so I recommend using two sheets for strength). In the center of the sheet, lay out your fish fillets. Drizzle them with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and squeeze some lemon juice over them. On or around the fillets, add the diced pepper, fresh oregano, and lemon slices. Now close up your "paper dumpling", though don't wrap it too tightly. Leave enough room in the pouch for steam to collect. Pop the whole thing in the oven for 10 minutes or so, or until the fish is flaky. Be careful not to burn yourself on the hot steam when opening the parchment pouch!

National Public Radio's "How Low Can You Go" Challenge

For NPR's "How Low Can You Go" family supper challenge, some of the nation's best cooks have each agreed to come up with a budget-conscious meal for a family of four that's healthy, easy and delicious. The hitch? The meal must cost less than $10 — and the cheaper the better. ~All Things Considered

When I first heard about this challenge, I was sure that most of the suppers we make here at the Zees are well within this price range--dividing the $10/per family of four in half, making $5 for our empty-nest family of two. Looking at Beez's lasagna this past weekend, I'm not so sure. The cost for that cheese sure adds up!

Here are some of the results from the NPR challenge:

The Neelys Get Playful with a $9 Mac 'N' Cheese (Cheesy Corkscrews with Crunchy Bacon Topping

Chef Ming Tsai Makes a $10 Dish His Kids Love (Chicken-and-Corn Fried Rice with Lemon Spinach)

From Chef Jose Andres, A Family Favorite for $10 (Moorish-Style Chick Pea and Spinach Stew

Navy Chef Gets Creative with a $10 Skate Meal (Cream of Asparagus Soup, Sauteed Skate Meuniere with Potato Gnocchi)

Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon

He's an incredibly rich (and undoubtedly unhealthy way) to start your day. This is a once-in-a-blue-moon brunch-in-bed type of breakfast, reserved for decadent occasions. Unless you're extremely brazen with your health. Another one from Food Network 's Rachael Ray.

--1/4 lb Sliced Smoked Salmon, cut into very small pieces (with 2 slices reserved for garnish if you wanna get fancy)
--12 Eggs
--1/2 cup Heavy Cream
--Salt and fresh-ground Black Pepper
--2 tbsp Butter
--12 to 15 blades of Fresh Chives, finely chopped

Whisk the eggs and cream together. Add 1/2 of your chopped chives and season with with salt and pepper. Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Melt butter in the pan and add eggs. Begin to scramble eggs with a wooden spoon, but don't let them cook until they're dry. When they have come together but remain wet, stir in the chopped salmon. Remove pan from the stove and place on a hot plate. Garnish the eggs with remaining salmon and chives and serve right out of the warm pan.

Cod or Salmon Cakes

This is the perfect dish for leftover fish, which of course you need to use up by the day after cooking it. In the old days in New England when folks had to work really hard for a living, these were eaten for breakfast, along with lots of hot coffee and a nice piece of apple pie afterwards. Nowadays, we slackers just have these for supper.

Use your hands to crumble the cod or salmon into a bowl, carefully removing any bones and bits of skin. Depending on how much fish you have, add one or two beaten eggs, chopped cooked onion, cooked and mashed potatoes, salt, pepper, and just enough flour to hold the mixture together. 

Heat a large skillet or griddle, melt a little butter on it. Form the fish mixture into patties about the size of hamburgers, and brown them slowly over low to medium heat, turning when one side is brown. When brown and crispy, remove from heat and serve hot.

Baked Whitefish with Vegetables

This is way more delicious than its title would have you believe. It's lovely for a winter night's supper.

4 potatoes

1 onion

2 carrots

1 to 1 1/2 cups green peas or cooked green beans

1/4 lb. (1 stick) butter

4 to 5 pounds of whitefish (cod is wonderful here), whole or in slices with its skin on

1/2 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly into rounds; peel the onion and slice it thinly into rings; peel the carrots and slice them thin, lengthwise. In just enough salted water to cover them, parboil these vegetables (plus the green beans if they aren't already cooked) until nearly done, but still a bit hard. Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon, reserve the liquid. If you are using peas or cooked green beans, add them to the other vegetables now.

Lay the fish in a buttered baking dish; place the drained vegetables on and around it. Dot with lots of butter, using the whole quarter pound. Do not use margarine, it doesn't work in this recipe. Fill the dish to a depth of 1/2 inch with the liquid from the vegetables.

Bake uncovered at 375 until the fish can be flaked with a fork, about 30 minutes. Check a couple of times during baking, and baste with the liquid in the pan. If it should dry out during cooking, add more of the reserved liquid. When the fish is done there should be very little liquid left. The potatoes should be crisp and brown. If necessary, place under the broiler to finish browning.

The original recipe for this dish is called Mama's Baked Whitefish with Vegetables, and comes from Elsie Masterton's Blueberry Hill Cookbook.

Scallops, Portuguese Style

     Long ago in Puyallup, Washington

It seems that when we lived in Washington state, we were always having some memorable seafood meal--I especially remember the clams, oysters, salmon, and yes, the scallops. Alas, we are now very far from fresh fish (except the ubiquitous catfish, ugh) and other seafood. When we travel to either coast we always order some when eating out.

Here is one of the dishes I remember best. I picture the kids in their preteen years back in our little Craftsman cottage, eating around the table, with the dining room windows looking out over the sheep field. 

1 pound (1 pt.) fresh bay scallops (the little kind)

  or frozen scallops, thoroughly defrosted

8 tbl. butter, cut into 1/2 inch bits

1 cup flour

1 tsp. finely chopped garlic

3 tbl. finely chopped fresh parsley

1/4 tsp. salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Wash the scallops quickly under cold running water, then spread them in one layer on a cookie sheet covered with a linen towel. Drape a second towel over the scallops and place them in the refrigerator for about 4 hours to drain thoroughly. 

In a small heavy saucepan or skillet melt the butter over low heat, turning the bits about with a wooden spoon to melt them slowly and completely without letting the butter brown. Remove the pan from the heat and let the butter rest for a minute. Then skim off the foam from the surface and discard it. 

Tipping the pan at a slight angle, spoon the clear butter on top into a heavy 12-inch skillet (preferably non-stick). Leave behind all the milky solids that will have settled to the bottom of the smaller pan. 

Place the flour in a large bowl and drop the scallops into it. With a slotted spoon or your fingers toss the scallops about gently until they are coated on all sides with the flour. Then turn them out into a sieve and shake them vigorously to remove the excess flour. 

Warm the clear butter in the skillet over high heat for 10 seconds. Add the scallops and, sliding the pan back and forth to turn them about, fry them for 2 or 3 minutes until they are firm but not brown. DO NOT OVERCOOK the scallops.

Add the chopped garlic and parsley to the skillet and slide the pan vigorously back and forth for about 30 seconds longer. 

Mound the scallops attractively on a heated platter, season with the salt and a few grindings of pepper, and serve at once. 

This recipe originally came from American Cooking: New England, part of the Time-Life series, Foods of the World.  

Halibut in Artichoke and Tomato Broth

Artichokes and seafood, continued... This one comes from the Food Network's Giada De Laurentiis, but I've made adjustments per Marsha's blog Panda Cake. She makes this all the time, so I trust her modifications.

--4 tbsp Olive Oil
--4 Halibut Fillets (around 6 oz each)
--Salt
--Freshly ground Black Pepper
--2 Shallots, sliced into thin rounds
--2 cloves Garlic, minced
--1 lb frozen Artichokes, thawed (Marsha sez: I use 1 can of artichoke hearts - I can never find frozen ones)
--1/2 cup White Wine
--1 1/2 cups low-sodium Chicken Broth
--1 (14.5 oz) can Diced Tomatoes
--1/2 tsp Fresh Thyme Leaves, minced
--You will need a Grill Pan or improvise around it

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the halibut and season with salt and pepper. Heat a grill pan over high heat. Cook the fish on the grill pan until just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side, depending on thickness.

In a medium saucepan, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and cook for 1 minute. Add the garlic and artichokes and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the white wine and stir, scraping the brown bits off the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add the chicken broth, tomatoes (with the juice), thyme, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer.

Ladle the artichoke and tomato broth into shallow bowls. Top with the grilled halibut. Serve immediately.

Tuna with Black Pepper, Artichokes, and Lemon

This is a recipe from Real Simple magazine, with notes from Marsha's short-lived blog Panda Cake. We ate this a couple times when we lived together, though I haven't made it since. I remember really liking it. We made a lot of dishes with artichokes. Marsha loves artichokes!

--2 tbsp Olive Oil
--1/2 Red Onion, thinly sliced (Marsha sez: I used a yellow onion instead and actually liked it better than the red)
--3 6.5 oz jars Artichoke Hearts, drained and halved
--1 Lemon, cut into 8 slices (Marsha sez: plus the juice of one half of a lemon)
--2 cloves Garlic, thinly sliced
--4 sprigs Fresh Thyme
--1 1/2 lbs Fresh Tuna, cut into cubes
--1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
--1 tsp Black Pepper

Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the artichokes, lemon, garlic, and thyme. Cook until heated through, 3 more minutes. Transfer to a plate. Season the tuna with the salt and pepper. Heat the remaining oil in the skillet. Cook the tuna, turning to brown all sides, to the desired doneness, about 2 minutes for medium. Return the artichoke mixture to skillet and toss to combine.

Real Simple recommends serving over rice.