Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Here is an easy shrimp dish with a New Orleans slant.  We have been traveling so much this holiday season that I have found easy meals, while we are home, the only option.  We got back to Florida yesterday and are heading to Charleston for New Years with our friends tomorrow.

Enjoy the New Year’s celebrations and I will see you back here in 2012.  My blog’s 4th anniversary is approaching and I will be having a giveaway and hopefully a new look.

CAJUN SHRIMP STEW (Gourmet Magazine)

2 tablespoons vegetale oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small celery rib, finely chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped geen bell pepper
1 cup bottled clam juice (8 fl oz)
3/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 1/4 lb peeled and deveined large shrimp
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallion greens

Accompaniment: White Rice

Stir together oil and flour in a 10-inch heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron) with a metal or wooden spatula, then cook over moderate heat, scraping back and forth constantly, until roux is the color of light milk chocolate, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add onion, celery, and bell pepper and cook, scraping back and forth occasionally, until bell pepper is softened, about 8 minutes.  Stir in clam juice, water, salt, and cayenne and simmer, stirring occasionally, until liquid is thickened, 8 to 10 minutes.  Stir in shrimp and simmer, stirring occasionally, until shrimp is just cooked through, 3 to 4 mintues.  Stir in scallion greens and salt to taste.

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I will not bore you with the convoluted way that this soup came about.  Just know that it is good and quick to pull together.  I was supposed to be making a ham and pepper pot pie but it was a failure.  I rescued the filling for this hearty soup.

The basis of this soup is a box of Imagine* Brand Organic Creamy Potato Leek Soup.  I don’t usually like canned or boxed soups, but this one is really good.  Other convenience items that make it so easy are frozen carrot slices, frozen corn and canned chicken broth.

The seafood I included was some of the halibut that we had shipped home from Alaska.  We are working our way through 16 pounds of it.  Halibut is a wonderful mild fish.  You could substitute flounder or tilapia if that is what is available in your market. The peppers, ham and Old Bay seasoning give it just the right kick.

With the soup I served an interesting twist on corn muffins.  The original recipe was one that I found on Foodgawker.  It came from Susan of Luna Cafe.  The corn muffins have lots of baking powder in them and they are baked in a popover pan.  They come out tall and proud.  You can add any fillings you like.  I added chopped green chilis, corn kernels and choppped scallions.

Not bad for a simple meal.  We were happy.

QUICK SEAFOOD CHOWDER FOR FALL

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 green pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 1 1/2 pound ham steak, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 32 ounce box Imagine* Brand Organic Creamy Potato Leek Soup
1 14 ounce can Chicken Broth
1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning
1 16 ounce bag frozen carrot rounds, thawed
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1/3 cup chopped chives
2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 pound firm fleshed fish, cut into bite size chunks

Melt butter in a soup pot.  Add diced peppers and cubed ham steak and saute until peppers are softened and ham is browned.  Add potato leek soup and chicken broth.  Stir to combine.  Add the Old Bay seasoning, carrots, corn, chives and potatoes.  Bring soup to boil, reduce heat and cook uncovered until potatoes are tender.  If soup is too thick add a small amount of water. Add the seafood chunks and cook briefly until fish is cooked.

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They are smiling in anticipation of one of the best meals they will ever eat.  David and I were invited for dinner at my dear friend and blogging buddy Penny’s home near Asheville.  Her blog, The Comforts of Home embodies all that the name implies.  She and her husband have been creatively turning the home they bought a few years ago into the place we would all like to call home.  You need to visit her blog to appreciate all that they have done.

Penny greeted us at the door with “Hola”.  I knew immediately that we were in for a Spanish inspired meal.  It was a visual delight after entering their beautiful home.  Penny and Mr. Comforts of Home have been working on their backyard to create a French inspired potager and pergola with a fountain and warming firepit area.  The table was so inviting that I had no doubt that we were in for a treat.

The meal began with Manchego cheese, Marcona almonds, Spanish olives and flat bread.  With it we had a cooling gazpacho made from tomatoes from Penny’s garden.

We garnished it with croutons, hard boiled eggs and fresh tomatoes.

Mr. Comforts of Home cooked the paella on the grill in a huge paella pan.  The ingredients were added to the pan in stages.

First the chorizo was sauteed in oil.

Then a sofrito (including onions, garlic, tomatoes and red bell peppers) was sauteed in the pan.

Rice, chicken broth and saffron were then added and it was left to cook.

The seafood was nestled into the rice and cooked briefly.

When the seafood was cooked the sliced chorizo was added back to the pan along with peas and lemon wedges.  As the rice cooked it formed a crust on the bottom called a soccarat.  It was time to dig in.

My plate was a masterpiece of vivid color.  The Spanish wine was a perfect accompaniment to the food.  We were then treated to a Spanish inspired dessert of crema catalana.

 
Crema Catalana is similar to Creme Brulee’ but is softer in texture and has a lovely flavor of cinnamon, vanilla, and essence of orange and lemon.  The carmalized sugar on top was curtesy of Mr. Comforts of Home’s blow torch.  The chef’s torch that Penny had was not working properly so Mr. C did the manly thing and used a tool with power.  Never be afraid to use your power tools while cooking.

Please go over to Penny’s blog to read her take on our lovely meal and get the recipes for gazpacho and crema catalana.  Here is her recipe for Paella.

PENNY’S PAELLA

 1/4 Cup Olive Oil
2 Spanish Chorizo Sausages
2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1/2 Spanish Onion, Diced
1 Red Bell Pepper, Diced
2 Ripe Tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped

2 Cups short to medium grained rice (I used Risotto)
1 Teaspoon Spanish Paprika
1/2 Teaspoon Dried Rosemary
1/2 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
Salt and Pepper To Taste

2 Teaspoons Saffron Threads

6 Cups Warm Chicken Stock

2 Lobster Tails, Split
1 Pound Shrimp
1 Dozen Mussels
1 large filet, white flaky fish like Haddock Cut Into 2 inche pieces

1/2 Frozen Sweet Peas, Thawed
Lemon Wedges

Heat oil in paella pan over medium high grill. Add chorizo and cook until done. Then remove from pan, cut into slices and set aside.
Saute garlic, onios, tomatoes and peppers until carmelized. Stir in seasonings.

Steep saffron in 1/4 cup hot water for 5 minutes. Add rice to pan, stirring to coat. Stir in saffron/water.

Add stock and simmer for 10 minutes, gently moving the panaround so the rice cooks and absorbs evenly – do not stir constantly!

Add sausage back into pan. Add lobster, wait 2 minutes, add shrimp, wait two minutes, add white fish, wait two minutes then add the mussels. Simmer without stirring until rice is al dente and the mussels have opened.

Scatter peas across top and continue to cook until liquid is absorbed and a crust (socarrat) had formed on the bottom.

Let rest 5 mintues off heat. Add lemon wedges and serve.
 
If you would like to make a paella and don’t have a paella pan, La Tienda is a good source for all kinds of Spanish cookware.
 
 
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A delicacy indigenous to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, halibut cheeks are a treat.  The cheeks are cut from the area behind the halibut’s eyes and jaw and have a flavor and texture compared to sea scallops or lobster.  They vary in size from tiny morsels taken from small halibuts to pieces larger than your entire hand from fish such as the one below which weighed in at 160 pounds.

The guys went fishing while we were in Homer, Alaska.  They were allowed to catch two fish each and the fish they caught were this size; more in the 30 pound range.

Our fish was flash frozen and will be shipped home to us when we return to Lake Lure.  The bowl of fish cheek soup pictured above was what we had for dinner at a restaurant in Seward, Alaska.  It was flavored with garlic and lemon juice.  I am anxious to receive my halibut fillets and my four small cheeks.  It won’t be enough to make a soup or chowder, but we will savor them and use the rest of the halibut in many ways.

David and I celebrated our wedding anniversary while in Alaska.  I have to say that life has hardly ever been boring for us. Forgive my disheveled appearance.  Riding motorcycles is not good for the complexion or the hairdo.

Here are a few more pictures from our trip.

This is Cafe Cups in Homer, Alaska.  It is a funky little place with great food and wine.

One of the most awesome sights we saw was the Mendenhall Glacier in Junuea, Alaska.  It is a tongue of ice stretching over 12 miles from the Juneau Icefield to Mendenhall Lake.  It is around one-half mile wide and about 100 feet tall.

Tulin and me at the Mendenhall Glacier viewing area.

Notice the ice field behind us.  The temperature was about 60 degrees.

Of course I couldn’t resist buying a cookbook while I was here.  This recipe for halibut cheeks comes from Cooking Alaska’s Wild Halibut by Kathy Doogan.  You can substitute scallops or lobster.

HALIBUT CHEEKS WITH BACON AND SHALLOT RELISH

2 strips bacon, cut crosswise into slivers about 1/4 inch wide
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium shallot, finely diced
1 tablespoon  rice vinegar
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 pound to 1 pound halibut cheeks
Salt and pepper

Heat a small non stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the bacon slivers and cook, stirring often, until bacon is browned and crisp.  Using a slotted spoon, remove bacon pieces to paper towels to drain; if necessary, pour off all but about 1 tablespoon of bacon fat.  Reduce heat to medium and add butter to bacon fat in skillet.  When butter has melted, add shallots and cook, stirring often, until they turn light brown and begin to caramelize, 4 to 5 minutes.  Add bacon pieces back to pan; stir and continue cooking another 1 to 2 minutes.  Stir in vinegar, sugar and parsley them remove relish from heat and keep warm.

Heat olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat.  Season halibut cheeks with salt and pepper then add to pan.  Cook 2 to 3 minutes then turn and cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes, until cheeks are almost firm to the touch.  Do not overcook.  Place halibut cheeks on plates, spoon relish over fish and serve immediately.  Serves 2.

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