The Hawthornes Attend Cooking Class At The NC Aquarium.

 

 The Hawthornes attended another cooking class

at the NC Aquarium in Manteo this week.

Sadly, it was the last one of the season. 

Happily, it was presented by Chef Randolph Sprinkle

of The Saltbox Café.

And you know Rosie loves her some Saltbox!

 Our first delight was a quick summer crab salad.

At The Saltbox,

Chef Randolph serves this in a delicate tomato "bowl-"

A tomato is sliced paper-thin, then the slices are curled and overlapped

to make a bowl. 

Mixed greens are tossed in a vinaigrette,

 nestled inside the tomato bowl,

and topped with the crab meat salad.

In fact, this appetizer

graced the cover of the spring issue of North Beach Sun Magazine.

 (Photo by NOT Rosie.)

Chefs Sprinkles at The Saltbox Café,

displaying cover of NB Sun Magazine

with crab salad in tomato bowl.

In this particular dish, the crab meat shines.

Too often I have found,

 delicate, fragile crab meat is overpowered

by whatever additives are used to bind.

Here, Chef Randolph uses a deft hand

to lightly dress the meat,

letting the crab be the main attraction.

For the dressing, 

Chef Randolph blended 1 cup mayo

 with 1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar

and 1/4 cup fresh basil.

A pound of crab meat was gently mixed

with the dressing and the whole was chilled for about 20 minutes,

just enough time for the flavors to marry and develop.

 

Chef Randolph and his capable assistant, Nohea,

preparing our offerings.

 'tis the season for soft shells!

And here we have a short-smoked soft shell crab sandwich.

Directions:  In a metal baking pan, add wood chips.

(I believe Chef Randolph used mesquite.)

In a perforated pan, place seasoned soft shell crabs.

Cover with heavy duty foil wrap.

Take wood chip baking pan

and place over stove.

Heat pan until lightly smoky.

Take perforated pan and place over smoking baking pan.

Turn off heat and let sit 3-4 minutes.

Dust crabs in seasoned flour.

In a medium pan, add vegetable oil

Sauté crabs each side 3 minutes (until cooked through).

Serve on hamburger bun with toppings and enjoy.

 Interesting.

However, Rosie is a soft shell purist.

(Though she might just try the suggested smoked black pepper treatment.)

When I have soft shells,

I don't want anything between me and my soft shells.

I just want the crab - and pure crab flavor.

And I'm not a fan of the po' boy treatment either.

So no bread for me.

Just gimme crab.

Just crab.

That said, I still liked this,

although I'd prefer Chef Randolph's traditional treatment

of a fried soft shell.

Different strokes for different folks,

so don't hate me.

  Our theme this season at the aquarium

has focused on the lionfish.

(For information about this invasive species,

please see here.)

So our third offering was battered and deep-fried lionfish fillet.

 Lightly battered and fried,

served with a capered aioli,

this was delicious.

Thank you, NC Aquarium and Chef Randolph

for another winning presentation!

The Hawthornes And Glowria Attend Cooking Class At The North Carolina Aquarium.

 It's that time of year again.

The cooking classes
at the North Carolina Aquarium

have begun again.

Oh happy day!

So, Mr. Hawthorne, Glowria, and Rosie
are happily driving down to Manteo for our class Tuesday morning.
Rosie is in the front seat messing with her
hell phone which doesn't work,
so she's not paying attention.
Glow is in the back seat chattering away
and really can't see where we're going.
Mr. Hawthorne is driving,
so he's not paying attention.
We get through Manteo
and the damn Manns Harbor bridge is looming in front of us.
We realize we'd missed the turnoff to the aquarium.
So we do a u-ey and head back
 to find the airplane sign marking the turn-off.
I'm not liking this sitchayshun
since I like to be EARLY for any appointment
and this turn of events is making me ON TIME.
We finally get to the aquarium and briskly walk in.
We tell the volunteers at the front desk
we're here for the cooking classes.
"Do you know where to go," they ask us?
"Well hell to the yeah,
 we've only been coming here for a gazillion years!"
 And off our party runs.

Our usual route from the lobby is to take a right,
go through the Coastal Freshwater exhibit,
then go through the Wetlands on the Edge exhibit,
where I shoot pics of the otters, the alligators, and the turtles,
 then we come out at the classroom.
Well, we went through the Coastal Freshwater exhibit
and the entry to the Wetlands on the Edge is CLOSED.
Rosie is in a panic.  She may be LATE!
So Glowria and I high-tail it back to the lobby,
where the ladies are shaking their heads at us and tsk-tsking,
and we head through the maze of dark bowels of the aquarium,
finally making it to the classroom.
And to humiliation.
"Oh good.  You made it!
We'd sent someone out to look for you!!"

 

 Chef Nate Bean of the Black Pelican restaurant is presenting.

Black Pelican was one of the Outer Banks restaurants 

featured on Guy Fee-yeh-dee's Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives

last summer when they filmed down here,

but please don't let that deter you from visiting the Black Pelican.

Here's Chef Jason Smith's Citrus Chicken Recipe

as featured on Triple D.

Greg, one of the newer workers at the aquarium,
regaled us with information about our star fish today - grouper.

I liked his enthusiasm.

It's infectious.

In a good way!

Back to Chef Bean.

Our first course was a mixed greens salad with cherry tomatoes,

goat cheese, toasted walnuts, pickled red onions, and apple slices,

all tossed with a champagne vinaigrette
with seared grouper filet atop.

The grouper filet was seared in oil over medium-high heat,

then butter was added and the fish was finished in a 450° oven. 

The salad was dressed with with a champagne vinaigrette.

Champagne Vinaigrette
1 garlic clove
1 shallot
1 tsp thyme
1 TB Dijon mustard
4 oz. champagne
2 oz. champagne vinegar
8 oz. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
honey to taste
Add garlic, shallot, thyme, champagne, and vinegar to blender.
Blend until smooth.
Add Dijon.
While blending, slowly add oil.
Add honey, salt, and pepper to taste.

Now, our next course was sublime.
Dare I say FREAKIN' sublime?

It was a seafood risotto and grouper filet

with a glorious champagne citrus beurre blanc

that simply rocked my world.

Grouper

Season grouper.

Heat pan.

Add olive oil.

Add fish to hot oil.

Add dollop of butter.

Cook on each side a few minutes until just done.

Seafood Risotto

arborio rice

white onion, diced

white stock

olive oil

cream

lobster

shrimp

crab

corn

tomato

scallion

salt and pepper

butter

white stock

garlic

Parmesan

purple basil microgreens

In shallow pot, heat oil and add white onion.

Add rice and slowly add stock until rice is cooked al dente.

In shallow pot, sauté shrimp and lobster meat.

Add corn, tomato, garlic, and par-cooked rice.

Add stock and cook on medium low for 5-10 minutes.

Add scallion, butter, cream, and finish with the Parm.

Top with purple basil microgreens.

Champagne Citrus Beurre Blanc

1 shallot

2 lemons

1 lime

zest of one lemon

2 cups champagne

1 cup white wine

2 cups heavy cream

salt

1 TB peppercorns

bay leaf
1 lb butter

Combine shallot, lime and lemon juice, zest of one lemon,

peppercorns, bay leaf, champagne, and wine.

Reduce on high.

When mixture coats spoon,

add cream and reduce.

When thick, turn off heat.

Add butter slowly while whisking.

Season with salt.

And YES.

That is LOBSTER!

That champagne beurre blanc is da bombe!

I love the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island.

What a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

Next class is Café Lachine on Wednesday, April 8 at noon.
After that is Black Pelican, again, Tuesday, April 21 at noon.
Call the Roanoke Island Aquarium at 475-2300 to sign up.