Rosie Makes Sriracha Shrimp.

I'm in the mood for shrimp.

Specifically, spicy shrimp.

Ingredients for the sauce:

1/3 cup sweet chili sauce

3 TB rice vinegar

3 TB soy sauce

1 TB Sriracha sauce

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 TB cornstarch

2 garlic cloves, minced

1-inch knob of frozen ginger, juiced and minced

1 TB sesame oil

1 TB peanut oil

splash of water

about 3/4 pound of shrimp, peeled, tails on

1/2 bunch broccoli florets

handful snowpeas

sliced scallions

toasted sesame seeds

Whisk together sweet chili sauce, vinegar, soy, sriracha, red pepper, cornstarch, minced garlic, and ginger.  For the ginger, I always have frozen cubes of ginger.  To juice, nuke the frozen cube of ginger for about 23 seconds. Squeeze with fingers to juice into the bowl.  Run the remaining pulp through a garlic press and scrape into the bowl.

Heat sesame oil and peanut oil.  Add in broccoli and snow peas and stir fry.  Cook about a minute then add in shrimp.  Cook about 2-3 minutes depending on size.  Add in splash of water to help the shrimp cook evenly.  Pour in sauce and heat through.

Serve with quinoa, sliced scallions, toasted sesame seeds, and extra soy, chili sauce, and/or pepper flakes if desired.

 

 Squeeze the ginger juice out.

 Stir fry the broccoli and snow peas.

Add in the shrimp.

Add sauce and cook until bubbly and shrimp is just done.

I served mine on a bed of quinoa

and topped it off with toasted sesame seeds

and sliced scallions.

Rosie Makes Salad.

Ahhh.   The tip of the iceberg belies what's beneath.


Sometimes, one simply must have a wedge of soulless, tasteless iceberg lettuce.  But only if it is properly prepared.  With a fromage bleu dressing and all the accoutrements.  And, of course, Rosie is going to tell you how to do that.

I started on this dressing, assuming I had blue cheese in the fridge.  Never assume.  Ended up having to go to Foodlion in KDH and they had basically 1 blue cheese.  Wish I'd gone to Trio and gotten the Cambozola.  The Foodlion cheese was OK, but it was STRONG.  In other words, get a decent blue.  So, depending on the blue cheese you use, you'll have to adjust amounts for your tastes.  Normally I would have sprinkled extra little crumbles of cheese over top, but after tasting the dressing, I knew it would have been too much.

Rosie's Fromage Bleu Dressing 
2 oz. bleu cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
2 TB buttermilk
1 TB red wine vinegar
1 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp Texas Pete
1 tsp semi-dried fresh parsley, left out drying since yesterday
Kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

Nuke the bleu cheese until melted.  Add in rest of ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let the flavors bloom.


Accoutrements:
bacon, crumbled
walnuts, chopped and toasted
celery, diced
red onion, diced
cucumber, diced
tomato, peeled and diced
fresh tarragon, snipped
And don't forget the iceberg.

Rosie Tip #786:

Try boiling your bacon.  Yes.  I said boiling.

 

 Cook it down until water evaporates.  Add in some more water.  Cook down until nice and crisp.  Drain on paper towels.

 My accoutrements:

Diced red onion, tomatoes, cucumber, celery.

Crumbled bacon.

Tarragon.

Toasted walnuts.  I dry toast mine in a skillet.  Keep shaking the pan and flipping the nuts until you can smell them.  For several minutes.  You could put them under the broiler, but I tend to burn things when under the broiler.

 Drizzle dressing over wedge and sprinkle accoutrements over top.

 

Excellent salad.

Rosie Takes Advantage Of Her Garden Asparagus.

Rosie writes food articles for several publications on the Outer Banks.  This just appeared in the latest issue of Albemarle Tradewinds.

I love spring.  My garden is finally coming alive again.  It's been chugging throughout the winter, though I always have something blooming somewhere, but now it's coming out in full force.

Every year, I look forward to the return of the ospreys and the appearance of my asparagus.  That way I know it's spring regardless of what the calendar says.  Calendars really don't mean anything down here.  It's April and the temperatures were 76 one day, then in the thirties the next.

My first preparation of asparagus is with a gremolata. Gremolata, in case you didn't know, is a fresh herbal concoction combining garlic, parsley, and lemon zest, traditionally served with osso bucco, a classic Italian veal dish.  It's herbalicious goodness at its best.

 

 

Sautéed Asparagus with Almond Gremolata

2 TB almonds, toasted and chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

1 TB fresh chives, chopped

1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

Zest of 1 lemon

Juice of 1 lemon

1 TB extra virgin olive oil

Pinch kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

½ pound asparagus, trimmed

2 TB unsalted butter.

Combine first eleven ingredients in small bowl.  Sauté asparagus in unsalted butter over medium high heat until crisp tender.  Spoon gremolata over asparagus and enjoy.

Whenever we think of pesto, we think of the ubiquitous basil and pine nut pesto.  I like to push the the nut and herb concept a bit and go for different, unexpected flavors.

Asparagus with Pistachio and Mint Pesto

For the pesto:

¼ cup pistachios, toasted

1 small garlic clove, minced

Zest of 1 lemon

Pinch kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

½ cup fresh mint leaves, packed

⅓ cup of your favorite extra virgin olive oil

Rosie’s Note:  I like to pack flavor into whatever I’m preparing, so for my olive oil, I’m using a Lemon-Infused Oil from Outer Banks Olive Oil Company, located in Mile Post 6 Plaza, next to Chip's Wine and Beer, and also in Duck.

For the asparagus:

½ pound asparagus, ends trimmed

1 TB Lemon-infused olive oil

Pinch kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper.

Heat oven to 425°.

In a dry skillet, toast the pistachios for about 2 minutes over medium heat – until fragrant.  Set aside and let cool.

In a processor, pulse the pistachios, garlic, zest, salt, pepper, and mint until you get a thick paste.  With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil.

Toss the asparagus on a baking sheet  with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Roast asparagus at 425° for about 8 minutes, until crisp-tender.  Toss with pesto and serve.

Please enjoy!

No doubt, more asparagus recipes will coming your way soon.  Gotta strike while the iron's hot!

Rosie Makes Chile Rellenos.

There are two things that if I want, I'm going to have to make myself.

One is any type of Chinese food.  The food is not particularly good at the China Macs down here, and they consistently serve stale fried wonton strips.

The other food is a decent chile relleno.

I've been jonesin' for a chile relleno and finally got around to making them today.

Gotta scratch that itch!

I'm starting out making a tomato sauce for my stuffed chiles.

Mr. Hawthorne usually has some type of  tomato sauce in the freezer.  I grabbed a block of that - about a cup - and chopped a little bit of onion and some sweet peppers, minced a small garlic clove.

Gave it juice of 1/2 a lime and a little water, then a sprinkle of oregano, red pepper flakes, and chili powder.  Heat through.

And you have a sauce.

Taste test as you go along and adjust flavors to suit you.  You know... Cook.

I had two poblano peppers which I charred...

... all over.

When the chiles are blackened, I plunged them in ice water.

Then rubbed off the blackened skin with thumb and forefinger.

Clean with a paper towel.

You don't have to get all the black off.
Leave on stubborn parts for a bit of flavor.

Slice down the side, about 3 inches.

Snip out the seed ball at the top, take the stringy ribs out, and clean out the seeds.

 

Earlier, I had cooked black beans and yellow rice for the stuffing.

I stuffed the peppers with the rice and beans.

Then I added in some cubes of Muenster cheese.

Do not overfill your peppers.

Overlap the pepper edges and skewer it.

For the batter:

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 tsp baking powder

pinch kosher salt

3/4 cup beer

Whisk dry ingredients.

Whisk in beer until smooth.

Dredge stuffed chiles through flour first.

Then coat in batter.

Fry in 350° peanut oil for about 5 minutes, until golden brown.

Drain on paper towels.

Serve on a bed of the tomato sauce.

Top with homemade salsa and snipped scallions.

That crust is crisp, extremely light, and delightful.  I can taste the beer.

The cheese is gooey wonderful.

Delightful!

 

 ¡Buen apetito!