Lunch At The Hawthornes'. Psst! We're Having Shrimp. And Shrimp.

Today, we’re having shrimp.  And more shrimp.
And instead of writing the recipes straight down, I’m going to give you the step-by-step, convoluted way I made lunch for us today.  In real time.
As I said, it’s shrimp.  Youngest Hawthorne wanted shrimp and grits.  And I wanted some kind of shrimp soup.

I had a 16 or so ounce package of some really nice shrimp which I peeled and de-tracted.  Yes, I say de-tract not de-vein because that black line running down the back of the shrimp is the digestive tract, not a vein.  Save all the shrimp shells.  They’ll be going into a shrimp stock for my soup.

For the stock, in addition to the shrimp shells, I have a carrot, some celery, and some onion.  Don’t bother peeling either the carrot or the onion.  Just coarsely chop the celery, carrot, and onion.

Shrimp shells, chopped onion, carrot, celery, and some bay leaves all went into a pan.

Cover with water.

Bring to a boil, then cut the heat to low and let it bare-simmer for about 40 minutes.

Here’s my stock after 40 minutes.  I just cut off the heat and let it set while I started on the next step.


Now, I’m switching over to the shrimp and grits.
(I told you I’m cooking in real time today.  Everything’s in the order I did it.)

For the shrimp and grits, I chopped up some red and orange peppers I picked from my deck garden.  Chopped up a little onion.  And sliced some hot sausage.

I seasoned my shrimp with Togarashi seasoning.  It’s got chile peppers, black and white sesame seeds, and lemon and orange zest in it.

The grits were leftover from breakfast.  And by the way, if you can find them, try Lakeside grits.  They're my favorite.  I just added a bit more grits to them, some more water, cooked 'em some more, then added some cheddar cheese and butter.  I don't think there's such a thing as "too much" cheese or butter, so add what you want.  Heated them up until juuuuust riiiiight.  Taste test!

You want them a little runny.

Now, in a medium skillet, I heated up about a tablespoon each oil and butter, until the butter was just turning brown.

Then I added in the sliced sausage.

This is the sausage I happened to have.
Kielbasa or andouille would do just fine.

Slightly brown the sausage on each side.

Like this.

Then I added in the shrimp.

Cook about 75 seconds on one side.

Then turn the shrimp over and...

...add in the onion and peppers.

Cook about another minute.
Until shrimp is just done.

Pour some grits on your plate and top with shrimp, sausage, onion, and peppers.

The Hawthornes were quite happy with my shrimp and grits.
Nice creamy, cheesy, buttery grits.
Hot sausage.  Spicy shrimp cooked to perfection.

My mouth is happy!


First course is done.
Next up is my shrimp soup

I finely chopped some onion, carrot, and celery.

I melted a little butter in my pan and added in the finely chopped onion, celery, and carrot.

Stir over medium heat for about two minutes.

Next, I added in a tablespoon of butter, let it melt, then sprinkled in about 3 tablespoons of flour.

Cook over medium heat, stirring, another two minutes, to cook the raw taste out of the flour.

The flour will help to thicken my soup.

















Now, remember that nice shrimp stock?
We’re getting ready to use it now.

Pour in about 3/4 cup.

Slowly.

Stirring.

Medium heat.

Letting it thicken.

Then slowly pour in another 3/4 cup or so.

Stir and let thicken.

Maybe 3 minutes.
And it’s nice and thick.
Cut heat to low.

Next, drop in the Togarashi-seasoned shrimp.
As much as you’d like.

And add in about 1/2 cup cream.

Let shrimp cook about 2 minutes.

Then I poured in 1/4 cup sherry.
(I know that doesn’t look like sherry, but it is.  I poured the sherry into the measuring cup that I used for the cream.)
Cook about another minute until soup is heated through and shrimp is just done.
Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

And serve!
I toasted some buttered bagel slices to accompany the soup.

Hmmmm...  something’s missing.

I know!
It needs some green.
Chopped chives.

This is perfect!
Creamy.  Shrimpy.  Just the right amount of sherry.

Enjoy!

Rosie Loves Her Fried Shrimp.

The Hawthornes always have shrimp in their freezers.

We start buying up shrimp in mid to late summer

and continue up to whatever hurricane comes our way

and washes the rest of the shrimp out to sea.

Also, I have found is I want good fried shrimp,

I must make it myself.

Today, I had a hankerin' for fried shrimp

with a sweet and sour sauce.

And here's how I made it.

I fixed the sweet and sour sauce first.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

Mix all together in a small saucepan:

3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup ketchup

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup chopped yellow and orange peppers

1 cup chopped fresh pineapple

I  happened to have a fresh pineapple,

so that's what I used.

You could use canned if that's what you have.

Heat over medium heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved,

and mixture starts to simmer.

Pour in a cornstarch slurry - 

one TB cornstarch  dissolved in 1/4 cup cold water.

Simmer, stirring, until mixture thickens.

Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.

I'm going with a wet batter today.

Rosie's Shrimp Batter

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp Togarashi seasoning

about 1 cup buttermilk

Mix all dry ingredients

then whisk in buttermilk until smooth.

In case you're unfamiliar with Togarashi seasoning,

it's simply a blend of seasonings -

red chile peppers, black and white sesame seeds,

poppy seeds, orange and lemon zests.

If you don't have the Togarashi,

you could substitute cayenne or red pepper flakes

and add in some lemon or orange zest,

or just use a seasoned pepper, like Lawry's (my old stand-by). 

Dip the shrimp in the batter mixture

and shake off any excess batter.

For frying:

 I use peanut oil in a heavy fry pan.

About 3 inches of oil.

Heat oil to around 380°.

Most importantly,

do NOT crowd the pan when you're frying.

You want to maintain that hot temperature.

So I gently drop one shrimp at a time into the hot oil

and fry no more than 4 or 5 at a time.

 Depending on the size of the shrimp,

and these were fairly large shrimp,

fry time should be 60-90 seconds.

You want a nice golden color.

Remove from hot oil, let drain.

I served these over a bed of Jasmine rice

with the sweet and sour sauce.

If you wanted to throw some toasted peanuts

or toasted sesame seeds in there,

go right ahead.

I wouldn't stop you.

Enjoy!

Rosie Makes A Fennel Salad.

I'm always on the lookout for something different -

different flavors, different textures, 

and different foods - particularly under-utilized vegetables.

And I've got something unique for you today.

It's a fennel dish.

It can be used as a side dish to complement your meal

or as an appetizer with tortilla chips.

Either way, you're going to enjoy this.

Fennel,  in case you're unfamiliar with it,

is a member of the carrot family, 

although it's not a root vegetable.

It grows above ground and the edible parts

are the bulb, the stalks, and the feathery leaves.

(I'll be using all three in this dish.)

It has a mild anise flavor, which I like,

even though I'm not a fan of licorice.

Fennel Salad

2-3 stalks fennel, with bulb, sliced

1 cup dried garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

1/2 cup dried quinoa

zest of one lemon

1 small red onion, chopped

1 large tomato, peeled, seeded, juiced, and chopped

1 TB chopped fennel fronds

2 TB chopped parsley

1 TB chopped oregano (I used fresh. 1 tsp if using dried)

1 TB chopped mint

1/3 cup diced feta cheese

1/4 cup sliced Kalamata olives

Vinaigrette, recipe follows

For the salad:

In medium saucepan, cook garbanzo beans in salted water to cover, over medium heat, until al dente.  No need to soak the beans overnight.  I never bother with soaking.  If you want them to cook quicker, add a 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda to the cooking water.  The change in pH breaks (more alkaline) breaks down the pectin, causing the beans to soften more rapidly.  By the way, the baking soda trick will work with all types of dried beans.  When the beans have reached the texture you like, drain and rinse them.  As a rule, 1 part dried beans will equal 2 parts cooked beans.

For the quinoa, cook in salted water.  Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, uncovered, until quinoa is tender and a white "tail" appears - about 15 minutes.  Drain off any excess water and fluff with a fork.   1 part dried quinoa equals about 2 parts cooked.  Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah), by the way, is a grain crop grown for its edible seeds and has been cultivated by the Incans for thousands of years.  It has a slightly nutty flavor and is a complete protein, containing all nine essential amino acids.

 Sauté the fennel in a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat for about 2 minutes.  Add in the chopped red onion and cook for another minute.  Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

After the garbanzo beans, quinoa, fennel, and onion have cooled, combine all together.  Add remaining ingredients, then pour vinaigrette over mixture and toss to combine.

Vinaigrette 

1 garlic clove, minced

2 TB Balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Slowly whisk olive oil into vinegar and garlic until you have a nice smooth emulsion.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Always use a good quality vinegar and olive oil.  Taste test if possible before buying, which is why I buy my vinegars at either Outer Banks Olive Oil Company at MP 6 or Ella's Olive Oil in Duck.  For this vinaigrette, I used OB Olive Oil's traditional balsamic vinegar and Corto extra virgin olive oil which I get from Amazon.

Toss salad with vinaigrette to coat evenly.

Cover and refrigerate to let the flavors meld.

Fennel

Onion

Lemon

Tomato

Garbanzo beans and quinoa

Feta cheese

Kalamata olives

Parsley, mint, oregano, fennel fronds

Sauté the fennel in olive oil for about 2 minutes.

Medium heat.

Add in onion and sauté for another minute.

 

Let cool.

Cooked and cooled garbanzo beans and quinoa.

Add in lemon zest.

Add fennel and onion.

Tomato in.

Peel your tomato, then slice in half.

Stick fingers in pockets and squeeze to juice and seed.

Then chop.

Fresh herbs:

Parsley, mint, oregano, fennel frond.

Add in herbs.

Toss.

Diced feta and slice Kalamata olives.

Add in feta and olives.

Toss to combine.

Drizzle in vinaigrette.

Mix well.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

This is one of those dishes with so many flavors and textures

that I want everything in my mouth at one time.

I can be piggish that way.

Excellent as a side dish.

And works admirably as an appetizer.

Try scooping with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Mr. Hawthorne Makes A Simple Corn Salad.

In the heat of the summer,

I like light vegetable dishes,

particularly with fresh green herbal accents

and garden tomatoes.
And that corn!
Nothing like fresh, sweet corn.
Oh yeah, there is.
A warm, garden tomato, just picked.
Full of juice, flavor, and ... sun.

I've waited all year for those tomatoes!

Here's Mr. Hawthorne's Garden Salad.

To prepare the corn,

we leave the husks on and slice off the ends.

Place in microwave, with large end facing out.

Nuke one ear for two minutes.

Two-three ears for three minutes.

Let cool at bit, then de-husk, de-silk,

and slice off kernels.

Corn Salad Ingredients
 2-3 ears of corn, prepared as above
green, yellow, orange, and red mini sweet peppers, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
2 TB chopped fresh basil
Combine all ingredients.

For the dressing:

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 TB lime juice

1 tsp grated lime zest

1 tsp Texas Pete or Tabasco sauce

1/2 tsp garlic powder

kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Whisk ingredients in a small bowl.

Pour dressing over corn mixture and toss to coat.

And there you have ...  summer in a bowl.