Polynesian Grilled Shimp
July 1, 2012
Polynesian Grilled Shrimp With Peppers And Pineapple
The grill was calling my name but I hadn’t been shopping in over a week.
I scrounged around and came up with a bag of frozen shrimp, a red bell pepper and half of a fresh pineapple. I had a little bit of left over barbeque sauce, but not enough for what I had in mind. So, I added a bit of this and dash of that and I added the juice from the pineapple. It came out great! A little sweet, a little sour and a little bit more spicy.
I threaded everything on metal skewers and poured on some of the barbeque sauce. I let the skewers marinate for a bit before I put them on a hot grill. I turned them every few minutes and mopped them with more sauce each time I turned them. I took them off after about ten minutes, all nice and glossy and charred.
Here’s the hot tip on grilling shrimp – leave them in their shells! The frozen shrimp I had, was still in the shell, but had been deveined – perfect. By leaving the shrimp in the shell, you can grill them long enough to get plenty of sauce to glaze up and long enough to get a nice char. The sauce permeates the shrimp through the slit made in the back of the shell during the deveining process. Also, the shells add more flavor. It’s kind of a pain to peel them with your knife and fork at the table, but it’s worth it. So, actually, the bigger the shrimp the better in this case. The bigger shrimp are much easier to shell with a knife and fork. I wish I had found larger shrimp in my freezer, but scroungers can’t be choosers.
What luck, I also found a bag of pre-cooked frozen brown rice in the freezer. This is a great staple to keep on hand. It’s super inexpensive and what could be easier at the last minute. It takes me an hour and a half to make good brown rice. The frozen stuff takes 7 minutes. And, believe me, it’s good!
So, take a scrounge around the back of your fridge, your freezer and pantry and see what amazing dinner you can come up with.
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Posted by Carol Bentley
Moroccan Surf and Turf
June 23, 2011
Lamb and Shrimp Kebabs with Spicy Harissa Dipping Sauce
The inspiration for this exotic menu was the July, 2011 issue of Bon Appetit. Bulgarian born chef, Silvena Rowe took a play on American classic, surf and turf and gave it a wonderful Moroccan twist. She combined ground lamb with chopped shrimp to create these whimsical kebabs. I followed her recipe exactly as written and it came out beautifully. She includes fresh chopped cilantro, ground cumin, garlic and grated red onion for a fabulously aromatic kebab that had us all swooning when I brought them in from the grill.
I made her harissa sauce and didn’t care much for it. Harissa is a spicy red pepper sauce or relish made with a variety of red chili peppers, vinegar and spices. The Bon Appetit recipe had a very “raw” taste, so I cooked it for about five minutes in a saute pan. It still tasted too harsh for me, so I added some Greek yogurt and that mellowed it out more to my liking. I also made a different dipping sauce, altogether. I made a creamy yogurt sauce seasoned with the Arabic spice mix Za’atar and cumin. Everyone liked that sauce better. However, when I served the remaining kebabs the following day as an appetizer, the harissa had mellowed out and we liked it much better on day two.
I paired the kebabs with a classic Moroccan side dish, couscous. While shopping at Fresh Market, I found an amazing couscous. The brand is Marrakesh Express, and the version is CousCous Grande, “creamy pearls of pasta”. Instead of the teeny tiny little couscous granules, this was great big pearls of couscous. I thought it complemented the kebabs perfectly.
Couscous with Fresh Oregano and Moroccan Glazed Baby Carrots
Fresh Market had beautiful baby carrots, so I decided to make my morphed version of Julia Child’s glazed carrots. I followed her recipe except I added garam masala, an Indian spice mix that includes cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, cumin and ground coriander seeds. There are a million variations of garam masala and some people make their own. I prefer to buy a good quality prepared version. It is very aromatic and adds a touch of exotic to whatever you put it on.
Pound Cake with Peaches and Cream
For Dessert, I opted for a fabulous, super-easy recipe from the July, 2011 issue of Martha Stewart Magazine. She used store bought pound cake (I know, isn’t it scandalous?!), fresh peaches and whipped cream. When I saw that recipe, I thought, “now here’s a dessert I might be able to make”. My regular readers know I struggle with baking. It’s way too exacting for me. But, store bought cake with fresh fruit? It doesn’t get any easier. The recipe delivered. It was beautiful and delicious. Of course I can never leave well enough alone, so I added a pinch of cinnamon to the peaches. The cinnamon sort of tied it into the whole Moroccan thing.
The menu:
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Posted by Carol Bentley
Classics Rock! Shrimp Scampi
January 18, 2011
Baked Shrimp Scampi with Panko Crumble
I was feeling nostalgic and decided to go for a classic, Shrimp Scampi. My husband had some amazing shrimp scampi about 30 years ago and he has been on a quest to find the scampi of his memories ever since. Sadly, nothing ever seems to compare. Is it the scampi or is it his memory? Hmmm…
Shrimp Scampi with Roasted Vegetables
Do I get discouraged? Hell no! I keep trying every scampi recipe I can find. “Is this the one dear?”, I ask each time. Well, those of you who know me or know my husband, know what the answer is. So, I keep trying!
The one I made this time was Ina Garten’s baked shrimp scampi recipe. It is crusted with panko crumbs, butter and garlic. It sounded like a wonderful recipe. I thought it was fantastic! My guests loved it too. My husband loved it, but it was not the scampi from the bowels of his memories. Do memories have bowels? Probably not, but you know what I mean.
Roasted Vegetables with Parsley
I paired the scampi up with a very colorful vegetable roast. I roasted small new potatoes in three different varieties, red skin, Yukon golds and purple fingerlings. I added cherry tomatoes and fresh green beans for a one dish wonder.
I didn’t take any pictures of dessert. I took the easy way out and served ice cream with chocolate sauce. Mum adores ice cream and so does David, so even though I consider it cheating to serve ice cream for a meal that I’m blogging, I went with it just this once.
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Posted by Carol Bentley
Thai Shrimp with Red Chili Glaze
November 8, 2010
Thai Shrimp with Red Chili Glaze, Spicy Bok Choy and Coconut Rice
My friends Carl and Rozana came for dinner Sunday evening before taking David and I to a comedy show at the Parker Playhouse in Fort Lauderdale. We saw Dana Carvey and he was hilarious!
I hadn’t cooked for Carl in a while and I got the word that he was jonesing for something from my kitchen. Carl is one of my favorite people to cook for because he loves, loves loves food! Rozana enjoys a good meal as much as the next person, but she eats like a bird and generally doesn’t think much about food. So, I always imagine Carl going hungry. Of course it’s not true, but sometimes, I worry!
I served:
- Thai Shrimp with Red Chili Glaze
- Spicy Bok Choy with Green Chilis
- Mock Coconut Rice made with 人人操成人免费视频
- Thai Style Pana Cotta, spiced with Cinnamon, Ginger and Cardamom
This menu is great for company because everything can be staged and ready to flash heat at the last minute. I made the base chili sauces for the shrimp and bok choy ahead of time. When it was time to serve, I turned the two burners on high and when the sauces were hot, I tossed in the shrimp in one pan and the bok choy in the other. Both dishes take about five minutes to cook. Meanwhile I had made the coconut sauce for the mock rice ahead of time. The 人人操成人免费视频 only take about five minutes to cook in its sauce. So, easy-peasey, everything comes out at the same time, piping hot and perfectly cooked.
Give this menu a shot, it was more delicious than I can possibly describe. It was heavenly!
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Posted by Carol Bentley
Mrs. Bentley's Best 