Posts tagged ‘easy appetizer’
Recipe of the Week – Shrimp 101
(From the Appetizer Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Oven-roasted Shrimp
We made our quarterly trek to New Jersey last week to see family and friends. The trip was great but a lot of driving as the side trips were a little more involved then usual. We ate too much food, some at restaurants and most at my mother-in-law’s house. Traditionally we do Porterhouse steaks on the grill on our last night there, this time we did them on the next to last. With family, friends and friends of family present we had a wonderful time and I got to go to my favorite grocery store, Wegman’s, for the 2″ thick steaks.
I took along a carrot cake, some angel food cakes and those wonderful chocolate cookies/cakes that are used for ice cream sandwiches. I also made, at my mother-in-law’s request, the largest pot of hot fudge sauce I have ever made. Appetizers consisted of blue cheese stuffed mushroom caps, tapenade on toast points and the shrimp; which brings me to the reason for this post.
First a quick primer on shrimp. I get questions all the time about how to determine which shrimp to use and why. so here we go. The number on the bag is the number per pound, 15 -21 means that you can expect to find 15 to 21 shrimp per pound. 31-36 means 31 or so to the pound. So basically the less per pound, lower number, the larger the shrimp. The second fact is wild caught verses everything else. Don’t worry about fresh verses frozen or frozen thawed as most of the shrimp is frozen as soon as it is caught to keep it fresh. Unless you live on the coast and can buy your shrimp from the boat that caught them, and by all means do this if possible, buy the frozen. If you can get the wild caught, this means they are not from a “shrimp farm” where they are raised on specific foods, usually in fresh water ponds; spend the extra buck or two and see how good the wild caught really are. A quick note on prawns, those huge 6 or so per pound giants in the seafood case, they are almost always farm raised and while impressive to see lack any real flavor.
Every time I make a shrimp dish using the wild caught I get tons of compliments on not only the taste but also on the texture. Please don’t overcook shrimp, they cook very quickly, which makes them the ideal easy appetizer. With cocktail sauce or sautéed or baked get a little wild in your life and give these a try.
Oven-roasted Shrimp
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Appetizer |
| Meal: | N/A |
| 1 | lb | shrimp, deveined, shelled |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 4 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
Place the shrimp, olive oil, chopped garlic and salt and pepper in a large plastic bag. Shake the bag and let stand for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place contents of bag on a jellyroll pan (cookie sheet with a lip) and cook in oven for 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
Recipe of the Week – Pesto ( hold the pine nuts)
(From the Misc Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Basil Pesto on Pasta
Pesto is a wonderful thing. You can make it with almost any herb or vegetable. You can serve it as an appetizer, a dip or a sauce on pasta or meats and fish. Basically you add cheese, garlic, olive oil and your herb or vegetable and some nuts together in a food processor, process until you get the consistency you wish and voila! you have it; all in about 30 seconds.
We have been making assorted pesto for years; combining sun-dried tomatoes and toasted pecans or spinach and hazelnuts, and of course basil and pine nuts. (see our selections at emealsforyou.com). The problem and reason for this post is that there seems to be a shortage of pine nuts on the market. Usually readily available in the grocery in pound bags, you are lucky to see a couple ounce jar in the Italian specialty aisle for about $5. Don’t let this dissuade you from making pesto. Use toasted walnuts in place of the pine nuts and you will not notice the difference. The texture will be the same and you will get the same “sweetness” that the pine nuts provided. Basil is flourishing in the bright sunshine, plant some or buy some but give pesto a try for a great meal.
Basil Pesto
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Misc |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 0.5 | cup | basil leaves, whole |
| 0.75 | cup | pine nuts, toasted |
| 0.75 | cup | cheese, Romano |
| 1.5 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 0.75 | cup | oil, olive |
Toast pine nuts lightly. Place basil, pine nuts ( or any other nut you choose), garlic and romano in food processor, process until a paste forms, add oil slowly until you reach the consistency you desire. Should be spreadable, like peanut butter.
Note: Great on sandwiches, may be used on pasta. I spread it on toasted French bread, sprinkle with romano and basil and broiler slightly.
Shown here on pasta.
Recipe of the Week – Clams, Shrimp and Mussels
(From the Appetizer category at www.emealsforyou.com)
Clams. Mussels and Shrimp
Come over and bring an appetizer. To some that sends terror, some it means a stop at the local market for one of those “shrimp rings” but to me it opens the door to bring a great dish. I like this dish because it sends wonderful garlicy smells throughout the kitchen. It is perfect because most people will find something they like in the dish. Whether you like shrimp, or mussels or clams they are all in there soaking up all the garlic and white wine.
I serve this in a large bowl surrounded by crunchy bread to sop up the juices. This is a great appetizer or serve it over pasta and call it a meal.
Pour the wine, please.
Greek Mussels, Shrimp and Clams
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 8 |
| Category: | Appetizer |
| Meal: | Small Plates Please (Picnic Meal Plans) |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 0.5 | cup | carrots, diced |
| 0.5 | cup | onions, diced |
| 0.5 | cup | celery ribs |
| 1 | Tb | thyme, fresh |
| 6 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 1 | 15 oz can | tomatoes, diced |
| 12 | oz | wine, dry white |
| 2 | lb | mussels |
| 1 | lb | shrimp, deveined, shelled |
| 12 | medium | clams |
| 2 | Tb | cilantro, chopped |
| 1 | Tb | lemon zest, finely chopped |
| 0.5 | medium | lemon, juice of |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
Clean and rinse mussels and clams. Add oil to hot pan, sauté carrots, onions and celery (diced) until soft, add thyme, garlic, sauté for 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, wine, clams, shrimp and mussels, cover pan, cook until mussels and clams open, discard unopened mussels and clams. Place on serving platter, sprinkle with zest, lemon juice and cilantro.
Recipe of the Week – TJ’s Special Dipping Sauce
(From The Appetizers Collection at emealsforyou.com)
TJ's Special Dipping Sauce
To be good doesn’t necessarily mean difficult. There are times when you want a quick, easy appetizer to serve while you spend time with the main meal. This dipping sauce is the ideal candidate to fill that need. Simply mix the ingredients together with the olive oil, cut some crusty bread, put it all on a platter and go get dinner ready. The nice part about this is you can make a little or a lot. If your guests wolf it down; make more.
Quick, easy and oh yeah, cheap!
TJ’s Special Dipping Sauce
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Appetizer |
| Meal: | Bev’s Steak Dinner (Celebration Meal Plans) |
| 5 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 0.5 | tsp | herb de provence |
| 1 | pinch | pepper, hot flakes |
| 1 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
Pour olive oil on plate and sprinkle the remaining ingredients over oil.
Serve with warm bread.
(From Bev’s Steak Dinner (Celebration Meal Plans) at emealsforyou.com)
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