Arranged Seafood Salad with Grapefruit Vinaigrette

Happy Mother's Day...

Today we celebrate Mom. She does (and still does) so much for us. She's there when you need someone to talk to, supports you, and helps you no matter what. She may have given me life, but without her unconditional love I would never have known how to live. My mom is my best friend and I love her dearly. If I had been making her lunch today, I would have made this salad (she came over for dinner instead).

This arranged seafood salad takes a bit of time to make since everything needs to be chopped, but it's worth the effort, especially if it's for Mom. The shrimp and scallops are gently poached and then mixed with crab, avocado, green onions, dill, mayo, and sour cream. This seafood salad is creamy and fresh. I then arrange this on top of lettuce and surround it by grapefruit, jicama, radishes, and radicchio. Finally, I top the salad off with an easy grapefruit vinaigrette. Spoil Mom with this seafood salad. Here's how to make it...

Ingredients - Serves 4
Salad
1/2 lb. Bay Scallops
1/2 lb. Medium Size Shrimp, peeled & deveined (tails off)
1 (8 oz.) Container Crab Meat, picked over for shells
2 Avocados, pitted & diced
3 Green Onions, sliced
2 T Fresh Dill, chopped
2 T Mayo
2 T Sour Cream
1 Head "Living" (or Boston) Lettuce
1 Grapefruit, supreme
1/2 Jicama, cut into match-sticks
6 Radishes, thinly sliced
1/2 Head Radicchio, chopped

Vinaigrette
1/2 Grapefruit, zest & juice
~1/4 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 tsp. Granulated Sugar
Salt & Pepper

Directions
Cook the scallops & shrimp: Bring a pot of water to a gentle boil. Add the scallops and shrimp and poach for 3 minutes. Drain and run under cold water. Pat dry.

Make the seafood salad: Combine the cooked scallops and shrimp to the crab, avocado, green onion, dill, mayo, and sour cream in a large bowl. Season with salt to taste, cover, and refrigerate.

Make the vinaigrette: In a small bowl combine the grapefruit zest and juice. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking until emulsified. Add the sugar and a pinch each salt and pepper. Whisk again, taste, and adjust the seasoning as needed. Set aside.

Arrange the salad: On a large plate put 4 or 5 lettuce leaves down. Place a 1/4 of the seafood salad into the center. Then, arrange the grapefruit, jicama, radishes, and radicchio around the seafood salad. Drizzle with the vinaigrette. Enjoy!

Winter Pesto Pasta Bake with Shrimp

an Italian Christmas feast...

Some of my family came over yesterday to celebrate Christmas. We opened gifts, played games, and of course had lots of food. My husband is Italian, so naturally we served an Italian feast. He made his family's sauce, meatballs, and served it over rigatoni. I went a different direction and created this baked pasta dish. Both were well received by the fam, but I think most were pleasantly surprised by my dish.

I begin by making the pesto. I call this a winter pesto because I don't use basil (very summery) but instead use arugula and baby kale. I also use almonds instead of pine nuts. And, Romano in place of Parmesan Cheese (Romano is nuttier). The pesto is then mixed with cooked penne pasta, sun dried tomatoes, and raw shrimp. The whole dish is baked and ready to serve when you are. It was the perfect make ahead for a day like yesterday - one meant to be spent with family. Make this dish for yours, here's how...

Ingredients - Serves 8
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Shallots, minced
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 C Sliced Almonds, toasted
1 1/2 C Arugula
1 1/2 C Baby Kale
1/2 C Flat-Leaf Parsley
1/2 C Grated Romano Cheese, more for topping
1 (7 oz.) Jar Oil-Packed Sun Dried Tomatoes, chopped (reserve oil)
1 Box (14.5 oz) Whole Wheat Penne Pasta
1 lb. Raw Peeled & Deveined Shrimp, tails removed

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350. Bring a large pot of water up to a boil.

Begin by making the pesto: Saute the shallots, garlic, and red pepper flakes in 1 T olive oil until soft and fragrant. Place in a food processor and add the almonds, arugula, kale, and parsley. Pulse a few times to combine.

Next, add the cheese and pulse a few more times. Scrape down the sides. Then, with the motor running pour in the reserved olive oil from the sun dried tomatoes. As needed, add more extra virgin olive oil to create a smooth pesto.

Once the water comes to a boil, salt it and add the pasta. Cook for about 7 minutes, the pasta should be under done as it will finish cooking in the oven. Reserve 1/2 C of the cooking water and drain the pasta.

Put the pasta back in the pot and add the pesto, chopped sun dried tomatoes, shrimp, and the cooking water. Stir together and ensure everything is coated well with the pesto.

Put the mixture into a large casserole dish and cover with foil. Cook for 25-30 minutes, or until the shrimp is cooked through. Remove the foil and top with more Romano cheese. Continue to cook for another 10 minutes until the top is browned. Cool for about 5 minutes and then serve. Enjoy!

Basil Fried Rice

take-out at home

One of my husband's favorite take-out meals is Basil Fried Rice from any Thai restaurant. One of our favorite places to order from is Blue Elephant in Hyde Park. They have huge portions with huge flavors, but along with that comes a high dollar and calorie count. So, we often make take-out at home. For this post I've recreated my husbands favorite and I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it as well.

One thing you have to do prior to making fried rice is cook the rice. It's really important to make the rice at least 1 day ahead and let it dry out. This helps the rice fry because there is little water left in the grains. This is the perfect use up if you have leftover rice. And, like me, a lot of basil in the garden. Make this meal when you are craving take-out. Here's how...

Ingredients - Serves 4
1 Yellow Onion, diced
2 Carrots, peeled & diced
1 Clove Garlic, pressed
1" Ginger, grated
4 Eggs, beaten
4 T Canola Oil, divided
2-3 T Soy Sauce, more as needed
4 C Day Old Cooked Rice, white or brown
1/2 C Frozen Peas, thawed
4 oz. Fresh Basil, sliced
Optional: Shrimp (1 1/2 lbs. peeled & devained, cooked), Chicken (1 1/4 lbs. breasts cubed, cooked), or Flank Steak (1 1/4 lb. thinly sliced, cooked), & hot sauce

Directions
NOTE: If you don't have a wok, just use a large skillet.

Begin by cooking the veggies: In a large wok, heat 1 T oil to high heat. Add the onion, carrots, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring, until the veggies are tender, about 5 minutes. Add 2 tsp. soy sauce. Remove to a plate and set aside.

Cook the eggs: Bring the wok back up to high heat and add a little more oil. Add the beaten eggs and cook (scramble) until set, about 3-4 minutes. Remove to the plate with the veggies and set aside.

Fry the rice: Again bring the wok up to high heat and add 2-3 T oil. Add the rice and press into the wok. Leave the rice alone, don't move it much for a minute or two. Then stir and press into the wok again. Repeat this process until the rice begins to brown and get a little crispy. Stir in the basil and about 2 T soy sauce.

Finish the rice: Add the cooked veggies and eggs to the rice. Stir together. If adding any meat stir in now or serve on top. Taste for seasoning and add more soy sauce as needed. Serve the rice in big bowls with your favorite hot sauce (suggest sriracha). Save some money (and calories) and eat at home. Enjoy!

Shrimp & Scallop Ceviche

lemon or lime...

In early May Steven and I went on a Caribbean Cruise with my family. We ported out of Puerto Rico on a Saturday, but had time prior to leaving. So, we booked a food tour of Old San Juan! The tour was fantastic and I highly recommend it if you are ever there. One interesting thing we learned on the tour is that what we call a lemon is actually a lime and vice verse in Puerto Rico. Our tour guide, Victor, explained that there was a mistranslation at some point and to this day what we call these fruits in the states is the opposite in Puerto Rico. Lemon or lime, one or both can be used in ceviche, so that's what I've made for this post.

In celebration of our trip and food tour of Puerto Rico my next three posts will attempt (emphasis on attempt) to capture what we ate. The ceviche we had at "El Punto"(The Point) was so delicious, I had to try to remake it. While this version is not the same, or as good, as the restaurant's it's still pretty tasty. Make it and try it for yourself. This version is made with only limes...or maybe they are lemons...and we mistranslated somewhere down the line. Either way, here's how to make this appetizer...

Ingredients - Serves 6-8
1/2 lb. Med. Peeled & Deveined Shrimp, cut into pieces
1/2 lb. Bay Scallops, cut in half
1 C Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice, 7-8 limes
1/2 C Cucumber, finely diced
1/2 C Pineapple, finely diced
1/2 C Red Onion, finely diced
1-2 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded & minced
1/2 C Cilantro, minced
1 Firm Avocado, diced
Kosher Salt
To Serve: Blue Corn Chips & Hot Sauce

Directions
In a nonreactive mixing bowl, combine the shrimp, scallops, and 1/2 C lime juice. Toss, cover, and refrigerate for 1 to 1 1/2 hours to "cook" the seafood. The acid in the lime juice actually cooks the shrimp and scallops - pretty cool. Stir occasionally to ensure each piece of seafood is covered and cooks evenly.

Meanwhile, prepare the remaining ingredients. Combine the remaining lime juice, cucumber, pineapple, red onion, jalapeno, cilantro, and avocado in a large mixing bowl. Stir everything together and set aside until the seafood is ready.

Once the seafood has "cooked" add them to the fruit and veggies. Stir everything together well, cover, and sit aside for 30 more minutes. This will help the flavors marry. Stir once more, taste, and season with kosher salt as needed.

Serve the ceviche with blue corn chips and hot sauce. Enjoy this Puerto Rican inspired super fresh summer appetizer with friends. Then plan your next vacation to taste the real thing!

Looking out over PR from where our cruise ship was docked - Beautiful!