Bangin' Shrimp!

This Shrimp is Bangin'!

So in reading through the dishes I've posted here I realized... I make a lot of shrimp. So, keeping that in mind we decided to try: another shrimp dish! That's right. You heard me. This time was an attempt at Bonefish Grill's Bang Bang Shrimp. Of course, Google was involved in this, but with our own pizazz and style we ripped this out in about 20 minutes last night. 

Ingredients

1/2 Lb. large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

1/2 C. Cornstarch

3 eggs, beaten

6-8 Tbs. Oil

1 C. Mayonnaise

1/2 C. Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

1 Tbs. Peanut Butter

1 tsp. Sriracha

2 Green Onions, chopped 

3-4 Large lettuce leaves (garnish)

Directions

Heat oil in a large skillet on high heat. In a large bowl, toss the shrimp with salt, black pepper and garlic powder. Place cornstarch in a shallow dish and add shrimp to coat. Transfer to eggs and coat. Carefully add shrimp to oil and cook quickly, 30 seconds -1 minute on each side, turning when crispy. DO NOT overcook or your shrimp will be rubbery. Remove to paper-towel lined plate to drain.

Mix mayonnaise, chili sauce, sriracha and peanut butter together to make sauce. When the mixture is smooth, carefully place shrimp in sauce and toss to coat. 

Place on lettuce lined place and sprinkle with green onion. Enjoy!!!

Buttery Buttermilk Biscuits

Ingredients

2 C. Flour
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt
2 1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 C. butter, softened
3/4 C. Buttermilk

Directions

Mix together dry ingredients. Add butter and cut into flour mixture until it forms small pieces. Add buttermilk and mix just until moistened. Turn out onto floured surface and roll until 1/2" thick. Using a biscuit cutter, cut out individual biscuits. Re-mixing and re-rolling until dough is gone. Place biscuits onto greased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter.

Shrimp and Grits

Not being a fan of grits I was very hesitant to try this, but I was convinced to try it and it has become my "go-to" comfort food.
Shrimp - bacon - excessive amounts of cheese. What's not to like??

Ingredients

6 Strips of Bacon
1/2 lb. medium sized Shrimp
2 C. Polenta
2 C. Cheddar Cheese
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

2-3 Cloves Garlic, minced

2-3 Tbs. Cumin

1/2 C. Butter

1-2 Green onions, chopped

Directions

Cook bacon until crisp. Drain and chop into small pieces and set aside. Cook polenta according to package directions. Meanwhile, season peeled and de-veined with salt, pepper and cumin. Melt butter in a sautee pan, add minced garlic and seasoned shrimp. Sautee just until cooked through. Remove from heat. Once Polenta has finished cooking, stir in cheddar cheese until mixed in. 

To serve, place a bed of polenta on plate, top with shrimp, bacon and green onion. Enjoy!

Who says grit is just something you clean from between your toes after a day at the beach?

More Tomatoes! Now with Shrimp and Basil. But wait! You also get Feta!

I know I've mentioned that I have tomatoes coming out of my ears, and that means that I need to find even MOAR ways to use them. Also, it being summer I'm prone to wanting to eat lighter dishes --- usually with shrimp. How many ways CAN one prepare Shrimp and Tomatoes? I might be working towards some kind of record....

Ingredients

7-8 Large Tomatoes, sliced into wedges (I used both red tomatoes as well as yellow heritage tomatoes for color)

3 Tbs. Olive Oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/4 C. Red Wine Vinegar
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 lb. medium shrimp, deveined and peeled

1 small pkg. of crumbled feta cheese
4-5 Tbs. fresh chopped basil

1/2 tsp. red pepper

Salt/Pepper to taste

Directions

Mix the tomatoes in a 9x13" casserole dish along with the olive oil, onion, vinegar, oregano, salt, pepper, and garlic. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 15 minutes, or until juices bubble and onions are tender. While baking, mix shrimp together with basil, salt and pepper and red pepper. Once onions are tender, stir in shrimp mixture and bake just until Shrimp turn pink. Add feta, and continue baking just 1-2 minutes longer. Remove from oven and serve.

Best served over toasted slices of freshly made french bread as shown. (And yes, I did make the bread, thankyouverymuch!)

Anyone have any creative names to call this thing?

Philly Cheesesteak Eggrolls

When you have friends who grow up in Philadelphia, and you sit around trying to figure out what you're going to make for dinner, but you're not personally a huge fan of bread, this is what happens. A cheesesteak without the bread.

Sometimes food is meant to find a new lot in life, and blending Philly roots with an Asian blend just .... HAPPENS.




Ingredients

FILLING
2 Tbs. Olive oil
1/2 Red Bell Pepper, diced
1/2 small yellow onion, diced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/4 C. Mushrooms, finely chopped
Thinly sliced steak (can buy cheesesteak ready beef in freezer section which is exactly what I did!)
Salt/pepper to taste
Dash of Worcester sauce
Sliced provolone cheese

WRAP
Phyllo dough sheets (can also use won ton wrappers, but the phyllo dough made these very crispy)
1/4 C. Butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C. Canola oil


SAUCE
Equal parts ketchup and mayonnaise
Dash of sriracha to taste


Directions

Sautée peppers, onion, garlic and mushrooms in olive oil over medium heat. Once vegetables are softened, add steak and seasonings.  Chop steak apart while it cooks. Remove from het and drain. Set aside.

Melt butter over medium heat and add minced garlic. Stir just until garlic is softened and butter is infused with garlic flavor.  Pour canola oil into skillet and heat over medium heat. Cut phyllo dough sheets into squares approximately 6X6". Brush with butter, and place one slice of provolone on the sheet.  Top with 2-3 Tbs. of steak filling. Using 2-3 sheets of phyllo dough, wrap from bottom corner, tucking sides in as you go to hold filling. Place in heated oil, turning quickly to brown on all sides. Remove from oil and place on paper towels to drain.

Mix sauce ingredients together.

To serve, slice eggrolls in half at an angle, place standing upright on a bed of greens or other garnish and top with dipping sauce.

Got Fresh Tomatoes?

I grow tomatoes every year, and this year (thanks to circumstances beyond my actual control) I have been unable to can the tomatoes that are coming out of my ears. So, I had to come up with something to do with them, and what do I do when I can't think of anything? That's RIGHT! I scour the interwebnetz for ideas. 

Last night I was caught with nearly a pound of fresh tomatoes. Just sitting there. Staring at me. Practically screaming "EAT ME!" SO, I got to work. I wanted fish, but couldn't figure out how to combine the two and a salsa type topping seemed too simple. This is what I came up with:

(Pictures forthcoming!)

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. Olive Oil

3 Green Onions, chopped

1/4 C. Red Onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

Small bunch of basil, coarsely chopped

1/4 C. bacon, chopped into small pieces

1 lb. fresh tomatoes, peeled and halved

1 Tbs. dried oregano (fresh and finely chopped would be better!)

Dash of Sriracha sauce

1/8 C. Sugar

1 small can sliced black olives

Salt/Pepper to taste

4-6 Flounder filets

Directions:

Sautee green onions, onion, and garlic in olive oil over medium-high heat until onions are transluscent, but garlic is not browned. Add bacon, stirring until bacon is slightly crisped. Add tomatoes, oregano, and basil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add sugar, salt, pepper, olives and sriracha. As the tomatoes cook down, smash the large pieces in the pan to create a thick sauce, stirring occasionally until liquid cooks off and sauce thickens. While sauce is cooking down, season the fish with salt/pepper. Lay the filets on top of the sauce, allowing them to cook through - approximately 5 minutes. 

Serve, sauce on bottom, fish on top. 

Die from yummy. 

Sweet/Sour Chicken

I adapted this recipe from one I found in Food and Wine magazine - so its not ALL mine, but is still kick-ass yummy, and really quite simple with a sophisticated flavor.

Ingredients

One whole chicken cut into pieces

Salt/Pepper

1/4 C. olive oil

1 large onion, cut into chunks

2 carrots, cut into chunks

2 ribs of celery, cut into chunks

8 cloves of garlic, peeled

1/4 C. sugar

1 C. red wine

1/2 C. red-wine vinegar

1/2 C. fresh orange juice

1 c. fresh mushrooms, sliced

Directions

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large, deep skillet, heat 2 tbs, of the olive oil. Add the chicken, and cook over moderately high heat until browned. Transfer the chicken to a plate, and pour off oil.

2. Add the remaining olive oil to the skillet along with the onion, carrots, celery, garlic and mushrooms. Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until starting to brown. Add the sugar, wine, vinegar, and orange juice. Bring to a boil. Return chicken to the skillet, skin side up. Cover partially and simmer over low heat just until chicken is cooked through. (DO NOT OVERCOOK CHICKEN!)

3. Transfer the chicken to a plate. Return sauce to a boil over high heat until thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Return chicken to the skillet until warmed through and well coated. Plate chicken, spooning sauce over top and serve.