Good Ol’ Shrimp Boil Potato Salad

Good Ol’ Shrimp Boil Potato Salad ~ We decimated more than half this meal before I remembered to take a photo!!!

This is a tasty, quick and easy meal to prepare, especially when you are about to head out of town for 5 days for another fishing trip to the coast. This time, Halibut Fishing! Many of you might remember my shark adventure from couple of years ago when we tried to catch halibut, and on the same trip my hubby caught a manta ray! Hopefully we’ll get the right species this time around.

Kathryn the Shark Woman

I saw this recipe in my most recent issue of Southern Living magazine, and with lots of shrimp in the freezer, it called my name. This takes very little time to prepare, especially if you use my “secret” Bundt-pan corn trick, shown below from another post. (I do actually stick a corn-cob holder in the top to stabilize the corn when cutting, but I had no helper to take a photo when I shot this. The foibles of food photography!)

Cutting the Corn off the Cob

I couldn’t find Creole mustard at the store that it called for (well, I do live in Oregon) but a quick google search came up with an easy substitute with items I had on hand.

I hope you enjoy this as much as me and my husband did, eating al fresco out on our back deck in glorious sunny weather. This tastes great warm or cold, I had leftovers the next day cold and just WOW! The flavors really intensified. This would be a great potluck or picnic meal, no mayo!

Good Ol’ Shrimp Boil Potato Salad
Adapted from Southern Living

1/4 pound smoked sausage, cut into thin slices
1 1.5-ounce package boil-in-bag shrimp-and-crab boil (I used McCormick’s)
1/2 pound baby red potatoes
1 ear fresh sweet corn, husks removed
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons course-ground Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Several dashes of Tabasco
2 green onions, sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
A few shakes of paprika
1/2 teaspoon horseradish sauce
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp

Brown the sausage over high heat in a skillet for just a few minutes, remove and set aside. Add the crab boil packet, potatoes, and corn cob with enough water to cover an inch over the veggies over high heat.

Once boiling, cook for about 10 more minutes until potatoes are softened.

Meanwhile, whisk together the rest of the ingredients except the shrimp in a bowl.

Once potatoes are done, add the shrimp and cooked sausage, turn off heat, then cover for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, drain and pour the food into a large serving bowl. Remove the corn and cut the kernels off the cob and add the kernels to the bowl. (I halved the potatoes after they were done but failed to add that to the PDF version recipe.) Pour the seasoned lemon/oil mixture over it, and stir to combine well. Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours. YUMMMM!

I won’t have a post up again for about a week and a half, don’t miss me too much, lol. 😀

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Quick and Easy Ham and White Bean Soup

Quick and Easy Ham and White Bean Soup

Spring has been on a springboard in my neck of the woods in terms of temperature. While it is now seasonably cool, we had a great stretch of really warm and sunny weather for the last week. With cooler weather, there is nothing better than a hot bowl of comforting soup. And with leftover ham and ham broth in the freezer, this meal was a snap!

After I took my photos, hubs and I both decided we wanted it creamier so I processed half of it in my Ninja then stirred it back in. This step is optional, and I didn’t even take another photo of it creamy that way as I can be lazy that way. Just like you can be lazy in making this soup as it’s that easy!

Quick and Easy Ham and White Bean Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup each chopped onion, celery, and carrots
4 ounces chopped ham
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups ham broth (you can sub in chicken or veggie broth)
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed rosemary
Small sprig of thyme
Ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon Liquid Smoke (I used Stubb’s Hickory)
1/8 teaspoon smoked Paprika

The Holy Trinity

Saute the veggies in the oil until soft, 5 to 7 minutes.

Ham, Veggies, and Spices

Add the ham, garlic and spices and cook 2 to 3 minutes more.

Ham Broth and Beans

Pour in the ham broth and beans. Add the rest of the seasonings, and taste to adjust.

Simmering the Ham and Bean Soup

Simmer for about a half hour or more until ready to eat. Optional: Puree half the soup in a blender or processor and stir back in before serving.

Ta-Dah!

Quick and Easy Ham and White Bean Soup

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Marcos Pollo Tacos

Marcos Pollo Tacos

We have a local restaurant that serves an amazing Mexican chicken dish called Marcos Pollo. It’s a creamy/spicy dish filled with chicken and mushrooms and served with rice and beans and tortillas. I decided to recreate this as best I could, and my husband thought it was spot on! Aside from telling me it was delicious, he wants me to add more mushrooms, increase the sauce, and make the chicken cubes smaller next time. Ever the critic, isn’t he? 😀 But I did agree with him except the chicken chunk size. I like a nice mouthful of chicken with each bite!

Marcos Pollo Tacos

3/4 to 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons paprika
1/8 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons minced chipotle in adobo sauce
3/4 cup chicken stock, reduced to 1/4 cup
1/2 sweet onion, cut and sliced in quarters
4 to 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced thick
1/2 cup heavy cream, Mexican crema, or Half and Half
1/3 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon corn starch mixed with 1 teaspoon cold water
Cilantro, for garnish

Cut the chicken into bite-sized cubes, then mix with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the paprikas and minced chipotle in adobo in a non-reactive bowl or zip-top baggie. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a small saucepan, then lightly boil until the stock has been reduced to about 1/4 cup. Remove from heat and set aside. This took about 20 minutes.

Chicken and Onions Browning

Meanwhile, slice the onions and mushrooms. After chicken stock has reduced, add the chicken and onions to a large skillet over medium heat. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to a clean bowl and set aside.

Deglazing Mushrooms ~ I haven’t quite mastered an in-focus pouring shot…

Add the other tablespoon of oil to the skillet then cook the mushrooms until golden brown, about another 5 to 7 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the reduced stock.

Add the chicken and onions back to the skillet, then stir in the cream and sour cream until combined. Next add the corn starch/water slurry, then simmer and stir until the sauce has thickened.

Creamy Spicy Chicken and Mushrooms

Remove from heat and serve over cooked rice, black beans in warmed corn tortillas. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.

Marcos Pollo Tacos

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Beef Sirloin Tips with Mushrooms over Hot-Buttered Noodles

Beef Sirloin Tips with Mushrooms over Hot-Buttered Noodles

I made this dish the same day I made my Black-Eyed Pea Risotto. Yep, the lunch my hubby never even tasted. His loss! It was New Year’s Day, and I wanted him to go get some take-out from a local Italian chain restaurant with my “Carino’s Cash” cards from buying gift cards there.

We were all set to order, then I read the fine print. “Only good for dine-in orders.” Oooh, bummer. So what is one to do? I didn’t want to get dressed (hey, I was still in my jammies/sweatpants — who isn’t on New Year’s Day?) and I needed to make dinner STAT!

I quickly scoured my fridge found an entire package of fresh mushrooms ready to go south, and a one pound package of boneless top sirloin I forgot I had put in there a couple of days before to defrost. These two items armed me with the makings of a delicious meal made in under one hour!

So let’s get straight to it on how to make a simple, filling meal on a short notice:

Beef Sirloin Tips with Mushrooms over Hot Buttered Noodles

8 ounces dried pasta, any kind
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 pound top sirloin steak
1/4 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1/4 teaspoon crushed dried thyme
2 teaspoons spicy brown mustard
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon oil
1/4 cup onion, chopped
8 ounce package sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
3 tbs all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups homemade or low-sodium beef broth
Chopped green onions, for garnish

First get the pasta cooking according to package directions. Any time during the below cooking process, remove and drain when it’s cooked al dente , then add two tablespoons of butter and keep warm/hot.

Seasoned Beef Tips

Cut the steak into bite-sized pieces (hence the “tips”), then toss with the paprika, thyme, mustard, and black pepper, to taste.

Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil, then the steak. Saute for about 5 or more minutes, browning the steak on all sides. Remove steak from pan to a plate and set aside.

Browning the Beef Tips

Melt the remaining butter in the same skillet and add the onions and mushrooms.  Cook for 7 to 10 minutes or until the mushrooms start to release their liquid.

Sauteing the Mushrooms and Onions

Next add the garlic and Worcestershire Sauce and mix to combine. One tablespoon at a time, whisk in the flour until a paste forms and no dry flour is left.

Slowly add the beef broth to the mixture. Continually whisk the mixture to remove any lumps during this process. Bring it to a boil and cook until it thickens.

Steak Tips and Mushroom Sauce

Add the cooked beef back to the pan and mix to coat.  Continue to cook until the meat is reheated. Serve over the hot buttered noodles and garnish with chopped green onions. Dinner is ON!

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Inside-Out Stuffed Cabbage Roll Soup

Fall is in the air and it’s probably time to repost one of my blogs for my readers while we wait on closing on a house. Up this week is a nice fall soup recipe that can take advantage of those fall/winter greens. Enjoy!

anotherfoodieblogger

Inside-Out Stuffed Cabbage Roll Soup

I have a confession to make. I have never made stuffed cabbage rolls in my life. For years and years I have drooled over pictures of them, but the long process to stuff the cabbage leaves and braise for several hours always intimidated me. So I did the next best thing. I turned them inside out and made soup instead! While researching what ingredients go into a stuffed cabbage roll dish, I discovered that every Eastern European country has their own version of this dish. Ukranians typically make theirs with pork, sauerkraut and onions, while the Romanians add a generous amount of fresh dill to their sauce. Polish cuisine mixes ground beef or pork with rice, which is the common Americanized version. Hungarians add paprika to theirs, which I did too. Most of the sauces are tomato-based, except for in Sweden where they typically serve…

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DIY Taco Mix (Large Batch)

Large Batch Taco Mix

I wanted to make some homemade taco mix seasoning, but it seemed most of the recipes I found were either for one or a few meals of tacos. I wanted a REALLY LARGE batch, as I figured if you were going to take the time to buy so many ingredients and then measure them all out, why not take care of it and one fell swoop and be set for the year?

One of our local stores has a huge bulk bin aisle of spices, grains, beans, and nuts. If you are going to attempt this, you would have to buy in bulk because individual pre-packaged containers would cost you an arm and a leg. I bought all the spices for this for about five dollars. I figure this makes enough for 12 or more pounds of burger. We are set a year of tacos!

Taco Mix Seasonings

DIY Taco Mix (Large Batch)

1 cup chili powder
1/4 cup corn starch
1 tablespoon sea salt
1/4 cup ground black pepper
1/4 cup paprika
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons garlic granules
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/4 cup ground cumin
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon ground coriander

Mix all ingredients well in a large bowl. Transfer to glass jars and store with a tight-fitting lid.

To use, add 3 tablespoons of mix to 1 pound ground beef and cook until burger is browned. Add 3/4 cup water and simmer for about 20 minutes until liquid is reduced.

Taco Mix Seasonings

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Cauliflower-Crusted Ling Cod with a Raspberry Beer Brie Sauce and Roasted Cauliflower

Cauliflower Crusted Cod with a Raspberry Brie Cheese Sauce

Thank you everyone who voted for my last recipe to make it to the next round of Diced!

You can read the recipe here below or on The Ranting Chef’s website here: Diced! – Kathryn – Cauliflower-Crusted Ling Cod with a Raspberry Beer Brie Sauce and Roasted Cauliflower

The next round involved a “white out” with a list of ingredients of all things white: white fish, cauliflower, Brie cheese, and white pepper. I immediately knew I would be using our last piece of Ling Cod from the freezer that our friend caught off the Oregon Coast when he took us out bottom fishing back in October. Since I knew I would be experimenting with a few dishes, I went and bought some inexpensive Tilapia to mess around with until I knew I had the perfect recipe. Good thing I did, because my first attempt at this dish resulted in disaster and quite the mess!

When I saw Brie as an ingredient, it made me think of a cheese pairing with fruit. Brie and fruit make a lovely pairing, particularly raspberries. So I figured some kind of cheese sauce for the fish was in order, but wasn’t quite sure how I’d pull that off. A cheese sauce also made me think of beer cheese soup. Next thing you know, I’m on the hunt at the grocery store for a fruity beer. Imagine my surprise when I came across a bottle of Raspberry Brown beer from Lost Coast Brewery. Perfect!

Raspberry Brown Beer and Brie Sauce

Now I had to figure out what to do with the cauliflower. Yes, it makes a great side dish when roasted, but I needed to do something really special with it for the fish. Then I started thinking about using it as a coating by “ricing” it. I decided I could try out the taste and texture of it by using the riced cauliflower mixed with Panko bread crumbs and butter and baking it atop some cheesy cauliflower, recipe here.  Well that worked out good enough, so then I tried coating a test piece of fish with it and pan-frying it. NOT! Cauliflower does not pan-fry well at all. I made a sticky burnt mess out of it.

Cauliflower and Panko Mixture

I was pretty sure baking it would work out much better, especially if I used an egg wash to help bind it to the fish. Yep, much better! And now I present to you this delicious Cauliflower-Crusted Ling Cod with a Raspberry Beer Brie Sauce and Roasted Cauliflower:

Cauliflower-Crusted Ling Cod with a Raspberry Beer Brie Sauce and Roasted Cauliflower

Ingredients:
1 filet Ling Cod
2 cups milk
1 egg

For the crust:
2 florets cauliflower
1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 tablespoon butter

For the roasted cauliflower:
1 small head cauliflower
1 tablespoon olive oil
Hungarian sweet paprika, to taste
Ground white pepper, to taste

For the cheese sauce:
1/2 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 tablespoon flour
1/4 cup Raspberry Brown beer
3/4 cup grated Brie cheese
1/4 cup half and half or whole milk
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper

Raspberry Brown Beer and Panko

Directions:

Soak the fish in the milk for several hours in the refrigerator. When ready to cook, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Meanwhile, prepare the coating for the fish. Using a box grater, rice the two florets of cauliflower until you have about a half cup. Mix with a half cup of Panko bread crumbs and white pepper. Combine with the melted butter and set aside.

Slice the remaining cauliflower into 1/4 inch steaks and place in one layer on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray oil. Drizzle the olive oil over the cauliflower then sprinkle with Hungarian sweet paprika and ground white pepper, to taste. Place in the preheated oven.

Cauliflower and Paprika

Meanwhile, beat the egg with a splash of milk in a bowl. Remove the fish from the milk and dip in the egg wash and coat thoroughly. Dredge the fish through the cauliflower/Panko mixture, pressing down firmly to coat evenly on both sides of the fish. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray, then lightly spray the top with olive oil. Place in the oven with the roasting cauliflower, and cook until the fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Cauliflower Panko Crusted Ling Cod

While the fish and cauliflower are cooking, prepare the Brie and beer cheese sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients to a blender or food processor and process on high for several minutes until well blended. Pour into a small saucepan over medium heat and whisk constantly, until thickened. Season with ground white pepper, to taste. Turn heat to the lowest setting and stir occasionally until the fish and cauliflower are done.

Remove the fish and cauliflower from the oven. Spoon some of the cheese sauce onto a plate, and place the fish on top of it. (I shared this with my hubby so you see half a filet in on the final dish.) Drizzle more cheese sauce over the fish, add roasted cauliflower to the plate, and enjoy!

Cauliflower Crusted Cod with a Raspberry Brie Cheese Sauce and Roasted Cauliflower

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Cheesy Cauliflower with Cauliflower Panko Topping

Cheesy Cauliflower with Cauliflower Panko Topping

I’m doing a bit of experimenting with my cooking to help decide what I plan on making for the second round of the Diced! competition. Thank you so much to all who voted for me, as I made it to the second round at the top of the leaderboard. I couldn’t have done it without you!

This particular recipe uses two of the four required ingredients. You can probably figure out what one of them is. I won’t be posting my final recipe until it’s up for voting next round, but in the meantime I can share my experiments with you.

Riced Cauliflower

My husband made a ham for Sunday dinner, and asked if I could make one of the sides. Little did he know I had already planned on making this cheesy cauliflower dish, so it worked out perfectly. My original recipe for this includes mushrooms and doesn’t have a bread topping, but we didn’t have any mushrooms anyways so I just omitted them. (Which is just as well since my daughter doesn’t like mushrooms. She’s not a big fan of cauliflower either, but she’ll still eat it.)

When all was said and done, I think my experiment worked. That can be considered both good and bad, because now I have to decide whether I want to use this technique for the contest dish. So many decisions! But, in the meantime, here is a new side dish with an unusual but great topping:

Cheesy Cauliflower with Cauliflower Panko Topping

1 head cauliflower, broken into florets
1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1/8 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Ground white pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. “Rice” a couple of the cauliflower florets, using a grater, until you have about 1/4 cup of riced cauliflower. Add it to a small bowl or measuring cup, then add the 1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs. Melt one tablespoon of the butter with the paprika, then mix well into the cauliflower/Panko mixture. Set aside.

Riced Cauliflower and Panko

Cook the cauliflower to al dente, either by steaming, microwave, or pressure cooker. I’m a fan of the pressure cooker, as it takes hardly any time! When it’s done cooking, place it in a casserole dish and cover.

Meanwhile, add the butter to a saucepan over medium heat until melted. Add the flour, and stir until a paste is formed. Quickly pour in the milk, whisking until all the lumps are out and the sauce has thickened. Add the mustard, then stir in the cheddar cheese until it melts and the sauce starts to bubble. Add ground white pepper to taste.

Stirring in the Cheese to the Sauce

Pour the cheese sauce over the cauliflower, then top evenly with the cauliflower/Panko mixture. Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes until the topping has browned lightly. Remove and serve immediately.

Cheesy Cauliflower Ready to Bake

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Creamy Fish Chowder with Corn and Potatoes

Creamy Fish Chowder with Corn and Potatoes

My husband made this delightful (and decadent) creamy fish chowder over the weekend from some of the sea bass we caught off the central coast of Oregon a few weeks ago. He accomplished this after helping me can all those tomatoes I wrote about last post. Super Dad!  I played a minor role in the making of this, helping with a few measurements and prepping the potatoes, but I mainly taste-tested it along the way and of course ate a heaping bowl of it for dinner. Now we have several bags of it frozen for future quick and easy meals.

p.s. The tripod holder insert-thingy on the bottom of my camera broke just as I was setting up to take photos. Because I did not have my thinking cap on, I ended up using a flash for some of the shots, instead of rubberbanding it to the tripod or some other method of securing it (DOH!). Time for a new camera? Yes, I think so.

Fish Chowder Ingredients

Creamy Fish Chowder with Corn and Potatoes

4 sea bass filets, or other white fish (about 1 pound)
Milk for soaking the fish
6 strips of bacon (optional)
1/3 cup real butter
1 cup onion, diced
1/3 cup flour
8 cups lowfat milk
4 medium potatoes, peeled and 1/2-inch diced
1 cup sweet white corn (fresh or frozen)
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Paprika, to taste
Mrs. Dash Table Blend, to taste
Black pepper, to taste

Soak the fish in a bowl of milk mixed half and half with water for at least an hour, or longer in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, cook up a mess of bacon. My husband cooked an entire pound and the leftovers were used for garnish and a BLT for his lunch the next day.  He said he was tempted to use some of the bacon drippings to prepare the roux, but decided his heart would thank him for not doing that. Besides, adding the bacon to the soup gave it plenty of flavor.

Big Pot of Fish Chowder

In a large soup pot, melt the butter and cook the onions until just starting to soften. Add the flour, whisking until a paste forms. Very slowly add about half the milk, whisking constantly. Bring up to a simmer until it starts to thicken, then add the rest of the milk, the potatoes, corn, and seasonings. Also add the bacon, which should be chopped at this point.

Bring the soup back up to a low simmer. You need to monitor the heat and stir often, as the milk could scald and stick to the bottom of the pot if you’re not careful.  After about 15 minutes of simmering, cut the fish into bite size pieces and add to the pot, once again bringing up to a simmer until the potatoes and fish are done. Ladle into bowls and garnish with additional chopped bacon. I cheated and ate my garnish first instead.

Creamy Fish Chowder with Corn and Potatoes

Spicy Skillet Corn with Tomatoes

Spicy Skillet Corn with Tomatoes

This corn dish is a bright and tasty accompaniment to any barbecue, and was served Labor Day with huge slabs of baby back ribs my mom grilled and cooked. I had my parents and uncle from out of town over for the holiday, and the entire meal was cooked by all. I did the corn and cole slaw, my mom did the ribs, and my husband whipped up a huge batch of his potato salad. Even my daughter pitched in and made chocolate-covered banana slices for dessert. My father and uncle pitched in by helping us to eat this huge quantity of food.

The original recipe didn’t have tomatoes, but with my cherry tomato plants exploding with ripe red balls of sweetness, it was a no-brainer for me to chop some up and add them in. I used some delicious fresh white sweet corn on the cob, and the spiciness of the chiles combined with the tartness of the lime and the sweetness of the corn and tomato made this side dish shine! I hope you think so too.

Spicy Skillet Corn with Tomatoes

Adapted from Southwest Corn Skillet with Chili and Lime from Barefeet in the Kitchen

1 tablespoon butter
4 ears of fresh sweet corn, kernels removed from the cob
Lots of ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon New Mexico red chile powder
3 strips of bacon, torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, quartered
Juice of 1/2 lime

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and melt the butter. Add the rest of the ingredients except the tomatoes and lime juice and stir to heat through, about five minutes. Add the tomatoes and lime juice and toss to combine. Remove from skillet and serve immediately with your meal. Easy and delicious!

Note: You can omit the bacon if you want. But hey, we had bacon left from the potato salad my husband made, so….what the heck.

Spicy Skillet Corn with Tomatoes