It’s stone crab season here in Clearwater. I’ve never had these yummy little creatures anywhere but here and they’re de-lish (and super expensive!) These were served cracked, cold with lemon & a mild dipping sauce. I highly recommend you trying these if you’re in the area.
Also on the menu this weekend was hubby crafted clams casino as an appetizer – very flavorful. The recipe can be found here. Enjoy!
I followed that up with a new dish, a creamy, garlic shrimp dish served over rice. This recipe is a keeper! This recipe can be found here. (I added artichokes and a little chopped bacon, cause, why not?)
I always say, the freshest ingredients simply prepared is the best way to cook.
For this meal I had some amazing, colossal shrimp which I butterflied and seasoned with EVOO, pepper, and Slap ya Mama. I also had sushi grade tuna which I cubed (large cubes) and dredged in black pepper.
I served grilled eggplant with the shrimp. To do this, first peel the eggplant, leaving some strips of peel on the fruit. Then simply slice the eggplant in circles, about 1/4 inch thick. Brush with EVOO and season with salt & pepper. Throw the eggplant on the grill about 5 minutes before the shrimp and remove when they are tender and charred. The center will be soft and very tasty.
Pro-tip: This is a good recipe to improvise on – i.e. get rid of any vegetables that you have in the fridge – you can toss anything into this dish and it will come out great!
Now that the weather is getting nice we’ve been eating on the patio. I absolutely love eating outside with the fountain on and the great view that we have, it’s restorative.
We found a place nearby (shout out to https://naturesfoodpatch.com/) where they make their own sausages filled with unusual and tasty fillings (i.e. a chicken sausage with broccoli rabe and cheese and and pork sausage with bacon). We tossed some shrimp, asparagus, little neck clams and a filet mignon that we butterflied right onto a hot grill. We also had a side of our homemade pickles (see my pickle recipe: here )
Pro-tip: For the little neck clams, soak them in fresh water with a tablespoon of flour (this makes them release any sand they may be holding onto). Then put on hot grill until they pop open. Serve with melted butter mixed with garlic, a splash of fresh squeezed lemon and a little cilantro or parsley.
This dish was so delicious and simple. I always say that you just need to start with the freshest, closest ingredients you can find and whatever you make will turn out great. I started with some cherry tomatoes that I halved. I put them in a baking dish with a few cloves of garlic, Kalamata olives, some fresh oregano, basil and mint from the garden, drizzled the mix with olive oil and seasoned with S&P. I would have put a block of feta cheese right in the middle of it…but the husband…I baked the dish for about 40 minutes at 350 (I then removed half for hubby and added feta cheese to the rest and baked for another 10 minutes).
To plate this dish: I served it over cauliflower rice, so I plated that first, topped with shrimp, then with the baked tomato concoction. It was delicious, easy, hearty and a dish that I will definitely make again.
Two things about me: 1) I rarely use the microwave. Ours in fact, has been broken for months. The only button that works is the “add 30 seconds button” that I will occasionally use to warm something up (3 x 30 seconds lol). For the most part the microwave is just large clock in my kitchen. The other thing about me is that both my daughter and I are obsessed with Trader Joe’s. There isn’t one close to me in Clearwater, which is rough since I used to live around the corner from one in New York. We always ponder what we call the “Trader Joe’s Parking Lot Phenomena”. People seem to loose their minds in the excitement of being at a Trader Joe’s and forget that they’re actually driving. Every Trader Joe’s parking lot is a shit show. I’ve seen maneuvers and accidents in these parking lots that are pretty incredible. @TraderJoesRants – anyone have any idea what is happening in these parking lots?
Well yesterday I needed some retail therapy so I drove 40 minutes to get to the nearest Trader Joe’s (in St. Pete). I knew what to expect and was not disappointed. There’s a certain calm that comes over me when every location of a store chain that I love is set up the same way and your not standing in a random isle confused and lost. For $50 I got quite a bounty. One of the items that I was excited about was a bag of frozen mushrooms, which I decided to microwave – without reading the instructions. After a small fire erupted in the microwave, my husband was happy to point out the clearly explained “DO NOT MICROWAVE” instruction on the packaging. Oh well.
This is my bounty:
And this is the small fire…
Anyway, in the end I made a great stir-fry of shrimp over cauliflower rice (sans the mushrooms) with mixed veggies. It was healthy and yummy. The Argentinian Red Shrimp from Trader Joe’s were excellent, I highly recommend.
Shout out to Trader Joe’s in St. Pete that had not only the normal great stuff that we love but a wine selection that was very impressive!
As I’ve mentioned, my daughter and her boyfriend recently got their own apartment about 20 minutes away from us, it’s a milestone for us all. They came for dinner last night. The day before, I asked the princess what she wanted me to cook. Her response was, “Can you send me a few options and I’ll pick one. Also mommy, I’d love brie and crackers as an appetizer…” So you see what I’ve created here.My fault, entirely.
Now to prepare polenta – I use chicken broth to make the polenta, this gives it a rich taste. Follow the instructions on the packaging. Basically – don’t stop stirring! I use a whisk. You’ll need to add more polenta very slowly to get the desired consistency. Some folks like polenta very thin and soupy, others like it thicker and more like a pasta – we’re in the middle. When it’s nearly done I add a tablespoon of butter and two tablespoons of mascarpone to thicken it up and flavor it. I also top with a few chopped scallions to add a crunch and a pop of color.
Spaghetti squash is our new go to lately. It’s super versatile, easy to prepare and low carb/calorie. The hardest part of this squash is cutting it open!
To prepare this dish I halved a spaghetti squash and removed the seeds. I then seasoned with a little EVOO, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes (you can add whatever seasonings you’d like). Place cut side down in a baking pan and toss in pre-heated 350 degree oven for about an hour (depending on size). You can tell it’s done by poking a fork in the squash – if it goes in easily it’s done.
I have been jonesing for a BBQ. I don’t ever BBQ for myself because I never seem to figure out temperatures, so I leave that to my hubby. I’ll throw anything on the grill and just know it will taste better. So for this BBQ, we started with some fresh clams with butter. Literally just soak the clams for 30 minutes before cooking to get them to release any sand and toss them on the BBQ until they open. A little melted butter for dunking just makes it even better. And of course we had to throw some shrimp on the barbie too…
After that yummy appetizer, we prepared some steaks (don’t forget to leave them out before cooking – never cook a steak straight from the fridge). Simply salt & pepper and ready to grill. I love a ribeye and hubby goes for a filet mignon so we need to adjust our cooking times. We also wrapped up some potatoes in aluminum foil – get these on the grill way before the steaks as they’ll need more time to cook.
Annie's Kitchen Therapy - Recipes Here! 