Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Scallop & Fig Kebabs

Sea Scallops and fruit go surprisingly well together. The sweet delicate nature of the sea scallop is perfectly complimented by the other ingredients in this recipe. Makes a fantastic appetizer for any back yard get together.

Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons orange marmalade
  • 1/4 cup chopped green onions
  • 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
  • 1 large garlic clove, chopped
  • 16 dry Maine sea scallops
  • 8 dried figs (about 5 ounces)
  • 2 lemons, quartered
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

Directions
Combine first 5 ingredients in a zip-top plastic bag; seal and shake vigorously. Add scallops; seal and marinate in refrigerator for 20 minutes. Remove scallops from bag, reserving marinade. Thread 4 scallops, 2 figs, and 2 lemon quarters alternately onto each of 4 (12-inch) skewers. Preheat grill. Coat a grill rack with oil. Place kebabs on grill rack; cook 6 minutes or until scallops are done, turning and basting with reserved marinade.
Source:Fig

Mussels Steamed in White Wine

Yummy!! Mussels are another fantastically versatile seafood! If you have a need for seafood and are short on time, this recipe is a big winner. I like using fresh, live Prince Edward Island Mussels for this one!

Ingredients:
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 teaspoon basil
  • 1/4 cup celery, chopped
  • olive oil
  • 8 ounces dry white wine
  • 1 pound Prince Edward Island Mussels
  • parsley

Directions:
Cover celery with olive oil. Saute onions, garlic, bay leaf, basil and celery together. Add the wine and mussels. Cover and steam for 4-6 minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.
Source:White Wine Sauce

Briochette Crab Melts

As far as the crab goes for this recipe, I think Jonah Crab is the most suitable. The sweet delicate flavor of the Jonah Crab meat pairs well with the granny smith apples.

Ingredients
  • 8 small round brioche or buttery dinner rolls, split crosswise
  • 6 tablespoons truffle butter or unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup minced red onion
  • 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 Granny Smith apple--quartered lengthwise, cored and thinly sliced crosswise
  • Several dashes of hot sauce
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 pound Jonah crab meat, picked over
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese
Directions
Preheat the broiler. Spread the cut sides of the brioche with the truffle butter and set on a baking sheet, cut sides up. Broil the rolls 6 inches from the heat, until toasted. Reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees F.In a large bowl, mix the mayonnaise, red onion, parsley, lime juice, apple and hot sauce and season with salt and pepper. Fold in the crab meat.Set the top halves of the rolls aside. Top the bottoms with the crab salad and sprinkle with the Gruyere. Bake in the upper third of the oven until the cheese is melted. Close the crab melts and serve.
Source:Brioche

Cheesy Grilled Maine Lobster Tails

This recipe is so easy to make, the most difficult part is waiting for it to be done!. As usual, I prefer to use Maine Lobster Tails, but you can use Brazilian Lobster Tails, North Australian Lobster Tails or any kind of Lobster tail you want!

Ingredients
  • 4 6-7oz frozen Maine lobster tails
  • 3 tablespoons margarine or butter
  • 3 to 4 green onions, sliced (1/2 cup)
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1-1/2 cups soft bread crumbs (2 slices)
  • 3/4 cup shredded creamy Havarti cheese (3 ounces)
  • 2 teaspoons snipped fresh basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted

Directions
Thaw lobster tails, if frozen. Rinse lobster tails; pat dry with paper towels. To butterfly tails, use kitchen shears or a sharp heavy knife to cut lengthwise through centers of hard top shells and meat. Cut to, but not through, the bottom shells. Using fingers, spread meat apart slightly. For stuffing, in a medium skillet melt the 3 tablespoons margarine or butter. Add green onion and garlic. Cook for 1 minute; remove skillet from heat. Stir in bread crumbs. Stir in cheese and basil; toss to mix. Spoon stuffing into slits in lobster tails. In a grill with a cover arrange medium-hot coals around edges; place a drip pan in center of grill. Test for medium heat over the drip pan. Place lobster tails over drip pan, stuffing side up. Cover and grill for 25 to 30 minutes or until lobster meat is opaque. Drizzle lobster tails with 2 tablespoons melted margarine or butter. Makes 4 servings.
Broiler Method: Prepare lobster and stuffing as directed above, except do not stuff lobster tails. Place unstuffed lobster tails on the unheated rack of a broiler pan. Broil lobster 4 to 6 inches from the heat for 10 to 11 minutes or until meat is opaque. Spoon stuffing into slits in lobster tails. Broil for 1 to 2 minutes more or until stuffing is light brown and heated through. Continue as directed.
Source:Cheesy Tails

Monday, August 25, 2008

Lobster Stuffed Filet Mignon Steaks

Maine Lobster Tails and Filet Mignon Steaks...does it get any better than that? This is my favorite meal to prepare myself. I made it for the first time on my 21st birthday. Man that was a good night!

Ingredients

  • 4 6.oz Filet Mignon
  • 2 lobster tails
  • 1 tablespoon butter, melted
  • 6 slices bacon
  • 1 cup sliced green onions
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Place bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for just a few minutes, until just partly cooked. Set aside. Meanwhile, bring a pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil. Add lobster tails, and boil for 5 to 6 minutes, until colored. Drain, and cool slightly. Remove shells by snipping up the center with scissors, and peeling away to the side. Slice a large pocket into the side of the filets. (A butcher can do this for you also) Stuff chunks of lobster tails into the pockets. Combine 1 tablespoon of butter and lemon juice; pour over the lobster tails. Close the pockets, and tie the roast closed with cotton string at 1 inch intervals. Place the filets in a shallow roasting pan. Bake for about 35 minutes in the preheated oven for rare, or continue to roast to your desired degree of doneness. The internal temperature of the steaks should be at least 145 degrees F (70 degrees C) for rare. Lay bacon over the top of the filets and continue baking until crisp. Melt remaining 1 cup of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add green onion, wine and garlic salt. Cook until onion is tender. Slice the steaks, and arrange on a platter. Spoon sauce over the meat.
Source:Stuffed Steaks

Walnut Shrimp

When I first found this recipe, I was a little hesitant. I had never had walnut shrimp before and was a little skeptical about how good they could be. I'm so glad I tried them anyway, these things are awesome!

Ingredients:
  • 1 lbs Medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
    Coating:

  • 1 Egg white
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 2 tsp Cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup Peanut oil, for velveting
  • 2 tsp Fresh ginger, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp Fresh scallions chopped fine
  • 1/2 cup Walnuts
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1 tbsp Hoisin sauce
  • 1 tbsp Rice wine
  • 6 tbsp Chicken stock
  • 1/2 tsp Cornstarch mixed with 1/2
  • Tsp water
  • 1 tsp Sesame oil
Directions:
Combine shrimp with coating ingredients in a bowl; mix well and refrigerate for 20 minutes. Heat wok or large skillet until hot and add peanut oil. When oil is just warm, quickly add shrimp, stir to separate, and turn off heat. Allow shrimp to sit in the warm oil for about 2 minutes; drain in a colander set inside a stainless steel bowl. Wipe the wok clean, return 1 1/2 tb of the drained oil to the wok, and add the ginger and scallions, stir frying for 30 seconds. Stir in the walnuts or cashews, salt, and continue to stir fry another 30 seconds. Return the shrimp to the wok with the remaining ingredients and stir fry another 2 minutes. Turn out onto a platter and serve at once.
Source:Walnut

Scallop Corn Chowder

Next to lobster, I think sea scallops are my favorite seafood. Scallops are so sweet and versatile, there is literally no end to the recipes you can create with them! Try this soup recipe when the weather gets a little nippy. It's sure to warm you inside and out!

Ingredients
  • 5 slices bacon (4 ounces), cut into a small dice
  • 1 1/2 pounds sea scallops (about 16), patted dry
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced into half-moons
  • 1/2 pound Yukon gold potatoes, peeled (if desired) and cut into a 1/2-inch dice
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • Kernels from 2 ears of corn (about 1 cup)
  • 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Directions
In a large skillet, over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. You should have about 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings; if necessary, supplement with olive oil. Increase heat to medium-high. Season the scallops with the salt and pepper and cook, working in batches, until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate. Add the onion to the drippings in the skillet and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, wine, broth, and cream, cover partially, and reduce heat. Simmer gently until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the scallops and corn and simmer gently for 4 minutes. Sprinkle with the parsley and bacon.
Source:Soup

Crab Rangoon

This classic Asian recipe is one of my favorites! I like making this recipe in large batches and bringing it to pot luck parties. It's always been a big hit! I prefer to use Alaskan King Crab in this recipe because it holds it's sweetness the best! After you have mastered this recipe in your own home, you will never want to order our Chinese again!

Ingredients
  • 1/2 pound crab meat, drained and chopped
  • 1/2 pound cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon A-1. Steak Sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 3 dozen won-ton wrappers
  • 1 egg yolk, well beaten

Directions
Combine crab meat, cream cheese, A-1 Sauce and garlic powder. Place 1 heaping teaspoonful of this mixture in the center of a won-ton wrapper. Gather edges together, moisten with egg yolk and pinch to seal. Deep fry in hot oil in bunches until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot.
Source:Rangoon

Sauteed Pasta and Lobster

Pasta and seafood go hand-in-hand. This lobster recipe looks complicated, but it really isn't that difficult. Just think about how yummy the final product will be!

Ingredients
  • 4 (1- to 1 1/4-lb) live lobsters
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1/4 teaspoon crumbled saffron
  • 6 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 1/2 lb vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 lb angel's hair pasta nests or fideos coils, broken in half, or capellini, broken into 2-inch lengths
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions
Prepare lobsters:
Fill an 8-quart pot three fourths full with salted water and bring to a boil. Plunge 2 lobsters headfirst into water and boil, covered, 3 minutes. Transfer with tongs to a colander to cool. Repeat with remaining 2 lobsters in same manner.
When lobster is cool enough to handle, remove meat from shells, catching juices in a separate bowl. Add shells to bowl with juices. Cut meat into 1-inch pieces and chill lobster, covered.
Make stock:
Stir together wine and saffron and let mixture steep 10 minutes. Bring wine mixture, 14 cups water, and lobster shells with juices to a boil in 8-quart pot. Boil until liquid is reduced to about 8 cups, about 1 hour. Line a sieve with cheesecloth and set over a bowl. Pour stock through sieve, then discard solids.
Make sofregit:
While stock reduces, heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy skillet over low heat until hot, then cook onion with bay leaf until onion is very soft and browned, about 45 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until sofregit is very thick, about 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf.
Cook pasta:Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a cassola or an oven proof 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat until hot but not smoking, then cook pasta in 4 batches, stirring, until golden brown. Transfer pasta to a bowl as browned and add an additional tablespoon oil for each batch. When all of pasta is browned, return to pan and stir in sofregit and 4 cups stock (if using a cassola, use 4Bõps stock; your need more liquid because of the dish's straight sides). Reserve remaining stock for another use. Bring pasta mixture to a simmer, then continue to simmer, covered, 4 minutes. Stir in reserved lobster and season with salt and pepper. Transfer pan, uncovered, to middle of oven and bake 10 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed and top of pasta is crisp. Stir in parsley
Source:Pasta