Stuck indoors. Snow on the ground. Stuck in doors. Husband is work. Stuck in doors. Need something to pass the time.
What do I have in my pantry and fridge? Shrimp. Hot sauce. Garlic. Half of a lemon. Half a bottle of wine. No chicken. Frozen pork chops will take a while to defrost. Hmmm.
Pinterest should give me ideas. Closet Cooking just did a post on shrimp! Click. Sweet, I have all of the ingredients.
This recipe was so easy and most of the ingredients are things I have on hand. Worchestershire. Hot sauce. Butter. Wine. Spices. It didn’t take long to cook at all with minimal prep work. The blog’s recipe did call for creole seasoning. I don’t have any pre-made, so this was one part I specifically put together based on some recipes I looked for online, what was in my spice drawer, and my own taste palette. A lot of recipes called for a lot of thyme. Thyme is not my favorite spice, so I drastically reduced it.
The sauce was finger licking good. I actually took a spatula around the pan and licked up the rest before I washed the pan. Seriously good. It is so good, that when I make this again, I plan on adding some chicken. Perhaps some sausage. And bread, definitely bread, so I can scoop up the awesome sauce.
New Orleans BBQ Shrimp Recipe
Serves 2
Ingredients
2 Tablespoons butter
3 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ cup hot sauce (Franks or Sriracha)
¼ cup Worcestershire
1/3 cup red wine
2 Tbsp lemon juice (1/2 of lemon)
Creole seasoning (see recipe below)
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tbsp butter, cut into ½ inch pieces
Ground black pepper to taste
Salt to taste
Creole Seasoning
2 Tbsp smoked paprika
1 Tbsp black pepper
2 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp oregano
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp cayenne
Method
1. In a small bowl, make the creole seasoning by mixing the spices together on the ingredients list. Set aside.
2. Melt the butter in a pan, then add the garlic until it warms. Add the hot cause, Worcestershire sauce, wine, lemon juice, creole seasoning and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce is reduced, about six minutes.
3. Add the shrimp and cook until cooked through, about four minutes (depends) on the size of the shrimp).
4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in pieces of butter until it melts. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
One evening this week, I walked in the door and threw my bags down. I didn’t feel like doing a single thing. I didn’t rinse out my coffee mug that I took to work. I didn’t fold the clean laundry in the basket. I didn’t even last five minutes before I put on my pajamas (and it was only 3:30 in the afternoon). I sat at the kitchen table and played Words with Friends, looked at Pinterest, and checked Gmail, all the while hoping that my husband was motivated to cook dinner. When he walked through the door, he took off his police uniform and threw it on the floor. It didn’t even make the laundry basket. He sat at the kitchen table with me and asked, “What’s for dinner?”
“I don’t know,” I replied. “What are you going to make?”
“Nothing. What are you making?” he finished.
I think everyone has had evenings like this, coming home really tired and completely unmotivated. At the same time, a good meal is really needed, and it is needed to be served while wearing pajamas.
After rifling around the kitchen, looking at ingredients and thinking about cooking times, we came up with making something that was absolutely delicious and rather easy. We had a box of Zatarain’s Jambalaya and decided to add a package of shrimp, a package of Andouille sausage, and onions. This was a quick and easy dinner fix four our lethargic malaise.
Ingredients
1 box Zatarain’s Jambalaya (we used a low sodium box)
Ingredients for rice mix listed on box (water and oil)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 package Johnsonville Andouille Sausage
1 8oz. can petite diced Redpack tomatoes, drained
1 medium onion, halved and cut in ½ inch thick slices
2 tablespoons Cajun black seasoning
Red Pepper Flakes, to taste (we used about two tablespoons)
Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Method
1. Follow the directions on the Zatarain’s Jambalaya and cook the rice mix while preparing the rest.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the shrimp, sausage, tomatoes, onion, Cajun seasoning, and red pepper flakes.
3. Cook the skillet mixture until the moisture has evaporated and the onions are translucent, about 7-10 minutes.
4. Add the finished skillet mixture to the rice mixture and stir together. Garnish with ground black pepper.
There is a restaurant in Williamsburg called Food For Thought that has really tasty shrimp and grits. I have never actually ordered them before because they also have other tasty dishes, but my husband orders them consistently. As a Yankee, I had never heard of grits with shrimp. Grits are a breakfast food, I thought. Kind of like Cream of Wheat, right? Shrimp just doesn't belong there.
Now that I am being trained and sculpted into a quasi-Southern Belle by my husband and colleagues alike, I get the whole shrimp and grits thing. I have learned the error of my ways. Why don't they make these up North? Seriously. The Greek diner owners need to get on this. They have everything else under the sun already. Why not a touch of southern classics? Now with all of my pondering and finger pointing at the Greeks, I came to a realization. I have never made grits before. Ever.
How can I be a southern man's wife properly without ever having made grits before?
Tonight I faced the challenge. I had pinned a recipe from Martha Stewart on how to make shrimp grits from her style. Then, I checked other recipes and thought of what to add to it or alter. I made up my own concoction from fusing a multitude of recipes together. I liked this recipe because all of the different flavors of the bacon, shrimp, tomatoes, and paper melded together into a spoonful of heaven! It was also a touch spicy, but not overly spicy, so that we could taste the flavors of the ingredients, and not just spice.
Here is what we did!
Not Martha's Shrimp and Grits
Serves 3 (would be 4 if none of men at the feast were State Troopers)
Ingredients
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 cup to-cook grits (not quick cooking)
2 Tbsp butter
3 slices of thick bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 large jalapeno with seeds, halved and thinly sliced
2 tsp minced garlic
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes in juice (we used Redpack. We always use Redpack.)
1 pound large peeled and deveined frozen shrimp, thawed
2 Tbsp Sriracha (or just hot sauce to taste)
***We think the next time we make this, we would add a red or a yellow bell pepper. Something to think about...
Directions
1. In a medium saucepan, bring 4 1/2 c water to boil. Whisk in grits and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook, whisking occasionally, until grits are creamy for about 30 minutes.
2. About ten minutes into the grits cooking, cook bacon in a large skillet until the pieces are browned. Transfer the pieces to a plate with a paper towel to absorb the oil using a slotted spoon.
3. Add the onion to the bacon fat in the skillet and cook until the onion is soft and browned. Add the jalapenos and the garlic and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Add tomatoes with the juice and 1/4 cup of water to the skillet mixture. Bring to a boil and then add the shrimp. Cook the shrimp until cooked throughout, about 2-4 minutes. Stir in the hot sauce. Taste. Then add more sauce if desired. We did. :)
5. Serve the shrimp mixture over the grits and sprinkle the bacon on top.
Enjoy!
Last year I had a goal to try and eat more fish. I had never liked fish, but my husband loves it. It also has all of those nutritional values like Omega 3's, so I figured it was time for me to make a try. flipped through some cook books, and I found a few recipes I was willing to try. One was called Quick fish pie with peas from The Illustrated Quick Cook by DK Books. I love this book because the recipes range from classic to inventive and they are pretty quick to make!
This time Brad and I made a few substitutions to the original recipe. We chose to use red potatoes and leave the skin on them for the "crust" topping as opposed to using regular baking potatoes. I liked this better because it had a more robust flavor and was not as bland. We usually have to add a lot of salt to the potatoes, but not this time. If you would prefer russet or gold potatoes, peel and quarter the potatoes before you boil them
We can also choose the different types of fish we place in it. It calls for 11/2 pound of boneless whitefish, like haddock, cod, or pollack. This time we used half flounder and half haddock. We also added a pound of shrimp to change it up a little. It was an amazing addition!
Ingredients
2 lbs. red potatoes, scrubbed with skins on
1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 lb skinless boneless whitefish (like haddock, flounder, hake, cod, pollack)
3/4 cup milk
1 cup frozen peas
4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
salt and ground pepper to taste
For the sauce
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups milk
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (or the broiler on high). Peel and quarter the potatoes, and boil or steam in a pan of salted water for about 15 minutes, or until soft. Drain well and mash. Add the butter, and mash again. Set aside and keep warm.
2. Put the fish in a shallow frying pan. Season well with salt and pepper. Pour in just enough of the milk to cover, and poach over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Remove the fish with a slotted spoon, and transfer to a baking dish.
3. To make the sauce, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat, and stir in the flour with a wooden spoon until smooth. Return the pan to the heat, and gradually add the milk, stirring constantly. Keep cooking and stirring for 5-6 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Add more milk if needed. Stir in the mustard and season with salt and pepper. Gently stir in the peas and eggs.
4. Spoon the sauce over the fish and stir gently.Top with the mashed potatoes, swirling them so that they are not flat, but have dips and peaks. Bake or cook the pie under the broiler for about 10 minutes, or until the top is crisp and the mixture is heated through.
