Scampi con Capelli d'Angelo

Large shrimp in garlic butter sauce over pasta nests.


Cooking the capelli d'angelo or angel hair nests.

Ingredient Still Life.
Butter, garlic, lemon, parsley, chardonnay, vermouth.
Saute lots of minced garlic in butter taking care not to brown the butter nor the garlic. Then add a splash of chardonnay and a splash of vermouth, add the shrimp, then finish with a squeeze of lemon and sprinkle with parsley.

Serve the shrimp in their own little nests.

Having a dinner party? This would make a fabulous pasta course, serve each guest one nest. Top each shrimp with a little caviar. Very rich, elegant, flavorful!


This post was inspired by Simona of Briciole. She explains the difference between capellini and capelli d'angelo. I have a lot more to learn about scampi vs. gambero, too!
Thanks Simona!

GOOD MORNING!

Thanks for stopping by! Coffee anyone?

Asaka Japanese Cuisine

Salmon Skin Handrolls

Calamari

Garden Salad with Miso Dressing

I especially enjoyed the just under-ripe ultra-thin avocado slices on this salad. They were firm enough to slice very thin and keep their shape. I plan to use that idea in some future salad.

Vegetable Tempura Lunch Special

We had a delightful lunch at Asaka in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Every dish was so fresh and crisp and flavorful.

Happy Birthday Gina!

Panko Crusted Sole with a Crème Fraîche Caper Sauce

Fresh Petrale Sole is sauteed in half butter/half olive oil until browned, then served over the sauce. The sauce is both silky and tart, a perfect complement to the crusty fish.

Saute finely chopped onion or shallot in butter, then add capers, then a squeeze of lemon juice and and a splash of vermouth, then finish with a dollop of crème fraîche. Season to taste.

Panko Japanese Style Breadcrumbs are a bit courser than ordinary breadcrumbs. They give the fish a lighter crunchier texture.
The fresh sole is rinsed and patted dry, then seasoned with salt and pepper, then dredged in flour, dipped in egg, and finally dredged in Panko breadcrumbs, then into the saute pan.

Do you like to cook with Panko? See my August 1st post of Chèvre Chaud!

Shrimp Étouffée

My butcher (he carries seafood, too) had some great looking shrimp, so I worked on this Cajun style recipe to share.

Roux: Stir olive oil and flour in a heavy skillet over medium heat until it is a rich caramel color, about 10 minutes.

Add: onion, celery, green bell pepper, garlic. Stir until softened, about 8 minutes.

Ingredient Still Life.

Add: clam juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire, cayenne, thyme, (and water). Lots of flavor!
Cook: simmer, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened.

Taste: add salt and Louisiana's Crystal hot sauce.
Add: peeled deveined shrimp. I like the tail on for presentation.
Cook: until the shrimp are curled and pink, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Serve: over steaming white rice with thinly sliced scallions, and a bottle of Louisiana Hot Sauce on the side.

Ingredients:
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup flour
1 medium onion chopped
1 stalk celery medium slice
½ green bell pepper diced
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 bottle clam juice (8 oz.)
1 cup water
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon thyme
2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
10 large shrimp
2 scallions thinly sliced
Steaming fluffy white rice
Crystal Hot Sauce

Étouffée means "smothered" in French. I plate this rich tasty dish without too much smothering. However, there is plenty of sauce in this recipe if you want to smother your shrimp!

Chicken Soup with Fresh Herbs & Matzoh Ball(s)

This time I made extra large matzoh balls and only serve one per person, that's all that will fit in the bowl! When cooking, give these matzoh balls a lot of room in the pot, and cook a little longer than usual.

Two hours! Put one whole cut up chicken in a pot of filtered cold water, bring to a boil, skim, and adjust heat to low. Cooking on too high heat will give you a cloudy soup. Add whole peppercorns, onion, carrots, and celery. Add a big bunch of parsley about 15 minute before soup is done.

Turn off the heat. Remove all the solids with tongs and a slotted spoon. Discard the vegetables. Add finely sliced celery, carrots, scallions, minced parsley and dill to the hot soup. Adjust seasonings, for a flavor boost, try adding Better Than Bouillon Chicken Base instead of salt.

Shred the chicken by hand.

Blend two large eggs with 2 tablespoons of good olive oil, then add one package of matzoh ball mix, minced parsley and dill. Chill for 15 minutes.

Make 10 balls per package for medium-large sized balls, and 5 for extra large balls. Cook the matzoh balls in a covered pot with the water at a moderate boil. Package instructions say to cook at a simmer. I think a moderate boil gives you fluffier balls. And peeking lets the steam out, so don't peek!

Lori Lynn's Matzoh Ball Secrets: Use Good Olive Oil, Add Fresh Dill and Parsley, Moderate Boil, Don't Peek.

After about 23 minutes, we have delicious fluffy matzoh balls!

Put the shredded chicken at the bottom of a soup bowl, add a matzoh ball, then ladle the hot soup over the top.


I recommend: Better Than Bouillon Chicken Base

Happy New Year!

Ma - this Chicken Soup is for you...

Wild American Black Cod with a Potato Crust and a Lemony Butter Sauce

In the mood for fresh fish? Bristol Farms has this beautiful Black Cod...

Fresh Black Cod rubbed with Dijon mustard, salt & pepper.

Thinly sliced Idaho potato.

Wrap the fish with potato, coat with olive oil, salt & pepper. Bake at 450 until the potato is browned.

For the lemony sauce: cook minced garlic and shallots with lemon juice, salt, pepper, and equal amounts of dry white wine and French vermouth. Reduce.

Add crème fraîche, then butter. Easy yet deliciously complex lemony butter sauce!

Bon Appetit!

Chile Verde & Jamaica Soda

A pork stew made with cubed pork shoulder, various types of green chiles, tomatillos, garlic, white onion, chicken stock, Mexican oregano, cumin, and bay. It is the garnish that really perks up this dish. Garnished here with small diced jalapeno and white onion, avocado, cilantro, panela cheese, and a squeeze of lime.

Panela is a soft, mild, fresh cheese made in Mexico that does not run when heated, it keeps its shape and simply gets soft and creamy in this hot stew. Delicioso!

A Mexican beer would certainly complement this hot and spicy dish, or try this refreshing ice cold hibiscus flavored Jamaica Soda from Jarritos.

Jarritos was Mexico's first national soft drink in 1950 and is now the best selling Mexican soft drink in the U.S. I am fond of Jamaica because it is not too sweet. It's been called the "Mexican Iced Tea."

Albacore Sashimi with Tahini Sauce

We see sesame seed crusted tuna quite often in restaurants, as tuna and sesame are a complementary combination.

My tahini sauce is made with a ground sesame seed paste, lemon juice and garlic and is a perfect sauce for raw tuna. I serve it here with a dot of wasabi, crust the albacore with toasted sesame seeds, and offer tamari (soy sauce) on the side for balance.

Labor Day Barbecue

The Port of Los Angeles, San Pedro, California

LABOR DAY BARBECUE MENU:

Nibbles:
Smoked Oyster Pate and Whole Wheat Crackers - recipe from "Hand to Mouth" Blog
Figs with Lavender Honey
Stuffed Olives with Garlic and Parsley Sauce

Salad:
Mixed Greens with Heirloom Tomato in Puff Pastry - recipe from "Champaign Taste" Blog

Main:
Grilled Whole Striped Bass - served with Salmoriglio Sauce
Grilled Corn - rubbed with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper

Dessert:
Layered Exotic Fruits Sorbet with Butter Waffle Cookies

Wine:
Cloudline Oregon Pinot Gris 2005
Chalone Chardonnay 2000

I picked up (literally) the fresh bass down at the fish market after taking some beautiful photos of the port on this hot summer weekend.

Lisa's fabulous Heirloom Tomato in Puff Pastry recipe with mascarpone, basil, and parmesan.

We serve the tomato tart with a fresh green salad dressed simply with Olea Farms "Lemon Burst" olive oil and fresh grated parmesan, salt and pepper.

All my fresh herbs come from Gail's Garden. Thanks Gail!

Whole Striped Bass - stuffed with Tarragon, Lemon and Celery, then rubbed with olive oil and grilled.

Gary grills the fish over indirect heat.

The corn grilled just the way we like it!

Tavern on the Green

The Crystal Room: Thirty-one year anniversary!
A celebration of light and reflection with its shimmering crystal chandeliers and glass walls affording fabulous vistas of Central Park.

THE HISTORY OF TAVERN ON THE GREEN
Built in 1870, the rural Victorian Gothic structure now known as Tavern on the Green was designed by Jacob Wrey Mould as a sheepfold. It housed 200 South Down sheep, which grazed across the street in Central Park's Sheep Meadow.

The first incarnation of Tavern on the Green -- the restaurant -- was launched on October 20, 1934, with a coachman in full regalia at the door. Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia opened the restaurant with a brass key.

By the 1950s, Tavern on the Green was showing some wear and tear and the brilliant designer Raymond Loewy was engaged to renovate the building,

A succession of management companies operated the restaurant until 1962 when Restaurant Associates took it over. By the early '70s, Tavern on the Green was a restaurant no longer in sync with the times, and Restaurant Associates shuttered it in 1974.

Rather than signaling the end of an era, however, its closing was the beginning of an exciting new one for the venerable edifice. Warner LeRoy embarked upon a spectacular $10 million renovation. Then an unheard of sum to spend on a restaurant. With LeRoy's addition of the glass enclosed Crystal and Terrace Rooms, his lavish use of brass, stained glass, etched mirrors, original paintings, antique prints and, above all, CHANDELIERS, Tavern was reincarnated. It became a glittering palace, Central Park's most spectacular structure.

The reincarnated Tavern on the Green took New York by storm from the moment it re-opened on August 31, 1976. It dazzled the city with its decorative whimsy, its eclectic menu and its playfulness.

I shot this photo just before they opened for dinner on this summer afternoon. With its wonderful history, I will be interested to see the next incarnation.