The Best Crab Cakes you may ever eat!

Happy New Year everyone ~  I'm wishing you all the best in 2013!

Did you celebrate away, or at home?
We never go out on New Year's Eve, preferring instead to celebrate at home, cozily in front of the fireplace... with a light dinner and a glass of bubbly.  :)


  From the images, I bet you can almost guess what celebratory dinner was served at my house on the last day of 2012.
Correct!! 
CRAB CAKES...

 Chef Robert Irvine's fabulous Crab Cakes. His simple recipe is my favorite.    No veggies to stretch the crab or mask the flavor of the  good, pure crab chunks, and very little binder. And they are a fabulous party food when formed into bite-sized portions.
Besides the crab, the list of ingredients is short:
Old Bay Seasoning, a little mayonnaise, Some Panko crumbs (only a quarter of a cup) white pepper fresh ginger juice (or ground ginger) tabasco 1 egg flour for dusting the cakes grape seed oil for shallow frying
Optional:  Juice of 1 lemon to squeeze over the finished crab cakes.
Beware if you do a search on the Food Network site for his crab cake recipe, there are two listed and one of them is incorrect. (It instructs to mix the grape seed oil into the mix of crab and seasonings.)
no, no, no!
This is the correct recipe.

You can use any crab that you prefer, but my favorite is...


Dungeness, our meaty, local & fresh Pacific Crab.

Time I served them with lemon wedges and the following simple sauce: (It's not heavy at all so it doesn't compete with the richness of the crab meat.) 


You can serve them plain without a sauce, but I love to contrast the delicately crisp crust of the cakes with something saucy.   So I made up this accompaniment on the fly:
It's simply roasted sweet red peppers from the jar pulsed in  the food processor with a touch of vinegar (I used Sherry vinegar, but any favorite vinegar will do), a splash of grape seed oil or olive oil, some sea salt, a pinch of sugar, and a couple of shakes of hot sauce (Tabasco® is what I used.)  All whirled in my small food processor until completely smooth; adjust seasonings to your taste, if the sauce is too thick add a few drops of water and continue processing. 
I also had some homemade fish taco sauce* left over in a  squeeze bottle, so I gave the cakes a finishing touch of that, yum!
*Fish taco sauce: Whisk equal parts mayonnaise (Best Foods/ Hellmann's) and plain, unflavored yogurt (Greek-style works really well in this sauce.)


And finally a sparse shower of sliced scallion tops.

The next time you make crab cakes, I hope you'll give Chef Irvine's recipe a try.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.
Thanks for stopping by today, friends!

Blessings ~ Mari xo

The Best Recipe for Steamer Clams!

Besides grilling them or making Clams Casino, this is absolutely my favorite way of preparing clams.
For this dish, I like to find the smallest clams available in  the market. These are Venus clams, farmed in the cold waters of Baja Mexico ~ they are a sustainable crop and generally available year round where I live.
Here's what you need to make the BEST steamed clams you've ever tasted:
live, fresh steamer clams dry white wine good butter a small amount of finely diced onion plenty of fresh, minced garlic (not the stuff from the jar)  some finely chopped fresh parsley Optional: a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme a bay leaf or two
To finish:  a generous shower of chopped fresh parsley lemon wedges freshly cracked black pepper (optional)  I would usually add a sprinkling of fresh chives as well, but the recent rains have taken their toll and the chives are looking sad.
 The recipe could hardly be easier. After allowing the clams to purge themselves of any sediment* place them   in a pot, pour the wine over them**, enough to just barely cover. Add the butter, onion, garlic, thyme, and parsley. Cover the pot and bring to a boil until the clams pop open (usually about 5 minutes.)
Discard any clams that have not popped open after cooking ...
A TIP I recently learned from a seafood expert: When the clams have cooked, you may find a couple that don't pop open; using tongs remove the open clams and shells then cover the pot and boil for another 3 to 5 minutes. Check the remaining clams, and you may be surprised that some stubborn ones have now popped open. But again, discard any that don't open upon the 2nd round of cooking ~ discard them, and add the cooked clams back to the pot for serving. 
*To purge the clams of any sand that might be present: soak them overnight in a pot or bucket of cold salted water (1 Tablespoon salt to 2 quarts of water), they will die in fresh water. You may add a tablespoon or two of cornmeal to the water.  (This acts as an irritant & encourages the clams to expel any grit, along with the cornmeal.) Discard any with cracked or broken shells, as well as those that don't close when rapped on a hard surface.
** No need to cover them completely with the wine, as those above the liquid level will steam cook, hence the name "steamers".
And most importantly!


Don't forget some sturdy sourdough bread for dipping up the buttery nectar! Actually, as with escargot, the sauce (or in this case broth)  is the best part of the dish, in my opinion.  ;)
To serve:  I usually serve them right from the small copper pots, otherwise ladle a portion of clams into bowls, along with some of that irresistible buttery nectar, sprinkle generously with additional minced parsley. Add cracked black pepper if desired, some people also like to have a little Tabasco or other hot sauce to spice things up. Pass the bread basket and get ready to feast! 

These also are wonderful served as an appetizer ~



If you would like a printable copy of the recipe, you'll find it over on my recipe blog: Click here.

Have a blessed week. Those enduring the devastation of Hurricane Sandy remain in my thoughts and prayers.
xo ~mari

Sweet and Spicy Asian-Style Shrimp & Lettuce Roll-Ups

Actually, the food I've been preparing for the past several weeks, hasn't been all that interesting so I haven't posted much. I've been continuing to stick with the healthier eating habits, and I'm happy to report that my bathroom scale is my friend once again. I yet have a little ways to go before I hit my target weight, so please bear with me. :D
I must admit that I'm looking forward to getting to the point of maintaining rather than reducing. ;) Hopefully, soon!


But this simple dish is one I felt I had to share ~ it has a lot of things going for it; tasty, easy to assemble, healthful and pretty to look at. Plus you can serve it as an appetizer or as a salad or main course.
It's another one that needs no actual recipe, it's just a matter of cooking the shrimp then assembling the ingredients.  
Here's what you'll need:
Shrimp (I used 30/40 count per pound), peeled and tails removedAttractive, whole lettuce leaves, washed, drained and chilled to crisp themSlivered cabbage (green or red) tossed with a little seasoned rice vinegarThinly sliced scallionsCilantro or Mint leavesChopped salted peanuts (I used dry roasted)Lime wedges (optional)And the drizzle
For the drizzle:



The base is a couple of tablespoons of Sweet Thai Chili Sauce, the amount will depend upon the number of lettuce cups/shrimp you are using. It only takes a couple of teaspoons or less for each lettuce roll-up.
I used Lee Kum Kee brand  Sweet Thai Chili Sauce this time ~ my other favorite brand is Mae Ploy, both are very good.  To the sweet Thai sauce just stir in a little of either one of these Asian hot sauces; either Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (in the center bottle), or Sambal Oelek (jar on the right.) Both are pretty spicy, so add just a little, mix into the Sweet Chili Sauce and taste to see if you want it spicier.  I like it medium spicy so the other ingredients' delicate flavors aren't lost in the heat; it's just a matter of taste.




This time, to cook the shrimp, I brushed each of them with a little olive oil, placed them on a parchment lined baking sheet, sprinkled lightly with salt and pepper and roasted in a hot (450-500˚F) oven for about two minutes, turning once halfway through baking time. (Timing will depend upon the size of the shrimp you choose. Don't forget they will continue cooking after you remove them from the oven, so it's best to slightly undercook them, otherwise they will be tough and chewy.)
Alternately they can be poached in a pan of barely simmering salted water until they just turn pink, then drained, or brush the shrimp with a little oil and grill them on a stove-top or outdoor grill if you prefer.




So easy to assemble:  For each roll-up; One lettuce leaf, the seasoned-rice vinegar cabbage slivers, cooked shrimp, sprinkle of sliced scallions and cilantro or mint leaves, the sauce drizzled over all, then finished with the chopped peanuts (and a squeeze of fresh lime, if using.)
If you give them a try I hope you love them as much as I do!
Blessings for a good week ahead everyone. xo ~m

Pacific Coast Seafood Chowder

Pacific Coast Seafood Chowder ~ Why Pacific Coast?

Because that's where I am, and where my seafood for this chowder is from. :)

Growing up on the Peninsula of the San Francisco Bay Area, we were surrounded by water; the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

Naturally, since my dad was an avid boats man and fisherman, the fish he caught was on the table frequently (sometimes it seemed TOO often for us kids.)

From the bay we usually had Sea Bass. Other times he would take family and friends on overnight excursions out in the Pacific through the Golden Gate for Salmon, Rock Fish, Snapper and the like. Another treat was fresh, trap-caught Dungeness crab.

The bass was either baked or poached. Rock Fish and Snapper were usually pan-fried.

Years ago our summer vacations were spent on the boat in the Sacramento River Delta, then we would occasionally have big fish frys (usually catfish) with friends from other boats. While there we would catch bass, often crayfish/crawdads, once in a while carp, and less frequently, sturgeon. I don't remember eating the carp or sturgeon.

Salmon was fixed a number of ways; broiled, baked, poached, steamed or grilled. My French grandfather would sometimes gently poach the most lovely salmon cheeks and serve them with lemony-garlic butter, or his silky hollandaise. YUM! And, because the salmon was so plentiful, mom and dad brined and moist-smoked a good portion of it for our own enjoyment, and as gifts for family and friends.

That was always a great treat, and everyone always looked forward to receiving filets of freshly smoked succulent salmon.

Of all the fish we had though, the ONLY way I remember my folks making seafood chowder was the brothy tomato based style (similar to Manhattan clam chowder.) I still like that style very much, but I also like seafood chowder prepared this way, too. No long simmering either, so it can be on the table in well under an hour, but it's great when reheated as well.

Recipes for this kind of creamy chowder are made using generally the same method ~ however I devised this one because I wanted a recipe that was not too gloppy and thick as some tend to be so the seafood flavors are prominent. Milk replaces the cream (or half and half), though it does contain butter so it is not low fat.

One thing is for certain... it is very flavorful and it is my all-time favorite Seafood Chowder. The perfect thing to chase the chill on a damp, gray day.

If it sounds like something you might like I would love to share my recipe with you. If you try it, I hope you'll find it as enticing as we do.

You can find it HERE on my recipe blog.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!