JAG
just add garlic.
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Shrimp and Fennel Ceviche
My mom asked for something with shrimp for her birthday dinner this weekend, so I was happy to realize that there’s a great fish market near my house! This recipe is simple, straightforward, and a total treat. Even great as leftovers 2 days later.
Ingredients
- 1 pound shell-on medium shrimp
- Kosher salt
- 1/2 medium fennel bulb, thinly sliced
- 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1/2 jalapeño, thinly sliced, seeded
- 1/4 t red pepper flake
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fennel fronds
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Sliced french bread, toasted
1. Cook shrimp in a large pot of boiling salted water until just opaque in the center, about 2 minutes. Drain; rinse under cold running water to cool. Peel and devein, leaving tails intact, if desired.
2. Combine shrimp, fennel bulb, onion, garlic, chile, lemon juice, vinegar, oil, and fennel fronds in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Let sit, tossing occasionally, at least 1 hour. I left mine refrigerating in a gallon ziplock back overnight before serving.
3. Serve alone or atop toast!
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Cauliflower Garlic “Breadsticks”
Golden, crispy, and veggie all over.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups “riced” cauliflower
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 oz shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 T italian spice blend
- S&P to taste
- dipping sauce
1. Preheat the oven to 350. Rice the cauliflower by shredding it on a large grater or in the food processor.
2. Mix all ingredients together, reserving about 1/4 of the cheese and spices.
3. Line an 8x11 pan with foil or parchment paper and lightly coat it with cooking spray. Spread the cauliflower mixture evenly in the bottom. Bake until the top is golden, around 30 minutes.
4. Once the loaf has sort of set (I tried to do this too soon and nearly destroyed the whole thing) lift it out of the pan using the foil/paper and invert it on a cookie sheet, so the botton is now face up. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and spices on top, and bake for another 10 or so minutes until that side is also golden.
5. Finally, cut the loaf into breadstick sized pieces, and broil for a minute or so to really crisp them up.
Dunk in sauce and enjoy!
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Shrimp Saganaki
Simple, easy, pretty, communal. What else could you want in an appetizer?
Ingredients:
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 4 oz. block of feta
- 4 scallions, white part only, minced
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 cup stock (I used chicken)
- 2 T ouzo or other anise (black licorice) flavored liqueur
- 1 t dill
- 1 t parsley
- 1 t oregano
- crusty bread, sliced and toasted
1. Heat the oil over medium flame, add garlic and scallions, cooking until soft, 2-3 minutes.
2. Add tomatoes, and cook another 5-6 minutes, until they’re starting to break down.
3. Add the broth, ouzo, and herbs. Cook over medium high heat until the sauce reduces by about a third, around 8-10 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper, and place the feta in the middle, with the shrimp surrounding, simmering until the shrimp are cooked through, 5-6 minutes.
5. Garnish with arrugula or other spices, serve with crusty bread.
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Zucchini Goat Cheese Wraps
What to do with the first handful of garden cherry tomatoes and green beans?
Wrap them in zucchini and goat cheese, of course!
1. Slice zucchini into thin, long strips.
2. Salt the zucchini and compress with paper towel for about 15 minutes.
3. Cut tomatoes/beans into small pieces.
4. Spoon a dab of goat cheese onto each strip, add tomatoes or beans, roll up, and secure with a tooth pick.
Perfect for picnics!
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Pork Dumplings
Proof that I’ve got first rate friends.
After I cut the tip of my finger off on a brand new mandolin and was incapacitated an hour before a Friday night dinner party, my roommate and friends carried on the cooking. To delicious results. “50 dumplings are enough for 8 people, right?” Wrong.
Ingredients:
- 12 ounces green cabbage, roughly chopped
- 1/2 t salt
- 1 t grated fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup minced green onions (white and green parts)
- 2/3 pound ground pork
- 1/8 t ground white pepper (or freshly ground black pepper)
- 1 1/2 T soy sauce
- 1 T rice vinegar
- 2 t sesame oil
- 1 package frozen round dumpling wrappers (gyoza/potsticker wrappers), defrosted at room temperature for 30 minutes
- to seal: 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1/2 cup water
Asian goodness.
1. Throw the cabbage in the food processor and pulse until it’s really finely chopped. Put it in a bowl with the salt.
2. Add the ginger, chives, pork, pepper, soy sauce, vinegar, and sesame oil to the food processor. Pulse 4 times to mix the ingredients well. Set aside.
3. Grab a handful of the cabbage and squeeze and discard the excess moisture out into the sink. Place the dry cabbage back into the large bowl and add the pork mixture, and combine.
3. For each dumpling, put a spoonful of the mixture in the middle of a wrapper and press edges shut, moistening with the corn starch water.
We cut the corners off after realizing these babies really puffed out during boiling.
4. To cook, half fill a large pot with water and bring to boil. When boiling, gently slide in 1/3 of the dumplings. When water returns to a boil, turn heat to a simmer and gently cook for 6-8 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and repeat with remaining dumplings.
5. For extra deliciousness, fry in hot oil.
6. Serve with dipping sauce! Sriracha mixed with gyoza sauce recommended.
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Prosciutto wrapped Sweet Potato
These were part of Mark Bittman’s 101 Thanksgiving dishes you can make ahead of time series. Although they don’t look like the most appealing thing on earth when they’re done, these are a great simple app.
Five Ingredients:
- Sweet Potato
- Prosciutto
- Sage
- Olive oil
- Salt
1. Peel the potatoes and slice them into wedges.
2. Boil them for a few minutes, until they’re tender but not mushy at all. I left them on for six minutes- next time I’d do more like four.
3. Toss the boiled potatoes with oil and a large pinch of salt.
4. Put a piece of sage (or two) onto each slice, and then wrap it in the ham. It should stick to itself, not requiring anything to secure it.
5. Preheat the oven to 350, and roast them until brown. Mine took around 15 minutes.
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Les Oeufeis Jeannette- Fancy Stuffed Eggs
I just finished “The Apprentice: my life in the kitchen” by famed French chef Jaques Pepin. It’s a really charming book filled with many tales of near impossible luck. i.e. “when I was drafted I ended up running Charles de Gaulle’s palace kitchen” and “upon moving to New York I crashed with a friend who got me a job at the most prestigious restaurant in the US, which I had never heard of. Later I was asked to be the Kennedy White House chef, but turned it down.” At any rate, if you’ve got any interest in learning how commercial kitchens work, or French cuisine, I really recommend it.
Pepin (a good friend and sometimes co-host of Julia Child) included a bunch of recipes seminal to different periods of his life. My original intent was to make all of them and give myself a crash course in French cooking.After finishing the book, I’ve adjusted my goal to trying the handful of dishes that seem manageable. The Midwest is not the place for seafood preparation adventures, especially on a grad-student budget. Also, I’d probably have to rename the blog Just Add Butter if I made all of Pepin’s creations.
Anyway, these eggs were the specialty of Pepin’s mother, a formidable chef and restaurateur herself. I might cut down on the oil in the dressing, but other than that, I’ll definitely made them again.
Ingredients:
- 6 eggs
- 1 t chopped garlic
- 2 T chopped fresh parsley (I only had a few sprigs left in my herb garden so I used some dried, and some fresh basil)
- 2-3 T whole milk
- 1/2 t salt
- 1/4 t black pepper
- 2 T vegetable oil
For the dressing:
- 2-3 T leftover egg stuffing (from above)
- 4 T extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 T Dijon mustard
- 2-3 t water
- dash S&P
1. Put the eggs in a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a “very gentle boil” for 9-10 minutes. Drain the water, and shake the eggs in the pot to crack the shells.
2. Fill the pot with water and ice, let cool for 15 minutes.
3. Shell eggs under cold running water, split them lengthwise.
4. Remove the yolks carefully, put them in a bowl with garlic, parsley, milk, S&P. Crush with a fork to make a paste.
5. Spoon the yolk mixture back into the hollows of the egg whites, reserving 2-3 T of the filling for the dressing.
6. Heat the oil in a nonstick pan, and cook the eggs stuffed side down over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, until they are beautifully browned on the stuffed side. Mine starting a kind of frothy boil towards the end:
7. Remove and arrange on a plate, pour the dressing over, and serve lukewarm.
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Burrata and Braised Leek Crostini
This appetizer only fuels my crazy vision to turn my parkway into a winter veggie patch with onions garlic and leeks.
Ingredients:
- toasted baguette slices, brushed with olive oil and garlic salt
- 2 large leeks, sliced
- 1/2 cup diced shallot and/or white onion
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 container of Burrata (a cheese very similar to fresh Mozzarella)
- Olive oil
- S&P
1. Cook the shallot and garlic in olive oil over very high heat for 3-5 minutes. Add another drizzle of oil, and then the leeks, searing them. Turn the burner down to low, and cook for about 25 minutes, until braised, stirring occasionally.
2. Toast the baguette slices.
3. Fish out the chunk of cheese from the Burrata container and put it in a bowl with a few spoonfuls of the liquid. Mash it up with olive oil, S&P.
4. Assemble the crostini, layering cheese and leeks. Serve immediately to avoid soggy bread.
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Cucumber-Goat Cheese Dip with Radishes and Scallions
A friend assumed this was homemade tzadziki when he tried it- that’s not far off the mark. I always order extra with my gyros, so I considered that a good thing.
Ingredients:
- 1 large cucumber
- 8 ounces goat cheese (regular or low fat)
- 8 radishes, thinly sliced
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 T chopped mint
- 1 t salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- dash of garlic powder
1. Chop up the cucumber and put it through the food processor. Dump the cucumber into a mesh strainer over a bowl and press it with a spoon, extracting the cucumber water.
2. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the cucumber water into the goat cheese.
3. Stir in the rest of the veggies, mint, and spices. I used about half a cup of the cucumber puree as well- which is probably what lent the stronger Greek flavor.
4. Serve as a veggie dip or over crostini.
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Pork Tenderloin Wrapped Dates
The National Pork Board sent me this recipe, which was courtesy of James Beard Award winner Michael Symon. You can’t find this in his book, so get excited for this exclusive! All of my guests love the typical tapas dish of bacon wrapped dates, but agreed that this was a delicious take on them.
Ingredients:
- 1 3/4 to 1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 20 1/4 inch thick medallions
- 1 T fresh rosemary, finely chopped (I used some I had frozen from my garden this summer)
- 1/8 t salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 20 pitted Medjool or California dates
- 20 blanched whole almonds
- 1 teaspoon grated orange peel (I forgot this, but didn’t hear any complaints)
First, trim the tenderloin, making sure to remove the silver skin and any excess fat.
Season both sides of the pork medallions with rosemary, salt, and pepper. Michael says to drizzle olive oil over them, but I brushed it on with the fancy new silicone brush I got for Christmas.
Stuff each date with an almond. I actually cut all of the dates in half, and think they were much better bite sized that way.
Stuff each date with an almond and wrap a medallion around it, securing with a toothpick.
Broil for 4-6 minutes. I did mine for 5, and could have leaned towards less. Another preparation suggested was roasting at 450 for 8 minutes.
Author
Kitchen musings from Lizzy: not so novice cook, part time law student, newbie gardener, lifetime Chicagoan, garlic spice and travel lover.
