Best Shrimp Scampi!

March 16, 2019May 15, 2016 by Michel

Best Shrimp Scampi!

shrimpy Shrimp scampi is one of those delicious dishes that’s sure to bring a smile to everyone’s face just on aroma’s alone! Shrimp sautéed in olive oil and butter with lots of garlic, shallots, clam broth, and white wine topped with fresh lemon juice, parsley and Parmesan make’s for a grand party atop a pile of linguine!

This quickie gourmet sauce I have created for you in this shrimp scampi dish is a light sauce, yet packed with flavor. The way we do this is by concentrating the juice’s released from those sautéed shrimp along with a couple of bottles of clam stock simmering for a brief seven minutes. The traditional and time consuming way to create this lovely stock would be to simmer the shrimp shells in white wine for a while like you would for a lobster bisque stock. The objective here was to take a short cut to accommodate our busy every day lives without foregoing taste by using bottled clam stock. Voilà, you have an amazing flavor base for our shrimp scampi with linguine in seven minutes.

One of my favorite way’s to serve the shrimp scampi with linguine is by offering up a Parmesan with red pepper flake’s mixed right into it. It’s nice to offer two small dishes of Parmesan, one with the pepper flakes and one without. By adding the red pepper flakes to the grated cheese guests are less likely to accidentally sprinkle on too much because it’s dispersed throughout the cheese.

You might want to try some homemade pasta to go with this wonderful shrimp scampi or even a Caesar Salad. Some chocolate crackle cookies would be great for dessert or homemade chocolate eclairs with an incredibly easy and luscious vanilla filling. Then again there those drunk blondie bars with the bourbon caramel sauce that are to die for! Enjoy! 🙂

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Ingredients for Shrimp Scampi with Linguine – 6-10 People:

1 – 1 1/2 lbs of peeled & deveined large shrimp (ask for a certain number of shrimp …2-5 per person depending on what other side dishes you are serving)
2 bottle of Snows clam broth
1/2 cup white wine – pinot grigio
4 lg garlic clove finely chopped
1 tbsp finely chopped shallot
2 lg garlic clove smashed
1/4 cup finely chopped FRESH FLAT LEAF Italian parsley
5 Tbsp salted butter
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb pasta – linguine or linguine fini
2 lemons
Reggiano Parmesano
Red pepper flakes -OPTIONAL
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Peel and devein shrimp
Bring large pan of salted water to a boil
Add 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp butter and 2 lg crushed garlic cloves to large sauté pan over med/high heat
When the pan is hot add in the shrimp
Saute for 2 1/2 minutes per side
Remove shrimp and garlic – set aside
Add in 1 tbsp olive oil, finely chopped garlic and shallots into the same pan and saute til soft (lightly golden) for about 2-3 minutes
Then pour in both cans of clam juice with the garlic and shallots
Bring to a boil over high heat, turn down to a low simmer for 7 minutes
Add pasta to boiling salted water and cook until aldente (don’t over cook!)
Let pan with the clam broth/garlic simmer and reduce by 1/3
Add shrimp back into reduced clam broth/garlic
Add in juice from 1 whole lemon and 3 tbsp of chopped parsley to shrimp scampi
Add in salt and pepper here to taste
Simmer on LOW for 2 more minutes
Drain pasta and pour out pasta into a large serving platter or bowl
Add in 4 tbsp of butter to pasta and toss, add in salt and pepper to taste …taste the pasta and make sure the pasta is PROPERLY seasoned at this point
Pour the shrimp scampi mixture over the pasta
Sprinkle with more fresh chopped parsley and grated cheese and serve…YUM!
NOTE: Make sure that each person gets some of that tasty broth in their dish

Holiday Appetizer’s

March 15, 2019December 31, 2015 by Michel

Holiday Appetizer’s

iphone pictures 572 The first holiday appetizer I have for you is my baked asparagus wrapped in Prosciutto that has a smear of a cream cheese, sweet onion and Parmesan spread on the Prosciutto. These Proscuitto wrapped Asparagus are one of my favorite appetizers and can be a topping to a salad or a pretty side vegetable to lunch or dinner. I first had these delicious little bundles at my sister-in-law’s, Anita’s house, twenty years ago. She is an amazing chef who’s always cooking up a storm. They can totally be made a day ahead, placed on a cookie tray and stored in the frig until you need them. The asparagus is blanched and shocked in an ice bath to stop the cooking and to keep that vibrant green color before they are wrapped with Proscuitto. You want to make sure you buy “Proscuitto di Parma” for this holiday appetizer because it’s the best and most delicate in flavor. There are other tasty Prosciutto’s out there but they won’t be as tender as the Parma and may get too salty or waxy after baking.

The second quick and easy, gourmet tidbit i have for you are my holiday crostinis with Gorgonzola, fresh chopped tomato, basil and garlic that bakes for seven minutes. These take the same amount of time as the asparagus-Prosciutto appetizer’s. How convenient is that? You can buy already crumbled Gorgonzola at the market in small plastic containers. A little chopping of cherry or grape tomatoes and basil and voilà! The crostinis are beyond simple to make and you can check out that recipe by the hyper-link.

The last wicked easy and delicious holiday appetizer I have for you is something a little sweet. It’s a dollop of goat cheese, fig jam, fresh chopped pear and a mint leave all in a pre-baked fillo shell. Yes, I said pre-baked!!! Can you believe that one? This one you serve at room temperature so all you need to do is thaw the pre-baked shells which takes all of two minutes. It just can’t get any easier than that.

You can totally be flexible with these perfect little holiday appetizer’s too. If you don’t like Gorgonzola switch it out with some cubed up fresh mozzarella to top the crostinis and tomato-basil mixture. As for the pre-baked phylo cups, you can always swap out the goat cheese for a slice of brie if that’s more your taste.

I hope these last minute holiday appetizer’s help you out for your party! I wish you all a joyous New Year! You can certainly swap out or add in other hors d’ oeurves if you are feeling ambitious like baked coconut shrimp, zucchini torta, roasted chick peas, or smoked salmon on crostinis with cream cheese-caper spread. Enjoy 😉

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Baked Asparagus Wrapped in Prosciutto

Ingredients:

20 large asparagus (the bigger the better)
1/4 lb Prosciutto di Parma sliced thinly
4 oz cream cheese room temp (Philadelphia)
1 Tbsp grated vidalia onion (yellow or white is fine too)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tsp fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 400º.
Hold the asparagus with your fingers in the middle and on the end and bend.
The asparagus will break where it’s supposed to.
Line them up and cut evenly across the bottom so they are all at a consistent length.
Bring salted water to a boil and add in asparagus …Blanch 2 minutes
Drain and put into a ice bath.
Dry the asparagus with paper towels.
At this point you can pop them into a zip lock and into the frig until you are ready for them.
Mix together in a small bowl the room temperature cream cheese, grated onion, Parmesan and lemon juice just til combined
Take a piece of Prosciutto and smear 1 Tbsp of the cream cheese mixture down the length of it.
Place the asparagus on a bit of a diagonal (see photo) and roll up.
Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 7 minutes – you are heating thru only
Use a spatula to remove from pan and be sure to flip them over when you plate them to see the lovely caramelization on the under side.
Optional: Drizzle a little olive oil, a fresh squeeze of lemon and some shaves of Parmesan on top for a little extra!

TIP: Using a micro-plane grater or rasp to grate the onion is a wonderful culinary tool which actually started out back in the day as a wood planer for woodworkers!

Baked Crostinis with Gorgonzola, Fresh Tomato, Basil & Garlic

Ingredients:

1 french baguette sliced into 20 – 1/4″ pieces
Crostini Recipe
1 cup chopped cherry or grape tomatoes
2 tbsp fresh julienne basil
1 garlic clove put thru garlic press
dash salt and pepper
1 small container crumbled Gorgonzola cheese 4 oz. OR diced up fresh Mozzarella

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400º
Top crostini with tomato-basil mixture and a tsp of crumbled Gorgonzola OR Mozzarella
Bake for 7 minutes

Goat Cheese, Fig Jam, Fresh Pear and Mint in Pre-Baked Fillo Cups

Ingredients:

1-2 pkg of pre-baked fillo cups (if you can’t find these just buy pre-formed pastry cups that you can quickly bake)
2 oz. goat cheese OR wedge of your favorite dbl cream brie…Saint Albray for example
fig jam
1/2 cup fresh chopped pear
Wedge of fresh lemon
fresh peppermint leaves

Directions:

Chopped the pear and give a squeeze of a wedge of lemon
Thaw the pre-baked fillo cups
Place fresh mint leaf into cups
Place a dollop of goat cheese or slice of brie into the cup
Top with 1/2 tsp of fig jam
Then top with diced fresh pear
Serve room temperature

Zucchini Spaghetti at Jaynee’s

March 16, 2019July 24, 2015 by Michel

Zucchini Spaghetti at Jaynee’s

Wow! Zucchini spaghetti…who would have ever thought? A gluten free dish full of nutrients that taste’s amazing and looks as gorgeous as does is the perfect path to healthy eating! Bringing you this zucchini spaghetti simmering with tomato, basil and red wine at Jaynee’s has inspired me to put together future recipes and shows like this one.

Jaynee and I cook the zucchini spaghetti in this recipe so that it’s al dente. For those of you who might not know what Al dente means it’s an Italian term meaning to have some tooth or bite to it where the texture isn’t too soft. This is kind of ironic because that’s exactly how I like to cook my wheat pasta. I can’t think of anything worse than pasta that is fully cooked to a soft texture.

It is really exciting all the different things you can do with these creative veggie noodles! From Thai themes where raw zucchini noodles are dressed with a citrus dressing made from puréed mangoes, cilantro, fresh lime juice, and avocado’s to tahini sauce puréed with green onions, coconut meat, ginger and fresh lemons. Not only are these dressings packed with anti-oxidants and exotic flavors but the citrus partially cooks the zucchini getting results similar to ceviche. The citrus actually softens the texture of the vegetable giving you a softer mouth feel crunch rather than a harsh raw bite.

It couldn’t get any easier to make these spiral veggie noodles with the new-fangled devices available out there. I purchased my Spiralizer at William Sonoma Outlet in Westbrook on a 30% off sale with an additional 20% off if I gave them my email. Can’t go wrong there. Here is the Spiralizer Amazon link offering a great deal too! Can’t wait for you to venture off into veggie noodle land. You will be amazed how fun and delicious it is to make this recipe. Hope you enjoy the show and keep a look out for future veggie noodle recipes 🙂

Ingredients: Need “Spiralizer” or similar to make zucchini spaghetti

4 med/lg zucchini
1 small vadalia (sweet) onion chopped
OPTIONAL: 2 finely chopped garlic cloves – If you love garlic as I do
1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes flavored with onion, garlic, celery and or green peppers OR your favorite can of peeled tomatoes in your cabinet (just need to add in 1/4 cup chopped peppers in addition to the onion/garlic above – chop up the whole peeled tomatoes as well to add in after you sauté veggies)
NOTE: If you use “whole peeled” tomatoes DO NOT use the juice too, tomatoes only, because the zucchini renders out a lot of water all on its own.
1/4 cup red wine
3 tbsn olive oil
1 bunch fresh basil
1/2 tsp salt
S & P to taste
OPTIONAL: 1 small container of fresh ricotta to garnish at the end with the Parmesan

Directions:

Spiralize all 4 zucchini and place in a lg bowl
Add chopped onion to 3 tbsp olive oil in a large fry pan on medium heat
Sauté for 5 minutes til soft
Add in Spiralized zucchini with 1/2 tsp salt and sauté 5 minutes on med/high heat- Make sure to stir a couple of times to help it from not sticking. Sautéing on med/high will help to evaporate some of that liquid rendering out of the zucchini while sautéing– (If you saute on low it will just simmer in all the water, you will then have to drain a little of the water out of the pan)
Add in tomatoes, red wine, s & p to taste and simmer 5 more minutes
Plate up and top with your favorite grated Parmesan cheese
OPTIONAL: Top with dollops of fresh ricotta and grated Parmesan

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Homemade Italian Meatballs

March 17, 2019April 17, 2014 by Michel

Homemade Italian Meatballs

Got to love homemade authentic Italian meatballs! No matter how you look at it spaghetti and homemade meatballs is an all time American favorite. Not that I wouldn’t have eventually gotten to one of my meatball recipes but I am dedicating this recipe today to my good friend Laura who has requested a recipe for homemade meatballs…hope you like these Laura!

I have many different ways to mix up the meat percentages using varying cuts like beef, veal, pork or beef and pork, or just turkey when I am trying to cut back on beef. This recipe is your basic 100 percent beef meatball, inspired by the way my mother use to make them with a 2 day old loaf of good Italian bread instead of using processed bread crumbs.

I used to stand by the stove frying the meatballs in olive oil but these days who really has the time? So I have come to the conclusion that they taste exactly same baked in the oven at a high temperature…saving lots of labor and time. I suggest you try my pasta sauce 101 while making these homemade meatballs because granted the meatballs are wonderful right out of the oven fresh baked without any sauce but it goes to a new level when you simmer them in the sauce for a good hour or 2. And don’t forget to have that crusty loaf of sourdough bread for dunking or my pesto garlic bread, and if you are really serious you might attempt my mothers Maria’s manicotti’s the next day. Some sides or appetizers to go with the spaghetti and meatballs might be a zucchini torta, bacon wrapped scallops, or baked coconut shrimp…enjoy!

Ingredients – Makes 21 Small Meatballs:

1 lb. Angus beef
1 large egg (rule of thumb …1 egg per lb. of meat)
1/2-3/4 cup after soaked in milk – (1/2 loaf of 2 day old Italian bread soaked in 1 cup milk)
1/2 cup grated Reggiano Parmesan cheese
1 lg. garlic clove put thru garlic press
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1 Tsp salt
1/4 Tsp ground black pepper
1 cup milk

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 425º
Break up a 1/2 loaf of 2 day old Italian bread and place into a large bowl as shown in photo
Pour 1 cup milk over bread and let it absorb for 10 minutes
Wash, spin, dry and finely chop parsley, set aside
Discard outer crusts from soaking Italian bread
Begin to break soaking bread pieces apart with your fingers…if you feel any gooey pieces throw those away (if it sat out for a couple of days it won’t get gooey)…the bread should just fall apart easily
Take 1/2-3/4 cup of this soaking bread and add to a large mixing bowl
To this bowl add in Parmesan, chopped parsley, garlic clove thru garlic press, salt and pepper and 1 egg
Whisk til just combined
Add in 1 lb. of Angus beef and begin to mix gently with your hands…DON’T over work the meatballs you don’t want it to look fully combined like a meatloaf
Using a cookie scooper begin to shape and roll mixture with your hands – they will be small about 1 1/2″…have a small bowl of water to the side to keep hands damp not wet (this makes it easier to rolls meatballs)
Spray cookie tray with Pam canola oil
Place 21 shaped meatballs onto the cookie tray and spray the tops of the meatballs
Place them into the oven for 17 minutes…mangia mangia : )