Oysters

This weekend we made a trip to the cabin and had a hanker'n for oysters.  While going overboard on organizating our oyster beds in nice rows I noticed how incredibly HUGE some of our oysters are.  I went on a mission to find the biggest oyster in the lot. 

I brought up two 11" long oysters as well as six perfect sized little guys.  Shucking the big oysters took me about 10 minutes and caused a big mess. 

Disgustingly huge 11" oysters along side average sized ones:

I almost lost my lunch when Tony decided to take a bite of one of the big oysters.  My stomach still turns every time I look at this picture (and I usually love raw oysters!).

Charlotte didn't like the big oyster idea so she chose to snack on her feet. 

If you can't reach your feet like Charlotte and are hungry for a great dish, here is our family's Oysters Rockefeller recipe.  I prefer my oysters raw with a tiny squeeze of fresh lemon, but this is my next favorite way to eat 'em!

Oysters Rockefeller

Melt 1 cube butter and add 1 clove garlic, ¼ c. chopped onion, few drops of Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 tsp dry mustard, few drops of Tabasco and 1 tsp of lemon juice.

Sauté 7-8 slices chopped bacon.

Pour off most grease and add 1 package frozen chopped spinach. When warm, add sautéed garlic/onion mixture. If you like your oysters cooked, add them at this point until warm.

Place the spinach-oyster mix on oyster shells for individual servings. Can be done ahead, then topped with buttered bread crumbs just before serving and placed under the broiler until warm.

If you like your oysters raw: Pile a small amount of the spinach, bacon, onion mix on an oyster shell and place a raw oyster on top. If you want the oysters to be warm, quickly broil just before serving.

Vegetable Garden

I am excited to say my vegetable garden is sprouting and thriving!  I transplanted the seedlings a week ago, and they are loving their new home.  I had hoped to build my own planters out of lumber, but found really nice heavy-plastic planters at the hardware store and decided those would be just fine.  I now have about 32 square feet of planting area!

I completely forgot about these wild strawberries that pop up back by our shed.  The berries are so tiny and good, I just need to keep the wildlife away from them this year!

Little carrot sprouts thriving in their new home.

The broccoli is growing like mad!

 And my snap pea plants are climbing away!

The garlic, sweet onions, green onions, sage, pumpkins and potatoes are all off to a good start as well.  I'm really looking forward to eating out of our garden in a few months!

The zucchini starts started off SO strong and I couldn't wait for the end product.  But, with Blake 'helping' me transplant, we ended up losing most of the plants.  He preferred carrying the plants by their stems resulting in decapitation of the seeding! :)  I bought some cucumber starts from the store and hope to buy zucchini starts to replace my seedlings.

I've already had to spray for some bugs attempting to eat our veggies (using a veggie safe bug replellant), but I think we're growing good!

Very Chocolate Bundt Cake

My friend Jesica gave me a bundt recipe to try for Mother's Day.  She said it is one of the easiest recipes and extremely popular.  I had to check with her twice to make sure I wrote down the ingredients right - it couldn't be this simple.  Could it?!

After 50 minutes of baking and making the entire house smell like a chocolate factory, the cake was done.  I tore a little sample of warm cake off the bottom and loved it!  I can't wait to have a full slice tonight with some vanilla bean ice cream.  I highly recommend this recipe!

I couldn't decide on the final touch.  A glaze drizzled on top, berries, powdered sugar?  I opted for sifted powdered sugar to dust the entire cake and emphasize the bundt pan's design.

Happy Mother's Day!

Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 box Devil's Food cake mix
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
1 3/4 c. milk
2 eggs
1 - 12oz bag of chocolate chips

Combine the first four ingredients together with mixer for a few minutes.  Fold in chips by hand and pour in to a well greased bundt pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes (but start checking around 40-45 minutes depending on your oven).  Mine baked for 48 minutes and was perfect.

Yes, this cake recipe really is simple.  And is it very chocolatey!

Blake thought it was plate lick'n good! :)

Drinks Anyone?

Who can forget about margaritas on Cinco de Mayo!? I have the all the stuff made and ready to go: simple syrup, freshly squeezed lime juice, and freshly made lime-salt-sugar for rimming. The lime-salt-sugar is not only tasty, but it adds a fun kick of color to the rim. Oh yeah. Its 5 o'clock somewhere, right? 

These margaritas will be a staple cocktail around our home.  These may even beat out my 'Blue Kus' as #1 cocktail in my book.  Now that is saying somethin'!

Margaritas
Ice cubes
3 ounces tequila
2 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice
1 ounce Simple Syrup, recipe follows
1/2 to 1 teaspoon orange liqueur
1 tablespoon Lime-salt-sugar, recipe follows
Lime slices as garnish

Fill cocktail shaker with ice. Add tequila, lime juice, and Simple Syrup. Cover and shake until mixed and chilled, about 30 seconds. Place Lime-salt-sugar on a plate, and moisten rim of glass with edge of a sliced lime. Press the rim of a rocks glass into the mixture to rim the edge. Strain margarita into the glass. 

Simple Syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup water

Put the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

Lime-salt-sugar
Zest of one lime
2 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
1/2 Tbsp sugar

Blend together lime, salt and sugar in a small blender or mini food chopper.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

I went to the Food Network website this morning and came across this chicken enchilada recipe by Tyler Florence.  It has rave reviews and looked pretty good... you can cheat and use a whole roasted chicken, and the vegetables are either frozen or canned chiles/tomatoes.  So if you're searching for a last minute recipe idea for tonight, try this out!

This recipe makes pleeenty.  16 individual enchiladas, probably serving 7-8 adults if you include sides of rice and beans.

Chicken Enchiladas, courtesy of Tyler Florence

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons cumin powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon Mexican Spice Blend
1 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
5 canned whole green chiles, seeded and coarsely chopped
4 canned chipotle chiles, seeded and minced (I used one chile as these get spicy. You can always top with more after baking)
1 (28-ounce) can stewed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour
16 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce, canned
1 cup shredded Cheddar and Jack cheeses
Garnish: chopped cilantro leaves, chopped scallions, sour cream, chopped tomatoes

Coat large saute pan with oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Brown chicken over medium heat, allow 7 minutes each side or until no longer pink. Sprinkle chicken with cumin, garlic powder and Mexican spices before turning. Remove chicken to a platter, allow to cool.

Saute onion and garlic in chicken drippings until tender. Add corn and chiles. Stir well to combine. Add canned tomatoes, saute 1 minute.

Pull chicken breasts apart by hand into shredded strips. Add shredded chicken to saute pan, combine with vegetables. Dust the mixture with flour to help set.

Microwave tortillas on high for 30 seconds. This softens them and makes them more pliable. Coat the bottom of 2 (13 by 9-inch) pans with a ladle of enchilada sauce. Using a large shallow bowl, dip each tortilla in enchilada sauce to lightly coat. Spoon 1/4 cup chicken mixture in each tortilla. Fold over filling, place 8 enchiladas in each pan with seam side down. Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes in a preheated 350 degree F oven until cheese melts. Garnish with cilantro, scallion, sour cream and chopped tomatoes before serving. Serve with Spanish rice and beans. Online recipe can be found here.

Speedy Shrimp Scampi

I love this shrimp scampi recipe.  My cousin Kelley sent it to me a few years ago and it is one of my staple recipes, especially when we're craving quick and easy pasta or seafood dish.

Who doesn't love a dish that begins with a big 'ole pan of melted butter?

Add some green onions and garlic...

Add uncooked shrimp, parlsey, lemon zest and juice, Tabasco, parsley and cook until shrimp is pink.  Throw in cooked noodles of your choice and you're done!

Speedy Shrimp Scampi

1/3 c. butter *(you can use a little less than 2/3 c butter if you double)
2 green onions, sliced *
4 garlic cloves, minced *
1 Tbsp grated lemon rind *
1/2 c. lemon juice *
1/2 tsp salt *
1 3/4 lb shrimp, peeled
1/2 c. parsley
1/2 tsp Tabasco
12 oz angel hair pasta, cooked

*We make 1 1/2 times the sauce.

Melt butter in skillet over Med High heat; add green onions, garlic, lemon rind, lemon juice and salt; cook 2-3 minutes (bubbly).

Reduce heat to medium. Add shrimp and cook, stirring 5 minutes until pink.

Stir in parsley and hot sauce. Toss with hot pasta.

Baked Halibut with Sour Cream and Cheese

Craving halibut?  Here is one of my favorite halibut recipes; easy and baked in the oven.  Instead of using halibut steaks as called for in the recipe I typically use one filet that is 1.5-2lbs.  This recipe is adapted from a dish at Johnny's restaurant.

Blake loves this dish which is always a plus with a three year old! :)

Baked Halibut with Sour Cream and Cheese

2 lbs halibut steaks, cut 1 1/2 inches thick
1/2 c. chopped green onions with tops
1 c. sour cream
1/4 tsp white or black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
Dash dill weed (optional)
1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese

The delicate flavor of baked halibut is enhanced by the sour cream mixture that's poured over the steaks before putting the main dish in the oven.

Place halibut in a buttered baking dish. Combine remaining ingredients, except Parmesan cheese. Pour mixture over fish. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over top. Broil just long enough to brown the cheese lightly.

Serves 4