The following delicious recipe comes from Taste of Beirut a fantastic food blog full of Middle Eastern delights.
INGREDIENTS: 6 servings
1 lobster (about 2 pounds in weight)
1 pound of shrimp (large)
1 pound of tomatoes
1 cup of diced carrots
1 cup of diced celery
1 cup of chopped onion
1 tablespoon of mashed garlic
olive oil
Spice mix:
1/2 teaspoon of each of: saffron, cardamom, paprika or cayenne, black pepper; salt, to taste.
peel of an orange
tahini, 2 or 3 tablespoons
1/2 cup of fresh Seville orange juice (or lemon)
chopped parsley, for garnish
METHOD:
Ask the fishmonger to steam the lobster and separate the flesh from the carcass and cut the carcass in half lengthwise. You want the head to be opened up because it is where the flavor is.
Dice carrot, celery and onion. Mash the garlic in a mortar with a dash of salt.
Assemble all the dry spices. Juice the oranges or lemons. Boil the tomatoes for 15 seconds and peel and dice them or use a can of diced tomatoes.
Peel the shrimps: keep the peels aside to use for the stock and leave the shrimps in a bowl of cold water in the fridge.
Peel the orange and set the peel aside.
Heat a bit of olive oil in a large pan. Add the carrots, onion and celery and cook gently for about 10 minutes. Add the lobster carcass, making sure the head is facing the oil and vegetable mixture. Fry the lobster carcass for a few minutes until the fragrance is wafting out of the pan. Add the shrimp peels and about 8 cups of water. Bring to a simmer and let it bubble up gently for about 30 minutes.
OTE: Don’t forget to stir the tahini before pouring, to mix the oil and the paste thoroughly.
Strain the stock through a sieve into a bowl. Heat the pan with a tablespoon of olive oil and add the diced tomatoes and all the dry spices. Fry for 3 minutes until fragrant. Cover with the lobster and shrimp stock, add the orange peel, garlic and cover. Simmer gently for 15 minutes.
Uncover the pan. Add the orange juice and tahini (you can also mix the two well beforehand). Then, use an immersion blender (or a regular blender) to puree the sauce until it looks smooth and creamy.
Add the raw shrimps to the stock and let them cook in it for about 5 minutes till they turn pink.
Add the cooked lobster, previously cut in smaller pieces.
The following wonderfully simple and tasty recipe comes from Bread and Butter Baked Lobster Tails
2 6-12 oz lobster tails - thawed or fresh
olive oil or butter
Method:
Preheat your oven to 400˚F
Baste the lobster tails with a little olive oil or butter and place on a roasting pan or baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes 15-20 minutes for 12 oz tails.
Serve with a side of lemon wedge and some melted butter
Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil in a skillet. Mix panko breadcrumbs with lemon zest (saving a few lemon zest pieces for presentation), salt, and pepper in a shallow container or a plate. Dip cod pieces into egg (optional), and coat with lemon zest breadcrumbs. Fry cod for about 2 minutes per side or until golden brown.
Meanwhile, in a mixing cup, combine lemon juice, horseradish, and lecithin. Mix with immersion blender. Continue to mix and pour the extra virgin olive oil in a slow stream, until the mixture is thick, white, and foamy. Season to taste.
Top lemon zest crusted cod with a few remaining lemon zest pieces and horseradish emulsion.
This wonderful recipe comes from Figtree appetizers, its great for sports parties!
Ingredients:
About 1 1/4 pound of medium shrimp peeled and cleaned
juice from 1/2 a lemon
2 tablespoons of mayo
hot sauce to taste
1 to 2 teaspoons of Cajun or Old Bay seasoning
about 3/4 a sleeve of crushed Ritz crackers(I have not purchased these crackers in years!!!)
Salt and pepper
handful if chopped cilantro
3 to 4 chopped scallions (only use white and light green sections, save top for garnish)
1 mixed egg
Sliced small dinner rolls
assorted toppings
Method:
Combine lemon juice, mayo, hot sauce, cajun seasoning, cracker crumbs,egg, cilantro, scallions and salt and pepper. Mix well together.
Cut cleaned shrimp into small pieces, you want some texture, but you also want them to stay together,try to resist urge to throw them in the food processor.
Add shrimp to mayo mixture, combine well.Form shrimp patties, making them slightly larger than the dinner rolls you plan on using. I ended up with about 14 small patties.
Make sure the patties are not thicker than 1/2 an inch.Place patties on a lightly greased baking tray (that will fit in your freezer).
Tray goes right in freezer for about 1 hour, a little longer is fine.The freezing will help them hold their shape while cooking.
When the game begins, remove from freezer. Heat a large non stick pan, spray with oil (I know its non stick just do it), cook each side about 2 minutes till nicely golden and shrimp appear cooked.
Stuff shrimp sliders in to warm rolls, add favorite toppings and enjoy.
The following recipe comes from What’s Cooking With Doc a wonderful food blog written by a Chef and Cardiologist:
Follow the directions for basic bread dough or basic pizza dough recipe. If you have premade crusts you can use those, or can buy some (I won’t tell). The Lemon-curry hollandaise is my basic hollandaise sauce recipe. To make it a bit healthier I have substituted olive oil for the butter. Any item you wish to use as a topping is fine, I like the flavor profile of the smoky and fatty (with good omega-3s) smoked salmon with the citrus and spice of the lemon curry sauce. The chevre adds an extra tang and richness. This is perfect with a wine such as Chenin Blanc or champagne (which, face it, is about perfect with everything).
Basic Bread or pizza dough
Lemon-Curry Olive Oil Hollandaise
125 ml of olive oil (not EVO)
Juice of 2 lemons
3 egg yolks
1 tsp curry spice
Pinch salt
Pinch white pepper
Heat the oil and lemon juice to medium heat. Do not let the oil get too hot or when you add to the eggs you will just end up with scrambled eggs.
Place the egg yolks in a metal bowl you can place over a pot with simmering water (a double boiler in which you can remove as needed from heat). When the oil mixture is warm, gently add ¼-1/3 of it to the eggs and whisk. This will temper the egg mixture.
After incorporation, gently add the remaining oil mixture. Heat the mixture over the simmering water and whisk. You are looking to have a light frothy mixture. Remove from the heat as the sauce starts to thicken. Set aside.
Preheat you oven to 550 degrees F. Stretch the dough out into desired pizza sizes, I recommend 8-12 inches. Place the thin layer of sauce on the dough along with some chevre and some capers, if you like. Bake for about 10 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
Remove and top with the smoked salmon, season with salt pepper-I also like a little fresh tomato, dill and basil- and enjoy.
The following recipe comes from the wonderfully written food blog, Food thought For
Balsamic vinegar- Garlic- salmon
Ingredients
1 lb of Salmon fillet- cut into squares. It is best to use wild caught as the farmed variety is full of carcinogens fed to the farmed fish
1 medium size onion. Coarsely chopped
1 Tomato- coarsely chopped
3 cloves of garlic- finely chopped
2 tbsf smoked paprika
1 tsp of balsamic vinegar
2 tbsf Basil or Dill
3 tbsf of olive oil
Salt and pepper for seasoning
Method:
Mix the paprika, Dill/ Basil and crushed garlic. Pat dry your fish and season both sides with half the spice mixture, salt and pepper.
In a shallow skillet, heat 1.5 tbsf olive oil . For oilve oil, it is best to heat at low heat. Helps retain all the goodness and flavors of the best oil in the world! When oil is hot, add the fishes to it slowly.
Fry two minutes on each side to allow nice browning. When both sides are done ( ~ 4 minutes), add the balsamic vinegar. Let things mix and match for a minute and then dish it out on a serving tray.
Now add the rest of the olive oil to the same skillet, and add the onions and tomatoes and saute briefly for a minute. Add the remaining spice mixture and saute for another minute. Season with salt and pepper and dish it out over and around the salmon.
This is a wonderful dish to eat during the summer, but I love it so much that I serve it year round. It is healthy, refreshing and very easy to make. This Orzo and Shrimp Salad is perfect for a quick lunch.
Enjoy it!
Ingredients
1 pound orzo pasta
1 cup toasted pine nuts
1 bunch cooked asparagus, cut into pieces
2 pounds cooked shrimp
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper
Juice of 4 lemons
1/2 cup olive oil
Directions
1. Bring a large saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the orzo and cook until tender, but still firm to the bite. Drain the pasta and set aside to cool.
2. Place the asparagus, pine nuts, and shrimp in a large salad bowl, mix well and then add the orzo.
3. Mix together the lemon juice, salt, pepper, sugar and olive oil in a small bowl. Pour the mixture over the salad and mix well. Keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve.