Faux Bayou Shrimp Boil- Better Than The Real Thing. Well Maybe.

Everyone loves a good shrimp boil, or crayfish if you're lucky enough to have connections to Louisiana. The problem? It's definitely saved for a special occasion and for a large crowd, so you might do it once a year? Once in your life?

The traditional crayfish/shrimp boil goes like this: you buy a ton of crayfish or shrimp, some quartered corn on the cob, sausage, potatoes, get a huge boiler and put it in your driveway, throw it all in, toss in your Cajun spice packet, when all the shrimp/crayfish float, you lift everything out and dump it on a picnic table covered in newspaper where everyone descends on the mess. It tastes good, gets people together, creating happy memories- and sore fingers from all that crustacean peeling.

Our whole beta/alpha process often starts at the gym. We meet at the water fountain, I say: what's for dinner? I want something different... AC: I was thinking shrimp sauteed in olive oil and herbs with something else. Me: I don't want shrimp. I want sausage. How about corn on the cob and sausage. Why don't we make it all. we could make it like a thing... AC: Really, sorta like a Cajun boil? I don't know, I was going to keep it simple, that sounds like a lot... Me: just one sausage and we haven't had corn yet, I really want corn...AC: is it in season yet?? Me: Of course, it's been in the stores for awhile... AC: Okay, I'll think about it...Then we both move on to the treadmill (him) or the stationary bike (me).

So, that's how it goes, it's a simple process with all the results you see here. This ended up really good. Perfect summer evening meal, took less than 40 minutes to make, resulted in 2 servings and a much better Cajun spice mix than you get with the kit. Thus, making the shrimp boil accessible to us on a much more regular basis and now to you.  

Ingredients:
1 beer brat or andouille sausage
4-5 red new potatoes, cut into quarters
6-8 medium large raw shrimp with shells
3 garlic cloves chopped medium
1-2 Thai or Cayenne chile peppers minced, or sub in 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper or ground dry Cayenne pepper. Fresh is best - far better flavor.
1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh sweet basil
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 to 1 tsp ground cumin (depends on if you want the cumin flavor upfront or in the background)
1/2 tsp turmeric or a pinch of saffron
salt and black pepper to taste
2 ears sweet corn, cut into thirds
a lot of olive oil, coat pan with 1/4 inch deep

Instructions:
Cook the corn and potatoes via your preferred method (corn is pretty much the only thing we ever microwave- a little water in a (gasp!) plastic bag, steamed for about 5 minutes, turns out perfect). When both are done, set aside.

Heat the pan on med-low and saute the garlic, crushed peppers, paprika, cumin, turmeric, salt and black pepper in the oil for about 5 minutes.  

Add the parsley and basil, the sausage cut into 4-6 pieces and shrimp for 2 minutes. Flip the shrimp and cook for 2 more minutes. When the shrimp is done, add the corn, and potatoes into the pan. Remove the shrimp and continue to cook potato, corn and sausage for two more minutes....make sure eveything is well coated with oil/spice.  Remove and plate.

I hate peeling shrimp and this sauce was particularly yellow, so I made AC peel them for me. He says that cooking them in the peel adds depth of flavor, I told him I would forgo the flavor in favor of nails that aren't yellow for days- he'll peel mine before cooking next time. Surprisingly, the real stand-out in this dish was the corn. The combination of the oil and spices rendered it perfectly sweet, buttery and spicy all at once.

So there you are, a quick down and dirty "cover" of a shrimp boil that turned out, dare I say, better than the real thing. Sometimes perfection needs to be tweaked to work with everyday life.

Collard Greens

 It's so hot here in good ol' Minnesota, it feels like we're in the south. Heat and high humidity. Let's eat some greens. Yes, greens. Turns out my Jewish AC knows how to make kick-ass collard greens. Since you can now get them fresh and local, I thought I'd pass on the recipe. 

Start with fresh collard greens from the farmers market near you, or the CSA box at your door.

A large bunch of collard greens- the AC guesses about 2 lbs, I think that sounds heavy.

3 slices of bacon
1 small red onion
1 large shallot
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper- our are very hot- add more if you like it spicy
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 garlic cloves minced fine
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup vegetable broth
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Cook the bacon in a high-sided frying pan, extra crispy. Chop fine, set aside.

 In the same pan, saute the shallot, red onion, crushed red pepper and garlic in the leftover bacon fat, until soft. Remove most of the stem from the greens- not to the point of de-veining, just the majority of it. Cut the leaves into 2-3" strips. Put the greens into the frying pan, sprinkle with balsamic and mix with the other ingredients until wilted. When wilted, add the broth, bacon and black pepper. Bring to a simmer for about 40 minutes until the stems are soft.

These were not bitter at all (a common complaint). They were sweet, salty and spicy. We ate them, ravenously I might add, with some local cheese. Greens and cheese, sometimes you have to improvise. Even though this didn't feel like improvising.