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Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema

04.04.2014 14 Comments

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema3I’m still in shock.

A few days ago I was given word that I’m a finalist for a Saveur award for BEST Original Recipes. Best on the entire internet and in the entire world. Out of the millions of food blogs out there and out of the 30,000 they considered, they chose The Beeroness as one of the six best.

SAV_Best Food Blog Award_FINALIST_2014

 I’d love to tell you that I feel justified, or vindicated. But really, I feel humbled. I feel honored. I even feel a little overwhelmed.

I want you to like what I’m doing. I want you to make my recipes for your family, I want them to become your recipes, for these recipes to be a great excuse to explore craft beer. But I never really needed it to be more than that, more than just me and you making some beer food and sharing it over a few pints.

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema2

 

And the Saveur goes and makes me want this too. I want to win it, for us, for the love of beer food.

So take a second and vote for The Beeroness for the Best Original Recipes. 

Because beer food really is the best.

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema

 

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

For the Polenta:

  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup Saison beer
  • 1 cup dry polenta corn grits
  • 3 tbs butter
  • 3 wt oz smoked gouda shredded
  • Salt and pepper

For the Shrimp:

  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • ½ tsp red chili flake
  • ½ tsp smoked paprika
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 lb raw shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 2 tbs butter
  • 3 clives garlic minced
  • ½ cup saison beer

For the Crema:

  • ½ cup Mexican crema
  • 2 tbs fresh lime juice
  • 1 avocado sliced

Instructions
 

  • Heat the chicken broth, water and beer in a pot over medium heat. Add the polenta and cook over a low simmer, stirring occasionally, until creamy. About 30 minutes. Stir in the butter and cheese, add salt and pepper to taste.
  • While the polenta is cooking, make the shrimp.
  • In a small bowl stir together the chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red chili flavors, smoked paprika and salt, set aside.
  • Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the beer.
  • Add the shrimp, sprinkle with seasonings.
  • Cook the shrimp until pink, remove from heat.
  • In a small bowl stir together the crema and lime.
  • Plate the polenta, top with shrimp and avocado slices, drizzle with crema.

I use Bob’s Red Mill Polenta (affiliate link), it’s non-GMO, organic, very consistent and really high quality.

 

Spicy Beer Shrimp with Smokey Creamy Saison Polenta and Lime Crema4

IPA Ceviche Lettuce Wraps

18.07.2013 11 Comments

Beer Ceviche Wraps 2

We tend to feminize or masculinize food. Beer is man food, as is bacon, grilled red meat and bourbon. While tea, lavender, scones and blueberries tend to been feminine. Chocolate seems to be neutral go-between, grabbing it’s gender label once the final product is presented. Chocolate Stout Cake with Maple Bacon Frosting: Man Cake. Chocolate Strawberry Mousse: Girly.

Although I don’t ascribe gender to my food, I can clearly see the lines drawn in the sanding sugar. These daintly looking no-cook treats will fool you like the little vixens they are. One look at these mango and shellfish filled lettuce cups and you firmly place these in the Chick Food category. But with a sharp bite of beer and a punch of spicy heat, they would beg to differ.

Along the lines of my  I think now is a really good time to tell everyone minor motorcycle crash story, It’s past time to tell you that alcohol intensifies heat. While there is no way to tell the precise Scoville Units in any given jalapeno pepper, I can tell you that number will be dramatically increase after those suckers have spent an hour soaking in a high ABV IPA. So if you don’t want to turn on the oven, and don’t mind a little capsasin abuse to the mouth, this is a great meal.

If you’re man enough.

Beer Ceviche Wraps 4

 

IPA Ceviche Lettuce Wraps

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb raw shrimp diced
  • ½ cup lemon juice
  • ½ cup lime juice
  • 1 manila mango peeled and diced
  • 1 tomato diced
  • ½ red onion diced
  • 1 jalapeno diced, seeds removed
  • ¼ cup lime juice
  • ¼ cup lemon juice
  • 1 tsp sriracha
  • 2/3 cup IPA beer
  • 4 heads endive
  • 1 head radicchio

Instructions
 

  • Place the shrimp in a small bowl. Cover with ½ cup lime juice and ½ cup lemon juice. Cover and refrigerate until the shrimp have turned pink, about 2 hours.
  • In a separate bowl combine the remaining ingredients (except the radicchio and the endive), allow to marinate for at least one hour.
  • Just prior to serving, drain the shrimp, add to the mango bowl and toss to combine.
  • Scoop a few tablespoons of the ceviche into the leaves of the endive and the radicchio, serve chilled

Notes

For a lower heat level, reduce Sriracha to 1/4 or 1/2 tsp.

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

05.07.2013 23 Comments


Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

None of us really know what we’re getting into when we launch that very first blog post, that Hello World! salute that enters us into the abyss of Blogland. We start these little cubbyholes in the internet Universe out of curiosity, desperation, boredom or just the hope that maybe our lives will take a dramatic tilt. We see the Holy Trinity of blog talent, the online mistress Trifecta we have to master when it comes to blog success: Food, Photos & Writing.

This by itself is a huge undertaking, the hope to be really fantastically,mind-blowingly amazing at three really specific careers, wrapped up in one title, delivered to you at our chosen URL. But that, unfortunately is just the perfectly placed cherry on top of the seasonally appropriate Sundae. Beneath that homemade cardamom whipped cream and strategically placed sprinkles melts an amalgamation of skills that we don’t just need to attempt, we need to master.

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

Of course we need to be a skillful recipe developer, photographer, food stylist, culinary-guru and engaging author. But that’s not all, your plate isn’t nearly full enough, pull yourself up to the buffet of online careers and load your platter. You will also need to add to the aforementioned list: SEO expert, web designer, social media darling, PR pro, marketing expert, branding aficionado, and business manager. After all, if you hired someone for each of those positions you’d be in the hole for over 200K.

But who else is going to register the LLC, build the website, apply for a trademark, get a PO box, take those gorgeous photos, not to mention edit them, write the posts, send DMCA take down notice, answer the emails, write the recipes, cook the food, do the interviews, fix that broken code, install the right plugin, promote the content, network with the right people and ohmygodican’tdoitall!

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

We need to give ourselves a break. These are ten really difficult jobs, ten careers for which colleges all over the land offer 4 year degrees. We can’t be good at them all and we can’t really afford to hire them all out.

We need to learn to make peace with it the things that aren’t were we want them to be. It’s a triage in a way, the biggest blood loss goes to the front, the rest can wait. In the midst of these panics, we need to remember the list of thing we are really good at is longer than the list of things we shame ourselves for. Because, odds are, there is someone out there wishing to be as good as you are at something.

Don’t forget that when you start to panic about creating a newsletter or figuring out copyright laws. You are really good at more that you are really bad at, the ship will float, it just takes time.

Smokey Hot Beer Shrimp

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 5 cloves garlic grated with a microplane (or minced)
  • 1 tsp cayenne
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp red chili flake
  • 3 tbs tomato paste
  • 1/3 cup wheat beer
  • 4 tbs butter cut into cubes
  • 1 tbs honey
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • pinch salt
  • 1 lb raw shrimp peeled and deveined
  • 2 tbs olive oil

Instructions
 

  • In a saucepan over medium high heat stir together the smoked paprika, garlic, cayenne, chili powder, red chili flake, tomato paste, beer, honey, pepper and salt. Add the butter and bring to a strong simmer, stirring frequently until reduced and thickened, about 5 minutes.
  • In a separate pan heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the shrimp and cook until ust starting to turn pink, about 2 minutes. Pour the sauce into the shrimp pan, cook until the sauce thickens and shrimp are cooked through.

Spicy Beer Shrimp5

New Orleans Barbecue Beer Shrimp

05.06.2013 16 Comments

 New Orleans BBQ Beer Shrimp

 There is a magic to sharing a dish of food with a group of people, it’s unifying. We can all have our separate plates, and play nice, but placing a big pot of food in the middle of a table seems to breaks down walls. For this same reason, I love those big sharable 22 ounce beers that require that beer glassware I love so much.

New Orleans BBQ Beer Shrimp3

At the moment, my grill is broken so I need other options for, fun, get-your-hands-messy, food that can feed the Sunday Supper guests I keep begging to come over and eat my food at the end of the week. This was great, it only took about 15 minutes, really delicious and it has an unholy amount of butter.

If you can handle it, get the head-on prawns for some added flavor. And don’t forget that bread to mop up that fantastic sauce.

New Orleans BBQ Beer Shrimp2

New Orleans Barbecue Beer Shrimp

Print Recipe
Prep Time 8 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 18 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup 2 sticks butter, melted
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dry oregano
  • ½ teaspoon hot chili sauce such as sriracha
  • 1 cup pale ale
  • 1 pounds raw shrimp deveined, shell on

Instructions
 

  • Melt the butter in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat.
  • Add the remaining ingredients (besides the shrimp), bring to a simmer.
  • Add the shrimp, cook until shrimp have turned pink. Avoid over cooking or the shrimp will be tough.
  • Serve with crust bread to mop up all that beautiful sauce. And lots of napkins.

Adapted from the original New Orleans BBQ Shrimp recipe from Pascale’s Manale

 

 

Coconut Cornmeal Shrimp With Jalapeno Peach Jam

03.09.2012 17 Comments

 

I’ve had a busy week, and my body has decided to request that I slow down.

On Friday, I was asked to do a cooking segment on CBS news in Los Angeles. I’ve spent the week preparing. My husband helped me run through the segment in the evenings, and for an entire week my drive home consisted of me practicing my talking points, out loud, looking like a crazy person, on an LA freeway. It  all seemed to work, the segment went well:

The Beeroness Cooks on CBS

 As soon as I started my drive home from the studio, I started to crash. The next morning I lay in bed as my incredible husband got up with Tater, and I was able to sleep until the late, late hour of 8:45. In Mom Time, that’s pretty close to sleeping until noon. As I lay in bed, trying to pull myself together and trick myself into thinking I’m not actually sick, I watched this, this and this, and laughed so hard I think it worked. Maybe it’s true what they say about laughter and that whole "Best Medicine" thing.

And on Thursday I leave for the Foster Farms Cook-Off. I’ll be competing against 4 other cooks for $1,000 and a trip to Napa for the Cook Off Finals with a prize of $10,000.

Wish me luck! I’ll be posting on twitter and instagram as the contest goes along.

And now, the recipe. I bought a huge bag of Masa to make corn tortillas with, and if you have never made corn tortillas, you really, really need to . They’re so good, nothing like those cardboard disks they sell at the store, and they take about 5 minutes. The flavor is so good, I’ve been throwing the corn flour into everything, I’m totally in love with it. And the Jalapeno Peach Jam I also used on pork chops. So Good.

Coconut Cornmeal Shrimp With Jalapeno Peach Jam

Ingredients

For The Jam:

  • 3 cups peaches, skin removed, chopped
  • 2 tbs fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 jalapeno, stem and seeds removed, diced
  • 1 tsp cornstarch

For The Shrimp:

  • 1 can coconut milk
  • 2 lbs raw shrimp, shell and tail removed
  • 1 cup Masa Harina
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • pinch cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 cup oil

Instructions

  1. Add the raw shrimp and coconut milk to a bowl. Chill in the fridge for about 45 minutes while you make the jam.
  2. In a pot over medium high heat, add all of the jam ingredients. Stirring occasionally, allow to simmer (not boil) until thick, and the peaches have broken down, about 45 minutes. Smash peached with a potato masher until a jam like consistency is reached. Remove from heat and set aside.
  3. In a bowl, combine the masa, coconut, salt, pepper and pinch cayenne. One at a time, remove the shrimp from the coconut milk and allow to drain a bit before adding to the cornmeal mixture. Coat the shrimp well in the corn meal mixture.
  4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the shrimp and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side.
  5. Remove from heat. You can either top the shrimp with the jam or serve the jam as a dipping sauce.

 

 

Smoked Olive Oil Rosemary Shrimp & A Smoker Giveaway

24.08.2012 132 Comments

 

 

 

 

This is by far my favorite giveaway I’ve ever been a part of.

 

I’ve secretly always wanted a smoker. Such unique flavors and no real way to get that without very specific culinary equipment. But the smokers I have always come across are so large, bulky and intimidating. Including those that my Step Dad seemed to fashion on a regular basis out of abandoned aluminum items such as non-working refrigerators and ancient gym lockers.

 

I didn’t really want one of those eyesore monstrosities just hanging around my back yard. Clearly there was some adolescent trauma involved in my hesitation to purchase a smoker.

 

And then I get an email from those wonderful people over at Big Kitchen, with tales of a stovetop smoker that I can store in my pantry.  They even wanted to give it to me, and give one to you. Of course, I said something along the lines of Hell Yes.

 

This is a fantastic option for those of you who want those great flavors of smoke without a gigantic metal object taking up residence in a remote corner of your yard.

 

And if you win, you can walk around your kitchen thinking, “I wonder if I can smoke that?” as you slowly realize what it must be like to live in Snoop Dogs head. Sort of.

 

As a girl who is constantly striving to fit into skinny jeans, I also feel compelled to point out that this little sucker crams an enormous amount of flavor into any food without adding a single calorie. And in most instances, it removes calories by rendering fat from meat. So much win.

It’s also simple to use.

 

Step 1: Place the base of the smoker on top of a stove burner, and add a few table spoons of woodchips in the middle of the base of the smoker

 

 

 

Step 2: add the drip try right on top of the pile of wood chips.

 

Step 3: Spray the wire rack with cooking spray and add to the top of the drip tray. Add the food to the wire rack.

 

Step 4: Slide the lid onto the smoker leaving a small vent. Turn the burner to medium heat (don’t turn it too high).

 

Step 5: once you start to see the first slight whips of smoke (about 2 minutes) use oven mitts to close the lid and start the cooking time.

 

A few things to remember while smoking food indoors:

  • Be realistic about the fact that you are using a smoker indoors, the smell will invade your house. But it seemed to dissipate in a few hours.  Run your hood fan on high while smoking.
  • This gets blazing hot. Keep the hands of tiny humans far far away from this thing.
  • Although this stovetop smoker was a bit smaller than I had expected, the instructions show you how to easily modify the unit to accommodate larger items, like a turkey. You can smoke a TURKEY in this thing! (Get ready for a very smoky Thanksgiving)
  • You can even use this on your regular grill alongside your burgers and hot dogs.

Smoked Olive Oil & Rosemary Shrimp

 

¼ cup olive oil

1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary

pinch of salt

½ tsp pepper

14 large raw shrimp, peeled

7, 6 inch wood skewers

 

2tbs Alder wood chips

 

In a bowl combine the olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper. Add the shrimp and allow to marinate for 5 minutes Remove from marinade and add two shrimp to each skewer.

Smoke over alder wood chips using the above instructions for 15 minutes.

 

 

 

Giveaway details:

 

One Cameron Stovetop Smoker from Big Kitchen, shipped to USA addresses only.

 

 

5 ways to enter,

You do not have to do all five. Each one gets you a separate entry.

 

 

  1. Leave a comment of any sort.
  2. Follow me on twitter @domesticfits and leave a comment saying you did so
  3. Like Domestic Fits on Facebook and leave a comment saying you did so
  4. Follow Big Kitchen on twitter @BigKitchenStore and leave a comment saying you did so
  5. Like Big Kitchen on Facebook and leave a comment saying you did so

 

 

Contest closes Thursday, August 30th. Winner will be chosen using a random number generator.

 

We have a winner! Congrats to Meredith #59!

Chinese Shrimp Salad

16.07.2012 6 Comments

I went to a Dodger game this weekend.

Not just Went. I was asked to attend a VIP tour of Dodger Stadium for a Food Bloggers event that included hanging on the field, a tour of all of the exclusive restaurants, a buffet of all of the incredible hot dog creations the stadium chefs can dream up (macaroni and Fritos dog?!) and even a chat with Andre Ethier. Who told me he doesn’t drink beer (I’ll forgive him, kid can play some ball). And to top it all off, we got to sit in box seats right on the field.

If you follow me on instagram (@JackieJDodd), these pictures will look rather familiar.


Moments like these remind me to take a second to just sit and be grateful. Even when I feel like I am nowhere near the goals I have set for myself I always take time to appreciate what I have. The opportunities, people and experiences that give so much more to my life than I even deserve. I just finished Marcus Samuelson’s Yes, Chef and was incredibly inspire by his work ethic: "Always chase one shot of good luck with two shots of hard work" Great advice, Marcus. I’ll take it. Sitting side stage at America’s Favorite Past Time felt like a shot of good luck, so this week I’ll chase it with an even harder push towards my goals.

And after eating my body weight in hot dogs and chocolate cake at the Stadium, I needed a salad to balance it all.

And I know that I don’t have to tell you that Chinese Chicken Salad is much more about the dressing than it is about the chicken (which I replaced with shrimp).

This dressing, THIS dressing is so easy and so good you will never even be tempted to buy it pre made ever again.

And I also decided that I am also going to chase one negative though about myself with two positive ones. I like that formula, after all he is a Top Chef Master.

Chinese Shrimp Salad

3 cups green cabbage, chopped

3 cups red cabbage, chopped

1 cup jicama, peeled and diced

2 cups yellow peaches, chopped (about 2 large)

1 large avocado, chopped

1/3 cup green onion, chopped

1/3 cup cilantro, chopped

3/4 cup cooked bay shrimp

5 wonton wrappers, cut into 1/4 inch strips and lightly fried

For The Dressing:

3 tbs rice wine vinegar

2 tbs brown sugar

3 tbs ponzu sauce

1 tsp sriracha

1 1/2 tsp grated ginger

2 tsp sesame oil

(you can also make a double recipe and save half in an air tight container in the fridge, should last about 1 month)

Add all of the salad ingredients (except the fried wontons) in a bowl, toss to combine. Top with wontons.

Add all of the dressing ingredients to a bowl, stir to combine. Drizzle over the salad. Serve cold.

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Roasted Garlic Beer Butter Shrimp

24.05.2012 9 Comments

Remember the Beer Cooking Scale I told you about last month, the one I want to invent? The one that would let you know the approximate level of Beeryness the final product has? This recipe is at both ends of that yet-to-be-invented scale’s spectrum. The beer butter has a kick you in the mouth beer flavor that will be heartily enjoyed by beer enthusiast, and the shrimp has a subtle note of beer in it’s finish. If you are a Kick You In The Mouth kinda person, cooking for a Maybe Just A Touch kind of person, this will satisfy you both. You get a butter full of intense beer flavor to slather onto whatever you so choose, and your little friend gets a plate of shrimp with slight notes of beer. Harmony between the two of you once again.

For this recipe I used a Saison brewed with sage, giving really great herb notes to the finished product. This is  a special release beer from Epic Brewing called  Utah Saison Sage #2.

If you can’t find this beer, look for a Saison with herb or citrus notes.

Roasted Garlic Beer Butter

1 head of garlic

1 tbs olive oil

1/2 cup Saison beer

1 stick of butter, softened

Preheat oven to 425. Rub several layers of the white papery skin off the head of garlic, leaving a light layer still in tact to keep the bulb together. Cut off the top point of the head, exposing the cloves inside.

Place on a sheet of foil, drizzle with olive oil and fold the foil tightly around the garlic. Place in a baking dish and roast in a 425 degree oven until the cloves are soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

While the garlic is roasting, add the beer to a pot on the stove. Cook until reduced to 3 tbs, about 10 minutes. (To lower the level of beer flavor in the butter, reduce 1/4 cup of beer by half.)

In a food processor, add the softened butter and the beer. Squeeze the head of garlic until the cloves push out, adding just the cloves to the food processor and discarding the papery skin.

Process the butter until smooth. Add to an air tight container and store in the fridge.

Roasted Garlic Beer Butter Shrimp, two methods

 3 tbs beer butter

10 shrimp

pinch of salt and pepper

Metohd one: Grilling

Preheat grill. Melt the beer butter in a microwave safe dish. Skewer the shrimp with a heat safe skewers(or water soaked wooden skewers). Sprinkle with salt and pepper, brush liberally with melted butter. Grill until pink and cooked through, about 2-3 minutes per side. Brush occasionally with butter while cooking.

Method two: Stove Top

In a pan over medium high heat, add the butter and stir until melted. Sprinkle the shrimp with salt and pepper, add to the pan and saute until cooked through about 5 minutes.

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Spicy Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup

11.01.2012 12 Comments

Do you remember when you were a kid and staying home sick had sort of a romantic, charming allure? Your friends at school would wonder where you were. Maybe there would be rumors of your overall declining health and that you passed out in 31 Flavors the night before.

You would stay home, indulge in as much sleep as you wanted. Watch TV in your jammies, eat ice cream.

You had no idea that when you grew up, that would be called "Vacation."

When you have a baby, there are no such thing as sick days. Your kids pay absolutely no attention to that note your doctor gave you saying you need to rest. Those little Tyrants want sippy cups filled at full capacity, grapes cut into quarters, constant supervision of their destructive tendencies…*Sigh* It’s a good thing we are genetically inclined to adore them or they would be the worst boss ever.

BUT, if you do get sick, make sure and give your immune system the boost it needs. First, and I hate to break it to you after all that Ice Cream talk: Sugar lowers your natural immunities. Stay away it for the first few days.

Garlic, ginger and lemongrass are all known fighters of the everyday cold and flu. I ate disgusting amounts of them the winter I was pregnant with Tater, and I avoided getting sick for the first winter in about 6 years.

Plus, the kick of thai chili in this soup will remind you that you are alive and strong, empty sippy cups and whole grapes beware.

Thai Coconut Shrimp Soup

2 tbs Smart Balance Light, butter or margarine

2 tsp chopped thai red chili, seeds removed

6 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tbs fresh Lemongrass, chopped

1 tbs thai Galangal ginger, peeled, minced

5 cups, fat free, low sodium chicken broth

2 cans light coconut milk

3 tbs fish sauce

2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

1 tbs lemon juice

8 large basil leaves, chopped into ribbons

16 large shrimp, raw, peeled and deveined, tails off (can substitute 1 cup, chopped raw chicken)

(Makes 4 Servings)

In a large pot over medium-high heat, melt the margarine. Add the chili and the lemon grass and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and the ginger. Stir frequently until you can smell the garlic, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken broth and coconut milk and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and cook until the shrimp is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning to your personal preference.

Printable: Thai Shrimp Soup 

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Shrimp with Pomegranate Sriracha Cocktail Sauce

14.12.2011 5 Comments

My very first giveaway is over. I wanna do it again. It was so fun to read all the comments and have brand new visitors to my blog. I just wish I had 141 more of those beautiful cheese domes to give away! But congratulations to Dee!

Now I am going to expect fancy cheese if I ever stop by your house.

And a big huge smooch and a Thank You to Ile De France for the fabulous prize.

Here is another recipe for all that Holiday entertaining that you all will be doing. PACKED with good stuff like anti-oxidants and almost no fat. One of those treats that is actually fairly low in calories, gives you a dose of fruit and veggies AND makes you feel like you are spoiling yourself by eating a special treat. A way to indulge without added pounds.

Shrimp With Pomegranate Sriracha Cocktail Sauce

2/3 cup pomegranate seeds

2/3 cup tomato paste

1 tsp Sriracha

2 tsp cream style horseradish

1 tbs worcestershire sauce

2 large cloves of garlic, minces (about 1 tbs)

1 tsp lemon juice

24 large shrimp, shelled & deveined, cooked & cooled, tails on

in a food processor, combine the first 7 ingredients.  Process utill completely combined and smooth. Push sauce through a fine mesh strainer to remove the pomegranate seeds.

Serve chilled with shrimp.

Watermelon Ceviche

28.07.2011 8 Comments

The last time I had ceviche I was one week into my pregnancy with Tater. We were in New York. A trip that had been planned for months, even before all the fertility goalies were removed and we were officially “trying.” The first few weeks of pregnancy, when it is all just more of an idea, a theory, than an actual BABY, there is a thick fog of impending miscarriage. As if that is the inevitable outcome. You don’t tell anyone outside your very inner circle so that you don’t have to UNtell, “in case…well, you know.” We had gone to have dinner at the apartment of a newly married couple we know. He’s a musician we’ve known since we were kids and she is a doctor we feel grateful to know as adults. We arrive to a beautiful spread of homemade ceviche. I panic. I haven’t been able to do all research. Fish? Some is ok, right? What if this is the horrible, mercury laden trigger that will decimate the theoretical baby growing in my uterus? I gave a frantic look towards Mr. Fits.  Casually, he searched Google on his phone without missing a conversation beat, as if just answering a text rather than shieling his unborn theory from poisonous, metal saturated fish.  “It’s fine,” he leans over and whispers to me, showing me the phone, “Very low in mercury. They even encourage you to eat this kind because the omega 3’s are good for brain development.” Brain development? BRAIN? I’m growing a brain. It all hits me. I am growing a human. No one can even tell and my guts are making a brain. That was the moment that this theory, this idea, this pregnancy actually started to become a baby, a human Tater.  Ceviche will always remind me of that night, and the realization that my pregnancy would end with my beautiful baby being born.

Watermelon Ceviche

 

3 cups of watermelon, chopped

½ cup diced red bell pepper

¼ cup diced red onion

¼ cup chopped cilantro

2 tbs diced fresh jalapenos, seeds removed

1 ½ cup cooked, chopped shrimp, tails removed

½ cup fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice (or a mixture of both)

1 ½ tsp kosher salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp sriracha

Corn chips and Boston lettuce leaves for serving

Put all the ingredients (except the chips and lettuce) in a large bowl and mix until combined. Allow to chill for at least an hour before serving.