Blog Archives
A Sister’s Suggestion
We’ve been having some food compatibility issues at home lately. I know I’ve mentioned the fruit issue before. My husband doesn’t mix fruit with his food. He only likes fruit as fruit. Well, we have a new item to add to the list: feta cheese.
The other day, my sister Jane mentioned she was making Greek Shrimp for dinner. When she described it, I thought it sounded really good, so I asked her for the recipe. This recipe looked incredibly easy, perfect for a weeknight dinner.
You start by putting on a pot of water for cooking some orzo. Then, the tomatoes roast while you get the rest of ingredients ready. The shrimp needs to be cleaned, the roasted peppers chopped, and the feta cheese crumbled. The water came to a boil when it was time to add the shrimp and peppers to the roasting pan. The shrimp bakes while you have time to make a salad. In less than 45 minutes, a lovely dinner is ready to enjoy.
I loved this dish. It was delicious; it was easy; what’s not to love? Well, it turns out that Howard didn’t share my enthusiasm. He thought it was just OK. Why? I asked. What’s not to love? Well, feta cheese is the answer to that one. I’m not sure this will get the repeat appearance that I would look forward to. That’s the price to pay for domestic harmony.
Per Jane’s recommendation, I served this over orzo. A Greekish salad on the side was perfect: romaine, cucumber, Kalamata olives with a lemony dressing. As long as your family likes feta cheese, this is a winner. Try it, you’ll like it!
Jane’s Easy Greek Shrimp
Serves 4
2 pints grape tomatoes
3 garlic cloves, minced
1½ Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
½ cup chopped jarred roasted red bell peppers
½ cup chopped parsley
4 oz crumbled feta cheese
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper in a 13×9 baking dish, tossing gently to coat. Bake 15 minutes.
Stir in the shrimp and peppers. Bake 15 minutes or just until shrimp turns pink.
Remove from the oven, and toss with parsley, feta cheese and lemon juice.
Serve immediately over cooked orzo.
Summer Wind Down
I can’t believe it’s already after Labor Day and summer is unofficially over. Next week it will be officially over with the arrival of the Autumn Equinox.
Howard will continue to eat corn until the last sweet ear. We also starting cutting kernels off of cobs and freezing for the winter. This Sunday’s Globe magazine has some amazing-looking corn soup recipes, so I see one of those in our future eating.
I can tell the days for summer tomatoes are numbered, but I’m making the most of them. I made two tasty tomato dishes this week, both worthy of sharing.
First was a spicy tomato pie. It made a great lunch, both fresh out of the oven, and reheated at work. The pie sandwiches fresh tomatoes between a peppery biscuit dough. The tomatoes are covered with grated cheese and a spicy mayonnaise. Howard found it a little too spicy, but I loved it! I used a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, so my pie only had two layers of tomatoes. If I had used a regular pie pan, which would have been deeper, I could have had more layers.
Spicy Tomato Pie
Adapted from The Good Cook’s Book Of Tomatoes by Michele Anna Jordan
Serves 6-8
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt plus more for sprinkling the tomatoes
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup milk
3 or 4 medium ripe tomatoes, seeded and sliced
A generous handful of cilantro, chopped coarsely
2 – 4 oz grated smoked cheddar cheese
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp chopped chipotle in adobo sauce
Juice from ½ lime
To make the biscuit crust: Mix together the flour, pepper, salt and baking powder. With your fingers, quickly work the butter into the flour until it is the consistency of coarse-grain sand. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour the milk into the well. Using a fork, mix quickly, until the dough comes together. It will be soft and sticky. Turn onto a WELL-floured surface. Knead the dough for about 30 seconds. Then let it rest for 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Cut the dough in half. Roll our one half to fit the bottom of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Line the pan with the dough.
Cover the pie dough in the pan with a layer of tomato slices. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt, and some chopped cilantro. Repeat with another layer. Top the tomatoes with the grated cheese. Thin the mayonnaise with the lime juice and whisk in the chopped chipotle. Spread the mayonnaise mixture over the surface of the pie.
Roll out the other half of the dough and place over the top of the pie, pinching the edges of the top and bottom crust to seal. Cut some slits to allow the steam to escape. If you want to, brush the surface with cream or an egg wash.
Bake until the pie is hot all the way through and the crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Let the pie rest for 15 minutes before serving. Loosen the edges of the tart pan and remove the outside piece (leaving the pie on the base). Cut into wedges to serve.
I also went to a potluck dinner this week, hosted by Teresa from Farm Share Stories Farm Share Stories . She invited the food bloggers who participated in the Loving Local blogathon a few weeks ago to her home. My contribution to the bountiful table of good food was a new bread salad I concocted. The salad was a sort of deconstructed pesto bread salad, with a vivid green basil dressing. I have a new batch of croutons waiting to be made into this salad again for dinner tonight. This time I’m going to try adding a clove of garlic to the dressing to make it more pesto-y.
Deconstructed Pesto Bread Salad
Serves 6-8
For Basil Dressing:
½ cup packed fresh basil leaves
2 Tbsp white wine vinegar
½ cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
For Salad:
4 – 5 cups homemade croutons, ¾ to 1-inch cubes
2 large tomatoes, diced
½ cup diced red onion
½ cup pine nuts, toasted
To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients in the blender and puree until smooth.
To make the salad, place croutons and remaining ingredients in a very large bowl. Toss gently to combine. Add the dressing and toss to coat all ingredients well.
Let the salad sit about 10 minutes before serving so the bread can soften up a bit.
You can prepare the ingredients up to a day ahead of time. Don’t combine the ingredients more than an hour before serving because the salad will get too soggy. Leftovers don’t keep that well.
A Plateful of Happiness 