SUMMER CRAB LINGUINI

"Humor keeps us alive. Humor and food. Don't forget food. You can go a week without laughing" - Joss Whedon
 

Between crazy work hours and my oddball obligations I've been feeling pretty low. Weeks like this always make me wonder about what it would be like to have a fun job. I've come up with a list of potential jobs:

1. Crafts teacher - except that I don't really like kids all that much;

2. Running an Art Gallery - except I don't know much about art;

3. Party Planner - except that I'm a moody, anti-social witch on most days;

4. Interior Decorator - except that I don't really have any sense of proportion;

5. Professional Shopper - except that I hate malls.

Since I can't think of any viable alternate career paths yet I think I'm just going to curl up with this delicate, gently peppery crab sauce - pair it with whole wheat linguini and bask in your own virtue.

Serves 2

Recipe Adapted from Nigella Lawson's Forever Summer

What you'll need:

1/2 pack of whole wheat spaghetti (about 250 g)
1 can tinned crab meat (about 200g)
2 tbsp olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt
Pepper (ideally freshly ground)
Dashes of Tobasco
Parsley to garnish

Note: You can add onions, spring onions, garlic or any other flavors you'd like.

How to:

1. Cook the spaghetti in hot salted water till al dente. Set aside.

2. Gently sauté the crab meat in olive oil, season with salt and pepper.

Note: If you're using onion and/or garlic then sauté that first, wait till it's golden and then add the crab meat. Spring onions can be added with the crab meat.

3. Toss the pasta with some olive oil to detangle the strands of spaghetti. Spoon the crab mixture on top, add as much Tobasco as you can handle (or skip this step).

4. Garnish with Parsley and serve hot. 

ROAST GARLIC SHRIMP SLIDERS WITH ORANGE ESSENCE

“Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.” - Margaret Mead

 

I spent an afternoon with my adorable, fourth grader fluff ball cousin recent and was, as usual, amazed by everything she did. She regularly demonstrates more awareness, confidence and wisdom that I only hope for at 27. I guess children are captivating because of the second chance they represent. You can't help but try to atone for your mistakes by trying to keep them from repeating them. As if dictating their behavior will absolve us of ours.

 

There are two things that have been floating around in the back of my sub-conscious since that afternoon. The first, how far do children really need to be protected and do we really help them by shielding them? Obviously I don't think second graders need to be exposed to extreme violence or sexually explicit material but what about rigorous schools and coaching? Is shoving a kid into a classroom for 10 hours a day setting them up for the hard knocks of real life or just oppressive? What about choice? We can't allow kids to make all their decisions because they may be too young to understand the consequences but there's a whole range of decision making that precedes that level. When I was growing up most of my friends and I didn't get to pick what we wore from our wardrobe, forget about shopping for it. Baby fluffball though is a little diva who will not entertain sartorial interference. She picks what she wants and when she'll wear it with accessories to match. I'm not sure if there's any connect, what with not having any kids and definitely not having a degree in child psychology but her increased sphere of independence, appears to me, to make her more sure of what she wants. An attribute that will stand any little girl in good stead.

 

I guess, based on my once in a financial quarter interaction with people under the age of 23, the most important thing you could teach a kid is how to live well. To all those who would insist that the most important thing is actually math and that all this holistic living, new age bullshit doesn't work in India, I highly doubt that if you manage to raise a kid with some hobbies, some athletic acumen and a healthy sense of perspective "who haath se nikal jayega." Every day I meet young people who spent their childhoods in tuition centers and as adults don't have the tools to move beyond going to work like an automaton, getting their work done like it's homework, counting the hours till they can leave, with only junk food and alcohol as outlets. Anything that lends a kid the ability to combat stress while giving them a sense of perspective and accomplishment will take them much further than a 97 in Chemistry in Class 8.

  

Perfectly sized for any young cretins in your life, these shrimp sliders were a revelation. They're adorable, fuss free finger food and the juicy shrimp chunks burst on your tongue with the complementing flavors of garlic and orange. I have to admit these aren't exactly for a reluctant chef, getting the patties together and keeping them together while frying them was tough. I'm not particularly good at frying things anyway, all the oil and pressure freak me out but if you're handy with a sauce pan and don't mind getting your hands dirty, these little shrimp burgers are definitely worth trying. 

Makes about 6 mini burgers

Recipe adapted from Food 52

 

What you need:

250 g frozen shrimp

¼ cup red pepper (chopped into little bits)
5 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp garlic paste
1 egg
1 cup refined flour (maida)
1 orange (zested and juiced)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon

For assembly:

6 small burger buns

Mayonnaise
Cheese Slices (optional)
Lettuce leaves (optional)
Tomatoes (sliced) (optional)
Cucumbers (sliced) (optional)

How to:

1. Defrost the frozen shrimp and chop into tiny bits. Add in the egg, red pepper, the zest of the orange and a couple of tablespoons of orange juice.

2. Pop some oil into a small pan and roast the garlic till it browns and is fragrant. Stir the garlic into the shrimp mix.

3. Flour up your hands and make little patties out of the shrimp.

Note: This isn’t that easy and you may need to mix some flour into the shrimp mix just to get it to hold. Basically throw maida into the mix, around it, around your hands and do whatever you have to do to get the patties to hold together. Try not to use more than a cup of maida in this whole process though – otherwise you’ll end up with shrimp pakodas.

4. Now that you have patties that (mostly) seem to hold together, heat up the olive oil on a large flat pan. Add more oil if you think you need it.

5. Once the oil is hot, carefully transfer your shrimp patties on to the pan. Let the patties cook till they start to change color at the base and then very carefully flip them over. Let the other side cook.

 

Note: Should take about 4 -5 mins on each side but you’ll be the best judge of when it’s cooked through.

6. Slice your burger buns, slather the insides with butter and stick them in the oven for 5 minutes to toast up.

7. Layer the buns up with mayo, tomato/cucumber/lettuce or whatever else you like.

8. Add a squirt of lime over the shrimp patties and assemble them into the burger buns. Serve.

 

 

RITU DALMIA'S PRAWNS WITH SPINACH, ALMONDS AND RAISINS

"Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside." - Mark Twain

 

I've been thinking a lot about the word "appropriate" - it's a concept that means such different things to different people but is, at the same time, such damning criticism. The moment you say something is inappropriate, not only do you shoot that thing down but also bring into question the understanding and aptitude of the person behind it. To be inappropriate is to completely fail the context you're inhabiting.

 

There are some things though that are always appropriate, like a white shirt and blue jeans, solitaires, and this amazing dish of Prawns with Spinach, Almonds and Raisins. Perfectly balancing notes of raisin-y sweet with the crunch of almonds and the succulent bite of prawns. I'm in love with the ingredient pairing - you can pull this together easily but the result is so elegant and polished.

 

 

 Serves 3

Recipe adapted from Ritu Dalmia's Travelling Diva

 

What you’ll need:

200 g prawns (clean)

½ kg spinach

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp garlic paste

Handful of raisins

Handful of almonds

Salt

Pepper

Squirt of lime juice

Pinch baking soda

 

For the marinade:

 

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp garlic paste

2 tbsp lime juice

Chopped Parsley/Cilantro

Salt

Pepper

 

How to:

 

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together and dunk the prawns in there for a couple of hours.

 

2. Remove the stem off the spinach. Put a deep pan of water to boil with the baking soda and salt and throw the spinach in when the water hits a boil. Cool for a minute and drain.

 

3. Transfer the spinach into a bowl of ice cold water. Drain again and chop.

 

4. Put the olive oil into a pan, once hot add garlic and stir. When the garlic turns golden add the prawns and let cook. When you’re sure the prawns are done, remove from pan and throw in the raisins and almonds. After a couple of minutes pop the prawns and spinach back. Season with salt and pepper and stir the whole mixture together.

 

5. Serve hot with a dash of lime juice and a drizzle of olive oil.

 

LUXE SALMON DIP

"I get way too much happiness from good food" - Elizabeth Olsen

 

 

At dinner one day a friend was talking about job choices, to which another friend responded, that though the opportunity sounded comfortable it would never make him great. The comment really resonated with me, how many us even aspire to greatness anymore?

 

We're all worried about salaries and commute timings and don't get me wrong, I have nothing against more money or less traffic, but how often do we think about what we need to do to thrive? Not just vaguely hope we'll do well and go back to watching TV shows but really constructively think about how our lives could be better. I realize I barely think about the future - specially not in a concrete, structured way. Days and weeks go by, crossing off silly errands and dealing with inconsequential issues, till I turn around and realize I have spent huge chunks of time on things I don't even remember.

 

I'm in fact so bad at this that it's taken me 27 years to realize time is passing me by. In keeping with my reignited desire to get my life back together I've decided to face my fear of working with seafood. The result is this creamy, delicate, ultra luxe salmon dip. Get on, make some dip, get your life together.

 

 

Serves 6

Adapted from Martha Stewart

 

What you’ll need:

 

1 can tinned salmon

¼ cup mayonnaise

3 tbsp cream cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Sprinkling of capers

 

How to:

 

Throw all the ingredients together (except the capers) and blend till you have a paste. Sprinkle capers on top. Chill and serve.

 

Note: Don’t bother using fancy salmon for this, the tinned kind is perfectly okay. Keep your salmon fillets etc for baking whole.

 

CREAMY TUNA DIP

“It’s absolutely unfair for women to say that guys only want one thing: sex. We also want food.”  
Jarod Kintz, $3.33
 

The Tuna Dip is the creamy one to the right.

 

This is a pretty great dip (with or without a movie going on). One of the easiest to put together and seafood lovers everywhere will lap it up. This is my personal favourite for (non) vegging out with. Use light mayonnaise and eat with carrots/cucumbers/ salad leaves if you're worried about calories.

Serves 4

Adapted from the ideas of fellow house party lovers

 

What you'll need:
 

1 small can of tuna (approximately 150 gms)

½ cup mayonnaise
3 -4 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper

How to:

1. Shred the tuna and mix in with all the other ingredients. Add more mayonnaise if you want it creamier.

2. Chill and serve with crackers/cucumber/ carrots.

CRAB, APPLE AND POMEGRANATE SALAD

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”

― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

 

This is my salad for the summer. Filled with so much colour, tons of texture and a wallop of sweet, garlic, salt and lemony flavor, that if you're going to make one thing this summer make it this salad. I love crab meat and it adds an immediate dimension of luxury and indulgence to this salad, making it perfect for serving up to a gang of guests.

 

Serves 5

Adapted Good Food Magazine

What you’ll need: 

 

For the salad 

 

170 gm crab meat (I used 1 BumbleBee can – you can hike this up or down as per your preference)

1 mango (peeled and cut into cubes)

2 apples (peeled and sliced)

½ cucumber (medium sized) – deseed the cucumber and cut it into slices

½ cup pomegranate seeds

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

¼ cup chopped mint

Salt

Pepper 

 

For the dressing

 

1 apple (peeled and chopped)

1 small spring onion (chopped)

1 tbsp garlic paste

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

¼ cup olive oil

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

 

How to:

 

1. Take the dressing ingredients and make it into a paste. Add the olive oil last and blend some more. It should be completely smooth.
 

2. Toss the salad ingredients together.
 

3. Add as much of the dressing as you like. Toss. Serve.
 

Note: This isn’t a vinaigrette type dressing so I don’t know if it makes much sense to serve it on the side but you take a call?

SHRIMP AND VEGETABLE PLATTER WITH GARLIC AIOLI

“I almost wish we were butterflies and liv'd but three summer days - three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain.”

― John Keats, Bright Star: Love Letters and Poems of John Keats to Fanny Brawne

 

Summer is most definitely here. Delhi saw some unusual weather in April when there were storms and unexpectedly cloudy days but that's all gone now. It's May and the merciless sun knows it is its time to shine. I wish I could survive entirely on cold water, slices of cucumber and chunks of watermelon but I suspect I wouldn't last too long .

If you're trying to come up with a side dish or appetizer for a group, the Shrimp and Vegetable Platter with Garlic Aioli is perfect. The flavours are light and simple but lively. There's minimal oil and spice in the proceedings and you need almost no skill to put this together. On the other hand, if you think this is too simple you can always add more things to it but leave it plain and you won't be disappointed.

Serves 5 – 6

 

What you’ll need:
 

For the aioli
 

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup thickened yoghurt (Just hang yoghurt in a muslin cloth for a bit to drain out some of the extra water.)

1 tsp garlic paste

1 tsp mustard

½ tsp red chilli powder (More if you want. Paprika if you have.)

Juice of 1 lemon
 

For the platter
 

500 gms potatoes (Diced)

500 gms shrimp (I used frozen so just set aside and thaw.)

500 gms carrots/beans (Peeled and chopped evenly.)

5 hard boiled eggs (Peeled and sliced)

2 – 3 tbsp olive oil

2 – 3 tbsp oregano/parsley/whatever seasoning you have on hand

Salt and Pepper

Lemon Juice

 

How to:

1. To make the aioli, put all the ingredients together in a bowl and mix. Stick in the fridge while preparing the platter. Set aside the shrimp to thaw.

 

2. Boil the potatoes in some water with salt till tender. Drain the water and put aside.

 

3. Boil the carrots/beans in some water with salt till tender. Drain the water and put aside.                                                                                                                                                     

 

4. In a pan put in a little olive oil and toss the potatoes with some seasoning (I had some dried up parsley around that I used). Add salt to taste and brown the potatoes. Put aside.
 

Note: You can throw in some garlic if you like. Add as much seasoning as you want – if you use butter and put in red chilli powder it’ll be even more flavourful. Decide how simple or elaborate you want the platter to be.

 

5. Next, repeat with carrots and/or beans. Toss with seasoning on a pan to give it some colour.
 

6. Finally throw the shrimp on to the pan with some garlic, salt and pepper.
 

7. Arrange the vegetables, eggs and shrimp in piles the way you would like. Drizzle some lemon juice and sprinkle some salt and pepper if needed.
 

8. Serve with the garlic aioli.

 

CREAMY PRAWN LINGUINI

"Why does Sea World have a seafood restaurant? I'm halfway through my fish burger and I realize - Oh man....I could be eating a slow learner." - Unknown

You might have noticed that like most food bloggers I tag my recipes as vegetarian, with meat, egg based etc so it's easier for a reader to find what they're looking for. I was quite surprised to realize that this is my first post in the seafood category and that's a shame because I really love every kind of cretin that swims out of the sea and on to my plate.

I haven't cooked fish yet and I find the thought a little intimidating since it's such a delicate meat but prawns are really easy to work with. I've used frozen prawns here and they were no trouble at all. Next on my list is crab, tuna and anchovy. I hope to graduate to fish and the dream is to be able to cook with mussels, scallops and caviar.

If you're a seafood rookie like me then start with this pleasantly light linguini. With no elaborate cooking method involved you can lay back and bask in it's subtle, creamy glory.

 

Serves 2

Adapted from Good Food Magazine
 

What you’ll need:
 

200gm pasta (preferably linguini or spaghetti but this is only for prettiness)

200gm spinach (pok choy if you have it)

200 gm raw peeled prawns (frozen works well)

½ cup milk

3 – 4 tbsp grated cheese

3 tbsp garlic paste

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp red chilli powder

Salt and pepper to taste
 

How to:
 

1. Cook the linguini till al dente.
 

2. In a pot, add the olive oil, then the garlic paste – stir till fragrant.
 

3. Add the spinach and let it sweat, when it starts to wilt add the prawns and cook till done.
 

4. Add the pasta to the pan and the milk and cheese to make a sauce to cover the pasta. Season with red chilli powder, salt and pepper.