Aglio e Olio with Mussels and Shrimp

Ok - I take some of my food shots with my iPhone and the pictures aren't the best. Deal with it. I don't have time to set up my camera all the time and take pictures. I just want to eat!

Aglio e Olio

1 cup angel hair pasta - cooked to package directions; reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, diced

1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

salt/pepper to taste

wedge of lemon

In a saucepan, add the olive oil and garlic. Gently sautee the garlic in the olive oil - do not allow to brown. Add the red pepper flakes and stir. Add the cooked pasta and pasta water - toss to coat.

Sqeeze a little lemon on top and toss. Add fresh, chopped parsley if you choose.

Steamed Mussels
1 cup white wine

1/2 cup of water

1 sprig rosemary

1 clove garlic

1 tablespoon of butter

Combine the first 4 ingredients in a steaming pot and place the mussels inside the steam basket. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until mussels have opened up. Remove the garlic and rosemary sprig from the simmer water and add the butter. Allow butter to melt and then pour over mussels. When adding mussels to the pasta, do not add any additional liquid to the pasta.

Sauteed Shrimp

6 uncooked, peeled and deveined shrimp

olive oil

creole seasoning

Toss the shrimp in the oil and creole seasoning. Sear in a pan coated with olive oil. Flip and sear on the other side. Add to pasta.

Seared Salmon with Mango Salsa

Just another idea for salmon...maybe not the most creative, but hey - it was pretty darn good!

I bought some salmon from Costco and since I'm the only one who eats it, I can do whatever I want to it!

Mango Salsa
1 ripe mango, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 jalepeno, diced
1 clove garlic, diced
1 green onion, diced
lemon and lime juice
salt
pepper
cilantro, chopped

Mix all of the ingredients and allow to sit for about 30 minutes to create juice and allow the flavors to mesh.

I seared the salmon in a cast iron skillet using lemon infused olive oil. Then it went into a 375-degree oven to finish cooking. I topped it with mango salsa and stuck it under the broiler for a minute or two to warm the salsa.

A Classic: Tuna Noodle Casserole

In my 30+ years on this planet, I have never had Tuna Noodle Casserole. I'm not sure why - although it was never a staple 'comfort food' in my house growing up. Honestly, the thought of it repulsed me a bit. My good friend, Rachel, had brought some for me to try and I really liked it. The recipe below is courtesy of Rachel P. with my changes in blue. I had only made changes due to the ingredients I had on hand. I also doubled the recipe to fit into a 9x13 pan.

Tuna Noodle Casserole by Rachel P. (Mrs. Peeps)

6 oz. egg noodles (wide or extra wide) partially cooked (about 6 minutes)

1 small can of tuna, drained and flaked with a fork

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup milk

1 cup frozen peas, cooked

1/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup (or more) fresh grated sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup fresh bread crumbs cooked in 1 T. butter until slightly crisp (I used Italian Seasoned bread crumbs)

**fresh grated parmesan cheese***

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. In a large bowl, stir together first six ingredients until well combined.

3. Spread into a small greased 8x8 casserole dish then sprinkle bread crumbs and parmesan cheese evenly over the top.

4. Bake uncovered in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes and serve warm

Dungeness Crab

When we lived in Philly, Josh's love for seafood was born. One of our friends introduced us to a little place called The Clam Tavern. It's such a great place. It's hidden away so well in a little neighborhood in Clifton Heights and has that quaint "crab shack" feel. Don't let the looks fool you though, the food is amazing! The steaks are juicy and tender and the seafood is fresh. Plus, on Wednesday nights, it's all-you-can-eat Dungeness Crab.

We just don't have a restaurant like that here in Pittsburgh. It's really sad. It's even more sad that to get semi-decent seafood, you have to dress up and pay an arm and a leg to get small portions and bad service.

What we do have is Wholey's Fish Market. What Wholey's doesn't have 99% of the time is Dungeness Crab....but they had it last Saturday. My heart nearly stopped. I bought 4 of 'em. Believe me, that was more than enough for the 2 of us.

Dungeness Crab
4 Dungeness Crabs
1 bottle of beer Old Bay Seasoning lemon wedges melted butter
Fill a large stock pot about 3/4 of the way full with water. Add the beer and several tablespoons of Old Bay Seasoning. Bring the water to a boil.
Add the crabs
Boil for approximately 20 minutes.
Remove crabs from pot and clean.

What I did was:
Cut the crabs in half - right down the middle.
Remove the upper and lower shells, gills, and "mustard" (this is the yellow-green stuff inside the cavity of the crab.)

Once the crabs are cleaned - place into a large bowl and sprinkle with Old Bay Seasoning.
Serve with lemon wedges and melted butter.

Fried Calamari - Yes, you can do it!

Don't you just love fried calamari? It seems so exotic...like you can only get it in a restaurant and pay $10 for a small appetizer plate of it. Well...let me tell you, this stuff is cheap. I only paid $4 for a pound of 'tubes and tentacles'. Mmm....I just love the tentacles. They are so crispy.

Ingredients & Instructions
1 pound of fresh squid
1 cup of all purpose flour
5-6 tablespoons of creole seasoning
salt/pepper
lemon wedges
vegetable oil (for frying)

Cut the squid tubes into rings. Cut off any cartilage that may be on the tentacles.
Mix the flour, salt, pepper, and creole seasoning.
Toss the squid into the flour mix and shake off excess.
Heat the oil to about 325 degrees.
Fry the squid for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
Let cool on a paper towel-lined plate.
Squeeze a bit of lemon on top of the calamari.
Serve with marinara sauce.

Ok. Stop panicking! Yes...this is what it looks like right out of the container. Think of the first time you ever handled raw chicken. Gross, right? But now, it's no big deal.

The tubes are whole and the tentacles are separated from the tube. Some of my tentacles had some cartilage attached to them and I just cut that off and got rid of it. Just slice up the tubes so you have little rings.

Toss the rings and tentacles in the flour mixture and fry. That's it! Just like frying veggies!

Penne with Clams & Mussels

You don't need to go to a restaurant for a fancy seafood pasta! This is so quick and easy to make. You can even substitute the clams/mussels for shrimp or other seafood.

Penne With Clams & Mussles Recipe

2 Large cans of diced tomatoes

2 cloves garlic, diced

½ pound of littleneck clams, rinsed

½ pound of mussels, rinsed

1 pound of penne rigate, cooked al dente

½ cup of white wine, of choice

3-4 fresh basil leaves, chopped

2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes

olive oil

salt/pepper

In a large skillet, sautee the garlic in olive oil. Add the red pepper flakes and let warm for about 30 seconds.

Add the 2 cans of diced tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Add in the white wine and simmer 10 minutes. At this point, I'll take a potato masher and mash up some of the tomatoes in the skillet to thicken the sauce.

Add the basil, clams, and mussels. Simmer for 10 minutes or until clams/mussles have opened. Discard any that do not open.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over the cooked penne.

Crunchy, Beer Battered Fish

Everyone should eat more fish, but I haven't really found any way to prepare it that Josh really likes. His idea of fish is the frozen stuff - already coated in batter. There's got to be a better way! Since beer usually makes things better...I've added it to Ina Garten's recipe.

1 1/2 pounds fresh cod fillets (choose thick ones)

Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 cup beer of choice

1 extra-large egg

Vegetable oil, for frying

Lay the cod fillets on a cutting board. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Cut the fillets in 1 1/2 by 3-inch pieces.

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, lemon zest, cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Whisk in 1/2 cup of water and then the egg.

Pour 1/2-inch of oil into a large (12-inch) frying pan and heat it to about 360 degrees F.
Dip each fillet into the batter, allowing the excess to drip back into the bowl. Place it very carefully into the hot oil. Don't crowd the pieces. Adjust the heat as needed to keep the oil between 360 and 400 degrees F. Cook the fish on each side for 2 to 3 minutes, until lightly browned and cooked through.

Remove to a plate lined with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and serve hot.