Well, Valentine’s is here and I wanted to make a nice meal for Jennifer. I did it Top Chef style: 45 minutes to shop at Central Market, 1 hour to prep, and 1 hour to cook. It was 4:15pm and she was coming over at 7:00!
I quickly decided on my menu:
1. White Canneloni bean dip with garlic crouton chips
2. Spinach salad with mushrooms, blue cheese, and parm
3. Shrimp with garlic lemon butter sauce
4. Panko crusted Red Snapper with homemade tarter and artichoke
First, the “tartar” sauce:
This will be made from sour cream, horseradish, dill, and salt. I put them all in a bowl…
And whisked together.
Into the fridge with that, and time to start on the white bean dip. Ingredients include one can of canneloni beans, rinsed, half a lemon’s worth of juice, a clove of minced garlic, olive oil, a little water, and salt:
Put into blender and push play:
Into a bowl and to the fridge with you!
Let’s take a break and get the flowers looking nice!
Here we have three types of flowers: chrysanthemum, hypericum berries, and “kangaroo paw.” I don’t have a vase, so into a pint glass!
Now let’s make my favorite salad: baby spinach, button mushrooms, fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt, pepper, and blue cheese dressing:
Let’s get this in a big bowl:
Now dress, toss, and to the fridge!
We’ll get the artichoke started, since it will take a while. Trimmed and into a bot of boiling water with salt and lemon:
Now the shrimp, made with olive oil, garlic, lemon, white vermouth, butter, shallot, parsley, salt, and white pepper:
Chop veg, cut butter, and season shrimp:
Heat pan on medium high, add olive oil, and cook shrimp a minute or less on each side:
Remove shrimp, add garlic and shallots:
Add vermouth, reduce… , add butter, the juice of one lemon, parsley, and put shrimp back in to finish:
Knock knock… Jennifer is here!
Better serve what we’ve got so far so we don’t get dumped!
The shrimp was served over a garlic crouton… Now on to the fish. Red Snapper! First we trim the tips, try to take out all the pin bones, and season (on both sides!) with salt, white pepper, and a little dill:
Now dredge lightly in flour:
Dip into beaten eggs and finally into Panko, or Japanese style, bread crumbs:
Now in a non stick skillet add butter and olive oil over medium heat:
Saute for about 4-5 minutes on each side until done. If the fish start to burn add more butter and oil:
Now plate with dill sauce!
Success! And Jennifer brought over mini cherry pies! Kaloo Kalay!
Happy V-Day to us!