Tempura Crab Cake and Spaghetti Squash Shrimp Cake Duo

I'm still on a mission to finally catch up on all my blogs.  Get back in the time machine, we will go back a year and a bit.  This installment has a recipe to prepare when spaghetti squash comes into season in September, or October.  This is the timeframe when crabbing season comes to a close in the Puget sound, as well.  This plating combines seafood delights and adds variety to the palate with a serving of veg built right in.

  

Start by roasting a spaghetti squash in a 400 deg. oven for approx. an hour.  Set aside to cool.  You will only need half of a smallish sized squash for the finished cakes.  To get ready, also peel and devein 1/2 lb. of shrimp and pick 1/2 lb. of crabmeat.  set aside in separate containers.

For the squash and shrimp cakes, you will need to put the prepared shrimp in a blender with 2 egg whites.  Process into a paste, small pieces of shrimp in the mixture are good.  Add the shrimp paste to the prepared squash.  Season with a few pinches of minced parsley and few dashes of smoked paprika, also salt/pepper. Finally, drizzle a bit of sesame oil in the mix.  Combine well and form into cakes much like a standard crab cake, or fish cake.

For the crab cakes, add 2 tbsp. of mayo to the crab meat and salt and pepper. Add a few pinches of flour, or tempura powder.  Fold together until everything comes together nicely.  Prepare a batch of tempura, either a homemade batch or the boxed variety works well.  You will need about 1 cup of tempura in total.  Add the crab mixture to the tempura mixture, sprinkle with a 2 tbsp. of sesame seeds.  Form into cakes vaguely.  These will start out as more of a drop cake, but can be finessed into the right shape in the pan. 

Shallow fry the cakes in batches.  Change the oil between varieties.  The yield should be about a dozen good sized cakes total. 

Serve on sheets of nori and with a Sriracha aioli.

 Sriracha Aoli

1/2 c. mayo
2 goodly squirts of Sriracha
2 grated garlic cloves  (use a microplane to get it in very small pieces)

Spot Prawn with Blistered Shishito Peppers and Japanese Corn

More summer food!  

A year later, but here is hoping the information can be used to prepare for another summer cook out.  It seems I'm using a time machine in my blogs lately, life takes over and there are a few unpublished works that need to be revealed.  

A Japanese marinade for the corn and peppers do wonders for flavour, dead simple and ready for the grill.  I've added koji in my recipe to lift the corn to another level.  When the koji and the grill work together, the corn gets lovely carmelised glaze all over without using too much sugar.   I have also included pearl onions, in a homage to the prawn spots, grilled they add a delicate highlight to the dish.  

                                         

My spot prawns were caught with a net out of a more domestic aquarium at the market.  Here is a video showing how to catch yourself, if you were to be so lucky:

How to clean the catch:

The marinade consists of a 1/2 c. of tamari, 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar, a few pinches of brown sugar, or a dash of maple syrup, season with salt and pepper.  Use less salt and more pepper, as the koji coming up in the recipe is quite salty  Mix well, dissolve the sugar and add a large batch of peppers and 6 cleaned and blanched corn cobs that have been generously rubbed with koji.  Finally drop in 6 pearl onions that have been cut in half.  Marinade in a bag, or shallow dish for several hours, or overnight.

The peppers are great to have growing in a kitchen garden, just one plant is great for making small plates on the fly.  Shishito peppers are a thin skinned Japanese variety of pepper.   Most times just pop them on the grill and blister a bit, sorted.   A substitute to use the UK is a Padron pepper, even though it is a Spanish pepper they may be more readily available.  They have a thin skin and a mixed hot, or mild temper within each batch, a sort of roulette spin just like shishito.   Padron are often found on a tapas plate, I hope to experiment with them soon.

                                        

While the veg marinades, prepare the prawns.  Simply boil them whole in water seasoned with Old Bay for a few minutes. 

Peel the shrimp ready to flash on the grill to heat on the finished dish.

Drain the veg, but reserve the marinade.  Grill the onions with good grill marks, about 10 minutes,  set aside.  Next grill the corn and peppers, they should finish about the same time, about 15 minutes each side.  The corn should be caramelised and the peppers blistered.

  

To plate, marry everything on a platter and pour warmed reserved marinade over the top.  This dish is nice with the corn on or cut off the cob.

************************************************************************************

   

Shropshire Summer Potato Salad

This salad is packed full of seasonal ingredients, most very local to Shropshire.  All the components are served cold and can be made a day ahead, ready for a summer BBQ, or a light bite all on it's own. On a hot day it can be very refreshing.  A few slices of a meaty, smoked pheasant are a welcome change up from crumbly bacon stirred into a basic potato salad.   Another gem from Shropshire featured here is a fresh cheese, a bit like feta called Shrewsbury Fretta, I found the texture a bit firmer. Capers and cornichons provide a balancing tang.

A star in this dish is lovely smoked pheasant.  This pheasant usually makes a welcome snack on it's own, but can easily feature on a composed dish.

The pheasants are raised free range on an estate in Bridgnorth, with only a supplemented diet of home grown wheat.  The next stop is MacNeils smokehouse, a Beechwood smoke is used here.  The final product is bound for Apley Farm Shop, where it can be found in season in the autumn months,  The pheasant is available year round, as it freezes rather well.

Here is some information about how this shining star was created:

The recipe for 4 small plates goes as such:

4 medium sized potatoes, sliced, steamed and cooled

1/2 cup petit poi, steamed and cooled

6 minced cornichons

2 minced shallots

1 heaping tablespoon capers, minced

1/4 cup mayo

1 heaping tablespoon Dijon mustard

A pinch of celery seeds

Season with salt and pepper

Gently fold the ingredients together.  This salad keeps well and actually marinades and develops flavours overnight.

Crumble a generous amount of the cheese over the top, when ready to serve on each plate.

Slice the pheasant and give each each person 4 to 5 slices along side the salad.

The cheese!  Moyden's Handmade cheeses hail from Market Drayton.  Shrewsbury Fretta is a young cheese, fretta means quick in Italian.  An unpasteurised product with delicate flavours and a "meaty" texture.  I found this cheese available at Apley Farm Shop in Norton.

*********************************************************************************

Raindrop Cake - Two Different Flowery Versions

You have to try this cutie of a dessert from Japan.  A raindrop cake, here is a link to some background info and a look at the original serving procedure and design. One of my version makes use of in season flowers, we had some fragrant lilacs ready to be infused.  The other version uses a favourite candy.

Start with 1/2 of a stick of Agar Agar.  Soak this in water for 30 minutes to soften.  Squeeze out the excess water  and add to 3 cups of boiling water with 2 tsp. of sugar dissolved in it.  Stir until dissolved and strain into dome shaped molds, like the mold pictured below.  Place in the refrigerator.  There will be a bit left over, I use this as a testers to see how far along the gel is.  Just put into small vessels about the size of the molds.

When, the water cools and is very softly set, I add any goodies I want to see thru the raindrop.  In this case a single little lilac flower.  Leave to set thoroughly for a few hours, at least.

Meanwhile, make a dark lilac heavy syrup.  After the syrup boils and the sugar dissolves, turn off heat and add a couple of bunches of lilac flowers.  Let infuse for about 30 minutes, strain, and cool.

There ya go!

Traditional raindrop cake is served with roasted soy bean powder.  In this recipe I used macadamia crumbs.

Try a few tester gels and see if they are ready.  Either poke around the gel with your digits, or turn upside down on your serving surface and coax the gel out of the mold with hot water.  To coax it out, I run steamy hot water on a towel and lay it over the mold.  success?  Well then, try the dome molds for your "cake".

Proceed as pictured by sprinkling nut crumbs on one side and pour syrup on other side. Adorn as desired, maybe with a few more blossoms, you decide.

The other version uses a treat I get from Britain. Parma Violets.  Crunch them up into a smooth powder to dust over the top.

Decorate as desired, then follow the same routine as before with the nuts and syrup.

As you can imagine, the raindrop cakes are light and refreshing. The water melts instantly on the palate and provides an interesting vehicle to the syrup and nuts.  I can imagine the soy bean powder is even more etherial.  Do you want an intermezzo, or light dessert on a hot summer day.  This is it!

I have many ideas for this dessert, and plan to do a few more entries over the summer.  They are that refreshing!

*********************************************************************************

Lavender Cowboy Biscuits

Yeeeehaw! I bet that title conjured up visions of a purple cowboy riding off into the sunset to dunk a biscuit into a glass of milk.  This cookie however is a white chocolate, macadamia and wild blueberry with a bit of oatmeal edition

This recipe conjured up memories of a visit to Sequim, Washington's Lavender festival last summer.  You can get a full rundown of those festivities on my travel blog Sequim Lavender Festival.

Culinary lavender is a matter of some varieties being more suited to cooking.  Pretty much all lavender is usable in cooking.  Some are just better for cooking, with a sweeter flavour.  A widespread variety for cooking is Lavandula angustifolia, particulary Munstead. Cosmetic and ornamental lavender is usually a cross of  Lavandula angustifolia and Lavandula latifolia.

Preheat an oven to 325 deg f.

3/4 c. rolled oats, put them thru a blender and make into a "flour".

3/4 c. AP flour

1/2 tsp. bs

1/4 tsp, salt

Combine and set aside.

Cream 1 stick of butter with:

1/3 c. granulated sugar

1/3 c. packed brown sugar

add,

1 large egg

then,

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Time for stir ins!

1 c. dry-roasted macadamia nuts, halved

1 c. white chocolate chips

1 cup dried wild blueberries

a few pinches of lavender flowers

Place large scoops on a parchment lined baking sheet, sprinkle with some whole rolled oats.

Bake for about 12 minutes until golden.

**********************************************************************************

Koji Chicken And Roasted Edamame Salad Tray Bake

When talking about umami, one should always spare a thought to koji.  I learned about koji from a British cooking magazine.  My daughter roasted a whole bird with it.  After that there is no turning back.

This article explains koji  pretty well.

"It's not eaten on its own, but grown on partially or fully cooked grains, such as rice and barley. As the spores begin to flourish, enzymes convert the grain into sugar, and then the enzyme-rich grain is added to a second product, such as soybeans. This secondary fermentation process causes a complete transformation in flavor and texture. It's how soybeans become miso, rice becomes sake, soybeans plus wheat become soy sauce. This resulting flavor you know and love? Umami."

Using koji may be a cooking trend, but it will stay as a regular in my kitchen.  If enough time goes by I find myself craving it.

To make this tray bake, line up your chicken thighs and with a clean spoon drop some koji on each thigh without touching the raw chicken with the spoon.  

Then, after all the chicken pieces have a dollop of koji, spread it all over the top of the chicken. 

Place in a preheated 350 f oven  and roast for 45 min.  At the last 20 minutes of cooking time scoot the chicken pieces over  to one side of the tray and add another coating of koji.
 

 On the other half of the tray add a pkg. of shelled edamame.

In the meantime, make a dressing for a salad.  Place the following ingredients in a mason jar.

1/8 c. rice wine vinegar

a dash of fish sauce

2 tbsp. toasted tahini

Shake well.

Heat the following ingredients through in the microwave for 15 sec. and add to the vinegar mixture.

1 tsp. grated ginger

1 clove crushed garlic

1/8 c. mirin

Shake and let cool a bit. Then add:

1/4 c. neutral tasting oil

a dash of chili oil

a dash of sesame oil

Shake, shake, shake until well incorporated.

To plate: Lay a layer of mixed greens on the plate and top with roasted edamame and place a slice of chicken near.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and spring onions.

*************************************************************************************

Cauliflower Scallion Pancakes

If you would like to have a low carb version of Scallion Pancakes, try riced cauliflower!  I'm sure you have heard of cauliflower crust pizza.  Delicious right?  Well, this is the same principle.  

Start by grilling a whole bunch of scallions.  Set aside.

Get some riced cauliflower.  Trader Joe's has some pre-riced cauli, use half a bag.  Use half of a cauliflower head if you are ricing your own.   I will make something with the other half of the bag next time.

The pre-riced is even better if it is popped into a blender and riced a bit more.  Microwave for 4 minutes. Season with salt.

Grease a lined baking tray with a bit of coconut oil.  

Let the microwaved cauli cool.  Meanwhile, chop the scallions, as shown.  Add 2 beaten eggs, mix throughly.  Divide the quantity of the mixture in half, in two rounds on the baking tray.  Using a fork, press into rounds about the size of a normal tortilla, as shown.  You may need to dab the rounds with a towel if they are too moist.

Bake in a preheated 450 deg F oven.  for 15 minutes, or until slightly browned.  Flip the pancakes over.  Bake 15 more minutes until golden brown.

 The scallion pancakes are delicious with a dipping sauce.

1/4 c. Tamari
1/4 c. rice wine vinegar
A couple of dashes of Mirin
1 dash of chili oil
a tbsp. of honey
A dash of sesame oil
2 tbsp, grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, grated

Mix in a heat proof jar, then microwave for 30 seconds.  Stir.  Serve, you can reserve some for pancakes the next time.

For a different texture with a nice flavour kick, try sprinkling with ground crunchy mochi.

**********************************************************************************