Food Mamma

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seafood

pineapple shrimp

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I have been wanting to go to Hawaii for years. With a big birthday coming up next month, I decided that this was the year we were going, no matter how much hubby was resisting. I can’t wait!

I made this pineapple shrimp dish to get us into the tropical spirit. It’s a perfect balance of sweet and heat and super tasty. This dish comes together super quick and goes great with rice or all on it’s own. Make it even more festive by serving it in a pineapple bowl!

Pineapple Shrimp

1/4 cup pineapple, chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 green onion, chopped,
1 pound shrimp
2 TB hoisin sauce
2 TB soya sauce
1 tsp sriracha, or as needed
cilantro
vegetable oil
sesame oil

Add some vegetable and sesame oil to a hot pan. Add the garlic, onions and shrimp. After a minute, add the pineapple and sauces and cook until shrimp are opaque. Sprinkle with cilantro and enjoy.

green curry mussels

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After seeing Kristy’s post last month about mussels and Julie’s picture on Instagram, I had a craving! Every time I would see mussels at the grocery store, I wanted to make them but never seemed to find the time. Seeing everyone’s posts gave me the push I needed.

Green curry and mussels seemed like a good combination. I also knew I wanted a bit of a broth to eat with either fries or bread.

As usual, Q was a great helper in the kitchen. He helped wash and debeard the mussels and was in charge of getting rid of mussels with open shells. Once the mussels were cooked, he went through the bowl and made sure all the shells had opened up. He loved the responsibility!

The mussels were fantastic! The green curry made its away into the shells and infused the meat with flavour and we had lots of bread to sop up the tasty broth. The mussels were quick to make and would be perfect for any dinner party.

Green Curry Mussels 

1 can coconut milk
1 TB green curry paste
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 stalk lemongrass, chopped
1/4 tsp sugar
2 pounds mussels, cleaned and debearded
oil
cilantro
lime

In a large pot, heat a small amount of oil. Add the shallots and lemongrass and cook for a minute. Add the coconut milk and curry paste and let it come to a boil. Add the mussels and cover the lid, allowing the mussels to steam for 3 minutes. Once all the shells have opened up, the mussels are ready to enjoy. Add the juice of one lime and sprinkle with cilantro.

shrimp fried rice

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Hard to believe the little one is already six and a half weeks old! He’s now in that stage where he’s smiling and cooing and it’s just so fun!
When it comes to dinners, I’ve been pretty lucky! I had made a few dishes that I froze, lasagnas, bananas bread, even taco meat which came in handy for cinqo de mayo. 
Our moms have been awesome, sending food every week, stocking my fridge leaving me one less thing to worry about. 
Last week, I realized there were a few containers of steamed rice. There was only one thing to do – make fried rice!
Super easy to make, it transforms leftover steamed rice into a new meal that’s tasty and flavourful! With rice and shrimp, it became a favourite for Q.

Shrimp Fried Rice

Oil
1/2 pound shrimp
3 eggs, beaten
3 green onions, chopped
2 carrots, grated
1/2 cup frozen peas 
2 TB soy sauce 
1 tsp sesame oil
3 cups steamed rice
Salt
Pepper
In a hot wok, add a little bit of the oil and stir fry the shrimp until opaque. Remove from the heat. Add a little more oil and cook the egg, scrambling while it cooks. Remove and keep with the shrimp. Add a little more oil and stir fry the onions and carrots. Add the rice, peas, soy sauce and sesame oil. Season with salt and pepper.  Add the shrimp and eggs until combined and enjoy.

fish and chips

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

To Q, St. Paddy’s day reminds him of milkshakes, like the ones he made in preschool a couple years ago. To me, it reminds me of the times I’d go to the pub and watch an old friend and her celtic band. While there, my favourite thing to eat was fish and chips.

Last month, to celebrate my mother-in-law’s birthday, we decided to have a fish and chips party. She loves fish so it seemed like the perfect meal to celebrate her special day. My sister-in-law made an awesome fish ceviche, a recipe I’ll have to snag and share.

The batter was nice and crisp and the fish turned out amazing! We cheated with the fries and bought the coated ones that we love. Served along side tartar sauce and sriracha, we happily filled our bellies.

Fried Fish

4 pounds cod
4 cups + 1 cup flour
2 TB baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup cold water
2 cups + club soda
salt
pepper

Combine the flour (4 cups), baking powder, eggs, spices and cold water. Add the club soda until you get a nice thin batter.

Dredge the fish in the flour and then in the runny batter and fry until golden.

shrimp po’boys for mardi gras

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Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, Pancake Day, Shrove Tuesday – that’s today! I had many ideas of what I wanted to make for the day. I thought about pancakes and thought about beignets. I decided to be practical though because what I really needed was dinner.

Mardi Gras is largely associated with New Orleans so what better way to honour it than with a classic – Shrimp Po’ Boy.  I found a fantastic recipe in the cookbook “The Southern Po’ Boy” by Todd-Michael St. Pierre.

With activities every evening, I didn’t have a lot of time but luckily this recipe was easy and didn’t take long at all. The cornmeal added a nice crunch to the shrimp. We used crusty rolls, spread with mayo and sriracha, and topped with lettuce, green onions and the crisp shrimp.

Q’s reaction when he took a bite….”Mamma, this is not good….this is awesome!”. So awesome in fact that he came home after martial arts and asked for more. Yay!

Shrimp Po’ Boy
From “The Southern Po’ Boy” by Todd-Michael St. Pierre

Fried Shrimp:
2 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp onion powder
canola oil, for frying
1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup cornmeal

Make a spice mix by whisking together the salt, cayenne, garlic powder, paprika, oregano, thyme, black pepper, and onion powder in a small bowl.

Place the shrimp and 1 TB of the spice mix in a large bowl, sprinkle over the shrimp, and toss to coat.  Pour the buttermilk into a medium bowl.  Whish together the flour, cornmeal, and remaining spice mixture in another bowl.  Dip the seasoned shrimp into the buttermilk, then coat with the flour and cornmeal mixture, tapping off the excess. 

Working in batches, fry the shrimp until golden brown, about 4 minutes per batch.

smoked salmon crepes

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I love a good crepe. Whether it be savoury for lunch or dinner or sweet for a perfect dessert, they are so versatile. 

When deciding what to have for dinner the other night, I noticed some smoked salmon in the freezer. With spinach and cheese in the fridge, crepes just seemed like the way to go.

I decided to go with a recipe from Alton Brown. As intimidating as he seems, he really knows his stuff!  This recipe comes together really quickly in a blender.  Brown suggests placing the batter in the fridge for an hour, allowing the bubbles to subside thereby making it less likely for the crepes to tear.

Usually with crepes, they say one for the pan. That was true in this case, but the following crepes turned out great! They cooked quite quickly and dinner was on the table in less than half an hour. Smeared with Boursin and topped with the salmon, spinach and green onions, these were delish!

This recipe made quite a few crepes, meaning we had some for dessert as well! Dulce de leche was poured down the middle, and rolled into the perfect sweet ending.

Crepes
From Alton Brown, Good Eats

2 large eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1 cup flour

3 tablespoons melted butter

Butter, for coating the pan
In a blender, combine all of the ingredients and pulse for 10
seconds. Place the crepe batter in the refrigerator for 1 hour, allowing the bubbles to subside.

Heat a small non-stick pan. Add butter to coat. Pour 1 ounce of
batter into the center of the pan and swirl to spread evenly. Cook for
30 seconds and flip. Cook for another 10 seconds and remove to the
cutting board. Lay them out flat so they can cool. Continue until all
batter is gone.

usa rice and seafood paella

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I was very excited to participate in a blogging opportunity featuring USA Rice.

In
our house, we mostly use Basmati and I was happy that I was able to
find one that was grown in the US, so that I could feature it in a
recipe. Normally, I cook rice in a rice cooker.  For this recipe though,
the stove top and oven were used for the delicious seafood paella.

Check out this video featuring one of Canada’s culinary experts, Rose Reisman.

Here are some interesting facts about rice:

The
U.S. is one of the largest exporters of rice, supplying about seven per
cent of the rice that enters world trade. Approximately 45 per cent of
the U.S. rice crop is exported to more than 100 countries.
There are approximately 30 mills in the U.S.
Canada produces no rice of its own. Canadian wild rice is not a true rice, but the seed of an aquatic grass.
Almost 70 per cent of rice consumed in Canada is grown in the U.S.
The U.S. produces over 40 commercial varieties of rice each year in paddy, brown, white, parboiled and precooked forms.
There
are thousands of rice varieties. At the International Rice Research
Institute Genetic Resources Centre in the Philippines, there are 80,000
rice samples in cold storage.
Rice is grown on every continent except Antarctica.
One
seed of rice yields more than 3,000 grains. It is the highest yielding
cereal grain and can grow in many kinds of environment and soils.

With
rice, the possibilities are endless but I decided on making paella. I
adapted this recipe from Ina Garten’s for lobster paella. I made this
savoury dish with lobster, prawns and mussels. Definitely a comforting
dish but sophisticated enough for entertaining.

Seafood Paella
Adapted from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

Olive oil
2 small onions, chopped
1 red pepper, sliced
1 orange pepper, sliced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups USA basmati rice
5 cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp saffron threads, crushed
1 lobster tail, cooked and chopped
1 pound prawns, cooked in butter
1 pound mussels, cooked
salt
pepper
parsley
lemon

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a pot, add onions and cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes. Lower the heat, add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute longer.

Stir in the rice, chicken stock, saffron, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and place it in the oven. After 15 minutes, stir the rice gently and return in to the oven to bake uncovered for 15 more minutes, until the rice is fully cooked.

In the meantime, cook the seafood. I cooked the prawns and lobster in butter.

Transfer the paella back to the stove and add in the seafood. Cover the paella and allow it to steam for 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley and lemon.

prawns biryani

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Earlier this week, we celebrated Eid-Al-Adha, the festival of sacrifice. As with any major occasion, we celebrate with food. One dish that you will find at any special occasion, like Eid or a wedding, is biryani. Biryani is a rice dish topped with a reduced curry of chicken, beef or prawns.

I figured this Eid would be a great excuse to try out a new dish. I have been following Fauzia’s Kitchen Fun for a while and all her recipes look great. I was excited to give her Prawn Biryani a try. The recipe was easy to follow along and the end result was a tasty dish.

I did make a few changes since my decision to make this was so last minute and there was no time for marinating over night and I also didn’t have all of the ingredients. This is best served with raw onions, tomatoes and cilantro topped with some lemon juice.

Prawn Biryani
Adapted from Fauzia’s Kitchen Fun

Prawns Masala:
oil
1 pound prawns
1/2 tsp garlic paste
6 TB fried onions
2 tomatoes
1/2 cup yogurt, whipped
2 TB tomato paste
1 tsp garlic paste
1/2 tsp ginger paste
juice of half a lemon
pinch of saffron
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1 cinnamon stick
1 cardamom pod
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 large potato, boiled and cubed
4 TB chopped coriander

Heat oil and add the prawns, frying until translucent. Drain and set aside.

Add the cumin seeds, cardamom and cinnamon to the oil. Once they start popping, add the chopped tomatoes, sprinkle a bit of salt on them, and fry until all the moisture evaporates.

Combine the yogurt, 3 TB of the onions, the tomato paste and the saffron in a bowl.

Once the tomatoes have dried, add the ginger, garlic, turmeric and cumin powder. Fry for a minute and add the yogurt mixture. Cook this down for 2 to 3 minutes until it thickens. Add the prawns, remaining onions and potatoes and simmer together on low heat. Add salt as desired. Top with coriander.

Rice:
Wash then soak 3 cups of rice in water for about 20-30 minutes.

Soak a few saffron strands in some water and set aside.

Bring a big pot of water to boil, add salt, 4 cardamom pods, 2-3 cinnamon sticks and 2-3 cloves plus about 2 tbsp. of oil.

Drain the soaked rice and add it to this water when it is boiling. Cook until the rice is about 3/4 done, remove and strain out all the water. Put half the rice back into the pan, drizzle about 2-3 tbsp. of oil and the saffron water. Add a bit of orange color on one side and mix it up a bit with a spoon and add the remaining rice. Then cover the pot tightly. Steam this on low heat for 15minutes or put in a 180 C preheated oven for about the same time. Serve the rice with the prawns on top.

wasabi ranch glazed panko-crusted salmon

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The clean up in Calgary is underway and it has been amazing to see everyone chip in one way or another to get the city up and running. Despite the fact that the Stampede grounds were affected in a huge way with the flood, the Calgary Stampede will go ahead, “come hell or high water”. The greatest show on earth will go on!

I was excited to be asked to participate once again in Hidden Valley Ranch‘s Ranchify Recipe Challenge.  Last year, I submitted cheesy ranch fried pickles, spicy ranch shrimp kebabs, and cherry tomato ranch meatballs. I had fun creating recipes again this year, one of them being the wasabi ranch glazed panko-crusted salmon (whoa, that’s a mouthful!).  Ned Bell will be judging all the recipes and will demo the winning recipe at the Calgary Stampede.

Salmon is a great go-to, especially since Q eats it without complaining. Paired with a salad, it’s a quick and tasty meal.

The ranch dressing went really well with the wasabi and the soya sauce combined with the panko created a delicious Japanese-inspired meal. The salmon was moist and the wasabi ranch glaze added a huge amount of flavour. This will definitely be making the rounds again.

Wasabi Ranch Glazed Panko-Crusted Salmon

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
Zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 TB soya sauce
3 TB Hidden Valley Ranch dressing
1/4 tsp wasabi
salmon
Olive oil
Sesame seeds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the dressing and the wasabi and put a layer of the mixture on the salmon filets.

Combine the panko with the zest, garlic and soya sauce.  Press the breadcrumbs on the salmon filets on top of the layer of ranch dressing.

Heat oil in an oven-ready pan. When hot, place the salmon filet, skin side down and sear until the skin is brown. Drizzle olive oil on top of the breadcrumbs and place in the oven until cooked.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve with salad.