Fresh From The Sea

Shrimp-Stuffed Roasted Poblanos with

Red Bell Pepper Sauce

Ingredients:

8 large poblano chilies

8 ounces peeled, deveined cooked shrimp, chopped

2/3 cup goat cheese, room temperature

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

¼ cup chopped red bell pepper

2 Tbsp chopped shallot

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Cilantro for garnish

Instructions:

1. Char poblano chilies over gas flame until blackened on all sides.
2. Enclose in paper bag 10 minutes.  Peel chilies.  Slit chilies open along 1 side.  Remove seeds, leaving stem attached.
3. Mix together shrimp, cheeses, red bell pepper, shallot, cilantro and basil.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Fill chilies with shrimp mixture, dividing equally.  Pull up sides of chilies to enclose filling. Spear with a toothpick if having problems keeping them enclosed. Place stuffed chilies on baking sheet. 
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake chilies uncovered until heated through and cheese melts, about 15 minutes. 
6. Drizzle red bell pepper sauce onto each plate and place stuffed chili on top of sauce.  Garnish with cilantro leaves.

Yields:  8 serving

Classic Steamed Mussels

Ingredients:

¼ cup olive oil

6 Tbsp. minced shallots

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

2 pounds mussels

½ -¾ cup dry white wine

1 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp. butter

2/3 cup chopped mixed parsley and cilantro (divided use)

Instructions:

1. Heat a Dutch oven over high heat.  When the pot is hot, add the oil, shallots and garlic and cook for about 1 minute, stirring.
2. Add the mussels, wine, Old Bay Seasoning, lemon juice, half of the parsley and cilantro and cover with the lid and shake the pot.
3. Cook shaking the pot often, until the mussels open, about 4 minutes.  (The larger the mussels, the longer they will take to cook.)
4. Reduce the heat to medium-high.  Reduce the liquid by one-third and then turn off the heat.  Divide the mussels and sauce among 4 big soup plates.
5. Garnish with the remaining herbs and serve immediately with garlic bread to sop up the juices.

Yield:  4 servings

Steelhead Trout Lo Mein           

Serves 4

• 1# Wild Steelhead Trout
• 1 tsp soy sauce, plus 2 Tbsp. (divided)
• 1 tsp oil, plus more for cooking
• 8oz. fresh lo Mein noodles or regular white noodles
• 2 cups shredded Napa cabbage
• 2 Cups of mung bean sprouts
• 1 medium carrot julienned
• ½ small red bell pepper, julienned
• ½ cup fresh sliced mushrooms
• ½ cup sliced winter bamboo shoots
• 2/3 cup snow peas
• 1 scallion, julienned
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of sugar  

• Cut the Steelhead trout in ¾ inch cubes. Place the trout in a bowl and mix in 1 tsp of soy sauce and oil. Set aside.
• If using white noodles, boil them in about 2 quarts of water, rinse in cold water and drain. If using Lo Mein egg noodles, you can skip this step. If you can’t get LO Mein or other fresh noodles at your Asian grocer, fresh or dried linguini pasta will do also.
• Cut you veggies and have them all ready for cooking. Heat the wok until smoking slightly and add a couple Tbsp. of oil to coat the wok and sear the Steelhead Trout. Take the trout out and set aside.
• Add the garlic and all of the vegetables to the pan except the dark green parts of the scallions, bean sprouts and the snow peas. Stir-fry on high heat for a minute and add the wine in a circle around the perimeter of the wok.
• Add the noodles back to the pan and mix well from the bottom up for about 30 seconds. Then cover the wok for one minute. Remove cover and add the remaining tablespoon of regular soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, sugar, dark green parts of the scallion, bean sprouts and snow peas; mix well. Add the steelhead trout, and stir-fry for another minute, or until any remaining liquid has evaporated.
• Plate, serve and enjoy!

Zuppa di Pesce (Italian Seafood Stew)

Yield:  6 servings

 Serves 2

For the Halibut:

• 2- 6 to 8 oz Halibut Fillets  
• Salt and Pepper
• ½ Cup Panko
• ¼ cup Pesto ( Purchased or your own home recipe)

For the Carrots and Cauliflower:

• ½ lbs. Baby Carrots
• ½ lbs. Cauliflower Florets
• 3 tbsp. Olive Oil

• Pre heat oven to 350
• Season the fish with salt and pepper. Then coat the halibut on both sides with pesto, place fillet in the panko and coat both sides.
• Place the fish in baking dish and bake 15-20 minutes until panko is lightly toasted and fish is just cooked through.
• Toss the carrots and cauliflower in a bowl with 3 tbsp. of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Spread in a single layer or rimmed baking sheet. Roast the vegetables until tender and lightly browned about 25 minutes. Stirring once or twice.
• Place vegetables and halibut on plate and enjoy!

Ginger Garlic Scallop Fried Rice

 Serves 4

• 8 Scallops, cut horizontally in half
• ¼ cup vegetable oil, plus 1 Tbsp.
• 2 ounces ginger, minced
• 1 ½ heads of garlic, minced (about ¼ cup)
• 5 cups cooked white rice, cooled
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground white pepper
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 3 Scallions, Finely chopped

• Heat your wok over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to coat. Quickly stir-fry the scallops until they’re just cooked. Avoid over cooking them (you will be adding them back in later). Transfer them to a bowl and set aside.
• Add ¼ cup oil to the wok and heat over medium-high heat. Add the ginger and fry until fragrant (the color will darken, but the ginger will not necessarily become crisp). Next, add the garlic. It should be lightly toasted; if it is still white in color, it needs more cooking time. In total, it will take about 10 minutes to cook the ginger and garlic.
• Next, turn the heat up to high and add the rice to the wok. Stir-fry the rice so the ginger/garlic mixture is evenly distributed.  Spread out the rice in one layer so it can evenly toast. Occasionally stir-fry the rice and re-spread it. Next, season the rice with soy sauce, Shaoxing wine and white pepper. Continue to stir-fry for another 3-5 minutes.
• Next, pour the eggs evenly over the rice, and stir-fry quickly to distribute. The egg will coat the grains of rice, and you’ll have egg throughout instead of large clumps. If you’d prefer to pre-scramble the eggs and then stir them in at this step, you can do that too.
• Add the scallops and the scallions, stir-fry to combine.
• Serve and enjoy!

Grilled Scallop and Avocado Salad

Ingredients:

1½ Tbsp achiote paste, crumbled or 1 Tbsp smoked paprika

1 orange, juiced

2 limes, juiced

1 medium garlic clove, minced

¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

12 large sea scallops

2 avocados, halved, pitted and flesh cut into quarters

2 Tbsp sugar

6 cups mixed baby greens

1 red grapefruit, peeled and segmented

Instructions:

1. To make the marinade, place the achiote paste (or smoked paprika), orange and lime juice, garlic, oil, salt and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth.  Reserve ¼ cup of the marinade in a small bowl.
2. Add the scallops to the bowl with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for up to 30 minutes. Remove the scallops from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels.  Discard the marinade.  Coat a large heavy skillet with olive oil and put over medium-high heat.  Add the scallops in a single layer.  Cook until golden on 1 side, about 2 minutes, depending on size.  Turn and brown on the other side, another 2 minutes.  Drain on paper towels and set aside to cool slightly.
3. Coat the bottom of a small, nonstick skillet over medium heat, with olive oil.  Sprinkle 1 side of the avocado slices with sugar, and salt and pepper, to taste.  Add them to the skillet and cook until the sugar is caramelized and golden, about 2 minutes.  Turn gently and cook for another 30 seconds.  Remove to a plate and set aside. 
4. Put the baby lettuce in a bowl with half of the grapefruit segments.  Add the reserved ¼ cup of marinade and toss until coated.
5. To serve, put the dressed lettuce on individual lettuce plates.  Top with the caramelized avocados, remaining grapefruit segments and scallops.  Serve additional vinaigrette on the side.

Yield: 6 servings