An App Fit For Fireworks - Fourth of July Shrimp Ceviche

Happy Birthday, America! Though July Fourth has quickly come and gone, this year's memories of great food and family fun should last us a while. Our Independence Day cookout was a hit, and everyone delivered big time with some excellent food offerings. Highlights included a delicious grilled skirt steak courtesy of my mom and a really fantastic Grilled Peach, Bacon, and Onion salad made by my very talented sister in law. Check out the recipe she used here: Grilled Peach Onion and Bacon Salad with 

Buttermilk Dressing

Photo by John Kernick, Food & Wine Mag

Now my BBQ assignment was to come up with a great starter, and Ceviche was the first thing that popped to mind. Ever since our honeymoon in Belize, my husband and I have been partial to serving ceviches with tortilla chips just as they do there. Ceviche served this way makes a great communal appetizer. Best of all, the Rick Bayless Ceviche recipe that I adapted below calls for the shrimp to be cooked, unlike most ceviches which call for raw fish. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love raw fish ceviches, but when serving a crowd and especially in hot weather, I often err on the side of caution with uncooked ingredients - it's the neurotic in me. Do enjoy this really easy, super citrusy and stupendous Shrimp Ceviche. We sure did!

Shrimp Ceviche - Ceviche de Camaron 

Adapted from Rick Bayless

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2/3 Cup plus 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice

1 1/4 Lb Shrimp, Peeled, Deveined, Tails off. I prefer smaller sized shrimp -35 count/lb. 

(Note: buying cleaned, deveined Shrimp is a huge timesaver. Our fishmonger cleaned them for us for 2 extra bucks - money well spent if you ask me)

1/2 a large White Onion chopped into quarter-inch pieces

1/3 Cup chopped Fresh Cilantro plus extra sprigs for garnish

1/2 Cup Ketchup

2 Tablespoons Mexican Vinegary Hot Sauce - We used Cholula Brand Chili Lime Flavor

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Cup diced, peeled Cucumber

1 small ripe Avocado, peeled and cubed 

Coarse Salt

Photo, NK 

2 Limes cut in quarters for garnish

Good Quality, Study Tortilla Chips for Serving

Method:

Make the Shrimp

Bring one quart of salted water to a boil. 

Add 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice. 

Scoop in the Shrimp and cover until water returns to a boil.

Immediately remove pot from the heat. 

Pour off the water leaving the Shrimp in the pot. 

Return lid to pot and let Shrimp steam for 8 to 10 minutes. 

Once steamed, lay the Shrimp in a large glass, high-sided dish to cool completely.

Once cooled, remove Shrimp to cutting board and cut into thirds or bite-sized hunks.

Boiled Shrimp, Photo: NK

Return Shrimp to the glass pyrex and pour 2/3 Cup Lime Juice over them.

Cover the dish and refrigerate for about an hour.

Once the Shrimp has marinated

Combine Onion, Chopped Cilantro, Avocado and Cucumber in a large bowl. 

Pour in the Shrimp with its Lime Juice.

Add Ketchup, Hot Sauce, and Olive Oil. 

Mixing the Ingredients, Photo: NK 

Mix gently until the wet ingredients are fully incorporated.

Taste for seasoning and add Coarse Salt if needed.

To Serve

You may serve the Ceviche individually in Sundae bowls with Tortilla Chips on the side for a more formal gathering, but I opted to pour the Ceviche into a communal bowl set on a tray with the Tortilla Chips around it. Garnish the dish with lots of Lime wedges and a few Cilantro sprigs. Add a spoon in case folks would like to spoon on the mixture instead of dip the Tortilla Chips.

Enjoy! 

Shrimp Ceviche! Photo: NK

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A Luxe Hors D'Oeuvre - The Perfect New Year's Party Offering

With 2011 drawing to a rapid close, we here at NK are getting ready to face the sobering reality of New Year's resolutions. Among other goals, we'll be trying to shave off some of those extra holiday pounds and attempting to return to our usual frugal approach to elective spending. After a solid month of revelry and excess - two of my favorite pastimes - we hope to tighten our belts in more ways than one.


But New Year's Eve is just one of those nights that calls for celebration. For me, that means special food.


Even if your holiday dinner or evening plan is intended to be easy on the wallet, I am a big believer in including, if you can, one item that just feels luxurious. If you are attending or hosting a budget-friendly NYE party in the home, why not create one lovely hors d'oeuvre that befits this special night? 


For us, this year's "special bite" will be Truffle Tremor, Hot Soppressata and Pepper Jelly Crostini. 
I love this hors d'oeuvre because it combines humble and luxurious ingredients to create a very unique and delicious taste. The result will be a peppery, smoky, sweet, and savory bite that always gets raves.  

Truffle Tremor, Soppressata and Pepper Jelly Crostini, Photo: NK

Truffle Tremor is a wonderful aged goat cheese from a company called Cypress Grove. Flecked with black truffles, this creamy, slightly salty chèvre is really something to talk about. It is mouthwatering on its own with just a piece of crusty bread, which was how I first experienced it a year ago. After a few bites, I found myself scouring the web for ways to put it in a more complex dish. Finally, I happened upon a Truffle Tremor crostini recipe on www.denverpost.com.


Below is NK's slight adaptation on this luxurious party app that is sure to wow! 


Truffle Tremor, Hot Soppressata and Pepper Jelly Crostini 
Adapted from The Denver Post
Serves 6 - 8


Ingredients:
One foot-long baguette sliced in to 1/4 inch pieces 
1/2 pound Cypress Grove Truffle Tremor Cheese (chilled for easy slicing)
1/4 pound thin-sliced Hot Soppressata, rounds cut down the middle into half moons
1 Jar Red Pepper Jelly - we prefer Stonewall Kitchen brand: Check them out here
A handful of Baby Arugula or other spicy flavored micro greens (optional)
White or Black Truffle Oil (optional)


Method:
Slice your bread. 
Toast it, or if using optional Truffle Oil, brush the bread with Oil before toasting, finishing with a very light sprinkle of Sea Salt. 
Remove cheese from the fridge and cut off the back portion of the rind for easier slicing. 
Warm a flat edged knife in a cup of hot water and cut thin, triangular slices of cheese. Wipe your knife and rewarm in water between each slice. 
Note: If slicing proves difficult or cheese breaks apart, feel free to let it come to room temperature and spread it/press it onto the bread - it will be just as tasty! 
Place a triangle of cheese in the middle of your bread round.
Place two half moon pieces of soppressata onto the cheese folded in half, or in whatever formation looks nice, pressing the pointed edges into the cheese to affix. 
Pop in a few arugula leaves (to enhance the spicy flavor and for color).
Dot with red pepper jelly to taste.  

Pepper Jelly pictured with beautiful
handmade napkins from Boxwood Linen
Check Boxwood Out Here Photo: NK

Serve and Enjoy.


Happy New Year to you and yours from NK! 

The Mighty Cheese Plate: My Go-To Holiday Starter

The Neurotic Kitchen becomes all the more frenetic when the season calls for entertaining. Throwing cocktail parties is something I have come to love, and because I come from a long line of cooks great entertainers,  the pressure is all the more acute. My hostess muse has always been my late grandmother, Violet, or Dolly as she was more often called. She just knew how to to cook food that was delicious, well loved, and set a beautifully decorated table as the focal point for what always was a great meal. The problem was, she was too busy cooking "a la minute" to ever enjoy the party herself, and when she did finally sit down, she'd barely eat because she was more interested in keeping the conversation going. While I often borrow from her recipes and principals of decor, I've tried to modernize my entertaining style so I don't miss out on the food or the conversation. 


For this more modern approach, Ina Garten, or The Barefoot Contessa, is my favorite resource. She's a master proponent of making entertaining easy and enjoyable for both host and guest, and because of this, she offers enumerable recipes for cocktail parties, starters, and hors d'oeuvres that can be quickly yet elegantly prepared and served a room temperature - no fuss, no muss. Whenever I am faced with throwing together a party or bringing an elegant plate to someone else's affair (something I often find much more stressful), I start with the tried and true cheese (and sometimes meat) plate.  I've shared some of Ina's composition principals below.


But first, here are some of my own:

• I like my cheese to be themed, French, American/Rustic, Spanish (One of my recent Spanish Plates below)
• Add elements that incorporate height and color - including a voluptuous bunch of grapes or a brightly colored pear or apple are great ways to do this. Don't forget something leafy or herbal. I like the look of Italian Parsley. I have a pet peeve about blank spaces on the plate. I prefer it to be completely filled unless of course you are going for a minimalist look.
• If you choose to slice, try to make each individual cheese should look uniform. Slicing cheese while still cold is a good way to achieve this look. Cubes are great as well. Soft cheeses like brie are best left whole, but I will usually start of the round by slicing off a few pieces.  
• Cheese can be pricey. I always choose at least one very "special" cheese, and if I am on a budget, mix it with more affordable yet still delicious options. As Ina will tell you, having a nice assortment of firm, and softer cheeses is optimal.

Spanish Cheese and Meat Plate: Ibores, Roncal, Queso de Murcia (Drunken Goat), Serrano Ham, Grapes, Apple, Italian Parsley Garnish, Crusty Bread. Photo: Neurotic Kitchen

And here are some of Ina's (Courtesy of Food Network):

"Assembling a stunning fruit and cheese platter requires no cooking. I follow a few key principles to be sure it looks festive and is easy for guests to help themselves. First, I choose an interesting assortment of cheeses—hard sharp cheeses, soft creamy ones, and pungent blue cheeses. I look for an interesting mix of flavors, textures, and colors." - Ina Garten

Ingredients

• For example: French Camembert, Le Chevrot (a sharp goat cheese), Rondin with herbs (a creamy goat cheese), and Montagnolo (a creamy blue cheese).

Procedure

Go to the best cheese shop in town and ask the person at the counter which cheeses are ready to serve. Taste everything; they expect you to. We all know that the Brie may look terrific, but it can be underripe and tough or overripe and ammoniated. You want only the freshest cheeses that are perfectly ripened. Take them home, refrigerate them, and then bring them to room temperature a few hours before serving.

Second, be sure to have a platter or wooden board that is flat and large enough to hold the cheeses without crowding them. Arrange the cheeses with the cut sides facing out, and with several small cheese knives, maybe one for each type of cheese.

Third, to finish the platter, add sliced breads or crackers, and green leaves. I use either lemon or galax leaves, which you can get from your florist. If you have a garden, any large flat leaf like hydrangea looks beautiful, but be sure they aren't poisonous and are pesticide-free!

Overall, the simpler the design, the better the platter looks. Group each kind of cheese together and add one large bunch of green or red grapes in the center to create a visual focal point. Fill in the spaces with lots of crackers or small slices of bread.