Shrimp & Crab Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed Pepper served on a bed of crispy potato straws

I promise you, the seafood lovers you invite over will rave about this! I prepared these Shrimp and Crab Stuffed Peppers for my Halloween Dinner Party and it sure didn't disappoint anyone! You don't NEED to do this over two days, however; I found it easier on time to have most of it prepared ahead of time.

Preparation:

Shrimp

I prepared the shrimp a day ahead of time, but you can do it the same day if you prefer. My "no fail" boiled shrimp is by far the tastiest I've ever made. In a large pot of water, add Old Bay Seasoning and 1 bay leaf. Bring this to a boil. Add the shrimp, and let it cook for exactly 3 minutes. Immediately drain and run cold water over it. I also have a small container of ice that I put it on. If cooked shrimp is left standing, it continues to cook! Slice the shrimp into chunks and put in a bowl. 

Crab

Living in the high deserts, I purchased lump crab meat. I do not like the canned crab meat at all. While the lump crab is a bit more expensive, taste-wise, it's SO worth it! Rinse this well. And I mean well. If you think you've rinsed it long enough, do it again for a little while longer. Pat it dry, and add it to the shrimp. I sprinkled just a hint of Old Bay over it, covered the bowl and put it in the refrigerator overnight.

The next morning, I got out the rest of the ingredients to complete the recipe:

Preparation:

Peppers:

Cut the tops off the peppers, rinse and remove seeds. Blanch them in boiling water for about 10 minutes. Set aside.

Ingredients for Stuffing: 

• 2 Shallots, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped
• 2 T Olive oil
• 2 Celery Stalks, chopped
• 2 tsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1/2 cup white wine (I use Martini & Rossi Dry Vermouth)
• 1 Cup bread crumbs - divided
• Salt & Pepper to taste (if desired)
• 1 cup cooked wild rice (according to directions)

Topping:

• 2 T. Butter
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Place the peppers in a glass baking dish in about an inch of water. 

In a skillet, brown the onion, shallots, and celery in the olive oil. Let it cook until the vegetables are slightly wilted. Add the shrimp and crab and stir in the white wine and tomato paste. Sprinkle with Italian Seasoning, salt and pepper.  Stir in 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, wild rice and transfer to a bowl. Melt the butter in the skillet, adding the remaining bread crumbs. Stir until they are lightly browned and remove from heat.

Fill the peppers with the stuffing, and top with the browned breadcrumbs. Bake for 35-45 minutes. 

Stand back and wait for the avalanche of compliments! Enjoy!

Happy Eating!

Port Balsamic Vinegar Jam

Exciting... Well, maybe not SO exciting that it merits a huge font; however, just the name of this jam had my creativity going.  I saw it and thought: "Interesting flavors in a jar". Being one that loves to experiment with *interesting*, I just knew I had to make this.


The recipe is relatively easy to follow. I always read through a new recipe a few times before actually attempting to do it.  One of my favorite tweeples on Twitter @exceptionalfoods highly recommended thoroughly reading a recipe two or three times. While it may SEEM rather elementary, it isn't. How many times have you given a cursory glance to something, then accidentally omitted a critical ingredient? :::gulity:::


I acquired this recipe from www.food.com
Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar or white balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup strips orange rind
• 3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups port or white port
• 1 pouch liquid pectin

Preparation

In small saucepan, simmer vinegar and orange strips until reduced to 1/4 cup. Cover and let steep until cool. 

Meanwhile, in a bowl, cover 4 canning jar discs with hot water; set aside.

Strain vinegar into large saucepan; stir in port and sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring constantly. At rolling boil, cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in pectin, mixing well.

Pour mix into hot 1-cup (250ML) canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Wipe jars, cover with prepared discs. Screw on bands until resistance is met; increase to fingertip tight. Boil in  boiling water canner for 10 minutes. Let cool on rack. Check that lids curve down. 

The NEXT time I prepare this recipe, here are the adjustments I will make:

• 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup strips orange rind
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups port
• grated orange rind

Following the same directions as above, I want to increase the vinegar, decrease the sugar. In my initial batch, I thought the sweetness of the port to provide more than enough "sweet".  The sugar is needed for texture and consistency. I also will seep the vinegar and orange strips longer than 45 mins (until cool). I want to add some grated orange rind to the actual mix for sparkle, color and a tinge of flavor. 

This jam will be perfect on cheddar cheese biscuits, or served along side a corned beef or some equally salty beef. Please feel free to post any of your suggestions, too!

Happy Cooking!

A Spooktacular Halloween Dining Experience!

Entertaining is so much fun, and even MORE fun when there is a pre-set theme to work within! I’ve been researching my Halloween Dinner, and I believe I’ve come up with the perfect menu!

1. A Pumpkin Soup Appetizer
2. Jack-O-Lantern Bell Peppers
3. Spider Web Bread 
4. Pumpkin Bars dessert.

The table decor will be fun, also! I’ll be sure to post a photo! Here is the entire menu, with recipes written out for you. What other additions would you make? Any comments?


Appetizer 
Savory Pumpkin Soup

I found a recipe that I’m altering just a bit to suit my tastes.  Hollow out 4 small pumpkins, saving the seeds and discarding the membrane. Bake the pumpkins in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes, until softened.

I will use 1 can of pumpkin as the base, add 1 can of vegetable broth, 1/2 cup of fat free creamer and bring this to a slow simmer. Add 1 tsp of curry powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, a dash of cayenne pepper, a little cinnamon and some nutmeg. Let this cook down for about 30 minutes. Ladle into the pumpkin bowls and top with toasted pumpkin seeds.

Main Dish
 Stuffed Jack-O-Lantern Bell Peppers from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 6 bell peppers, any color
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 egg
• 4 slices whole wheat bread, cubed
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 small tomato, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup chili sauce
• 1/4 cup prepared yellow mustard
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8×8 inch baking dish.
2. Lightly mix together the ground beef, egg, bread cubes, onion, tomato, garlic, chili sauce, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
3. Wash the peppers, and cut jack-o’-lantern faces into the peppers with a sharp paring knife, making triangle eyes and noses, and pointy-teeth smiles. Slice off the tops of the peppers, and scoop out the seeds and cores. Stuff the peppers lightly with the beef stuffing, and place them into the prepared baking dish so they lean against each other.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the peppers are tender and the stuffing is cooked through and juicy, about 1 hour.

I will more than likely do some deletions/additions to the stuffing, but I love the idea of making the bell peppers look like Jack-O-Lanterns! So fun!

 

Spiderweb Bread

I found a very easy recipe on the Pillsbury site for “Spider Web Bread” using a can of Pillsbury breadsticks, cutting them into pieces, rolling them into smaller sections to make individual spider webs. This will be visually fun! I plan to craft a “spider” from a dollop of butter. These will go beside each plate.

 Dessert
Paula Dean's Pumpkin Bars from foodnetwork.com  

Ingredients - Bars

• 4 eggs
• 1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 15-ounce can pumpkin
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

 Ingredients - Icing

• 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine the eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10-inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

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If you are like me, when you entertain, you will search for specific recipes that can be made up ahead of time and prepared in advance. This way, serving is a breeze and presentation is easy! I hope that YOUR Halloween Dinner is a smash hit! I can’t wait to post photos of this one!