Before we get into the first dish I would love to thank my beautiful wife for putting up with my kitchen antics and for her amazing photography! We used an afternoon sun and caught these snap shots. It is getting better each time we shoot and I love these new pictures.
Ok, hold on a bit more. I have to tell a quick story. It involves mushy macaroni noodles, rubbery shrimp, processed cheese, and too much salt the end! It was a culinary delight to be behold, ehh not so much. I am still to this day trying to get my family to try shrimp with my honed skills. They will convert someday. Ok so the dish........
Blackened Shrimp Salad
Cost: about $5.00 per person
Ingredients:
Fresh grilled corn kernels (2 whole corn cobs)
Raw almond slivers
Shrimp Skewers on sale for $1 at the local market, we bought 6 of them
Super green mix: baby spinach, tatsoi, arugula, and baby swiss chard
Kraft light three cheese ranch dressing
Blackening seasoning
Oil based butter spread
EVOO
1. Coat shrimp with softened butter spread, coat well with blackening seasonings. Heat up a cast iron skillet on medium high till it starts to smoke. Add 1/2 tbsp butter spread to the skillet. Do not be afraid Krakatoa has not overtaken your kitchen but it will get smoky so open a window. Place your skewers in the hot skillet and sear both sides until shrimp is done. For this size I do about 1 minute per side. Do not overcook these little guys.
2. This next part can be done on a grill, open flame if you have a gas stove, or the corn can be roasted in the oven. Take your corn cobs and lightly coat with EVOO. Lightly char your corn cobs. Let the corn cool and slice the kernels away from the core into your greens. Add almonds and dressing. Place your skewer over the top of the salad and enjoy!
Notes: Premade blackening seasoning can be too salty so here are the primary ingredients: Paprika- 3 tbsp, 1.5 tbsp- Black pepper, 2 tsp White Pepper, 1 tsp Oregano, 1/4 tsp Thyme, 1/4 tsp Cayenne chile powder. Play around with the amounts to see what you like. These are just rough measurements. Paprika should always be the dominate spice.
This last dish gave a little tingle on the tongue, juicy, and oh so yummy. Sunlight did not accent these pictures as we took them too late to get some good rays. So inside lighting and flash had to suffice. These dishes were amazing and I am proud to put them up as the finishing touches to last months theme.
Ever wonder what a chicken sandwich would taste like without a bun, not drowned in salt, and packed full of knock your socks off? Take a look at this beauty. Mouth watering yet?
