I decided to go down a different path this week, sorry Old El Paso, no taco Tuesday for Jay Eatz this week. Shrimply Tuesday inspired by one of my favourite restaurants Red Lobster or what me and the g.f. refer to as Red Lobby. One of the best things about Red Lobster besides the seafood is those delicious biscuits they give you an unlimited supply of so we will take a look on how to do those at home. Also on the menu, easy oven garlic butter shrimp and finally crab cakes with zesty lemon aioli.
Let's start with the biscuits. What you need:
Now how to make them, super easy. Preheat the oven to 450. Mix the Bisquick's, water and cheese in a bowl. Roll out the mixture on a lightly floured surface until about an inch thick. Cut the dough into 3 inch squares and place on a baking sheet, Melt the butter and seasoning together and brush on top of the biscuits and bake for about 10 minutes.
The store was out of regular Bisquick's mix so I went with the gluten free kind. Let's just say I wouldn't do that again unless I was entertaining someone with a gluten intolerance. On a side note the flavour was still there even with the flour substitution. Also a wine bottle makes for a great rolling pin if you don't have one.
Let's start with the biscuits. What you need:
- 2 cups of Bisquick baking mix
- 1/2 cup of cold water
- 1 cup of shredded old cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup of butter
- 1 Tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 Tsp Italian seasoning
Now how to make them, super easy. Preheat the oven to 450. Mix the Bisquick's, water and cheese in a bowl. Roll out the mixture on a lightly floured surface until about an inch thick. Cut the dough into 3 inch squares and place on a baking sheet, Melt the butter and seasoning together and brush on top of the biscuits and bake for about 10 minutes.
The store was out of regular Bisquick's mix so I went with the gluten free kind. Let's just say I wouldn't do that again unless I was entertaining someone with a gluten intolerance. On a side note the flavour was still there even with the flour substitution. Also a wine bottle makes for a great rolling pin if you don't have one.
Now for the shrimp, again what you need:
Preheat the oven to 350. Toss the shrimp, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl to evenly cover (if the shrimp does not look like it is coated add another splash of olive oil). Spread the shrimp out on a baking sheet and cook for about 8 minutes in the oven or until the shrimp turn pinkish in colour. Remove from oven and immediately add the butter to the baking sheet stirring the shrimp around the sheet to coat with the butter. Then transfer to serving dishes and top with the fresh chopped parsley.
- 2 lbs bag of large frozen shrimp, thawed (or fresh if you live by the sea)
- a splash of olive oil
- 1/3 cup of butter
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced (go with 4 or 5 if you love garlic)
- some chopped fresh parsley for presentation
Preheat the oven to 350. Toss the shrimp, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl to evenly cover (if the shrimp does not look like it is coated add another splash of olive oil). Spread the shrimp out on a baking sheet and cook for about 8 minutes in the oven or until the shrimp turn pinkish in colour. Remove from oven and immediately add the butter to the baking sheet stirring the shrimp around the sheet to coat with the butter. Then transfer to serving dishes and top with the fresh chopped parsley.
I went with unpeeled shrimp as I find the outer shell adds more flavour to the shrimp but peeled and deveined shrimp would be an excellent substitution for those that don't want to bother with peeling their shrimp.
Grab a skillet and pour enough vegetable oil to fill the skillet about a half inch. Heat oil on medium until it is up to temp, about 5 minutes. Use a steel spatula to lift crab cakes off the plate (they will stick slightly to the plate after being in the freezer) and gently place them into the skillet. Cook until golden brown, roughly 4 minutes per side. Remove and place on plate lined with paper towel to remove excess oil.
Finally the crab cakes, what you will need:
To make the crab cakes mix everything except the crab meat and crackers in a mixing bowl. Gently stir in the crab. Then slowly add the crushed crackers until the mixture develops a doughy constancy (if it's too runny add more crushed crackers). I placed my crab cakes on a plate in the freezer for 15 minutes to allow them to firm up.
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup of mayonnaise (the real stuff, no whipped dressing)
- 4 Tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 Tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/2 Tsp dried parsley
- 185 gram can of crab meat, drained (or fresh if you can spare the time to boil and crack)
- 3/4 cup of crushed Ritz crackers
- Vegetable oil (for frying crab cakes)
To make the crab cakes mix everything except the crab meat and crackers in a mixing bowl. Gently stir in the crab. Then slowly add the crushed crackers until the mixture develops a doughy constancy (if it's too runny add more crushed crackers). I placed my crab cakes on a plate in the freezer for 15 minutes to allow them to firm up.
For the zesty lemon aioli I cheated and used mayonnaise. You can make real aioli with egg yolks and a food processor but that's what mayonnaise is for. I mixed a half cup of mayo, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 3 Tsp of lemon juice and about 1 Tsp of cayenne pepper in a small bowl. I then topped the crab cakes with a generous dollop of the aioli.
Three simple recipes for a shrimply Tuesday with a side of crab cakes, take that taco Tuesday.
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