shrimp Archives - SmallSpaceCooking

Soup

Cool Avocado and Cucumber Soup

The temperature is hovering at 100F here. I don’t even want to think about turning on the stove. When it’s too hot to cook, chilled soup with a sparkling glass of wine makes a lovely, refreshing meal. This soup is so elegant in its simplicity and flavor that it begs for a crisp white tablecloth and a baguette with cold salted butter. Add a few pieces of grilled shrimp, chicken or scallops and you have a special meal with no fuss.

All you do is throw everything in the blender and in less than a minute it’s done. I like a bit of texture in my soups. With this cool avocado and cucumber soup, I don’t puree it to complete smoothness which you might want to do. And remember: with chilled food you usually need a bit more salt than you might think. Enjoy!

Cool Avocado and Cucumber Soup

Ingredients

2 medium cucumbers, peeled and chopped.
1 avocado
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and roughly chopped. Sometimes I roast the jalapeño which gives the soup a slightly richer flavor.
1 1/4 cups ice-cold water
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
1 small shallot chopped
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro, mint or dill
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Utensils

Blender or food processor, measuring spoons

Method

Now the easy part:

Place everything in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Add more cold water if you need to thin the soup to your desired consistency. Season again with salt and pepper if needed. Because it is served cold, this soup might need a bit more salt than you are used to using. Chill in the refrigerator for about 1 hour before serving. I have been known to put the cool avocado and cucumber soup in a bowl in the freezer for 20 to 30 minutes stirring occasionally to serve it sooner. Taste before serving to make sure the seasonings are balanced.

Garnish with sprig of mint or couple of cilantro leaves.

Make Cool Avocado and Cucumber Soup a meal by adding chopped tomatoes, a couple of grilled shrimp or scallops or even a few pieces of roasted chicken. Make an arrangement of the tomatoes, cilantro and grilled shrimp/scallop/chicken in the middle of the soup.

Editors note: I’ve made this several times lately and occasionally I needed to add a bit more sugar if it is too tart. Enjoy!

July 27, 2015 by Bowman O' Connor

Shrimp

Quick Shrimp Creole

I just spent a week competing in a regatta on the Gulf Coast. A lot of the area around Bay St. Louis, site of the regatta, was wiped out during Katrina a decade ago. While there are still foundation slabs sitting derelict on patches of ground, the community is rebuilding and the bare slabs are now in the minority. If you have time, go down and see this thriving community. They sure know how to eat well and have fun.

The food was great and the old southern hospitality welcoming. I miss living in places like New Orleans and the Gulf Coast where every neighborhood joint has great food and where eating well was an important part of life before the foodie craze. Don’t get me wrong – it is wonderful that an interest in food – good food – is now a favorite pastime. But there is just something different about a place where sharing a meal is a way of life and not something done on the way to somewhere else.

I came home ready to make some of my Cajun and Creole favorites. I love to spend half a day making Shrimp Creole but that means we only have it now and again. Here is a riff on this Creole classic – Quick Shrimp Creole – that is easy enough for any evening’s dinner. I’ll share my “long version” in the future.

Quick Shrimp Creole

Ingredients

3T butter (or bacon grease for the added flavor)
2T all purpose flour
1 ½ c chicken or seafood stock
1 c diced onion
½ c green bell pepper, diced (or substitute red bell pepper)
½ c diced celery
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
½ c ketchup (yes, ketchup)
14oz can of diced tomatoes (or two medium tomatoes, seeded and diced)
½ t cayenne
½ t smoked paprika
salt and pepper
1t dried thyme (or 2t fresh thyme chopped)
1t dried basil (or 2t fresh basil chopped)
1t dried oregano (or 2t fresh oregano chopped)
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined ( I use 26-30 count)

Utensils

1 large sauté pan or skillet, 2c measuring cup, teaspoon

First you make a roux :- ) Melt 3T butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. When the butter is melted, sprinkle the flour over the butter and whisk until smooth and the mixture turns a medium caramel color. Add the onion, celery and bell pepper. Cook until the onion is translucent and the celery and bell pepper have softened. Add salt and pepper to taste. Next add the garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes more. You want to make sure the garlic is no longer raw. Clear a little space in the mixture and add the cayenne and paprika to this empty space. Within a minute or when you can smell the cayenne and paprika, stir in the ketchup, tomatoes, thyme, basil, oregano, bay leaf. Slowly add half of the stock and stir until thickened slightly. Add more stock until you get it to the desired thickness. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the shrimp and simmer on low heat till the shrimp turns pink. Taste again and add salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve with rice.

This quick shrimp creole freezes well.

July 14, 2015 by Bowman O' Connor