Seafood Salad

I love this salad. It's easy, quick, and healthy, despite the mayo. I used the mayo that's made with olive oil, a good fat that we need. As for the crab meat, I use the imitation kind because it's cheaper. I'm sure the real thing would be better, but if made in the proportion below can serve as a nice addition to any appetizer table and server about 10.

Ingredients:
2 packets of Imitation crab meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 packets of tiny shrimp
6 scallions, finely cut
4-6 TBSP of mayo, just enough to coat everything, but not to drown it.
2 hard boiled eggs, grated

Steps:
1. Mix everything in a bowl
2. Serve

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, in large part because I love all the cooking. Most people dread all the cooking, but I even take Wednesday off so I can make a few “spares”, just in case something doesn’t turn out and people still leave with overstuffed bellies. I still love the holiday, despite the mandatory family squabbling. But without further delay, here is the menu I’m planning (and yes, I take help where I can):

Appetizers:

• Chicken wings (not a Thanksgiving staple, but I love them and they seem to go over pretty well with the family).
• Seafood puffs (puff pastry stuffed with seafood, store bought, and I hope they’re good).
• Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese Pizza Bites
• Smoked Salmon wrapped Baked Asparagus
• Baked Asparagus with Cheese
• Shrimp with sauce

Salads:

• Seafood salad
• Egg salad and mushroom

Main Course:

• Turkey (DUH!)
• Baked potatoes (my family is averse to mashed potatoes with skins and I am averse to pealing potatoes)
• Stuffing (of the StoveTop variety. My family will accept no other.)

Dessert:

• I bought two pies at Sweet Pies of Door County and we’ll have that. They’re yummy, try one.
• I also bought a Russian-style dessert called Zephyr in Chocolate. I’m not exactly sure what’s in it, but it seems a marshmallow-type substance covered in dark chocolate.

Recipes and pictures for all these to follow.

Leftovers into the pan

I always have too many leftovers and I never know what to do with them. Today I decided to toss all of them into a pot. Generally, that's my typical cooking style (through stuff into a pot and see what happens) unless I'm making a specific dish. Today I had bits of uncooked pasta, half a large eggplant, and a few other raw ingredients. Feel free to try this with anything you like. Here is what I had.

Ingredients:

1/2 of a large eggplant (peeled and diced)
3/4 of a large red onion (diced)
1 14.5 oz. can of tomatoes (whatever you have on hand)
a packet of mushrooms (mine were already sliced)
cheese (whatever you like, to taste)
salt, pepper, parsley, garlic
a handful of spaghetti
liquid (you can use some wine, or stock or water. I used about a cup of chicken stock)

Steps:
1. In a large skillet saute onions, garlic and eggplant together. When the eggplant shrinks a little and the onions are really soft, add the mushrooms.
2. Add stock and cook for a few minutes before adding the can of tomatoes.
3. Season.
4. Add the cooked pasta (cook it in a different pot), parsley, and cheese.

Oven "Fries" / Steak Fries

In the last few years I have developed a real appreciation for the potato. I never liked it when I was growing up, but I think it's because it was mainly found in soups, all mushy and in various states of disintegration; or it was pan fried. Turns out I don't really like the greasy texture of the fried potato, all crunchy on the outside and mealy on the inside.

But I started experimenting with a few varieties and a few recipes. Here is an easy, quick, and healthy alternative to fries.

Ingredients:

1 lb of Yukon Gold potatoes
1 bottle of your favorite steak seasoning (I use McCormick)
1 TB of olive oil
1 Gallon plastic bag

Steps:
1. Peal the potatoes.
2. Cut into wedges of roughly equal size, so they cook evenly.
3. Place potatoes into the plastic bag with the olive oil. Shake the potatoes to coat with the oil.
4. Place the oiled potatoes on a baking sheet and sprinkle with the steak seasoning to taste.
5. Place into a preheated oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes or until they're done.