Shrimp Damian #FishFridayFoodies

Lots of garlic, lemon and, most of all butter make shrimp Damian my favorite dish to order at Carrabba’s Original. This is my own copycat recipe.

When my older sister graduated from law school many moons ago, my husband and I helped her buy essentials for her new office and even a few smart business suits to wear to court. For several years hence she thanked us for the support by taking us out for what she called “the firm” dinner.

Our favorite place to go was Carrabba’s and I always, always got the shrimp Damian - served with fettuccine alfredo - until one traumatic year when, much to my horror, the shrimp Damian was NOT ON THE MENU. Fortunately the lovely waiter put me out of my misery by saying that if I ordered it, the kitchen would still oblige.

I guess too many people continued ordering shrimp Damian because by the next firm dinner, it was back on the menu! Power to the people.

Carrabba’s Italian Grill is a chain restaurant now with locations in 31 of these United States. Sadly, you won’t find shrimp Damian on those menus but they do have a shrimp scampi appetizer that is similar. If you ever find yourself in Houston though, the two original restaurants are still owned by the Mandola/Carrabba family and shrimp Damian is still on the menu!

Shrimp Damian

If you aren’t coming to Houston, give my recipe a try. It brought back some really happy memories for me. It’s really rich so I served it with toasted baguette slices rather than the traditional fettuccine alfredo and we enjoyed it as an appetizer.

Ingredients
4 tablespoons clarified butter (ghee)
4 tablespoons minced yellow onions
3 tablespoons minced garlic, divided
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons dry white wine
1 lb or 450g cleaned and peeled fresh shrimp
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons cold butter
salt
pepper
chopped parsley or green onion tops

Options for serving:
Traditional: alongside fettuccine alfredo (serves 2 as a main course)
Less caloric: with crusty bread for dipping (serves 4 as an appetizer)

Method
First, we’ll make the lemon butter sauce. In a small pot, heat the clarified butter, add onion and garlic, and sauté until transparent.

Add lemon juice and white wine, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Simmer for a few minutes to reduce the liquid by about one-third. Remove from heat but keep warm.

Heat a frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil.

Season the cleaned shrimp with a little sea salt and pepper, massage it in gently. Put the shrimp in the hot pan in a single layer and leave it to color on one side before turning.

Cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side.

Add in the garlic and reduce the heat. Cook for a few minutes, being careful not to brown the garlic.

Now add cold butter to the warm lemon butter mixture and stir till it has melted. Add a little parsley or green onion tops for color.

Add the lemon butter to the shrimp pot and cook for another couple of minutes.

Your shrimp Damian is now ready to serve.

Enjoy!

This month my Fish Friday Foodie friends are recreating their favorite restaurant dishes along with our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. Check out the lovely recipes by clicking on the links below.

• Rubio's Fish Tacos from Making Miracles
• Wahoo's Grilled Fish Tacos with Citrus Slaw {copycat} from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Chinese Take-Out Combination Seafood Chow Mein from Palatable Pastime
• Shrimp Damian from Food Lust People Love
• Crispy Cheese Prawn Pancakes from Sneha's Recipe
• Mahi Mahi Matecumbe from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of the month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517 (at) gmail.com. Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

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Overnight Rye Buns #BreadBakers

By volume, these overnight rye buns are about half unbleached bread flour, that is to say, wheat, and half dark rye flour, which means they have plenty of flavor and a lovely texture. Lighter than all rye and chewier than white bread, these buns are the perfect combination. Eat them split open and spread with creamy butter!

Years ago I found a blog that I loved so much that I actually signed up to get new posts in my inbox. It’s not that the recipes were extra fabulous. I read it because the author was so funny and honest about the challenges in her life that just reading her posts cheered me up. Sadly, she stopped adding posts years ago, but I am pleased to say that she’s left the blog up. Occasionally I visit just for a laugh.

I saved this recipe way back in October of 2014 because it sounded so easy, and indeed it was. Who knows why it took so long for me to make it!

Overnight Rye Buns

I followed the recipe trail back to the person who taught Esther of the Recipe Rifle to make these buns. Her name is Maria Mayerhofer and she has made a video so you can see how easy these are!  I am wondering if the same method will work with other combinations of flour and I cannot wait to experiment.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups or 150g dark rye flour
1 1/2 cups or 190g unbleached bread flour
1 rounded teaspoon dried yeast
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
2 heaped tablespoons natural yoghurt (I actually subbed probiotic cashew yogurt because that was all I had. You could also use sour cream.)
1 1/4 cups or 295ml cold water

Method
Use a wooden spoon to mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl. It's a soft and sticky dough.

Cover the bowl with cling film and pop it into your refrigerator for at least eight hours or overnight.

When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C and prepare a large baking pan by lining it with baking parchment. Put another large empty baking pan on the lower rack of the oven. When you put the buns in, you’ll add a cup of water to the hot pan to create steam.

Fill a small bowl with water and put two serving spoons in it.

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and use the wet spoons to scoop out bun-sized dollops onto your prepared baking pan.

The goal is to keep as many of the bubbles as possible so just scoop and plop. Make sure to dip the spoons back in the water between each dollop.

Slide the baking pan into your preheated oven and add 1 cup or 240ml of water to the bottom pan to create a steamy environment for the buns.

Bake the buns for about 20-25 minutes or until they are puffy and lightly browned.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack before serving.

These are great with a smear of butter.

Enjoy!

This month my Bread Bakers group are sharing mostly recipes made with rye flour. Because of the pandemic, our host, Karen of Karen’s Kitchen Stories, has loosened the restrictions and all of our members can participate, even if they aren’t able to buy rye flour. Thanks, Karen! Check out the link list of recipes:

• Black Pepper Rye from A Messy Kitchen
• Coffee Scones with Maple, Raisins, and Rye from Palatable Pastime
• Everyday Multigrain Rye Sourdough from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Light Rye Sourdough Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Multigrain Spiced Raisin Bread from Passion Kneaded
• Overnight Rye Buns from Food Lust People Love
• Sourdough Rye Boule from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Spelt and Rye Breakfast Sourdough Bread from Cook with Renu
• Sweet Rye Bread from Making Miracles
• Tangzhong Method Rye Bread from Sneha's Recipe

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the Bread Bakers home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Spicy Pickled Tomato Dirty Martini

A martini with a delicious difference, this spicy pickled tomato dirty martini is garnished with easy-to-make quick pickled grape tomatoes. The pickling liquid with rice vinegar and fish sauce also has a welcome hot kick from minced fresh chili pepper.

As promised on my post yesterday, here’s how you can enjoy a dirty martini made with the spicy pickled grape tomatoes I shared. I left mine to marinate in the refrigerator for two days before unsealing the jar and making my martini.

If, like me, you are a fan of more savory than sweet cocktails, you are going to love this one. It's the same recipe my husband uses to make my dirty martinis with anchovy or tuna stuffed olives and olive juice so until the pickled tomatoes are ready, use olives!

Spicy Pickled Tomato Dirty Martini

The ingredients list below makes one lovely chilled martini. The measure of 1 jigger = 1 fluid ounce or 30ml. You can, of course, increase the amounts to make two or more. The capacity of your cocktail shaker is the limiting factor.

Ingredients
2 jiggers vodka
1 jigger extra dry vermouth
1 1/2 jiggers juice from spicy pickled grape tomatoes
4-5 small ice cubes

To garnish: 3 spicy pickled grape tomatoes

Method
Spear at least three spicy pickled grape tomatoes with a long cocktail pick and rest them in a martini glass.

Put all the martini ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake for a minute or two, until the ice has a chance to melt a little and chill the liquid. Strain into your martini glass.

So good. Enjoy!

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Spicy Pickled Grape Tomatoes #FoodieExtravaganza

Spicy pickled grape tomatoes are a tasty addition to salads or to serve alongside fish or chicken. The natural sweetness of the grape tomatoes are beautifully complemented by the rice vinegar, salty fish sauce and hot chili pepper. My favorite way to use them is in dirty martinis!

Savory cocktails aren’t as popular as the sweet ones but I must admit they are my favorites.  I’ll take a Bloody Mary over a daiquiri any day of the week. I am especially fond of dirty martinis made with the juice of olives stuffed with anchovies or tuna, garnished with the olives themselves, of course. It’s like a snack and a drink if you use enough olives.

This month my Foodie Extravaganza friends are all sharing recipes for pickling or using pickles in celebration of International Pickles Week so I decided to pickle something I could use in a dirty martini. Grape tomatoes are perfect, as it turns out, especially if you add some fish sauce to the pickling vinegar.

Spicy Pickled Grape Tomatoes

This recipe is adapted from several I found on the interwebs. I had no idea people actually pickled tomatoes until I started to search for pickles that look pretty in drinks! These little guys are good in salads and would also be great accompaniments to fish or chicken. Or just eat them straight out of the jar.

Ingredients
20 grape tomatoes – about 1 cup or 140g
3 tablespoons fish sauce
6 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 Thai chili, minced

Method
Prick the tomatoes through and through with a toothpick.

Mix the fish sauce, rice vinegar and sugar in a microwavable container or a small pot. Heat the liquid up till hot but not boiling, about 130°F or 54°C. This is just hot enough to be uncomfortable if you put your finger in it. Add the minced chili pepper.

Put the tomatoes in a half pint canning jar and pour the warm pickling juice over them.

Seal tightly. Leave to cool.

Refrigerate for at least a day before eating outright or using in another recipe. Stay tuned tomorrow for my spicy pickled grape tomato dirty martini recipe.

Enjoy!

Sneak peek of the martini!

Many thanks to our host this month, Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. Check out all the other recipes with pickles we are sharing today.

• Dill Pickle Grilled Cheese Sandwich by Making Miracles
• Fried Chicken Sandwich with a Spicy Bread and Butter Pickle Coleslaw by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Hot Pepper Vinegar by Palatable Pastime
• Indian Raw Papaya Pickle by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Japanese Pickled Ginger by Caroline's Cooking
• Lime & Beer Pickled Red Onions by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Middle Eastern Pickled Turnips by Pandemonium Noshery
• Pickled Pork Tongue by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pickled Rainbow Chard Stems by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Pickled Star Gooseberry by Sneha's Recipe
• Spicy Pickled Grape Tomatoes by Food Lust People Love

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board!

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Sweet Potato Sprouted Spelt Muffins #MuffinMonday

Sweet potato sprouted spelt muffins are made with brown sugar and lots of sweet golden raisins. They make a delicious tea time snack or tasty breakfast. Like most muffins, they freeze well and can be thawed and ready to eat with a quick zap in the microwave.

It’s Muffin Monday again, folks, the last Monday of every month when I share my own muffin recipe and several delectable others from my Muffin Monday group friends.

As I imagine you all are, right round the world, we are baking with what’s left in our kitchens. I could easily have called these sprouted sweet potato muffins because my taters are seriously sending out shoots. The one I used here had tiny sprouts that I trimmed off but another one is a candidate for cutting up and planting. If only I had good soil!

If you don’t have a sweet potato, substitute carrots in the same approximate amount.

Sweet Potato Sprouted Spelt Muffins

My sweet potato was about 9 1/3 oz or 265g in weight before peeling and cutting off the rough ends. If yours is a little bigger or smaller, no worries.

Ingredients
1 large sweet potato
2 cups or 240g sprouted spelt flour
3/4 cup, firmly packed, or 150g light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup or 120ml canola or other light oil
1 cup or 240ml milk (I use 2% fat)
1 cup or 150g golden raisins, optional

Method
Peel your sweet potato and cut it into chunks. Discard the fibrous ends. Boil until tender.

Put the golden raisins in a heatproof bowl.

When you drain the hot water off of the sweet potato chunks, pour it into the bowl with the raisins. Leave them to plump up then drain when the water is cool.

Mash the sweet potato with a fork or potato masher until fairly smooth. Set aside to cool.

Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare a 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it or lining it with paper muffin cups.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together your sprouted spelt flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs, cooled mashed sweet potato, oil and milk.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined.

Fold in the golden raisins.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups in your prepared pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Remove from the oven leave to cool for a few minutes in the pan. Remove from the pan and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Check out all the other lovely muffins we are sharing today!

• Celebratory Gluten-Free Strawberry Muffins from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Chocolate Coconut Banana Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Chocolate Mocha Muffins from Making Miracles
• Coffee Cake Muffins from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Cornbread Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Sweet Potato Sprouted Spelt Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Toffee Mocha Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Tomato Basil Muffins from Palatable Pastime 
• Wild Violet Muffins from Farm Fresh Feasts

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page<

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Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta - Instant Pot

This easy beef stroganoff pasta is a tasty one-pot meal, beefy and creamy with lots of mushrooms. It’s cooked in an Instant Pot so it’s on the table quickly without even firing up your stove.

I was craving beef stroganoff during my kitchen renovation so initially I planned to cook it on my one little electric burner in the laundry room, like many of our meals. Then it occurred to me that perhaps I could boil pasta in the Instant Pot. After all, one can use it to cook rice. Why not pasta?

I found various instructional posts online, especially one on Tidbits for Tasty Living. The challenge was on! I have to tell you, we could not have been more pleased with how it turned out.

Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta

Since the pasta is going to be cooked in the Instant Pot, if you don’t have bowties, make sure to choose another small wide variety. Long thin noodles are not recommended in case they work their way out of the float valve. Feel free to substitute your favorite mushrooms or whichever ones you have on hand for the baby Portobellos.

Ingredients
4 lbs or 1820g lean beef, cut into thin pieces
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon Ajinomoto (MSG)- optional
1/3 cup or 41g flour
2 tablespoons or 30g butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons beef drippings (or sub more olive oil)
3 medium onions
200g or 7 oz baby Portabella mushrooms
1 cup or 240ml dry white wine
4 cups or 946ml beef stock
1 lb or 450g small dried bowtie pasta or other small pasta
2 cups or 490g sour cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Sea salt
Black pepper

Optional to garnish:
Parsley

Method
Sprinkle the beef with the white vinegar, salt and the Ajinomoto, if using. This helps to tenderize the meat. Refrigerate the beef for at least an hour but you can even do this step the night before.

When you are ready to cook the beef, drain any liquid that has collected and toss the pieces with the flour in a large bowl.

With the Instant pot on low sauté, melt the butter, adding a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet. While the butter is melting, chop your onions.

Sauté the onions for about five minutes or until they are softened and translucent. Remove them from the Instant Pot and put them in a bowl that is large enough to hold the meat after you’ve browned it as well.

Turn the sauté function up to high and brown the meat a handful or two at a time, adding a little more olive oil if necessary. As the beef browns, remove the browned pieces to a bowl and add more to the Instant Pot, until all the beef is browned and in the bowl.

Meanwhile, trim any hard stem ends off of the mushrooms and slice them.

Turn the sauté function to low once more and add the white wine to the pot and gently loosen any browned bits on the Instant Pot pan. Cook on the low heat until the wine is almost completely reduced.

Add the meat back in with the onions and set your Instant Pot to pressure cook for 20 minutes.

When the time is up, turn it off but leave it to depressurize naturally.

Add in the beef stock, pasta and sliced mushrooms. Stir well.

Cook for 5 minutes on high and release the steam manually when done. When releasing the pressure, cover the release valve with a kitchen towel and pulse it a few times to release the pressure a little at a time until fully releasing.

Stir in the sour cream and lemon juice. Check for salt, adding more if necessary, along with a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Garnish with a little parsley, if desired. Enjoy!

It's Multicooker Monday again, friends! Check out all the great recipes we are sharing using various small appliances. Many thanks to the group creator and host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. 

• Instant Pot Corned Beef with a BBQ Whiskey Glaze from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Instant Pot Beef Tacos from Palatable Pastime
• Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta (Instant Pot) from Food Lust People Love
• Instant Pot Creamy Broccoli Mac N Cheese from Making Miracles
• Badshahi Chicken Legs - Air Fryer from Sneha's Recipe
• Slow Cooker Chicken Marbella from Karen's KItchen Stories

Multicooker Monday is a blogger group created by Sue of Palatable Pastime for all of us who need encouragement to make better use of our small appliances like slow cookers, Instant Pots, Air Fryers, rice cookers and sous vide machines. We get together every third Monday of the month to share our recipes. If you are a food blogger who would like to post with us, please request to join our Facebook group.

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