Chesapeake Paella

Recently, as I get myself back into cooking, I have been wanting to make dishes for which I have a strong affinity.  It may be a particular dish, or, particular ingredients.  The problem is trying to find a recipe from which I could work to bring those beloved components together.  I often spend a lot of time looking at recipes, thinking about the preparation set forth therein, and how I could change it or adapt it to something that I want to make and eat.

That is the process that I used when I came across a recipe for a simple shellfish paella.  I love paella, and, I have made that dish a couple of times in the past.  Those efforts were more "earthy," with the use of turkey, artichokes and green beans.  The thought of cooking a shellfish paella was intriguing to me.  But, the thought did not end there.  I went on to think about how I could change the recipe to incorporate some of the flavors and ingredients that I like.  My thoughts turned to familiar shellfish and seafood, such as crab, clams and oysters, all of which can be found in my beloved Chesapeake Bay.

And, the result of my thinking process is a Chesapeake Paella. There are certain ingredients that play a central role in the culinary history of the Chesapeake Bay: crabs, clams and oysters. That triumvirate of seafood would be the center of my paella.  The Chesapeake Paella was ready, at least in concept.

Making that concept a reality, required the solution to a big problem.  Each of the  main three ingredients is that they have wildly different cooking times.  Unshucked oysters become plump morsels in a couple of minutes.  Clams take several minutes longer, depending upon the size.  Soft shell crabs ordinarily take a few minutes in a saute pan, but they would take much longer in the paella pan.  So, I decided on a particular order and process.  The clams would go in first and be covered to allow the heat to start the cooking process.  When the clams started to open, then I would add the oysters and cover again to cook both at the same time.  While the clams and oysters were cooking, I would prepare the soft shells in a separate skillet, adding them to the paella when the crabs were almost finished.

The end result of this effort was a very good paella that drew its essence from the Chesapeake Bay.  I really liked this paella, but, with practice, I think that this could become a really good paella.

CHESAPEAKE PAELLA

Recipe adapted from Simple Shellfish Paella 

by Andrew Zimmern

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
2 cups of paella rice
2 teaspoons pimenton (hot smoky paprika)
1 minced onion
2 tablespoons minced parsley
3 minced garlic cloves
2 pinches saffron
4 cups seafood stock
2 cups of clam juice
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of white wine
1 cup of clam juice
8 ounces jumbo lump crab meat
8 ounces of little neck clams
8 ounces of raw oysters
2 soft shell crabs
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
6 ounces of Spanish chorizo sliced thin

Directions:

1. Begin the paella.  Place a paella pan (12 inch or 16 inch) over medium heat for 2 minutes.  Add the olive oil.  Immediately add the onion, garlic, saffron, pimenton, rice and stir, cooking until all of the ingredients become toasty and aromatic.  Keep scraping the bottom of the pan to avoid scorching or burning of the ingredients, but still working toward carmelization of the ingredients.  

2.  Add the liquid.  First, add the wine and stir as you go.  Then add the clam stock and stir as you go.  Finish by adding the seafood stock, continuing to stir as the liquids simmer and start to be absorbed into the rice.  Lower the heat and continue to cook for about 10 minutes.

3.  Add the seafood. Add the crab meat and stir gently so as to not break up the lumps . Add the clams and asparagus, cover for a few minutes, until the clams begin to open. Remove the cover.  Add the oysters and cover again for only a few more minutes, until the oysters begin to firm.  Remove the cover.  Continue to cook for about 5 minutes.  

4.  Cook the soft shell crabs.  While you are adding the seafood to the paella, heat the 1 tablespoon of white wine and butter in a separate small pan.  Saute the soft shell crabs until cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. 

5.  Finish the dish.  Once the rice is just past "toothy" but not mushy, and the remaining liquid is like a sauce, remove the paella from the heat.  Season with salt to taste and sprinkle with the parsley.

ENJOY!

Andrew Zimmern's Pan-Crisped Soft Shell Crabs with Lemon & Herb

Does Maryland have a complicated relationship relationship with soft shell blue crabs?  Maryland is the State who has designated the blue crab as the official state crustacean (Chapter 724, Acts of 1989, Code of General Provisions, Article 7, Section 7-303.)  But, Kit Witsom Pollard asked that question in an article she wrote over four years ago in the Baltimore Sun.  In particular, she raised the question of whether Marylanders, who love their blue crabs in hard form, get a little squeamish when presented with soft shell crabs.

Anyone who follows this blog should know that this particular Marylander has no issue when it comes to soft shell crabs. There are four recipes highlighting the different ways that one can make soft shell crabs.  There is the the grilled soft shell crab recipe, a curried soft shell crab recipe and a soft shell crab po boy recipe.  I also have a traditional pan fried recipe, which was part of my Iron Chef challenge to cook dishes with Vidalia onions.

While I love hard crabs, I love soft crabs even more.  Once you get past the prep work, you have crabs that are entirely edible.  No need to pick crab meat out of shells.  All you need is a recipe to cook the crabs.  For this dish, I found one from Andrew Zimmern, the host of Bizarre Foods and The Zimmern List.  I have to say that I am a big fan of Andrew Zimmern and have watched most of his shows.  So, when I found a recipe from him for soft shell crabs, I knew I had to try it.

This recipe calls for the most common method of preparing soft shell crabs ... pan frying or sauteing the crabs.  What makes this recipe different is the shallot/herb pan sauce.  The shallots, parsley and thyme added some great flavor to the dish, as did the lemon juice.  If only the soft shell season were longer and I had access to more soft shell crabs, I would be making this dish as often as I could. 

PAN-CRISPED SOFT SHELL CRABS WITH LEMON & HERBS

Recipe from Andrew Zimmern

Serves 4

Ingredients:

12 soft shell crabs, cleaned and patted dry

1 cup corn starch

1 cup flour

2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

4 ounces clarified butter

4 tablespoons minced parsley

3 tablespoons minced shallots

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

2/3 cup of white wine

4 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste

Directions:

1. Prepare the crabs.  Clean and dry the crabs.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the corn starch, flour, old bay seasoning, salt and pepper.  Dredge each crab in the cornstarch mixture, shaking off any excess.  Set aside.

2.  Saute the crabs.  Preheat a very large saute pan over high heat for a couple of minutes.  Add clarified butter, followed by the crabs.   Cook for one minute and lower the heat to medium.  Cook for 2 more minutes until crisped.  Flip the crabs and cook until brown and crisp on the other sides, about 3 minutes longer.  Reserve crabs to a platter.

3.  Prepare the sauce.  Add the shallots and herbs to a pan.  Swirl to cook through, add the wine.  Reduce by two-thirds.  Remove the pan from the heat and swirl in the butter.  Adjust sauce by adding the lemon juice and drizzle over the crabs. 

ENJOY!

Grilled Soft Shell Crabs

It has been almost three years since I professed my culinary love for the soft shell crab in a post entitled Much Ado about Molting.  My beautiful Angel and myself had just been introduced to Endurance Seafood in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina.  We had to depart the Croatan Highway (Route 158) down Colington Road, which ran along the contour of the island.  As we drove down this winding road, we were presented with some of the island's beauty, such as the views of the Pamlico Sound that are otherwise unavailable to those who remain on the beaten path. Turn after turn, we continued our drive until we saw the Endurance Seafood sign. 

A turn down a gravel driveway, a quick drive past a house, and we reached our destination.  Endurance Seafood is a family run operation that sells blue crabs in both of their majestic forms ... hard shell and soft shell.  We made our trip specifically for the latter form of blue crabs.

Endurance Seafood in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina

As we exited our car, we faced a building surrounded on two sides with white tubs.  Those tubs were filled with water and blue crabs in the various stages of molting.  As we approached, we could see people working to box soft-shell crabs for shipment to distributors and restaurants across the eastern United States.  Fortunately, we arrived just in time to purchase some soft crabs.  As the crabs were gathered, we were allowed to walk through the rows of white sinks and see the blue crabs in the various stages of the molting process.  After the crabs shed (or molt) their shells (or exoskeleton), they become soft-shell crabs.  They will remain in this state until that shell hardens once again.  We were able to purchase two dozen soft shell crabs to enjoy during our trip to the Outer Banks. These were the largest and meatiest soft shell crabs that I had ever seen.  Most importantly, they were the freshest soft shell crabs because we got them directly from the source.

The soft shell crabs from Endurance Seafood.

When we arrived at our vacation spot, I sauteed some of the soft-shells for everyone.  One can eat almost the entire crab.  To prepare the crab, you have to remove the eyes, the tail and the gills.  This can be done with a pair of scissors, cutting off the face of the crab, as well as snipping off the tail and the gills.  It is gruesome, but necessary task, in order to enjoy these delicious crabs. 

The easiest way to cook a soft shell crab is to coat it in a light coating of flour and pan fry (or saute) it in a combination of oil and butter.  That is how I first prepared the crabs. However, I had several crabs left over.  I prepped those crabs (that is, I removed the eyes, tails and gills), and then froze them.  Unlike hard shell crabs, soft shell crabs can be frozen and enjoyed later.

This is exactly what we did.  Once we returned from our Outer Banks trip, some of those frozen soft shell crabs began to thaw, despite my best efforts to keep them frozen for our return home.  I decided to cook those crabs in a way that I had never done before.  I cooked them on the grill.  I looked over a few recipes to get some basic ideas as to how to grill soft shell crabs.  I then proceeded to grill them by first preparing a butter that can be basted over the soft shell crabs before they went on the grill.  The butter is melted in a pan and then some garlic and shallots are sauteed briefly in the butter.  The butter is removed and allowed to cool, and then it is ready for the soft shells.  The soft shells cook quickly, needing to be grilled only for about four to five minutes per side.  (Less time is needed for smaller crabs.)

In the end, I have to say that grilling these beautiful crabs is now my favorite way to prepare them.  By grilling them, I used far less oil or butter than the more conventional ways, such as a deep frying or pan frying them.  The grill also crisps them in a way that provides a better taste, one that cannot be replicated in a deep fryer and is difficult to replicate in a pan. 

One last note ... the grilled sot shell crabs can be served by themselves.  Personally, I think that the grilled crabs are perfect for a soft shell crab sandwich (especially if you have guests who may have a difficult time with the fact that you are eating an entire crab, as opposed to a crab cake).  You can use whatever toppings you like.  I kept it simple: lettuce, tomato and onion.  No condiments.  In this case, less is better because you want to taste as much of the crab as possible. 

GRILLED SOFT SHELL CRABS

A Chef Bolek Original

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

6 soft shell crabs, cleaned and rinsed

4 tablespoons of butter

1 shallot, minced

1 clove of garlic, minced

Salt, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1.  Prepare the butter.  Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium high heat.  Add the shallots and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes.  Remove from the heat.  Baste the soft shell crabs generously with the butter.

2.  Grill the soft shell crabs.  Heat the grill to a medium high or high heat.  Apply some vegetable oil to the grill grates to ensure that the crabs do not stick to the grates. Grill the soft shell crabs until they turn bright red and begin to crisp along the edges, about four to five minutes per side. 

 ENJOY!

Soft Shell Crab Curry, Goan-Style

As we continue to enjoy our soft-shell crabs that we got from the Outer Banks (the greatest thing about frozen soft shell crabs is that we can enjoy them over time), I have been thinking about how I can use these crabs in different recipes.  I previously made Soft Shell Crab Po' Boys with an Avocado Remoulade.  Now, my mind turned to making a soft shell crab curry. 

I did not want to make just any curry.  I wanted to make a curry in the style of a particular city or region of India.  Two thoughts immediately came to mind -- Goa and Kerala.  Goa, which is the smallest state of India, is probably best known for Vindaloo, a spicy curry that is one of my favorites.  The two most prominent ingredients in a Goan curry are the chiles and tamarind.  I know a lot less about curries from Kerala, although I was able to find a crab curry dish called Njandu Kari, which is Crab Curry with Fried Coconut.  Eventually, I decided to make the curry in the Goan style.  I found a recipe from Hunter Angler Gardener Cook, which I used as a guide for this dish.  This meant a spicy curry, along with a few firsts for me.

One of the firsts for me was to make a curry powder from scratch.  Fortunately, the recipe that I was using as a guide provided me with most of the ingredients to make the curry.  The one issue was that I did not have any fresh chiles such as Serranos or Thai chiles.  However, I did have dried chiles, particularly the Indian Sanaam chiles.  I used four of Sanaam chiles to make the curry.  Sanaam chiles are very spicy and, in turn, they made the curry very spicy.  While it was fine for me, it is probably too much for most people.  I would recommend that, for people trying this recipe for the first time, to use two or three Sanaam chiles, which will lessen the heat of the dish.

The other first for me was the use of fresh coconut.  I have never cooked with a fresh coconut before; and, after some Internet research, I was ready to use this ingredient.  For those who don't know (like me before this dish), you need to drain the coconut water by opening holes in the coconut.  There are three spots on the coconut, which are the weakest part of the nut.  Hammer a nail through each spot and then remove the nail to open the hole.  Then hammer a nail through the other end of the coconut to create a fourth hole.  Drain the coconut water and reserve it.  (I used it to make the rice for this dish.)  Then wrap the coconut in a towel and find the nearest slab of concrete.  Begin pounding on the coconut until you break it open. Once the coconut is opened, you need to cut out the flesh and then grate it for the recipe.  The recipe only needs a quarter cup of grated coconut, so you will have a lot left over.  

So, without further ado ...

SOFT SHELL CRAB CURRY, GOAN-STYLE

Adapted from Hunter Angler Gardener Cook
Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

4 soft shell crabs, cleaned

1 tablespoon of ground coriander

1 tablespoon of black peppercorns

6 cloves

8 cardamom pods (I used 2 black pods and 6 green pods)

1 tablespoon of turmeric

1 teaspoon of ground cumin

2 teaspoons of ground fenugreek

3 tablespoons of canola oil

2 medium onions, one finely diced, one sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely diced

2-4 dried chiles (such as Sanaam chiles)

2 tablespoons of fresh ginger, minced

1 fourteen ounce can of coconut milk

1/4 cup of freshly grated coconut

1 heaping tablespoon of tamarind paste

1/2 cup of fresh cilantro, chopped

Salt, to taste

Directions:

1.  Make the curry mix.   Toast the peppercorns, cardamom, and cloves in a dry skillet until fragrant, about a couple of minutes.  Then take it off the heat and let it cool for a minute.  Grind the spices into a fine powder.  Add the coriander, cumin, fenugreek and chiles.  Grind to incorporate the chiles and spices with the other spices.

2.  Begin the saute.  Saute the chopped onion in one tablespoon of oil until soft without browning them.  Add the garlic and ginger, continuing to saute for about two more minutes.  

3.  Blend the ingredients.   Take the onion mixture and put it into a food processor or blender.  Add the spice mix and puree the onion mixture.  While pureeing the mixture, add the water.  

4.  Saute the soft shell crabs.  Heat two tablespoons of oil in a pan on medium high heat.  Add the soft shell crabs, top down.  Let the crabs saute for about three to four minutes and then flip them.  Cook them for another three to four minutes.  Remove them from the heat and cut each soft shell into quarters.

5.  Add the coconut and onions.  Pour the coconut milk into a pot and heat it over medium heat until it simmers.  Add the sliced onions and grated coconut and let it cook for three to four minutes at an active simmer.  

6.  Finish the dish.  Add the curry and mix well.  Add the tamarind paste and mix again.  Salt to taste.  Mix in the crab and cook until heated through.  Serve over rice and garnish with cilantro. 

Overall, I really liked this dish.  I think it was close to a Goan curry, because it was very spicy.  However, it was too spicy for Clare.  So, in that respect, I needed to pay a little more attention to the heat level.  After all, my Angel is my continuing inspiration for cooking and it is important for me to make sure that she can eat my dishes.  Until next time ...

ENJOY!

Soft Shell Crab Po-Boy with Avocado Remoulade

In a prior post about soft shell crabs, I noted that, as a cook, the months of May through September are special to me.  During this time, fresh soft shell crabs are available at local supermarkets and seafood markets.  On our way back from our Outer Banks vacation, Clare and I bought a dozen jumbo soft shell crabs from Endurance Seafood in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina.  While I normally buy soft shell crabs fresh, Endurance Seafood was sold out of fresh soft shell crabs.  All they had left were frozen soft-shell crabs.  Still, I could not pass up the opportunity to buy those frozen crabs because it would provide me with a supply of those delicious crustaceans for experimenting with different dishes. I have previously used two of the jumbo soft-shell crabs as part of my Iron Chef Night: Vidalia Onion cooking experience.  However, my mind still works on recipes that we could make for the remaining soft shells that are sitting comfortably in our freezer.

 One recent recipe that I decided to make was Soft Shell Crab Po-Boys with a Remoulade.  Although I like remoulade sauces, I am not a big fan of mayonnaise, which is usually a principal ingredient in a remoulade.  I cannot say that I avoid mayonnaise altogether, because many people have witnessed me eating a tuna salad or chicken salad sandwich.  However, if I can avoid the ingredient, I will do that, even if it requires additional steps or searching out new ingredients.  Fortunately, I came across a recipe for an Avocado Remoulade.  I made this recipe as a topping for the Soft-Shell Crab Po-Boy Sandwiches and it was a great success.  This recipe will be my go-to whenever I need a remoulade.

On other thing about this recipe, many seafood po-boys involve deep frying the fish or shellfish.  You can certainly deep fry soft shell crabs.  For this recipe, however, I sauteed the soft-shell crabs.  I believe that soft shell crabs taste best when they are lightly dredged with flour and sauteed on a hot pan with butter. This recipe simply reflects my personal preference.  If you want to deep fry the soft-shell crabs, just heat enough oil in a pot or a deep fryer to 360 degrees Fahrenheit. 

SOFT SHELL CRAB PO BOY WITH AVOCADO REMOULADE

Remoulade adapted from Simply Recipes
Serves 2

Ingredients (for the Soft Shell Crabs):

4 soft shell crabs

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 teaspoon of chipotle powder

1 teaspoon of onion powder

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Salt, to taste

Ground pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons of butter

2 small french loaves

1 medium Vidalia onion, sliced

1 heirloom tomato, sliced

Lettuce leaves
French bread (or just any other bread or bun)

Ingredients (for the Avocado Remoulade):

2 avocados, cut, peeled, and cut into large dice

3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice

4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon of minced shallots

1 tablespoon of flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon of Dijon or other mustard

Salt, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1.  Make the remoulade.  Add the avocado and lime juice in a food processor.  Pulse until blended.  Slowly add olive oil, pulsing until you get the desired consistency.  Add minced shallots and parsley and continue to pulse until combined.  I pulsed it a little more to maintain the consistency that I wanted, but you do not have to do that.  Remove the sauce to a bowl, add the mustard, salt and taste and stir until incorporated.

2.  Prepare the soft shell crabs.  After washing the soft shell crabs, dry them and set them aside. Spread the flour on a plate and add the spices to the flour.  Mix the spices to make sure that they are incorporated throughout the flour.  Dredge the soft shell crabs in the flour and shake off the excess flour.

3.  Saute the soft shell crabs.  Heat the three tablespoons of butter on medium high heat.  Once the butter is melted, add the soft shells carefully, shell side down.  Let the soft shell crabs cook for about four to five minutes, then flip the crabs.  Cook for about three to five minutes more.  Remove the crabs.  

4.  Plate the dish.  Construct the po-boy sandwiches by first cutting the bread in half and slicing down the side.  Spread some of the remoulade on both sides of the bread.  Place the soft shells on the bread and top with sliced onions, heirloom tomatoes and lettuce.  Then add a nice heaping spoonful of the remoulade on top.  Serve immediately.

ENJOY!

Iron Chef Night -- VIDALIA ONIONS

If memory serves me right, I did a blog post just after the Christmas holiday in which I extolled the virtues of the Vidalia onion.  I gave due respect to the history of this vegetable, noting its humble beginnings on Georgia farms and its rise to become a protected treasure of a State known more for its peaches.  The Vidalia onion is by far the sweetest of the onions.  Its fresh and gratifying flavors are born out of soil that that lacks the influences of chemicals such as sulfur, whose noxious odor and corrupting tastes ruin vegetables. The relative purity of the soil produces a sweet onion that I believe is best for all forms of cooking, including my French Onion Soup.

Alas, in my post, I lamented that Vidalia onions are available only during the spring and summer months, and, that they were unavailable for me when I wanted to make my soup during the holidays.  I had to settle for sweet onions from other parts of the country, such as Texas and California.  

However, I now have organic Vidalia Onions from Antioch Farms, in Claxton, Georgia.  So, it is time for me to use my creativity to take recipes beyond where they have gone and to showcase the truly exceptional sweetness of this onion.

ALLEZ CUISINE ...

THE FIRST COURSE

For the first course, I served a Shrimp and Vidalia Onion in White Wine Marinade.  The Vidalia Onion is sliced thinly, and then marinated with other vegetables in white wine and lemon for a couple of hours.   The onion is served with freshly steamed shrimp on fresh spinach. 

SHRIMP AND VIDALIA ONION IN WHITE WINE MARINADE

Adapted from a recipe by the Vidalia Committee

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:
1 pound of shrimp
2 Vidalia onions, sliced thinly
4 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 carrot
1 tablespoon of sugar
2 celery stalks
1 teaspoon of basil
6 teaspoons of white wine, like Chablis or Sauvignon Blanc
Spinach leaves
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste

Ingredients:
1. Steam the shrimp.  Salt and pepper the shrimp to taste.  Slice all of the vegetables and separate the onion slices into rings.

2.  Whisk together the remaining ingredients and pour over the vegetables.  Marinate for 2-3 hours.  Add the steamed shrimp to the vegetables about five to ten minutes before serving and toss.

3.  Place the spinach leaves on a plate.  Top with with the vegetables and shrimp.

THE SECOND COURSE

For the second course, I served a Caramelized Vidalia Onion and Roasted Garlic Bisque.  I sauteed Vidalia onions with leeks for nearly an hour, while a whole head of garlic roasted in the oven.  The soup is created using vegetable stock, milk and white wine.  The onions and garlic are blended with the liquid, creating the bisque soup.  The sauteed onion and roasted garlic flavors complement each other.  These flavors create an earthy dish that still preserves some of the sweetness of the onion. A few pink peppercorns are sprinkled over the soup, providing a spicy contrast for some spoonfuls.

CARAMELIZED VIDALIA ONION AND ROASTED GARLIC BISQUE

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, Jan. 1997
Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 whole garlic head

1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil

9 cups of thinly sliced Vidalia onions (about 4 large onions)

2 1/2 cups leek, thinly sliced (about 2 medium sized leeks)

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

2 tablespoons of all purpose flour

1/3 cup of dry white wine

4 cups of vegetable broth or vegetable stock

2 cups of 2% low-fat milk

6 tablespoons of fat-free sour cream

Toasted caraway seeds (optional)
Pink peppercorns (optional)

Directions:

1.  Remove the white papery skin from the garlic head but do not separate or peel the cloves.  Rub oil over the garlic head and wrap in foil.  Bake in an oven heated to 350 degrees for one hour.  Let cook for 10 minutes.  Separate cloves, squeeze out the garlic pulp and discard the skins.  the garlic aside. 

2.  Heat the 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of oil in a dutch oven or large pot.  Add the onion and leek.  Cook the vegetables for about thirty minutes, stirring often.  Add the thyme and 1/2 of salt.  Continue to cook for an additional thirty minutes or until the onions have become golden, stirring occasionally.  Once the onions have become golden, stir in the flour, add the wine and broth and bring the mixture to a boil. 

3. Reduce heat to a simmer and let it simmer for thirty minutes.  Add the garlic pulp, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and the milk.  Continue to simmer for about eight minutes or until the mixture is thoroughly heated.

4.  Pour half of the mixture into a blender and process until smooth.  Pour the pureed mixture into a bowl.  Repeat with the remaining mixture. 

5.  Garnish with sour cream, caraway seeds or pink peppercorns if you desire.

THIRD COURSE

For the third course, I prepared Soft Shell Crabs with a Tomato Onion Salsa. This dish presents raw Vidalia onions in a fresh salsa with tomatoes, parsley and pine nuts.  The freshness of the salsa and the raw onion is contrasted with the richness of the sauteed soft shell crab.

SOFT SHELL CRAB WITH TOMATO ONION SALSA

Adapted from Chef 2 Chef

Serves 2

Ingredients (for the soft shell crabs):
2 soft shell crabs, cleaned
1 cup of flour
1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

Ingredients (for the salsa):
1/4 pound of cherry or grape tomatoes
1/4 cup of Vidalia onions, chopped
1/8 cup of flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons of vegetable or canola oil
Handful of toasted pine nuts
Salt, to taste
Ground black pepper to taste

Directions:
1.  Prepare the salsa.  Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.

2. Heat the butter and olive oil in a saute pan.  Dredge the soft shell crabs in the flour . Shake off the loose flour.  When the butter is melted and the oil hot, add the soft shell crabs carefully to the pan.  Let the soft shell crabs cook four about four minutes and then flip them.  Cook for about another four minutes and the crabs should be finished.

3.  Plate the soft shells and spoon the salsa over the crabs.

THE FOURTH COURSE

Although served with the third course, this dish presents the Vidalia onion in a slightly different way.  Rather than contrasting the onion to the rich taste of the soft shell crab, the Vidalia onion is contrasted with the rich texture of the avocado.  The fresh Vidalia onions are sliced thinly and served over fresh avocado.  A drizzle of red wine vinegar and olive oil completes the dish.

AVOCADO ONION SALAD

Adapted from Delish.com

Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 Avocado, sliced
1/2 Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Directions:
1. Arrange the avocado slices and top them with the sliced onion.

2.  Drizzle olive oil and vinegar over the avocados and onions.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.

ENJOY!