Greek Shrimp Saganaki

In my forever quest of weekly meal planning and calendar strategy of what to make for dinner, my husband saves the day.  Not only can I not remember what I did two days ago, I certainly cannot remember what I made for dinner a week or a month ago (hence the reason for the meal planning calendar).

Every now and again, my husband will say "What about the dish that....." (and he'll go into his description of how he remembers the meal).  I then have to stop, wait for it....oh yes, my ever flickering light bulb finally goes back on again...and I remember.  

Here is one of those meals that I completely forgot about and he once again reminded me of.  The great thing about this one is you can make it a date night meal for two or have it as an appetizer for a group of family, friends, neighbors, girls night in, book club,...you get the picture.

It looks complicated and fancy, but it truly is super easy and amazing flavors.

Shrimp Saganaki

Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine, November 2012

Original Recipe By Lord Byron Restaurant, Ios Island, Greece

1 Tablespoon olive oil

4 scallions, white part only, minced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup drained diced canned tomatoes

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/3 cup vegetable or chicken broth

1 teaspoon chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish

1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill

pinch of dried oregano

salt and freshly ground black pepper

12 medium shrimp (about 1/2 lb.), peeled, deveined and tails off

1 (4 oz.) block feta cheese

slices of country-style rustic bread, toasted

**I also add:

2 Tablespoons capers, drained

1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted, drained, roughly chopped

Heat oil in a medium heavy skillet over medium-low heat.  Add scallions and garlic; cook, stirring often, until soft, about 3 minutes.  Add tomatoes, (capers and olives) and cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, 4-6 minutes.  Remove from heat;  add wine, broth, 1 tsp. parsley, 1 tsp. dill and oregano.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until tomato mixture is reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium.  Season shrimp with salt and pepper.  Add shrimp to skillet, arranging around edges.  Place block of feta in center of skillet.  Cover and simmer until shrimp are cooked through and feta is warm, 4-6 minutes.

** We like eating this dish straight out of our cast iron skillet, but you can also transfer the shrimp and feta to a large shallow bowl.

Garnish with parsley.  Serve with toasted rustic bread to scoop up every flavorful bite.  Since I needed white wine for the recipe, we enjoyed the rest of the McManis Chardonnay with our meal. Perfectly paired!

Lemon Spaghetti with Jumbo Shrimp

We had a very special treat this week, in the midst of all our late summer/early fall rain and thunder.  We walked out of the girls' school and were greeted with a double rainbow...but the best part was you could actually see the ends of both rainbows! (...and no, I didn't find my pot of gold at either end, unfortunately).   I typically only see one end of a rainbow and the other is off to infinity somewhere.  The photos don't do it justice, since I was trying to save my camera in the torrential downpour, but the sight was absolutely breathtaking.

This is the perfect, quick, go to weeknight dish to warm you up from a rain storm.  Of course, anything I can put shrimp in, I love and anything that I put capers in, my husband is all over and any pasta for my kids just goes without saying, so it was a win-win for family night.

Lemon Spaghetti with Jumbo Shrimp
Courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound spaghetti
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

2 tablespoons capers, fried briefly in a little olive oil

For the shrimp: In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the shrimp with the salt and pepper, then add to the pan in a single layer and cook until pink and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Set aside.

For the pasta: Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, about 8 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving the pasta water.

While the pasta is cooking, whisk together the olive oil, Parmesan, lemon zest and juice in a large bowl. Toss the drained pasta with the lemon sauce, the shrimp and some of the reserved pasta water; add 1/4 cup at a time as needed to moisten. Add the salt, pepper and basil and toss. Garnish with the fried capers.

Pork Schnitzel at Sawtooth Hotel and Redfish Lake

Our last day in Idaho took us back to one of our favorite places, Redfish Lake and Lodge in Stanley.

Charming lodge right on the lake.

My cute little "Redfish" baseball cap.

Gorgeous mountain views from the beach.

A busy day full of swimmers, boaters and kayaking.

As we headed back home from the lake, we stopped at the famous Sawtooth Hotel and had dinner out on their rustic open deck, taking in the sun setting and reliving our weekend.

As this was our first time at one of Dick and JoAnne's favorite stops, they certainly did not disappoint.  The menu is all local, fresh ingredients and the atmosphere is both historic and charming at the same time.

We all shared and immensely enjoyed our chilled La Crema Chardonnay, antipasto salad and their Pork Schnitzel cutlets, complete with a lemon, caper and butter sauce.

Desserts offered nightly are fresh from Stanley Baking Co. & Cafe.

Pork Schnitzel With Lemon-Caper Cream

Courtesy of food.com

Schnitzel

1 (12 ounce) pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2 inch circles ( boneless loin chops work well also)
1/2 lemon, juice of
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon dijon-style mustard
1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons canola oil or 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, for frying

Lemon-Caper Cream Sauce

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup jarred lemon curd
1/4 cup small caper, drained, room temperature

Directions

Pound pork circles between pieces of plastic wrap to flatten to 1/4 inch thickness.
Sprinkle both sides of medallions with lemon juice.
Combine flour and poultry seasoning in shallow dish. Coat medallions with flour mixture; shake off excess flour and set aside.
In a deep pie plate, beat the eggs and mix in the mustard.
Place bread crumbs in another pie plate. Dip the pork medallions into the egg mixture; coat well with bread crumbs.

Place in refrigerator for 15 minutes.
For the cream sauce, melt the butter in a small heavy saucepan.
Add shallots and sauté over medium heat until fragrant (approximately 2 minutes).
Remove saucepan from heat; add the wine, chicken broth and cream.
Return saucepan to heat and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 12 to 15 minutes to reduce by half.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large heavy skillet.
Add half of the medallions; fry over medium-high heat on both sides for 1-2 minutes or until no longer pink.
Transfer to a plate and tent with foil. Repeat with remaining oil and medallions.
Remove sauce from heat and stir in lemon curd & capers.
Serve with buttered spaetzle and garnish with lemon wedges

Greek Salsa Chicken and Greek Movie Afternoon

I have finally recovered from yesterday's triple play (football, golf balls and baseballs).  My husband warned me...he gave me the rundown of what sports were going to be on t.v. ALL DAY Sunday.  Sunday, Sunday, Sunday.....AGH!!!  It started with 11:00 am Seahawk game.  They lost.  I didn't see a minute of the game, but believe me....I know they lost.  The reason I know they lost, is because you could hear my husband yelling at the referees, the teams, the fans and anyone else on t.v. he could see, for hours.

He was so revved up, he went outside after the game to tear out the garden that froze over last week. (At least I got out of doing it, and didn't have to do any more gardening).  Then it was golf and The Presidents Cup.  This was much calmer, since our country took the win - thank goodness!!  I did catch some of the golf match though.  I couldn't pass up seeing my boyfriend, Phil Mickelson for a few rounds. (Don't worry, my husband knows).

Then, the Dodgers game started at 5:00 pm. I had enough at this point.  It was time for me to go upstairs to fold the 13 loads of laundry that I did over the weekend while I catch an afternoon movie.  I was glad I did, because the Dodgers did not start out strong and it was sounding ugly downstairs.  At one point I thought I was going to have to go out and pick up an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) for my husband.  Why do men get so emotional about sports, on t.v. nonetheless?  Here's a newsflash men:  They can't hear you through the television!!!

At any rate, I love movies.  I love to watch and get lost in movies.  I have so many favorite movies, it has become a joke in my family.  We will be surfing through the channels and I see one of my favorite titles and want to watch it immediately.  My husband says, "but you have seen that fifty times"  My reply, "I don't care, it doesn't matter."  Yet why is it he gets to watch Kelly's Heroes, I can't tell you how many times, as I have lost count.

Today, one of my favorites was on this afternoon.  My Big Fat Greek Wedding.  I absolutely love this movie and I am here to tell you, since I was actually in my college roommate's Greek wedding, this movie is spot on.  I laugh and cry through it every (68 times) I have watched.  If you have not seen this movie yet, add it to your bucket list.

Of course, watching the movie got me in the mood for Greek food.  This meal is one of my go-to dinners.  It is full of wonderful Mediterranean flavors.  I add capers to it, because anything that I can add capers to, makes husband oh so happy and after the sports day he had, he needed a little happiness.

Greek Salsa Chicken
Adapted from Cuisine At Home, April 2009 Issue

For The Salsa - 
4 oz. Crumbled Feta Cheese
1 Cup halved Grape or Cherry Tomatoes
1/4 Cup Pitted Kalamata Olives
1/4 Cup Minced Fresh Parsley
1/4 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. Chopped Fresh Oregano
3 Tbsp. Capers, drained

For The Chicken - 
(6) Skinless, Bone-In Chicken Breast Halves
Salt and Pepper
2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
(2) Lemons, cut into wedges

For The Wife - 
2011 Dead Bolt Winemaker's Blend from California

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Combine feta, tomatoes, olives, parsley, lemon juice, 1/4 cup olive oil, oregano and capers for the salsa in a large bowl.  Cover and chill salsa.

Saute chicken pieces in 2 Tbsp. olive oil in a large roasting pan over medium-high heat until chicken is browned on skin-side.  Turn over chicken.

Squeeze lemon wedges over chicken to coat with lemon juice, then nestle squeezed lemon wedges around chicken breasts.  Roast until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees, about 30 minutes.

Transfer chicken and lemons to a large platter; top with salsa.   "OPA" !!