Cooking Up a Hooley In The Kitchen
By Katie Gagne
~~ A Bit O’ Sass to Those Lenten Dishes~~
A friend asked me if I had any good sauces to use with seafood dishes and it just so happened that I had the most heavenly salmon at my sister’s house a few days earlier. What made the dish was Tuscan sauce she used. There are so many tasty ways to prepare and top seafood to be found on-line. I experimented with these three and they will definitely bring a little bit of new and tasty to your fish dishes.
Creamy Coconut Lime Drizzle
Ingredients
2 tablespoons Crushed Garlic Cloves
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
1 can of Coconut Milk
¼ cup of Granulated Sugar
½ teaspoon of Ginger
Juice of 2 Limes
Zest of 1 Lime
Sauté the garlic and butter until it is soft and fragrant
Add in the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. It will thicken up a bit.
Drizzle over your favorite seafood. I also sprinkled some fresh chopped cilantro over it and added a bit more lime zest before serving. This is also great over Jasmine Rice.
I made Coconut Crusted Scallops and used this drizzle and it was so sweet and tasty.
Tuscan Sauce
Ingredients
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
6 Minced Garlic Cloves
½ cup Diced White or Yellow Onion
1 8oz jar Sun-dried Tomatoes in Oil
2 Cups Heavy Cream or Whole Milk
½ cup Vegetable Broth (you can also use white wine here as well)
2 cups Baby Spinach Leaves
½ cup Parmesan Cheese
2 tablespoons chopped Fresh Parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste
Drain the oil from the Sun-dried Tomatoes and use to sauté the garlic until soft.
Add the butter and onion and cook until the onions are slightly caramelized.
Add the Vegetable Broth or White Wine and scape the pan to deglaze. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 more minutes until they are soft.
Add in the heavy cream and let simmer for 5 minutes. Add in the Baby Spinach and let wilt in the sauce.
Sprinkle in the Parmesan Cheese and Salt and Pepper
Keep warm until serving and top with Fresh Parsley
I drizzled 4 salmon Fillets with just a splash of balsamic vinegar and seared them on both sides for about 4 minutes over medium heat and let them rest while making the sauce and then let the fillets finish cooking through in the sauce.
This sauce works great on any type of seafood, chicken, or pasta, as well.
Perfectly Sassy and Spicy Sauce
Ingredients
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
3 tablespoons Crushed Garlic Cloves
1 medium Red Bell Pepper
1 medium Orange or Yellow Bell Pepper
2 Serrano Peppers
3 Jalapeno Peppers
1 medium Onion
2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
2 cups Vegetable Broth
Juice of 2 Lemons
1 cup Cocktail Sauce
1 tablespoon Red Pepper Flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste
Chop the onion and all the peppers and sauté in a, skillet with the butter and garlic until slightly caramelized.
Add the Worcestershire Sauce and Red Pepper Flakes
Add in the Vegetable Broth and simmer for 2-3 minutes
Stir in Cocktail Sauce and Lemon Juice and let cook for 5-6 minutes.
I marinated some peeled and deveined shrimp in some lemon juice, Worcestershire Sauce, a dash of salt, pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, and cayenne pepper and let sit while preparing the sauce. I then sprinkled the shrimp with a tablespoon of flour and added the shrimp to the sauce and cooked for about 6 minutes until the shrimp cooked and the sauce thickened.
This is great served over pasta or as a hot appetizer with warm, crusty bread.
*Katie Gagne teaches English at Trinity High School in Garfield Heights. She is also the owner of her in-home bakery Sassy’s Sweets and Oh So Much More. You can contact her at (440) 773-4459 or at mk********@ao*.com.
