A twist on a good thing: Cornmeal Crusted Mango Salmon

I like to think of this as a twist on Teriyaki salmon, since it mixes in a sweet flavor. The idea comes from Sunny Anderson from the Food Network with a few changes...

Ingredients:
1 can mango nectar
2-4 salmon fillets
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 tbs butter
2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
salt & pepper to taste

1. With a sharp knife, scrape skin from salmon (if too difficult, or if you like skin, you can also leave on)
2. Place salmon in a bowl, season both sides with salt & pepper, pour in mango nectar to cover
3. Marinate at least 30 minutes
4. In a plate, mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt
5. Dredge front and back of salmon in cornmeal mixture
6. Heat olive oil and butter at medium high to high heat (watch butter does not burn)
7. Cook salmon for 4-8 minutes depending on thickness, flipping to cook each side.

Enjoy!

This goes great with garlic mashed potatoes and you can try a trick that Sunny uses to get more flavor in: boil a few cloves of garlic (2-3 per large potato) in the water with the potatoes as they cook. Then mash the garlic up together with the potatoes.

Want to try this! ~ Also, Sunny serves it with garlic mashed potatoes, which she makes by boiling garlic cloves in the water with the potatoes! Yum :)

Caponata

This is a delicious way to cook veggies and is extremely versatile too. It can be used as a meaty yet meatless filling for a veggie lasagna, a saucy topping for pasta, or just plain or as a side salad.

Ingredients:

Veggies - Caponata is usually a mix of veggies and eggplant, but for this, you can make any combination of eggplant, zucchini (or squash), bell peppers, and even maybe spinach. It's a great way to buy whatever is cheap and cook it up. A good start is 1 regular eggplant, 1-2 zucchini and 1/2 each 1 red pepper and 1 green pepper.

1 can (14-16 oz) Diced Tomatoes - I also use tomatoes, which you could chop up and stew, but I usually end up using canned diced tomatoes (in the winter, because regular tomatoes aren't in season, and in the summer, cause it's so quick and easy this way). You want to avoid the seasoned kind (which can taste a little too sweet, but if you have to get seasoned, get the Italian flavoring).

1/2 onion
Garlic
Olive oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt
Pepper

1. Dice your veggies into 1/2 inch cubes. Sprinkle with salt (esp. eggplant & zucchini).
2. Mince garlic & dice onion.
3. Heat a few tbs of olive oil and sautee garlic and onion until translucent.
4. Sautee eggplant for a minute or two, add peppers and zucchini, cook until tender and browned (a fork should go easily through these).
5. Add can of tomatoes, 1/4 can of water, and a few good shakes of balsamic vinegar. Salt & pepper to taste.
6. Decrease heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until reduced and tender.

Enjoy!

When eating it plain or over pasta, I like a little cheese on top. Grated parmesan is the best.

Recipes to try: Drunken Shrimp

I HATE The Neely's from Food Network, but they are cooking a combination of a few great standbys that I bet taste even better together: beer and shrimp! Then they serve it with another great combination: cocktail and barbeque sauce!

Almost as easy as Shrimp Cocktail...you basically just dump the ingredients into a pot and boil the shrimp -- simple!

Can't wait to try it :)

Ingredients

• 2 (12-ounce) bottles lager style beer (recommended: Budweiser)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 onions, quartered
• 1 garlic clove, smashed
• 1 tablespoon Neelys Seasoning Rub, plus more for garnish, recipe follows
• 1 tablespoon crab boil seasoning (recommended: Old Bay)
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 whole peppercorns
• 1 lemon, quartered
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• Lemon wedges, for garnish
• BBQ Cocktail Sauce, for garnish, recipe follows

Directions

Add all ingredients, except shrimp and garnishes to a large saucepan on high heat. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to low. Add the shrimp and cook until bright pink, about 5 minutes. Drain the shrimp from the cooking liquid and place in a serving dish. Chill or eat while warm, sprinkled with the dry rub before serving alongside Cocktail Sauce.

Neelys BBQ Seasoning:

• 1 1/2 cups paprika
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3 3/4 tablespoons onion powder

Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir until combined. Keep in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

BBQ Cocktail Sauce:

• 1/2 cup Neelys Barbecue Sauce, recipe follows
• 1/2 cup prepared horseradish
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Dash hot sauce

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until use.

Neelys BBQ Sauce

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 5 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 5 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
• 1/2 tablespoon ground mustard
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

In a large saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring frequently, for 1 hour 15 minutes.

Yield: 3 1/2 cups

Quesadillas 3 ways!

There are many ways to make a delicious quesadilla and here are a few different ways I fold them to make them super delicious.

Foreman Grill


The first is a clean and easy no brainer. It works for semi cold ingredients, or you can warm them on this first, before you throw on the tortilla.

1. Pre-heat your grill

2. Meanwhile, arrange the ingredients you want inside and fold into a pocket while cold.

3. Arrange the pocket folded side down on the grill and shut it until you get nice grill marks and the browned color you want.


Fold and Fill

The next is also quick and easy. It's perfect for when you have a hot filling to put inside (like say some peppers and onions that you've just sauteed).

1. You toast the tortilla on both sides (until the bloom -- or shine -- goes away and the tortilla is white with brown spots and a bit crunchy as opposed to soft).

2. Mound the cheese on one half of the tortilla (you'll need a good amount to get it really cheesy)

3. Fold the tortilla over and cook on both sides to cook the cheese. Cook until cheese is good and melted.

4. Peel the tortilla apart (see picture) and fill with delicious warm filling. Stick it back together and you're done!


Burrito Style

The third is great for when you have a lot of fillings to put inside. In this one, the cheese is just the glue, and the fillings are the main show, so you want to fold it kind of like a burrito to hold everything in.

1. Proceed like always and toast the tortilla on both sides

2. Sprinkle a line of cheese right down the center. Layer fillings in a line on top (works well with chicken strips!). Sprinkle a second layer of cheese in a line on the top.

3. Fold over one side of the now warm tortilla and lightly hold on top to melt the cheese and make the tortilla stick.

4. Fold over the other side.

5. Flip it over to make sure both sides are warmed and melted, and you're done!