For that Special Occassion.....{Chilli Crab Linguine}

I love eating crab and it really comes into season in May and June so this is the time when I really start to use it in my cooking. I’ve found sourcing crab meat from an online fishmonger is the easiest way to get hold of really fresh produce and it works out a lot cheaper, often I'll do a job lot and get some yummy clams as well. I use Fish for Thought and have found their service to be wonderful, cannot fault them and their fish is delcicious!  So on to the food - many crab linguine’s use just the white meat but I find that the brown meat is full of flavour and so I use both for this dish. The quanities I have given serves around 6 people.  

Chilli Crab Linguine

600g linguine (I use dried but feel free to use fresh!)
2 TBSP Olive oil
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped
2 banana shallots, finely chopped
White wine, just a splash!
300g brown crab meat
250g white crab meat
1 lemon – zest of half and juice of whole
Parsley, finely chopped

cook the pasta according to instructions (I like mine slightly al dente), drain the cooking water but reserve a few spoonfuls for the sauce. meanwhile heat the olive oil in a pan and fry off the garlic, shallots and chilli until softened but not browned. add in a splash of white wine, lemon juice and lemon zest and then stir in the brown crab meat.  let it warm through and add in the reserved pasta water if it looks a bit too thick. stir the white crab meat in gently and then toss in the pasta. season and add the parsley. serve!

When your BBF goes on a holiday......{Thai Seafood Salad}

 

 

So my wonderful bestie Paul decided to go and spend a month in Laos, lucky thing! Although I missed him desperately, I loved that every few days he managed to find the time to send me pictures such as these;

 

 

 

Hard life huh?! He also sent me a recipe - the boy knows me too well! He proclaimed it the best salad he had ever eaten so I had to give it a go myself - it was delicious with lovely fresh flavours which are perfect for the summer. I changed a few things, his version had mint leaves instead of coriander and the shallots were in the salad not in the dressing, but hey recipes are meant to be played around with. How lucky I am that even when half way across the world lovely Paul things of me and this little blog of mine! And whilst I love the photos and food stories and the fact he is having amazing experiences I am so very pleased that he is home safe and sound, he has been missed.

 

 

 

 

 

Paul's Thai style Seafood Salad

 

 

salad:
 

2 gem lettuces, roughly chopped 

small bunch of coriander, chopped

3 spring onions, sliced

200g cooked basmati rice

1 dsp coconut oil

3 squid, cut into rings

10 unpeeled raw prawns (shell on)

dressing:
 

4tbsp fish sauce

1 shallot, very finely sliced

1 red chilli, finely chopped

1 1/2 lemons (or limes), juice of

1 dsp light brown sugar

 

 

put all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl and mix together. warm coconut oil and toast the rice - you want to be scraping it off the pan so it looks crusty and it is more flaky then rice grains - don't be scared you need to just stand by the pan and keep on scraping and stirring. remove from pan and set aside. in the same pan cook the seafood, this takes no time at all about 5 mins for the prawns and 3 mins for the squid. take the salad vegetables and herbs and toss in a large bowl with 1/2 the dressing. and the toasted rice. divide the salad in two bowls and top with the seafood and the remaining dressing. Eat outside, dreaming of warmer climates and beautiful beaches!

Today I'm linking up with the lovely Miriam at Farm girl

A taste of Italy from Whitstable.......{Spaghetti alla Vongole}

I wax lyrical about Whitstable so much on this blog but then I love it so much. Last Saturday we wondered down to the fish market and I decided against mussels and instead opted for some fresh clams - a bit pricier but then you need less to make a rather wonderful Italian meal. This took me right back to summer holidays in Italy although it was March on the Kentish coast. I don't eat pasta very much at all these days but when I do, it has to be worth it - full of flavour and not to heavy. Don't be scared of shellfish when you are cooking clams they tell you when they are ready to eat as their shells open - makes it so simple!

Spaghetti alla Vongole

750g fresh clams (approx)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 red chilli, finely chopped

20g butter

olive oil

150ml white wine

zest and juice 1/2 lemon

handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped

enough spaghetti / linguine for 2 people

cook the spaghetti according to instructions, you want it slightly al-dente. warm the butter and olive oil in a pan and add the garlic and chilli. once it has softened add in the wine, when it starts to simmer, ramp up the heat, add in the clams and put the lid on the pan. shake a few times as it cooks. the clams will take around 4-5 minutes, once the shells have opened. discard all clams that haven't opened. add in the pasta, parsley, lemon juice and zest and toss them all together. season and serve. It's really that simple but tastes a million dollars!

Linking up with Vicky at Honest Mum

When fish is this fresh........{Grilled Prawns)

We spent my birthday weekend in one of my favourite places - Whitstable. One of the things I love about it is the fresh seafood market. Often one of the evenings of the weekend we will forgo the many places to eat and just buy some fresh fish from the market and go home and cook it.

We were spoilt for choice at the market this week and after a lot of umming and ahhing I picked up some lovely fresh large prawns. You could do so much with these BUT I can't help thinking when fish is this fresh you are best keeping it really simple. I went for a really simple but fragrant butter made with juicy garlic and lots of fresh parsley which soaked into the prawns under the grill. We lingered over them with a fresh glass of prosecco and some fresh baked bread from one of the deli's. There's nothing better in life really.  

Grilled Prawns with Garlic & Parsley Butter

10 large raw prawns 

50g good quality butter

1/2 shallot, finely chopped 

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 

handful parsley, finely chopped 

1 tbsp olive oil

if you wish take the heads of the prawns and then de-vein them and then butterfly them so they lie flat on the grill. mix all of the other ingredients together and then dollop it in the prawns. place under the grill for around 10-15 minutes until the prawns are nice and pink and cooked through. How easy is that?!

Valentines Day Starter.........{Prawn and Crayfish Cocktail boats}

Valentines Day is fast approaching and today I share with you an old classic which makes a great starter! It's a old favourite of mine - a twist on a classic, and whilst it's not the healthiest, omitting the bread makes it that much healthier!

Prawn and Crayfish Cocktail Boats

250g large peeled prawns
120g crayfish tails 
3 tbsp good quality mayonnaise 
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
Couple of drops of Tabasco 
Squeeze lemon juice 
Half a cucumber, shredded into ribbons (I use a peeler to do this)
Little Gem lettuce, remove the outer leaves you will need around three depending on size

take the mayonnaise and ketchup and mix them together. add the Tabasco and lemon juice and season. have a try and adjust to taste (I usually end up adding a bit more lemon and black pepper). add in the prawns and crayfish tails (reserving some of the tails for garnish). take your lettuce leaves and use them as “boats";  first add a couple of ribbons of cucumber and then the prawn cocktail and finish with a garnish of a couple of crayfish tails. Serve on a lovely wooden platter and let people just help themselves. 

 

Linking up with Vicky at Honest Mum

Moules Mariniere; it's easier than you think (trust me)

Obviously my trip to Whitstable has not satisfied my hunger for all things seafood as last night I cooked some of my own in my little kitchen. Mussels are just so darn cheap... £1.99 for a bag (500g) in the supermarket and yet they are a great source of protein and cooked well they can be very filling. I guess because you buy them "live" people can be nervous cooking them but they are very easy and they cook fast... This very traditional sauce/broth the mussels are cooked in is simple and light but full of flavour and is the perfect accompaniment for your plump and juicy mussels

You do have to do a bit of prep first but don't worry it's dead simple!

Moules Mariniere

(Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a starter)
500g live mussels
3 shallots slice finely
2 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
200ml dry white wine
50g butter
70ml double cream
Handful of parsley, chopped (I had to omit this as pesky slugs ate my parsley!)
S&P

Preparation

Place mussels in a large bowl of cold water (or in the sink) and one by one pull of any beards and use a knife to scrape off any nasty bits on the shells. Discard any that have opened as that means they are dead and they won't be good. Give them another rinse and you are good to go.

Cooking

Melt the butter in a large lidded pan, add shallots and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes until they have softened. Add the white wine and S&P and cook of for a minute before adding the mussels. Put lid on firmly and give pan a shake. Keep giving pan gentle shakes here and there and when the shells have opened up (literally took 3 minutes) take of lid and stir in cream and parsley. Told you it was easy! Just divide into two bowls and you are ready to go!

Serve with crusty bread and butter or chips if you are that way inclined. We ate this out in our garden him with a glass of wine me with some sparkling water. It was a very easy, cheap weekday meal that felt like a treat to eat!

Linking up with Alesha for Delicious Dish Tuesday

Our Happy Place: Whitstable (again)!

Beautiful Beaches (minus the seaweed) 

If you've read this blog before then you will know that Whitstable is our happy place (I talk about it here and here). Everything about it, I love.  I'm smiling from the moment I get there to the moment we drive away (with me asking my beloved how soon we can return).  All being well its where we would like to get married and one day maybe we'll even have our own little fisherman's hut on the waterfront. Until then I just love having the luxury of it being just 45 minutes away and knowing that's it just waiting for me to return. 

The working Harbour 

We spent the whole day blissfully relaxing...... We swam in the sea, he sunbathed whilst I read, we drank Prosecco whilst listening to the waves, we ate fresh oysters by the harbour, wondered around the delightful little shops, sheltered from a storm in The Pearson's Arms, sat outside and listened to jazz whilst drinking wine and picking at fresh seafood....   

The Amazing Native Oysters - best in the world!

It truly has my heart, this little sleepy seaside village in Kent with a vibrant food and music scene.... I'll be seeing you again real soon Whitstable. 

Whistable, how much do I love thee? Let me count......

This is such an overdue post.... opps

The man did good. Whitstable was where I was whisked of too for my birthday; and what an amazing weekend it was. We ate at a Michelin starred restaurant (I have written about this in a separate post here), drank in our favourite pub The Pearson’s Arms, ate fresh oysters in the harbour, sampled lots of ice cream, cycled 18 miles along the seafront to Herne Bay and then on to Reculver and then all the way back again and just relaxed a lot. We were blessed with amazing, unseasonably warm weather and I fell in love with Whitstable a little bit more, which I had thought was impossible.

 Our very quirky vintage cottage we stayed in, find it here. Central location and the sweetest place. We loved it. Emma who owns the place was just delightful as well!

The Sweetest bedroom

Best Breakfast table in the world, cutest kitchen tiles as well

Drinks on the beach as the sun set

 

How beautiful is that?

Cycling...... my bum hurt after 18 miles

The sun was in his eyes!

 

Fresh Oysters whilst watching the harbour

 

The Harbour

 

Yummy Oysters fresh from the Sea

 

Whitstable, you have my heart – I’ll see you real soon.