It's Restaurant week in Boston. And I'm on a diet. Not a good combo. I slipped up Monday night, and indulged at Rialto in Cambridge. Restaurant Week is a great way to try new restaurants or go back to your favorites for cheap money. Each restaurant puts together a prix fixe menu and it's only $20 for lunch and $30 for dinner. Rialto received a 4 star rating from the Boston Globe, and owner/chef Jody Adams also has a cookbook, In the Hands of a Chef, that looks amazing.
I chose a carrot soup for my appetizer, and it was heavenly. It was smooth, and comforting, and reminded me of Fall and Thanksgiving, when it's always on our table. This version was rich and exotic, with a swirl of creamy yogurt, a fragrant mint leaf, and something called 'kuddah', which was a crushed mix of nuts and spices that was sprinkled over the top.
Next up was my main meal. I was torn between grilled Salmon Nicoise and Roasted Bluefish with lemon potatoes and snap peas. Bluefish is an iffy fish. Depending on how it's prepared, it's either a bit too fishy and oily or delicious. I decided to take the risk...and made the wrong decision. My bluefish was served skin side up, and was less cooked through than I would like, and was full of dark bits that I didn't want to eat. One of the girls I was with ate every scrap of hers, so I could just be finicky about how I like my bluefish.
I've been spoiled though by the way my friend Laureen's husband Dave cooks it. He catches his bluefish on the Cape, then grills it after slathering it with a mayonaise/italian dressing mixture, that somehow draws out all the oil and imparts plenty of flavor.
The potatoes though, were out of this world. They were a neat little stack of wafer thin slices held together with a lemony cream sauce. I would love that recipe.
Dessert was a decadent chocolate torte that was one of those dense, moist, flourless cakes that is best eaten in very small bites. It was served with raspberry puree, a few berries, and a dollop of sweet, whipped cream.
Today, I'm back on my diet, but still thinking of that dinner, and wanted to make something a little special. I experimented, and it was so good that I can't wait to make it again. I boiled shrimp in Old Bay seasoned water, then made a sauce out of butter, garlic, tomatoes and the secret ingredient, a bit of reserved cooking liquid which added great flavor to the sauce. If you don't like the taste of old bay, you could substitute white wine instead.
Another great way to serve this is as 'Shrimp Bruchetta'. My friend Janet and I have had this many times at a local restaurant. Get some good French or Italian bread, whichever you prefer for garlic bread, make a batch, and then pour the Shrimp Scampi over it. With the tomatoes (and feel free to add onions too), it gives a nice bruchetta flavor that blends really well with the garlic bread. And the toasty bread is wonderful for mopping up the extra sauce.
Shrimp Scampi
2 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
12 medium shrimp, frozen ( I did shells off )
1/2 small tomato, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons butter
2 small cloves garlic, crushed
1. In small saucepan, bring water, seasoning and lemon juice to a boil.
2. Add shrimp, turn heat down to medium, and a minute later, turn the heat off. Check the shrimp a few minutes later. It will probably take about five minutes when you do it this way, but the shrimp will cook a little slower and you can keep an eye on them. When they are as done as you want them, pour off a quarter cup of liquid and set aside. Discard the rest and then run the shrimp under cold water, until they are no longer hot. Once cool, set them aside.
3. Add the butter, tomatoes and garlic to the saucepan and cook over medium low heat for a few minutes.
4. Add the reserved cooking liquid and cook a few minutes more.
5. Return the shrimp to the saucepan, and stir for a few minutes until heated through.
6. Serve...over pasta, vegetables (I did asparagus), or over garlic bread...
Enjoy!
:) Pam