In the Kitchen: Soft Shell Crab Sandwich Recipe

It's spring, which in Baltimore means the beginning of crab season!!! How could I be a good Baltimore blogger without giving you at least one good crab recipe? So here it is folks....my yummy crab sandwich creation:

• Saute chopped onion in pan on medium heat with butter, and season to taste with coriander and ginger. Add a splash of lemon juice and set aside.
• Cover soft shell crab in fish fry (I like to use ZATARAIN'S), and fry on medium heat in frying pan.
• Toast brioche bun and add cooked crab, onion jam, mustard, mayo, tomato, and lettuce. Sprinkle sandwich with Old Bay to taste (note: Old Bay is critical to sandwich's deliciousness).

Enjoy!

In the Kitchen: Peruvian Chicken Recipe

I first started eating Peruvian chicken a few years ago when the hubs would bring home tasty takeout from a restaurant near his old job. Unfortunately, we now live an hour from the restaurant, so we don't get to eat it much. I decided to stop being lazy and finally try to make my own version. According to the hubs it's better than our Peruvian spot's, and on par with chicken he's had while actually visiting Peru........jackpot! Below is how you make it:

Chicken

• Clean, then season whole chicken (also works well with wings) with equal parts oregano, salt, pepper, paprika, and cumin. Make sure chicken is fully covered in spices.

• Cover chicken with fresh squeezed lime juice from two lines. Stuff one half of lime inside chicken cavity.

• Bake on 350 degrees until done (approximately 1:15 mins)

Dipping Sauce

• In a small bowl mix 1 part mayo to 1 part mustard. Use the sauce for dipping the chicken when done.

Sidenote: I'm currently cutting chicken out of my diet, so I use the spice mixture when pan frying salmon in olive oil on medium-low heat, which is also quite tasty.....and anti-inflammatory. If you'd like to try using salmon instead of chicken swap the lime juice for lemon juice in the recipe.

Enjoy!

In the Kitchen: Fish Taco Recipe

Today I'm posting a wonderful fish taco recipe. The mixture of sweet and spicy in this dish will leave your taste buds thanking you. Here's how you make it:

• Thinly coat pan with olive oil on medium heat
• Begin cooking fish (I use mahi mahi, tilapia works as well) over medium heat and add fresh lemon juice
• Season fish heavily with pre-made blackening season, or make your own using paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, black pepper, and chili powder
• heat tortilla in separate skillet over thin layer of olive oil on medium
• when fish and tortilla are done add shredded cabbage, pineapple chunks, raw spinach,  mexican crema, and sriracha sauce

Enjoy! This pairs well with mango juice and black beans and rice. To make this dish vegan, swap fish for black beans.

In the Kitchen: Apple Parmesan Salad

These days almost all my time is spent caring for Baby Z and sleeping. This means I have no time for intricate meals, but that doesn't mean my food shouldn't be tasty. In comes this delicious recipe partially concocted by my mom. It's healthy and soooooo good. Here's what you'll need to create it:

• Spinach
• Diced granny apple marinated in red wine vinaigrette dressing for at least 2 hours
• Shredded parmesan cheese
• Red wine vinaigrette dressing (if this is a little tart add a little extra sugar and some grenadine syrup to it)

Enjoy!

In the Kitchen: Lemon Pound Cake Recipe

Nothing says yummy like a slice of lemon pound cake with a tall glass of milk. The other day I was craving some pound cake and thought I'd take a stab at baking one. Unfortunately, I was feeling a little under the weather and couldn't muster up the energy to cook. The hubs, being the sweetheart that he is, stepped in and volunteered to bake one. It was seriously scrumptious :-) 

Here's how he made it:

• Mix 3 sticks butter (1½ cups)
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 6 eggs
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• zest of one lemon
• 3 cups sugar
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla 

Baking Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare bundt or tube pan by coating with shortening or butter and flouring light. Set aside.
2. Let butter, cream cheese, and eggs come to room temperature.
3. Cream together butter, cream cheese and sugar til fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemon juice and zest and combine well. Add flour and salt and vanilla.
4. Mix until just well-combined but do not over mix.
5. Pour into prepared bundt or tube pan.
6. Bake until golden brown and skewer inserted into middle of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

In The Kitchen: Broccoli Cheddar Soup Recipe

When it's cold outside I always like to warm up with a nice bowl of hot soup. An easy one to make at home is broccoli cheddar. To make a bowl you'll need to:

• Heat 1 tbsp of butter in a small pot
• Add 1/2 cup of chopped onion (not sweet) to pot and saute for 5 mins
• Add 3 cups chicken broth to pot and bring to a boil
• Add 1/2 cup of shredded carrots
• Add 12 oz. of broccoli (frozen or fresh) seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic powder to pot and cover for 4 mins
• Add 8 oz of cubed Velvetta cheese and stir
• Lastly, add 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

(serves 4)

Let things cook until soup is your desired temperature. Enjoy!

CALORIES: 200

In the Kitchen: Blackened Chicken Caesar Burrito

Tonight I cooked blackened chicken caesar burritos. I've never made these before, but love the ones from California Tortilla. A trip downtown to pick one up was out of the question so I decided to try to replicate it on my own. 

Here's what I used:

-cut grape tomatoes

-romaine lettuce

-motzerella cheese

-whole foods brand caesar dressing

-a can of black beans seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and chopped onions

-rice

-warmed tortillas

-one chicken breast brushed with olive oil and sprinkled heavily with blackening seasoning ( make your own batch with 1tbsp each of paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder plus 1 tsp each of black and cayenne pepper) baked at 300 degrees

The hubs and I both liked it. I only wish I had thought to make some chips and queso :-( 

Enjoy!