Asking the Barefoot Contessa...

Ah... 2 hours on the plane from Seattle back to San Francisco, the perfect time by myself with no distractions to get caught up on my magazine addiction.  On the flight up to Seattle, I read the entire Sunset Magazine - it's now all marked up with fun things to do in the Bay Area, recipes to try, places to visit... more about that later!

Now on to House Beautiful, savoring each issue in its' entirety, turning the pages, marking up articles to share on my Facebook page...

 I have 3 issues to catch up on, starting with the July/August issue. I must be hungry  though, as I immediately turned to the "Ask the Barefoot Contessa" column!   Here's what I found, and what I made for dinner on Wednesday night; "Spaghetti with Shrimp and Broccoli"... easy, easy easy.  Never thought about roasting shrimp (prawns) but they sure turned out gorgeous, pink, juicy and NOT overdone.





You will need:

• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 cups of broccoli florets 
• Good Olive Oil
• 1 pound shrimp (16-18 per pound) shrimp peeled and de-veined
• 1 pound good pasta - we used whole grain
• 8 large garlic cloves 
• 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

**Not on the Barefoot Contessa's list, but I also roasted red peppers and fresh cherry tomatoes from our deck garden

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, bring a large pot of water to boil with 2 tsps. of salt

2. Combine the broccoli, (and red pepper if you choose)  1/4 cup of olive oil, 2 tsp. of salt, 1/2 tsp. of pepper on a sheet pan , spread out and roast for 5 minutes.

3. Remove from oven, and then spread shrimp and tomatoes with the broccoli, return to oven and roast for another 8-10 minutes. (look how plump the shrimp/prawns are!)

4. Meanwhile cook the pasta in the pot of boiling salted water, according to the directions on the package. Set aside 1 1/2 cups of the cooking water before draining the pasta.

5. Heat 1/3 cup olive oil over medium heat in a pot large enough to hold the finished pasta. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until it begins to turn golden.  Add the red pepper flakes and cook for about 30 seconds more.  Carefully add the reserved pasta cooking water to the garlic and oil, then bring to a boil.  Lower the heat, add 1 tsp. of salt and simmer for about 5 minutes until the liquid is reduced by about a third. 

        **Hint: we used 1/2 cup of white wine in place of 1/2 cup of the pasta water**

6. Add the drained pasta to the garlic oil and toss.  Take off the heat, add the cooked shrimp and broccoli, plus the parsley and Parmesan cheese.

7.  Voila"!   Serve with a nice white wine and some crusty fresh bread, and enjoy!  

Have a wonderful weekend, get outside and enjoy some nice fall weather.   I think we will be headed down to the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero in San Francisco for some farmer's market shopping - will send pics if we do!

We've had a very eventful week at Caron's Beach House - here's where we've been featured!

Completely Coastal - Caron's Beach House http://www.completely-coastal.com/2010/09/carons-beach-house.html

Sally Lee by The Sea: Window Shopping for Beach Fall Finds http://www.sallyleebythesea.com/2010/09/window-shopping-for-beachy-fall-finds.html

Coastal Creations and Designs: Everything Coastal Unplugged http://coastaldesign.blogspot.com/2010/09/everything-coastal-unplugged-interview.html

Thanks again for your support, your comments and for following!  

Crab Lasagna - Delish!

Step One: Find some wily rock crabs on the beach.  Take a big bucket and a rake. Wear your beach shoes, prepare to get muddy and wet.  (that's half the fun!)  The crabs hide down in the mud underneath the big rocks and seaweed. It takes a little skill  with the rake (or the rake handle) to find them. My dad is an expert crab "hunter"!  Alex and Tom didn't do too bad, I even found 2 all on my own....

Step Two: Cook them in the pot.  Water should be boiling, and crabs need to cook for 15 minutes.  Best tasting (we think) if you cook them in salt water.  Ours were still hanging on to the seaweed from the beach!

Step Three: Cool the crabs in clean fresh water, then lay them out to drip dry.  I love the barnacle hat that this one is wearing!

Step Four: Crack and clean the crabs. A lot of messy work, but so worth it for fresh crab.  We have to watch my mom, she puts more in her mouth than in the bowl.  Because these rock crabs came off of my parents beach, the price was exactly right too! FREE

Step Five: Make the Lasagna!

Ingredients:
Lasagna Noodles - cook and drain
Fresh Crab Meat (bay shrimp would be good too!)
Mix together:
1 can cream of shrimp or mushroom soup
1 package of cream cheese
1 pt. small or curd cottage cheese (or ricotta)
1 egg
3/4 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup chopped Italian parsley
2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper (or lemon pepper)

3-4 sliced tomatoes
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Simply layer noodles, cheese mixture, crab in a 9" x 13" pan. Repeat layering until the pan is full. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then take out and layer tomotoes on top, with cheddar cheese on top of the tomatoes.  Bake for another 10 minutes until cheese is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Serve with some crunchy french bread and a ceasar salad and voila' - Gourmet Dinner!