TUNA RED SKY

Red sky at night, sailor's delight.  On the Chesapeake somewhere.

Aboard Fidelio a weekend ago, the tuna I was marinating matched the color of the sunset.  The old adage, red sky at night, sailor's delight, proved true, both for the forecast and our dinner.

Fidelio is a cranky, small, old sailboat that belongs to our dear friend Rob Fawcett, Pennsylvania's family doc of the year, and, a published poet, whose good humor and writings have entertained us on each of our 15 annual trips exploring the Chesapeake.

Capt Rob, with me supervising

Turns out Fidelio the boat is appropriately named.  Beethoven revised and cut short his only opera, Fidelio, but it still didn't make it among 18-th century audiences.   "Fidelio will win me a martyr's crown," he reportedly said.  It seems the singing was too difficult to perform well, and the plot, well, is kinda complicated.

The story goes that Fidelio was the new errand boy in a Spanish political prison, who arrived carrying food and supplies for Rocco, the jailer.  Rocco's daughter thought he was cute, and had her heart set on winning him over .....but ..... Fidelio was really a nobleWOMAN from Seville who had snuck into the prison in disguise to rescue her husband, who had been sentenced to death for his political actions.  A complicated plot ensues, but it all works out in the end, with Leonore, aka Fidelio, freeing her husband from his chains.

Fidelio the sailboat is a noblewoman in disguise, too.  She's a sweet sailing vessel, but she's over 40 years old and a bit rundown.  One year her engine blew on us; another the head stopped working.  We've been over-powered, and under-winded.  Some sailors polish and scrub foredecks and railings, but, well, dusty Fidelio is still well-loved by Rob.  Being onboard is a lot like camping on the water, but it's an annual delight that I wouldn't miss.

AND THE TUNA?

Tuna Udon, a recipe from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK by Elizabeth Wiegand

So, in spite of having only a tiny charcoal grill that attaches to a stanchion, and a tiny gas burner, with some advance planning and kitchen work before leaving home, we managed to pull off an awesome dinner.  I had chopped and softened onions, peppers and asparagus, mixed up the marinades in jars, and cooked a package of udon noodles before leaving home.

Both red snapper and tuna are seasonal favorites in our markets this fall.

We found the tuna in Raleigh at Saltwater Seafood off Capitol Blvd, another Earp family venture that features local bounties from NC waters, fresh and cleaned on the spot.  The tuna had just arrived from Wanchese, the intake of fresh, local seafood in the Outer Banks.

Tuna being skinned at the cleaning station at Hatteras Village Marina.

After we dropped sails and motored into an isolated gunk hole for the night, I placed the Ziplock bags of noodles and veggies on top of the covered engine to warm them on the residual heat.  Shook and poured the marinade over the bright, red tuna.  We lit the charcoal and candles.

The red of the setting sun was mirrored in the water.  So, as good sailors do, we paid our respects to one fine day.  We poured a sip (or two!) of rum over ice and squeezed in a lime.  Made a toast to a spectacular day on the water, in the wind, and under the bridge.  We then listened to a new batch of poems from our Captain, mulling over his images and metaphors and the stories they told.

With flashlights, we started putting our dinner together.  Usually I sear the tun in a hot pan, but this time, it kissed the hot grill for just a couple of minutes per side.  The marinated noodles were swirled on our plates, then topped with the red-centered tuna.  We poured a fine temperanillo and cut the bread.

And all was well aboard Fidelio, that fine noble mistress.

*****RECIPE*****

TUNA UDON,  from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK, by Elizabeth Wiegand, Globe Pequot Press, 2nd Edition, 2013. (c)  Please credit if reproduced.  

            Beautiful loins of dark, red tuna are available fresh from the day boats at O’Neal’s Sea Harvest in Wanchese or at any of the seafood markets along the Outer Banks.  For a fascinating diversion, catch the charter boats when they return to Oregon Inlet Fishing Center or at the docks in Hatteras Village late in the afternoon, to see them unload or rather heave onto the boardwalk the big, torpedo-like yellowfin tunas caught just offshore.  At Hatteras Village, the local watermen at the fish cleaning stations make quick work of peeling the skin, then quartering the tuna to extract the loin.   Loins are then cut crosswise into steaks. 

            This dish makes a beautiful presentation, with the bright colors of the veggies in the udon noodles.  The tuna is very tender, almost like butter, when marinated in oil.  

For the tuna:

4 tuna steaks, at least 1-inch thick

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons chili oil

3 strips lemon peel ½ inch wide

3 sprigs fresh thyme

2 large garlic cloves, slivered

salt and freshly ground pepper

For the Udon:

3 tablespoons white sesame seeds

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root

¼ soy sauce

¼ cup canola or vegetable oil plus 1 tablespoon

½ teaspoon Tobasco or other hot sauce

½ cup chopped red pepper

3 green onions, chopped

½ pound fresh asparagus or 2 cups sugar snap peas

1 package (8 ounces) dried udon pasta

1. At least an hour before cooking, marinate tuna steaks.  In a plastic, resealable bag, place the olive oil, chili oil, lemon peel, thyme, and garlic.  Squish it around to blend, then add the tuna steaks.  Place bag in refrigerator until time to cook.
2. Start to prepare the udon noodles.  In a small skillet, over medium heat, place the sesame seeds, and shake the pan to stir them around as they toast.  When lightly browned, after about 3 to 5 minutes, remove from heat.
3. In a small mixing bowl or jar with a tight lid, combine the garlic, ginger root, soy sauce, oil, hot sauce, red pepper, and onions.  Whisk, or shake the jar, to combine. Let sit so that the flavors will meld.
4. If you are using asparagus, snap the tough ends off, rinse, then cut into 2 inch pieces on the diagonal to make it attractive. Place in a skillet, barely cover with water, and set on stove.  Turn heat to medium high, and as soon as the water begins to boil, drain the asparagus, then immediately run cold water over the pieces to stop the cooking process and give it a bolder green color.
5. When you are ready to serve within 30 minutes or less, put a large pot of water on high.  When it begins to boil, add the udon noodles, and time for about 9 to 10 minutes, or until pasta is al dente.  Drain, and place in a large serving bowl. 
6. In a small skillet, place 1 tablespoon oil, red pepper and green onions, and if using, the sugar snap peas over medium high heat.  Cook and stir for just about 2 minutes, just enough to warm the vegetables but still keep them crisp.  Remove from heat and add to the udon noodles.  Add asparagus, if using.
7. Whisk or shake the soy sauce combination, then pour over the noodles and vegetables.  Stir to combine.  Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. 
8. Remove tuna from the bag and make sure none of the garlic or herbs have stuck to its sides.  Strain the oil into a large saute pan, and place over medium high heat.  When oil is hot, add tuna and season with salt and pepper.  Sear quickly, 2 to 3 minutes for the first side, turn and sear for an additional minute but no more than 3, depending on how rare you desire. We prefer tuna that is still red in the center, about 4 minutes total.  Remove from pan immediately.
9. Place dressed noodles and vegetables in the center of each plate, and make a well in the center.  Place tuna in center.  Serve immediately. 

YIELD:  4 servings  

HWY 12 SOUTH - Hatteras & Ocracoke

FRESH & LOCAL - that is what I preach.  And that is what you'll find on the Outer Banks.  Tender, flaky tile fish, at Ketch 55 in Avon or the Blue Moon Beach Grill in Nags Head.  Sheepshead at The Back Porch on Ocracoke.  Fresh crab cakes with remoulade at the Flying Melon Cafe, also on Ocracoke.



And beautiful dry scallops, brought in fresh that day in big, muslin bags to the Ocracoke Seafood market.  A pound of those beauties found their way to my ice chest, to appease those left working back home.  Check out how they were cooked, and a recipe, below.








HWY 12 SOUTH

Bodie Island Lighthouse

NC HWY 12 is open.  Flowing south (and north!).  Past one of my favorite haunts, the Bodie Island Lighthouse, now re-opened for climbing.  The heat and I rolled past the Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, where I stopped to see if any boats were in yet with the day's charter haul.  I was too early.

Charter Boats lined up at the Oregon Inlet Fishing Center

Down HWY 12, past the temporary bridge, where the sand seems to be gathering on either side, past the high buildup of sand, pushed there ever too frequently to keep the ocean at bay, and on into Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, past Avon to Buxton, where I stopped to chat with Gee Gee at Buxton Books, one of the greatest little indy bookstores, and for dinner at Rusty's Surf & Turf.

Summertime on the Outer Banks is a real trip.  Patience must rule, with traffic, the heat, and frequent thunderstorms.  There's usually a wait anywhere you want to eat, but take it from this foodie, it's worth it.  Like at Ketch 55, in Avon, where a delightful filet of tilefish balanced on a bed of orzo with fresh veggies spilling out.

THE GRAVEYARD OF THE ATLANTIC MUSEUM is a fascinating place to explore and cool off. And they have frequent talks, about the civil war and World War II on the island, as well as culinary demos and talks by folks like myself, promoting both THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK and my newest, FOOD LOVERS' GUIDE TO NC'S OUTER BANKS.

Tuna Udon, from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK

With beautiful, brilliant red pieces of yellowfin tuna from Harbor House Seafood in Hatteras, we chatted about foods and stories while I prepared TUNA UDON, this time with sugar snap peas, red peppers, garlic, ginger and sesame seeds over udon noodles.  The smells permeated the gift shop and artifacts, with folks seeking out where the delicious smell was coming from!




OCRACOKE UPDATE


At Dajio's, right on the main drag as you crawl through the village of Ocracoke, I smelled their delicious flatbread pizzas coming from their pub-side kiosk, now available during dinner through midnight. As usual, their terrific sandwiches and dinner menu, crafted from local catches, continues to impress my tastebuds.

Turning down the Back Road, I found where the Flying Melon Cafe had built their new, gorgeous facility, using artifacts and designs from their native New Orleans, like the charming interior doors to bathrooms and offices.  There's a beautiful spiral staircase that leads to a urbane waiting area.  But the thing that has not changed is the marvelous menu and local seafood.  As usual, it was outstanding, as was the service.

Eduardo has a new and improved Taco Truck, at the same location on the left as you come into the village.  He's added more outdoor seating in the shade.

Books to be Red, as always, is super friendly and carries a nice variety of books, including mine!  Stop in and see what best sellers you can find.  And of course, the Ocracoke Coffee Shop on the Back Road is THE place to catch up on politics wherever and the latest gossip, with the group of locals, mostly men, who gather on the porch.  Be patient, for I have never NOT had to wait in line for my morning coffee.  If you're on the waterfront, look for the relatively new Live Oak Coffee shop for a cup brewed "with intention."



OCRACOKE AND ITS FIGS

Miss Della made my day.  Actually, she made my trip.




The winner of this year's Fourth of July Ocracoke Traditional Recipe, Mrs. Della Gaskill has been making fig cakes with her own fig preserves just about her whole life, she says.  But now, "old age is bringing me good luck," she added with a grin while adjusting her gray topknot.  She hobbled with her cane to the backyard to show me her fig trees.

Ocracoke is famous for its figs, with either 9 or 11 varieties grown on the island, depending on whom you're talking with.  Just about every single house with any age on it has a fig tree or two in a sunny corner.  Islanders cover the base of their fig trees with clam and oyster shells, to allow the minerals to leach down into the soil and to provide a mulch to protect them from sun and cold.  Legend has it that fig trees will mourn when their owner dies....but more likely, they are languishing from neglect.


"Miss Della" has several HUGE trees, one that almost blocks the steps leading to her tiny shop, WOCCOCON NURSERY & GIFTS.  She points to one budding fig.  "It's started swelling.  I been praying for it, otherwise, there will be no fig cakes."  She takes phone orders and ships her cakes all over the country.  (252) 928-3811.  Her husband Owen, until his death, sold veggies and fruits at the nearby stand, and she has self-published her memoirs, A BLESSED LIFE:  Growing Up on Ocracoke Island, sold at several of the island's shops.

Ocracoke Fig Cake, recipe from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK

 About that recipe?  She grins.   "Well, I do add more nuts.  And it's real moist, because I use a full pint of preserves."  But she's not about to divulge any more about her winning recipe.  I'll have to stick with the one I extracted from Dale Mutro for THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK.






REMEMBER THE SCALLOPS.......
Before the ferry left the dock, headed to Cedar Island and home, I visited with Patti at the Ocracoke Seafood market, run and owned by the Ocracoke Working Watermen Association.

There are 40 of these dedicated souls, commercial fishermen, who worked and fought to save the last remaining fish house on Ocracoke Island.  Everything sold is caught locally, brought in by one of the members, except for the wild Atlantic salmon they contracted and bartered for in Canada.  "Our folks here asked for it.  They like a little variety, too," says Patti.






The scallops she showed me were huge, firm, fresh, smelling like the brine of the sea.  And they were packed dry, meaning they had been treated with the utmost care from the water, while stored on the boat, shucked, and then brought into the shop.

Don't crowd scallops while searing.

I find the that scallops scream for a simple prep.  Sear them quickly in just a little oil, cooking on one side for about 2 to 3 minutes.  Don't crowd them in the pan, or else they'll steam.  Flip them, and add a nugget of butter.  After a minute or two, no more, take them off the heat.

I served these with a quick saute of spinach with garlic and mushrooms, a little red pepper strips, on top of some leftover, warmed up udon noodles.  A little dusting of chopped chives, salt and pepper, and there you have it.

Delicious.  Simple, easy, fresh.  Wow!

SUNNY SIDE is OPEN, So Things are Looking Up

BIRTHDAY WISHES
     Slurping down oysters at Sunny Side was high on the list of the hubby's birthday wishes.  So, ROAD TRIP!  Williamston, NC is a little crossroads of a town floating in the flat coastal plains just inland from the Albemarle Sound, about two hours or so from the Triangle.
     Sunny Side is so worth the drive.  It's a landmark, steaming oysters since 1935.  There's a large bar room in the front, where live music keeps things lively on a Saturday night while you wait for an hour or two for your turn in the back room around the horseshoe-shaped bar.
     Slide onto a stool, then peer onto the floor in the middle.  Yep, wood shavings.  Catches the drips when the buckets of oysters are brought in from out back, steaming and overflowing with the bivalves.




     I picked Jesse, our server and shucker for the night, out of the line up of all the shuckers' mug shots printed on the paper placemats, while we waited for our peck to steam.  He's been working at the Sunny Side for 25 years, always his night job, the second one that keeps him afloat, he said, as he poured hot butter into little saucers, then added another bowl of horseradish for us to mix into Sunny Side's own sweet cocktail sauce made with a secret recipe.
     The menu is simple:  oysters, steamed, not fried or baked.  Shrimp, steamed. Crab legs, steamed.  There's no coleslaw, no fries, no veggies, except broccoli smothered with cheese, if you insist.  There aren't even any hushpuppies, just packages of saltines opened by each server as you need them.
     Jesse chatted as he put his wooden board on the lower workspace, and with bare hands - no gloves, mind you - started opening our prizes, distributing them equally in the small bowls set in front of us.

     The oysters this past week were from Texas, and like most things Texan, were big and juicy.  Next week, around Thanksgiving this year, they hope to score some oysters from North Carolina waters, from the Pamlico Sound, down near Stumpy Point and Engelhard.
     Our bill, for two pecks of oysters - it was a birthday, mind you - and for a pound of steamed shrimp, and a few beers, was about the same as a date for a full-fledged meal.  But, it made the birthday boy very happy, and was well worth the drive of dodging deer in the dark.

TRY THIS RECIPE, AT HOME
    Here's a delicious recipe from a local......

CRAB SLOUGH OYSTERS   (C) from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK:  Recipes & Traditions from NC's Barrier Islands, by Elizabeth Wiegand, 2008, Globe Pequot Press.

            Crab Slough is in the Pamlico Sound at the southern end of Roanoke Island near Wanchese.  It’s a well-known area for harvesting prime oysters because the water is slightly rough, being near the Oregon Inlet, so that only single oysters, rather than clumps, are formed.  The water is rather brackish which gives the oysters a delicious salty taste.  Frequently, tiny pea crabs, themselves a gourmet treat, are found residing in the oysters. Crab Slough oyster beds were “claimed” and passed down from generation to generation, says Frank White, a Manteo native. 

            Imagine White’s surprise when on a trip to New York City years ago, he found Crab Slough Oysters on the menu at Joe Allen, a restaurant near the theatre district.  He adapted the dish by the chef, Ed Gafney. 

3 dozen oysters, preferably from Crab Slough, in their shells

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound fresh or frozen spinach, thawed

1 ½ sticks butter

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1. Open and remove oysters from the shells.  If you should find tiny crabs, be sure to save and include with the oysters.  Reserve each of the larger, flat halves of the oyster shells, and place on a large baking sheet or pan.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and add the garlic, stirring and cooking for just a minute or until the garlic is almost brown. 
3. Add the spinach and sauté until fresh spinach is thoroughly wilted or frozen spinach is warm.  Drain the spinach in a colander.
4. Divide spinach among the oyster shells.  Place one oyster (and one pea crab, if present) on top of the spinach.
5. In a heavy skillet, melt the butter, and add the Worcestershire sauce and hot pepper sauce.  Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until butter is nut brown.
6. Preheat the oven to broil.
7. Drizzle each prepared oyster with the browned butter mixture.  Place under hot broiler for two to five minutes, or until oysters are thoroughly heated.  Serve immediately.

OCRACOKE & FRITTERS

Built in 1823, this simply beautiful lighthouse is the oldest operating beacon still operating in NC.

"OCRACOKE is at the end of the world," said my fellow diner at the lovely Dajio, (www.dajiorestaurant.com),  a relatively new restaurant nestled under live oak trees near Silver Lake's waterfront.  "I wanted to take my wife to  where there were no lights, no cities, just peace," he explained with a bit of Quebecois accent.  The satellite image on his GPS pointed him to a strip of darkness that took them three days of driving from Montreal to get to.  He was a happy man.  He had devoured a pair of soft shells, his wife toasted him with wine, and he was trying Ocracoke's famous fig cake.

The British Cemetery on Ocraocke, where four British sailors who washed up during WWII were buried by the islanders, following seamen's traditions.

AN INTERNATIONAL PORT

This Canadian couple was just one of several "foreigners" at Dajio's that night.  Another from Switzerland, another from Germany.  And for centuries, boats from all over the world have carefully made their way through the shoals leading to this tiny port.  Blackbeard, a native son turned pirate, met his demise there at the hands of a British captain, anxious to stop the looting of their royal ships. 

During World War II, four British sailors washed ashore in May of 1942, when a German submarine torpedoed the HMS Bedforeshire, a retrofitted fishing trawler that was helping the US ward off the U-boats preying on tankers and freighters along the East Coast.  None of the crew survived.  When two, then four bodies washed up on Ocracoke, the islanders buried them in a donated plot under live oaks.  That's what seamen do for each other, sort of a unwritten code.  Recently, the son of one of those men arrived in Ocracoke to commemorate those four sailors.

Arrive by ferry, park your car, then bike or hoof it around town.  Sweet.

 I arrived in Ocracoke to eat.  I'm revising THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK, and wanted to check out some new sources and gather some new tastes.  It's hard work.

Guess this rooster can't read the No Trespassing sign

Ocraoke is famous for its figs.  Over eleven varieties grow on this 14-mile stretch of sand, mostly in the village that surrounds the harbor, Silver Lake.  Late April, I was outta luck. I found out the homemade fig preserves, used to make their equally famous Fig Cake, go like hotcakes during the summer.  Woccocon, by the way, was the Native American name of this island.  I can see how Ocracoke sorta came out of that.

Fig preserves are sold out, but what's the fish emulsion for?

 At the Ocracoke Seafood Company, I found fresh clams, delivered by ClamDigger Jane.  She takes her skiff out into shallow waters surrounding the island, and tends to her leased bed where she continuously sows baby clams, then covers them with matting to ensure their harvest.  The matting keeps the skates at bay.
 The clams of Ocracoke are prized for their salty but sweet taste.  They grow in the ever flowing, cleaner waters of the Pamlico Sound, which is miles and miles wide at that point.  Back in the day, there was a clam factory in Ocracoke, where local young women worked for pennies, shucking clams and packing them into cans.

That got my mouth watering for some clams, steamed, and then in the clear chowder broth the Outer Banks is known for, and especially for clam fritters.

Clam fritters made in the Outer Banks style are more like pancakes than thicker hushpuppy style fritters.  And they are usually chock full of clams.  So here's the very traditional recipe that I used in THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK (by Elizabeth Wiegand, Globe Pequot Press, 2008).

Traditional OBX clam fritters

The recipe is rather simple:

About 1 1/2 to 2 cups chopped clams
1 beaten egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
about 1/2 cup flour
Optional:  a tablespoon of chopped fresh chives or parsley
Canola oil for frying

Drain the clams; reserve the juice.  Mix together the egg and seasonings, then add enough flour to hold the mixture together.  Add the clams, and stir.  Add more clam juice, or flour, whatever is needed to make a nice, thickened batter.
Heat enough oil in a heavy skillet, preferably cast iron, to cover the bottom well.  When hot, add spoonfuls of batter, and fry until golden brown.  Flip and brown again.  Place on paper towels to drain.
Serve with softened butter, or softened cream cheese or goat cheese, that's enhanced with herbs or honey.  Enjoy!

As renowned Southern chef and writer Virginia Willis says as she closes her blog and recipes, please be nice.  If you decide to use or copy or re-post, please be nice and give credit.  Thanks!

SPRING FEVER!

     

     Spring, oh spring, thank you! What a delightful beginning to the season of roadside stands and farmers markets.  What better way to soothe my sorrows from a dead computer?  It's taken a while to get out of the cyber doldrums and re-awaken my blog.  All it took was a stop at a roadside stand for purple and green asparagus cut from the ground this morning.  And a basket of strawberries that sent me into cyberspace myself!
     Isn't it amazing how the sight or smell of certain foods can send you so vividly traight back to childhood?  I thought I was going to get my hand slapped when I taste-tested a strawberry this week. As a kid, for one of my 4-H projects, I received 100 strawberry plants which my Daddy help me plant in the field right beside the house, behind the clothesline.  It was a sandy spot, not much good for anything other than turning the tractor around, but I planted those berries in the spring.  My instructions were to nip the blossoms off the plants when they bloomed, to bring on more berries the next year.  Drats!  I loved strawberries, and couldn't hardly stand the thought of waiting one more year.
     The next spring I had so many berries, bright red and juicy.  It was hard to pick a full bucket when I hit the berry patch, for I'd sit and eat my fill, toting the bucket half-full back to the house with juicy evidence dripping down my chin.
   
 A DIFFERENT TWIST FOR STRAWBERRIES  - CHOCOLATE PASTA!

    While in the Boone area this past fall, I picked up a package of The Pasta Wench's dried chocolate pasta.  Truly, CHOCOLATE.  Tastes like cocoa that's not overwhelming, and definitely visually interesting for a dessert. Check it out at The Pasta Wench.
     That chocolate pasta was a perfect backdrop for the sweet Camarosa strawberries I found at the farmers market this week.  The rest of the berries - at least those that survived the car ride home - will find their way into my morning granola, maybe some over ice cream, and some, well, eaten over the sink after a quick rinse!
     I look forward to more varieties of strawberries that will ripen later this spring.  Hum.....jam?  Freeze?  Will they make it that far in my kitchen?

ASPARAGUS
     My mother, who grew up in a rural area of Ontario, remembers how they'd pick wild asparagus that grew along the roadside ditches on her way home from school.  It's still one of her favorites.
     I can't decide which way I love asparagus better  - coated with olive oil and grilled or baked in a hot oven; barely steamed with butter; with crabmeat, butter and cheese over pasta; or with shrimp & grits.  I've sprinkled it with lemon zest and juice, and other times with a ribbon of boiled eggs pushed through a sieve over top.  And, how about, as a lot of chefs are doing now, barely steamed with a fried egg and crunches of crisp bacon on top?
    With just-picked asparagus, the less you do with it, the better.  Let its natural, crisp and rich flavor shine through.
     Got a favorite recipe?  Open a conversation here, please!

AND TO TOP OFF MY SPRING FEVER . . . . SOFT SHELLS!

     The exciting culmination of a trip to the Outer Banks for research was finding fresh soft shell crabs for sale at O'Neals Sea Harvest in Wanchese (www.onealsseaharvest.com/).  They've added a great cafe to the retail market. Turn off the main road at the huge old oak tree onto Harbor Drive.
     Soft shells are so easy to cook, after they are cleaned at the last minute.  I admit I always wait until the hubby is around to take care of that chore for me!
     Saute those babies in butter/olive oil combo then douse with lemon herbed butter, or, grill after coating them with butter and hot sauce.
     Need a recipe?  Check them out in THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK:  Recipes & Traditions from NC's Barrier Islands, by moi, Elizabeth Wiegand.

PI DAY

PI(E) DAY = 3/14, or as we non-mathematician, foodies see it, March 14th.

What exactly is "PI DAY"? 

     Pi is the Greek symbol used to show the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, which happens to be a mathematical constant of 3.1415926535 . . . . . . . , an infinite number computers can take to a trillion digits.  Remember that from school?

     The fact that it was voted in as a national holiday in 2009 is just too funny.  I think it was legislators looking for an excuse to have PIE, as in pizza pie, or apple pie, or whatever kind of pie.

    

"PIES AREN'T SQUARE, THEY'RE ROUND"

          And that joke comes from the equation used to find the area of a circle, using the radius, or diameter of the circle:  

A = PI R (squared)

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14TH is the day to celebrate!  So make a pie.....pumpkin, apple, or our fav, a chocolate pecan pie.   Get the lard out......or shortening..... and roll out your pastry.  Or, buy a pre-made crust.  I'm not proud, for they are mighty convenient.

     Just this week I made a Chocolate Pecan Pie for my youngest daughter, home for Spring Break.  Even though it has two ingredients I try to shy away from - corn syrup and sugar - it's one of the best pies ever and her favorite.  How often do we eat such an indulgence?  As Julia Child said, "Remember moderation."

   Here's the RECIPE:

Chocolate Pecan Pie

         CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE, (c) from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK, by Elizabeth Wiegand, Globe Pequot Press, 2008.

             This is one of the most decadent pies, almost fudge-like, featuring two favorite ingredients – chocolate and pecans!

1 uncooked pie crust

1 cup corn syrup (light or dark)

¾ cup sugar

6 Tablespoons butter

3 large eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

4 to 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons bourbon

2 ½ cups pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2.
2. Place corn syrup and sugar in small saucepan.  Stir together, then bring to a boil without stirring further.  Remove from heat, and add butter and chocolate and stir until both are melted and mixture is smooth. 
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs until frothy and add salt and bourbon.  Slowly whisk chocolate mixture into eggs, and stir until well blended.  Add pecans, and stir. 
4. Pour mixture into unbaked pie shell, smoothing pecans into filling.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes, or until filling is set in center.   

YIELD:  6 to 8 servings

I GOT CRABS

I had a big, significant birthday this week. One present I had to open on the spot because it came straight from the fridge. Inside was one of my favorite foods ever......crab claws.

These blue crabs were just caught in pots baited with mullet and thrown over their dock at the mouth of the White Oak River outside of Swansboro, NC. Norva boiled up a mess of them for a magnificent crab dip for her dinner party, and Mike got the job of "picking" the backs, saving the claws for another event - my Birthday Gift! What a great present for this foodie!

Bring out the newspaper and the cocktail sauce and crab crackers and forget the damned candles, the number of which could burn the house down! What a treat!

TIS THE SEASON

When the waters start to warm, the crabs crawl out from the mucky muck of the sounds and creeks where they've spent the winter. Folks all up and down the Carolina coast start baiting their crab pots and throwing them into their favorite spots usually sometime around Tax Day, April 15th, or earlier.

This year, the crabs were on the move a bit earlier. On April 8th, I was down in Southern Pines with THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK to "advise" participants on the Sandhills Farm to Table Co-op about what to do with the wonderful bounty supplied by Core Sound Seafood, a wonderful CSF or community supported fishery that delivers all over the state. Eddie and Alison Willis of Harkers Island brought some very active jimmies, male crabs, along with flounder and scallops for co-op members.

Eddie is the fourth generation to fish from Harkers Island. He and Alison tend to crab pots, hunt down clams in the wild (rather than farm), and tend to soft shells 24-7 during the season.

There's an old saying that the soft shells crabs start coming in at the first full moon in May. That would be May 17th, but already the soft shells have headed north from Core Sound toward the Pamlico and Albermarle Sounds. Just this past weekend I stopped in to see the Willis's soft shell operation at Mr. Big's Seafood, to find them gone like the soft shells, in search of more peelers.

PEELERS PEEL OUT

"Peelers," what those in the know call crabs ready to shed or peel their coats, have had a very early season.

But the hard crabs are out there and are filling up baskets headed to markets here and further north in the Chesapeake.

There's nothing finer than spending an evening after boiling up a mess of crabs doused with Old Bay, or as the old timers do, with onions and potatoes and sometimes corn. Spread newspapers on the table, melt some butter and dish up some cocktail sauce, then sit, pick and enjoy while sipping on a cold beer.

DO YOUR OWN CRAB BOIL

adapted from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK: Recipes & Traditions from NC's Barrier Islands by Elizabeth Wiegand, Globe Pequot Press, 2008.

Boil up a big pot of live crabs, spread them on newspapers and provide pliers, lobster crackers, small hammers, and plenty of towels to extract the marvelous meat from the bellies and claws. A meal will take hours and dozens of crabs, so make sure you’ve got some good conversations going.

And picking crabs yourself will earn newfound respect for the art and hard labor required for providing cleaned, cracked crabmeat in one-pound containers. Just decades ago, the older women in outlying communities of the real Down East, like Smyrna and Atlantic, spent hours each day, sitting and chatting and carrying on while cracking crab for commercial distributors. Now, women from the Yucatan in Mexico come up by the busload to spend each season standing for hours at huge metal tables, cracking and extracting crabmeat.

Big pot 2/3 full of hot water

3 Tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning

1 Tablespoon crushed red pepper

12 live crabs

melted butter

cocktail sauce

1. Bring water to boil. Add Old Bay and crushed red pepper. Stir. Add crabs, reduce heat to medium. Cover and boil for five to 10 minutes. Drain crabs into sink or pluck from water and place in extra large bowl.

2. On the table, have lots of small knives, forks, pliers, lobster crackers or small hammers and a roll of paper towels. Have small bowls of melted butter and cocktail sauce within easy reach of each person.

3. Place crabs directly on the newspaper. Let guests have at it, let conversations roll, and hope no screaming babies demand attention, for you’ll have to wash up first.

Serves 4 to 6

VACATION BLUES? TART IT UP!

Rum Point, Grand Cayman

MY TRIP'S OVER, SO HERE'S HOW I COPED.....TARTING IT UP. . . ..

What's not to love about blueberries? Hardly a calorie, high in antioxidants, full-flavored. Easy to work with, easy to pick or find during the summer months, versatile in tarts or on granola or in salads, or even in barbecue sauce, like the spicy blueberry rib sauce I love at Twelve Bones in Asheville, NC....and I'm working on duplicating that here, too.

But here's my fav......a very tart lemon curd topped with fresh blueberries.

And, it's easy. Just take it a step at a time. Zest and juice the lemons. Make and bake the crust, then while that's chilling, cook the lemon curd. Be sure to strain it, as shown, for that removes the lemon zest and leaves the curd smooth on the tongue.

While the curd is cooling, wash and dry the berries. Then it's child play, dropping berries until you couldn't possibly add another blue bomb.......Chill or just dive into it!
RECIPE...........LEMON CURD and BLUEBERRY TART, from my first book, THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK: Recipes & Traditions from NC's Barrier Islands.

For the Pastry:

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

zest of 1 lemon, finely grated

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 to 1 1/4 cup flour

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch fluted tart pan.

2. In a large bowl, combine butter, vanilla, lemon zest, sugar, and salt. Graduallly stir in enough flour to form a soft ball of dough.

3. Place the dough in the center of the prepared tart pan. press the pastry evenly over the bottom and up the sides, using your fingertips.

4. Place the tart shell in the center of the oven and bake until pastry is lightly browned, about 15 to 18 minutes.

5. Place on a wire rack and cool before adding the lemon curd.

For the Lemon Curd:

3 whole eggs

3 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest

3/4 cup fresh lemon juice, strained (from 5 to 6 large lemons)

pinch of salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1//2-inch cubes

1. In a large sauce pan, whisk eggs, yolks, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice, and pinch of salt.

2. Add butter, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, scraping sides and bottom or pan. DO NOT BOIL.

3. Cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the mixture is the consistency of loosely whipped cream, thick enough to coat the back of the spatula and leave a trail when a finger is drawn through it.

4. Pour mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into the pre-baked pastry shell.

To finish the tart:

1 1/2 pint blueberries, rinsed, picked over, and patted dry

1. Allow the tart to cool to room temperature, about 1/2 hour.

2. Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the top.

3. Refrigerate, for up to one day.

4. When ready to serve, remove the outside ring from the tart, and let sit at room temperature for 20 t0 30 minutes before serving. Best eaten the day it is made.

P.S..................

Let me show you why I have not posted lately.....below is my husband standing on top of Grandfather Mountain, where we celebrated our 36th wedding anniversary.

And then we spent a week snorkeling, drinking beer, eating conch ceviche, conch fritters and red snapper on Grand Cayman with our friends. Great getaway!

MAY DAYS

A few ideas for the month of May....

From Slow Food Asheville - Take a walk on the wild side, then feast!

Wildflower Walk at Max Patch

Sunday, May 17, 2009 
Hike starts at 2:00

Join us for a great time on this one-hour hike through beautiful Max Patch bald as we look at beautiful and unusual wildflowers. We’ll start out at Kanati Lodge B&B (see directions below). Your host for this hike is David and Jeanne Kendall and the hike will be led by Renee Fortner. Renee is the Assistant Supervisor of Landscaping at Warren Wilson College. In her spare time, Renee hikes the mountains around Asheville with a plant ID book in hand. It was a previous job at the Botanical Gardens in Asheville that sparked her interest in all plants native to North Carolina...yes even poison ivy (birds love the berries)!

Bring food to share (see what is local) and together we’ll have a pot-latch for after the hike! This hike benefits our School Garden Program (See the announcement in the newsletter or on our website) and we are asking for a $10 per person donation! (kids free!!!)

Here's the link, if you'd like to join them.  Also read about the great food projects they have!

http://www.slowfoodasheville.org/Events.htm

MOTHER'S DAY

I have always gotten such a kick out of Mother's Day, from the time our three were wee mess makers in the kitchen, to now, when they are good cooks and bigger mess makers.

Chocolate always scores, in my book.

So does breakfast in bed.

With coffee first, of course.

Here's a good idea for MOTHER'S DAY PRESENT.....and a luscious North Carolina product:

	artisan chocolates & pastries handcrafted with love in asheville, nc
Happy Mothers Day! To get our chocolates to your mamas, where they belong, order online by May 5 for a timely delivery.  htpp://www.frenchbroadchocolates.com GATHER YE CHILDREN AROUND MOM IN BED . . . Mother's Day Recipes......Crabmeat Omelet, a favorite recipe of this mom's, from THE OUTER BANKS COOKBOOK:  Recipe & Traditions from NC's Barrier Islands. .  Add sliced fresh, local sliced strawberries to the plate, and I guarantee Mom will be happy! 4 tablespoons butter, divided;  1/3 pound crabmeat (about 1 cup);  sprinkle of Old Bay seasoning;  1 tablespoon chopped chives;  4 eggs;  salt and pepper to taste In a saute pan, melt 2 tablespoons butter.  Add crabmeat and sprinkle with Old Bay and chives.  Gently stir crabmeat until heated through, then place in a small bowl.  In another small bowl, beat eggs together with a fork until creamy and frothy.  Melt remaining butter in the same saute pan over medium high heat, and swirl to coat the bottom and sides of pan.  Add eggs, and season with salt and pepper to taste.  When mixture has become slightly cooked on the bottom, tilt pan and allow the moist eggs to run beneath the cooked eggs, or if you are skilled, flip the omelet over. Add crabmeat to the center, and fold over the two edges.  Remove immediately.  Divide omelet half, and slide onto warmed plates.  Sprinkle with more Old Bay if desired.  Two servings