Now that everything is in full season, it's difficult to decide what to prepare first. We have a freezer full of peach ice cream and peach sorbet, corn cut from the cob, butter beans are on the horizon, eggplant is in abundance and shrimp is readily available. We won't even discuss what has been going on with all those tomatoes.
We have always enjoyed crab cakes and recently discovered shrimp cakes in a new Williams-Sonoma cookbook by Joanne Weir (Spring, Recipes Inspired by Nature's Bounty, Weldon Owen, Inc. 1997). Ms. Weir is also the author of another favorite cookbook that we have frequently cited in this column, From Tapas to Meze (Crown Publishers, Inc., 1994). The shrimp cake recipe was accompanied by a jalapeno tartar sauce that we fixed but didn't feel was the perfect complement to the shrimp cakes. We have chosen, instead, to include an avocado butter which is wonderful with crab cakes along with a roasted red pepper cream that serves as another subtle accompaniment to the shrimp. The eggplant recipe is from the Tapas cookbook. We would suggest anything with peaches or blueberries as the perfect end to this meal - we will probably offer two or three flavors of sorbet or ice cream to our guests.
Ingredients:
Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the shrimp and cook just until done. Drain and cool slightly. Chop shrimp finely and refrigerate (The shrimp can be chopped by hand, or in a food processor using an on/off method just until chopped). Melt butter in a large skillet over low heat. Add celery and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Reserve pan for final cooking of shrimp cakes.
In a large mixing bowl, combine celery, saltine cracker crumbs, cayenne pepper, eggs, mayonnaise, salt, pepper and chopped shrimp. Mix well. If the mixture does not hold a shape, add a small amount of bread crumbs (1/4 - 1/2 cup). Shape into 16 small cakes. Refrigerate the shrimp cakes for at least 30 minutes. Prior to cooking, evenly coat the cakes with bread crumbs.
In the large skillet, add vegetable oil to remaining butter, approximately 1/2 inch in depth. Heat to medium high and cook the shrimp cakes, a few at a time until golden brown (6-8 minutes total). Transfer to paper towels and drain. Serve immediately with avocado butter and red pepper cream. 6 servings.
Ingredients:
Place avocado and lime juice in food processor and blend until the texture of butter.
Ingredients:
Roast the red peppers (Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place peppers on foil covered baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Turn 180 degrees and bake additional 20 minutes. Remove from pan, cover tightly and cool completely) and cool. Remove the skin, seeds and stem. Puree the peppers in a food processor until they are a smooth paste. Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add the pepper puree and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Ingredients:
Start a charcoal grill according to manufacturer's directions. Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch slices, crosswise. Place the eggplant slices into a bowl and drizzle with 1/2 cup olive oil, pepper and salt. Grill the eggplant slices over a hot fire until they are golden brown and tender (10-12 minutes). Combine the garlic with the remaining 2 TBS oil and the vinegar. Place the eggplant on a serving platter and brush the olive oil mixture over the top. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper and parsley. 6 servings.
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