Food and Crafts for All Occasions

Paella, My Thoughts on Successful Paella Making

From the vast variety of one-pot meals, paella is one of the world’s most famous and most delicious. It can be colorful and complex, containing all sorts of seafood, meats and vegetables, or simple and unpretentious, consisting only of a few ingredients, as it, most likely, traditionally was.

Japanese Style Spicy Baked Prawns

Have you ever tried baked spicy mussels in sushi bars? They use Sriracha infused mayo and garnish the mussels with flying fish roe and sesame seeds. I’m a sucker for these things. And I like the recipe even better with prawns on a half shell. Not your traditional Dynamite prawns, but super delicious and cute looking, too.

Mussels in Tomato Sauce with Jalapeno, Cream and Madeira

Every time we go to Taylor Shellfish on Melrose ave (Capitol Hill) to binge on shucked oysters and a glass of cava/beer, we usually buy several pounds of fresh mussels on the way out. Taylor Shellfish carries the best mussels in Seattle and supply them to many local restaurants. These mussels are absolutely perfect – large with plum and meaty flesh.

Prawns Sautéed with Paprika, Garlic, Lemon and Parsley

This super simple way to cook prawns is one of my favorites. They can be served as a hot appetizer along with crusty bread to dip up the sauce or tossed with spaghetti or linguine for an entrée.

Baby Octopus, Potatoes and Chard Stew with Paprika and Saffron

Whenever I happen to be in an Asian supermarket like Ranch 99 or HT Market, I go to a frozen seafood isle and get a package of baby octopus. They are very delicious and can be braised in a variety of sauces and served with pasta, couscous, beans or potatoes. If you love seafood, you should definitely give these guys a try.

Langoustine, Ricotta and Spinach Ravioli with Lemon Brown Butter

I was raiding my bottomless freezer yesterday and came across an open package of cooked langoustines from Trader Joe’s. I remember they tasted quite unremarkable and that’s why were exiled to the freezer in the first place.

Grits with Spicy Creole Prawns and Poached Eggs

It was pouring elephants and whales yesterday and instead of the planned grilling I went for the southern comfort food, prawns and grits. Or, more specifically, prawns in hot tomato sauce, seasoned with Creole spices on a bed of creamy grits, cooked with milk, chicken stock and lots of goat gouda. For the finishing touch, I topped all of this with a poached egg. After taking several bites, accompanied by the rolling eyes and smacking lips, Ilya finally declared the dish a masterpiece. And it wasn't bad, really.

Deep Fried Calamari

Who doesn’t like deep fried calamari? Tender inside, crispy outside, dipped in tangy tartar or sweet-n-sour marinara?  I see no hands! Everybody loves deep fried calamari!

So why wait to go out to eat them instead of making them at home? They are one of the fastest meals ever. Even faster than deep fried smelt. I don’t use double breading for calamari, dredging in seasoned flour is quite sufficient and gives them perfectly thin and crispy “skin”.

Grilling Season: Skewered Prawns with Paprika, Cumin, Garlic and Lemon

There are places that have four distinct seasons. Like my hometown in Russian. Like most of the places in this country, where there is no chance you would confuse spring with fall. In Seattle, however, we seem to have only two seasons: rain and no-rain. The latter is ruefully short and usually lasts from July to mid-September and the former takes up the rest 300 days.

Yellowtail, Scallop and Octopus Ceviche in Jalapeno Leche de Tigre

Another warm week in Seattle and again I’m planning to battle the heat with my favorite weapon - food and drinks. My today’s arsenal consist of yellowtail, scallops, limes and hot peppers and I’m turning all these beauties into ceviche, which is, basically, fish or seafood marinated in tart citrus juice.

Mussels with Andouille Sausage, Fennel and Garbanzos in Vermouth, Paprika and Saffron Broth

With some foods, it can take me several attempts to start to appreciate their flavor. Like it happened with raw oysters and soft goat cheese, of which I cannot get enough now. With others, it is love from the first bite. Like it was with steamed mussels.

Squids Stuffed with Ground Chicken and Spinach in Herby Tomato Sauce

If you love the combination of seafood and meat in one dish, this recipe is for you. Regularly, for the stuffing I would take quite fatty pork, but since during the fall and winter our summer clothes seems to have significantly shrunk in the closets, I temporarily replace fatty pork with leaner chicken or turkey. But you can take pork, beef or any combination of meats you like.

Dungeness Crab Season: Crab Ravioli with Lemon Asparagus Sauce

I hope my lengthy “pasta saga” didn’t discourage you in making crab ravioli, the recipe of which I promised a couple of days ago. Here they are and right on time - even though local whole cooked crabs are still in stores, they are getting more expensive, which means that their season is coming to an end. So, if you live in Seattle, hurry up to catch the last chance.

Perfect Winter Dish: Coconut Curry Laksa

Laksa, the specialty of Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine, is a fragrant and spicy noodle soup that is a perfect warming and cheering-up dish for a regular sunny and pleasant rainy and gray Seattle’s winter.

Dungeness Crab Season: Crab, Onions and Rau Ram Omelet

Every time I go to the store these days and see that whole cooked Dungeness crab hasn’t disappeared from the fish and seafood display, I’m about to hop on one leg and joyfully shout “It’s still here! It’s still here!”

I thought that after more than a month of crab cakes, crab dips, crab salads, crab ravioli, crab melts and just simple whole crab with butter on the side I would be literally fed up with this little sea creature.  Nope, didn’t happen! As with any addiction, the more you get, the more you want.

So instead of only having crab for dinner, I now also start my day with it (can half an hour on elliptical count as extenuating circumstance in my case?). For breakfast, I often love to treat my lovely self with an omelet. Not an aristocratic French-style un omelette -  pale, thin, and elegantly rolled into a tube, but a robust looking, golden-brown, thick omelet with fluffy, delicate and light exterior. Just the way I like it!