Thursday, August 8, 2013

Cartoon, :Pythons, Bowling.

I liked this cartoon so much when I saw it in my How-To-Geek email, I had to steal it and share it with you.
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I don’t want to keep harping on the snake death of the two little boys, but there is some very interesting information about snakes African Rock Pythonand warnings about buying them as pets and handling them on your own. I hadn’t realised this was the same python that has become an ecological problem in Florida due to people releasing them in the wild and the snakes having no predators. I often wanted to visit the Everglades, don’t think I will bother now. Bearing in mind the damned things can grow up to 18 ft. I don’t want to run into one anywhere.

A bunch of us met for bowling again yesterday and had a fun time. It didn’t matter whether I bowled well or not, so, apart from my first game, I racked up some good scores. Last week when I was bowling to save for when we are away, I couldn’t bowl for love nor money Typical innit?

Matt and I both like BLTs, Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwiches for the uninitiated. Yesterday morning on GMA Emeril Lagasse came up with a different take on the old favourite. They looked absolutely delicious when the Good Morning America crowd were diving into them. I’m not sure why you would need crab boil - unless your shrimp were not straight out of the ocean.

Emeril Lagasse's BLT with Fried Green Tomatoes and Shrimp Rémoulade

From the Kitchen of Emeril Lagasse

Servings: 4

Emeril Lagasse puts a twist on the beloved BLT sandwich with
shrimp, fried green tomatoes and a French rémoulade sauce.

Emeril's BLT
Ingredients

Shrimp:
4 quarts water
1 tablespoon liquid crab boil, such as Zatarain's
2 lemons, halved
2 bay leaves
Salt
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
Fried green tomatoes:
1 pound medium green tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus more as needed

BLT:
4 cups chopped romaine lettuce  
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
8 slices Pullman bread or other white sandwich bread, toasted
8 strips thick-cut applewood-smoked bacon, cooked until crisp and
cut in half

French Rémoulade Sauce
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon chopped capers
1 teaspoon chopped cornichon
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves
1 canned anchovy fillet, minced
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions
1. To prepare the shrimp: In a 6-quart saucepan set over high heat, combine the water with 2 teaspoons of the crab boil, the lemons, the bay leaves, and a generous amount of salt (enough to make it taste almost like sea water), and bring to a boil.
2. Prepare an ice bath, and add the remaining 1 teaspoon crab boil to it along with enough salt to make the water taste like the sea.
3. Add the shrimp to the boiling water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until just cooked through. Immediately transfer the shrimp to the ice bath and allow them to cool. As soon as the shrimp are cool enough to handle, chop them into bite-size pieces. Toss the shrimp with enough of the Rémoulade Sauce to coat (about ¼ cup), and refrigerate until you are ready to assemble the sandwiches. (Reserve the remaining Rémoulade Sauce.)
4. To prepare the French Rémoulade Sauce: Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Chill thoroughly before using. The rémoulade will keep for up to 2 days in the refrigerator.
5. To fry the tomatoes: Slice the tomatoes crosswise into ¼-inch-thick slices. Season the tomatoes with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper. Put the flour in a shallow bowl and season it with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and the cayenne. In another shallow bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and eggs. Put the cornmeal in another shallow bowl. Dredge the tomatoes first in the flour, coating the slices evenly on both sides and tapping off any excess. Dip them in the egg wash and let the excess drip off. Then dredge them in the cornmeal, tapping off any excess. Set aside on a plate.
6. Heat the 1/2 cup vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Pan-fry several tomato slices in the hot oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels. Add more oil to the pan as necessary to fry the remaining tomato slices.
7. To assemble the sandwiches: In a small bowl, toss the chopped romaine with the extra-virgin olive oil.
8. Lay 4 slices of the toast on a work surface, and top each one with 1 tablespoon of the remaining Rémoulade Sauce. Evenly divide the lettuce among them, top with the fried green tomato slices, and add the bacon. Place 1/2 cup of the shrimp on top of the bacon, and then top each with a remaining slice of toast. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately.

Have a great day
Jo_thumb[2]

10 comments:

  1. Hi Jo - the python deaths are extremely unfortunate - desperate for one and all .. I feel for everyone involved.

    The pythons in the Everglades are extremely interesting and I hate snakes .. they had a piece her a while ago .. and the pythons have evolved exceedingly quickly to be able to live so well in Florida ... made for evolutionary interesting information ..

    And I love BLTs - though tend to leave the bread out ... otherwise I eat too much .. cheers Hilary

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  2. Trouble with the pythons in Florida, they are also increasing rapidly, quite scary, especially as they can move quite fast.

    Often have a BLT for lunch when out and about, but not such an elaborate one as this.

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  3. That sandwich looks good, but way too much work. I love BLT's, one of my favorite sandwiches. One twist I do sometimes is add advocado and a fried egg. Enough calories for two meals, but oh so yummy.
    Tina @ Life is Good

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    Replies
    1. Never made BLTs at home but there is a restaurant we go to when travel bowling and they make an absolutely fabulous one. Avocado and fried egg would up the count quite considerably I would think. I am trying to lose not gain.

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  4. My youngest brother always kept snakes, iguanas and other 'exotics' and his twin daughters (my nieces) inherited his love of reptiles and giant spiders etc .... I have no problem with snakes, but spiders YUK

    Some of the recipes you post really bring it home to me how alien some of the ingredients are to us in the UK .... what on earth is crab boil? some sort of stock perhaps? That BLT looks far too complicated for me ... I like the traditional Bacon, lettuce and tomato LOL

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    Replies
    1. I still don't approve of exotic pets. No matter what, I see they have removed 15 illegal critters from the place where the python escaped. I think the owner will be in major trouble although he must be very upset about what happened to his son's friends.

      Not exactly a stock, but a kind of seasoning with which you flavour the water in which you are boiling the seafood. Never used it myself.

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  5. Don't forget there's also alligators in the Everglades. They aren't very aggressive though.

    Love that cartoon. We never got to see Roswell when we lived in NM.

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    Replies
    1. Yeah, but I believe the snakes kill the alligators.

      I thought it was funny.

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  6. So sad to lose two little ones and in such a horrible, horrible way. It would never ever make sense. I really don't like snakes. I hope someone is punished for this.

    Love BLT's though but without shrimp or crab or anything but the bacon, lettuce and tomato. Yum!

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    Replies
    1. I think the shop owner will be although as I said, he must be suffering over the loss of his son's friends. They have removed 15 illegal critters from his store.

      I love BLTs too, but I think they sound pretty good and might try them one day.

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