Friday, September 19, 2014

Game of Thrones, Portuguese Confection.

Well, last night I watched episodes 3 and 4. What a waste of time. a Song of Ice and FireIn the first place they had wiped out large chunks of the story between 2 and 3 which I think was a mistake. Having read the books I remembered some of what had happened in this period, but by no means all, if anyone hadn’t read the books, I have no idea how they would have kept up with the story. I found half the time I had no idea who people were and how they had got there in the first place. For instance, Daenerys Targaryen in the previous episodes had a husband and a brother, the series does not explain what happened to them. That is just one glaring example. I still like the actor playing Tyrian Lannister, but how he, the despised dwarf, suddenly becomes the King’s Hand is beyond me. Nor do I have a clue about what else is going on. So, I will not bother to watch any more. However, I still think the books were very good and would recommend them. Although I am not sure George R.R. Martin has yet finished the series. Checking it, he hasn’t. There are two more books planned and he says he doesn’t know when the sixth book will be finished. I am not even going to try reading them again until it’s all completed. He also says he plans to kill off a lot more characters!!! If you are enjoying it, good luck.

As usual we bowled Thursday afternoon, Matt had a good day, I hadovos molos a mediocre day. A Portuguese friend was in bowling ahead as she is heading off to Portugal next week for a few weeks vacation, lucky her. She has promised to bring us ovos molos2some ovos moles again. They are a Portuguese specialty and absolutely delicious. They are made with a thin pastry filled with an egg concoction. If you are interested in the recipe, click on the link above. Not something I personally am ever likely to make despite my liking them so much. When we were in Portugal it staggered me the fantastic egg desserts they made.

I was never a particular friend of grits until I tried Shrimp and Grits which is a big favourite in the south. Here is a different take on that recipe.

Spicy Shrimp and Grits


Spicy Shrimp and Grits Recipe
Cooking Light

Crank up the heat (in your weeknight meal, that is!) and serve a spicy version of this Southern favourite.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup grits, about 1 1/2 cups shrimp mixture, and 1 tablespoon green onions)

Ingredients
 
  • 3 cups 1% low-fat milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
  • 1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
  • 1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
  • 4 slices applewood-smoked bacon
  • 1 pound peeled, deveined large shrimp
  • 1 cup thinly vertically sliced white onion
  • 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce or chopped chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground or crushed red pepper
  • 1/4 cup green onion strips
Preparation
  1. 1. Combine milk, water, butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer; gradually add grits, stirring constantly with a whisk. Reduce heat to medium; cook 4 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in cheese.
  2. 2. While grits cook, cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving 2 teaspoons drippings; crumble bacon. Add shrimp to drippings in pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove shrimp from pan. Add white onion to pan; sauté 1 minute. Stir in bacon, tomatoes, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon black pepper; sauté 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add shrimp, pepper sauce, and red pepper; cook 1 minute or until shrimp are heated. Serve over grits; sprinkle with green onions.
Have a great day
Jo_thumb[2]

13 comments:

  1. Hi Jo - haven't got involved with Game of Thrones - I'm sure I'll really I've been missing out at some stage! The shrimp dish sounds delicious ...

    Lucky Portuguese lady going home ... cheers Hilary

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    1. No Hilary, I thought from the first two that it was very good and was so disappointed with the second two episodes. They mucked it up well and good.

      Very lucky, I love Portugal.

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  2. Hi Jo, I just couldn't get in to Game of Thrones, although it was filmed near here ... it just made no sense at all .... maybe I'll try the books sometime.

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    1. I'm not surprised Fil. I have read the books and didn't know what was going on. As for trying the books, I would wait until he's written the last two.

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  3. I don't like when they take dramatic license with books-to-film or TV shows. The Harry Potter movies are a prime example. They're more like the 'greatest hits' of the books with quite a few details changed.

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    1. At least with the Harry Potter movies I knew what was going on, I didn't in GOT.

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  4. It's hard to like a movie based on a book you love. The books are just always better!

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  5. It wasn't just that Liz, it lacked continuity, I mostly had no idea who people were whether I had read the book or not, it didn't give you any idea what they were doing where they were and with whom they were doing it. Just odd scenes picked out of the story and plonked into the film.

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  6. I've never seen a movie or television that has lived up to the book. Ever. Daenerys' husband and brother's death were in Game of Thrones. Her husband had the brother melted in molten gold and then the husband went into a sort of coma after being hurt in a fight. There may have been a few episodes you missed!

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    1. Well the library lent it to me as the following episodes but it did seem there were chunks missing. I knew what happened although I had forgotten the melted in gold bit. Doesn't even show her walking into the fire when the dragons hatch. Nor the death of Ned Stark.

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  7. You've missed out there Jo. Both Ned Stark's death and Daenerys' fire walking and consequent dragon hatching were part of the series, as was the tale of how Tyrion becomes Hand. It sounds like the Library let you down which is a shame because I've read the books and watched the series and enjoyed both hugely.

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    1. OK I need to talk to the library then. After what everyone said, I was beginning to figure there was something wrong. Thanks. It's years since I read the books but I remembered all those parts.

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    2. You were right Mike, somehow I seem to have got hold of season 2 part 2 instead of season 1. They DVDs are labelled in a funny way. So last night I watched episode 3 of season 1 and Ned Stark was still very much alive as was Daenerys' brother (little prick that he is).

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