Tried & True Tuesday ~ Alaskan Shrimp & Grits

Ever since I made my first shrimp & grits, I've been wanting to make them again, and I really wanted to make them for my sister and brother-in-law during my stay In Alaska.  

The second Saturday during my visit to Anchorage, my sister took me to  

South Anchorage Farmers' Market. 

As soon as we arrived at the market, I headed straight for the seafood.  I spotted these beautiful shrimp pictured below and asked the lady from Arctic Choice Seafood where they were from.  She told me they were caught the day before, out of the cold waters in Whittier, AK.   She then proceeded to peel one and pop it in her mouth!  Yes, that's how fresh they were!  I brought home two pounds for the shrimp & grits.

Below is a photo I took kayaking on Prince William Sound out of Whittier.  As you can see, it's cold!   I'll be blogging about my kayaking trip soon.  I  have lots of photos and lots to share...like how our guide ended up in the water!  Scary.

Back to the Farmers' Market...

The market was filled with all kinds of local produce, meat, seafood, 

cheese, baked goods, jellies and jams, crafts and even had live music.  
It was such a fun, welcoming atmosphere - people were so friendly.  
You can click the photo below to learn more about 

South Anchorage Farmers' Market:

I had never heard of snow apple turnips.  My sister purchased three.   

She cut them up with some other veggies and served them with dip.  

They were really good ~ very crunchy, mild tasting, with a texture 

much like a radish.  They would go great in a salad! 

 I'm not sure how you would cook with them, 

but I'd love to learn how.

Back to the Shrimp & Grits...

Before I could make the shrimp & grits I needed some good Cajun seasoning.

I wasn't able to find Tone's, but In Anchorage, there is an awesome shop,

Summit Spice & Tea,

where I purchased the BEST blend...

This Cajun blend was perfect!!!  So good!!!

I whipped up the yummiest batch of shrimp & cheesy grits.

This time around, I used four strips of apple wood smoked bacon

 instead of ham, and a little less Cajun Seasoning. 

Yummy.  Yummy. Yummy.

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Here is the recipe for

Shrimp & Grits:

{These pics are from my previous batch.  
I was too hungry to wait and take 

pictures this time.}

Here is the recipe from the Food Network:

(slightly adapted) 

*recipe from the FoodNetwork.com - click here...I made few changes.

INGREDIENTS

Shrimp:

• 2 lbs pounds wild caught shrimp
• 1 3/4 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (Tone's brand or any specialty store Cajun blend)
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
• Freshly ground black pepper

Cheesy Grits:

• 2 cups water
• 2 chicken bouillon cubes (Knorr is recommended)
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 cup quick grits (Quaker is recommended)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 1/2 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons butter 
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (Texas Pete is recommended)
• 4 slices of cooked Apple Wood Smoked bacon chopped
• *You may need an extra cup of chicken stock on hand for the roux.  See below.

DIRECTIONS

First, peel and devein the shrimp. In a small bowl, combine Cajun seasoning, paprika, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle the spice mixture over the shrimp to coat well and set the shrimp aside.

Next, make your grits. In a medium saucepan, bring water, chicken bouillon cubes and 2 tablespoons butter to a boil. Slowly add the grits, whisking often with wire whisk for 5 minutes. Add tomato paste, cream, and cheese. Keep whisking for another 2 or 3 minutes until the grits become creamy. Do not skimp on the butter and the cream.

Now saute the shrimp. In a large saute pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add in the spice-coated shrimp, and cook only until they're just done and tender. Don't overcook. Remove the shrimp from the saute pan and set them aside in a bowl. You can taste 1 or 2, to see if they're okay.

The roux is next. With all those wonderful drippings from the shrimp in the saute pan, add 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour and stir with a wooden spatula to make a roux. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes until roux reaches a medium-tan color, then slowly add the chicken stock and heavy whipping cream. Whisk together and cook for 2 minutes, then whisk in Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce.  Set aside.

To serve, place a few heaping spoonfuls of cheesy grits onto a plate, top with several shrimp. Drizzle roux sauce over top of the shrimp, and sprinkle on the cooked bacon. Enjoy!  *I placed the Shrimp & Grits on top of a small bed of fresh baby spinach - it's such a good combination!

*recipe is from the FoodNetwork.com here.

Here are a few tips:

CHEESY GRITS

# 1 lesson I learned during my research on Shrimp & Grits, 

DO NOT USE INSTANT GRITS for this dish.  It was recommended to use Quaker Quick Grits.

  

 Be sure to use a heavy-bottomed sauce pan.  Once you add the grits to the liquid, be sure to whisk continoulsy until they begin to thicken.  Grits can burn easily, so be sure to watch your heat. I cooked my quick grits over medium heat in the beginning and then turned the heat down slightly once they thickened.  Once the grits start to thicken, whisk often.  Have a spatula handy too, one that can tolerate high heat.  Scrape the sides and bottom of pan as needed. 

SHRIMP

My very first time making this, my local grocery store didn't have Wild Georgia Shrimp so I  used the next best thing, Frozen Raw Peeled Deveined Wild Gulf Shrimp.  I bought 2, 1 lb bags and used all of them, 1/2 lb more than what the recipe called for.  This time around, while in Alaska, I was able to use fresh shrimp, but frozen was just as good.    

The shrimp have A LOT of kick!

{If you are not a fan of a lot of spice, you can probably use 

less and it should still turn out great}

Be careful not to overcook your shrimp, 

they are ready in only 3 to 5 minutes!

This is my first ROUX ever!

*Make sure you have extra chicken broth in the house - it came in handy!

I used about a 1/2 cup more than what the recipe called for.  When I added 

the flour to the drippings leftover from the shrimp, the roux was super thick,

 too thick to work with so I added a little Chicken Broth. 

{The EXTRA chicken broth is not from the 1 cup of broth I used later for the sauce.}

The sauce turned out Perfect!

Here is the finished product...

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheers!

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Live Webcam of Brown Bears Catching Salmon

Check out this great webcam of 

brown bears catching salmon live!

Click Photo Below:

Brooks Falls ~ Katmai National Park and Preserve

You can read all about it here, 

in an article today in the Anchorage Daily News:

New webcams make Alaska bears accessible.

I'll have more to post about my Alaskan adventure soon...

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheers!

Inspiration Cafe #8 ~ Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Greetings from Alaska! 

Welcome to another edition of 

Inspiration Cafe!

It's me again, Mary, from Sweet Little Bluebird...

 I'm in Anchorage visiting my sister's family. 

She is busy wife and mom to five very active, hungry boys!

My sister's favorite place to be is the kitchen.   

She is easily the best baker and cook I know!
Whenever you visit, you NEVER go hungry.
Her home runs like a Bed & Breakfast! 

While I'm here visiting, I thought I'd take advantage and 
share something she whipped up in the kitchen.

Today I'm featuring her famous 
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie! 

Before I get to the recipe, 
I wanted to share my sister's kitchen remodel done last year...

Before:

After:

This is such a fun kitchen to cook in!
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Okay, back to the Pie...

My sister has rhubarb in her garden she picked to make the pie.  

I don't know much about rhubarb, 

but I have never seen rhubarb this HUGE in my life! 

As you can see from the photos above, things grow BIG in Alaska!
There was so much rhubarb, my sister made two pies with tons to spare!

On with the recipe...for ONE pie.

You'll want to start with the crust first.

9 Inch Pie Crust (two crust pie recipe)

Print Recipe  
Ingredients (Our grandma's recipe, perfect crust every time!)

2 C Flour

1 tsp Salt

2/3 C Shortening

6 tbsp of Ice water (very important)

Directions

Mix flour, salt and shortening with two knives, cutting into the dough until it resembles small peas/crumbs.  Add the ice water and mix gently until dough is formed.  Divide into two equal balls.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.  Roll out crusts on floured surface. 

(Once your crust is ready, set aside and start to make your pie filling)

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie 

Print Recipe 
(Adapted recipe from Joy of Cooking - 1997 edition)

2 1/2 C Strawberries, sliced

2 1/2 C Rhubarb, cut into 1-2 inch pieces

1 C Sugar, plus extra tsp. to decorate crust

Zest of one orange

1/4 C Quick-cooking tapioca

Dash of Salt

1 - 2 tbsp Butter (use real butter)

*For Rhubarb Pie, replace the strawberries with 2 1/2 cups of rhubarb.

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 

Mix the first six ingredients in bowl.  Set aside for 15 minutes. Line the pie plate with the bottom crust and fill with the rhubarb mixture.  Slice the butter and dot the pie mixture (see picture below).  Cover with top crust, fold and pinch seams together.  Brush crust lightly with milk or cream and sprinkle with sugar. Cut at least four slits into top of pie to vent while baking.    

Bake at 425F for 30 minutes, then reduce heat to 350F for an additional 30-35 minutes.  Be sure to place a cookie sheet or foil on the rack beneath the pie, the juices will likely bubble over!

Remove and cool. This pie is best served warm with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream!

  

This was my youngest's first time ever having rhubarb... 

She loved it so much, she had second slice!

Sharing this recipe at these great parties:

Thanks so much for stopping by!

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How My Sister's Garden Grows in Wild Alaska

I love all the wild flowers that grow in Alaska.  

I could spend an entire day taking pictures of the 
flowers that grow wild along the roadside.

My sister's yard is filled with wildflowers, 

and a lot of the same flowers you see in the lower 48. 


In Alaska, the flowers seem so much bigger and hearty!  
It must be all that extra daylight during summer.

I took a few pictures to show what a garden looks like in Anchorage, Alaska.

Here are some familiar flowers ~ petunias,

 Martha Washington geraniums and lobelia.

Again, petunias, Martha Washington geraniums and lobelia.

Same flowers in these baskets...

Wild Geraniums

Primrose 

Lilacs, in full bloom in early July.

Potentilla Fruitcosa 

Iris

Arctic Daisy

HUGE Rhubarb ~ 

I'll be posting about this for Inspiration Cafe on Monday!

We can't figure out what these are.

My sister thinks they may be purple cornflower,

but they look like spotted Knapweed too.  

(These flowers are towards the end of their bloom)

???

If you know what they are, please let me know!

It's driving me crazy!

Ivy geraniums, Vincas & Lobelia

Pink Petunias

Petunias (all colors)

My sister does most of her potted flowers and hanging baskets herself.

She's always had a green thumb!  Her garden is just as 

beautiful in Alaska as it was in Michigan.

I wasn't able to name all the flowers in my sister's garden.

If you would like to know certain flower(s) I didn't name,

 just ask and I'll find out for you!

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Next are a few pictures of wildflowers I

snapped along a gravel road in Copper River.

This road is really bumpy, with lots of curves on a ridge.

This was one of the views from the road...beautiful.

It was a white knuckle ride for me in the passenger seat!

On the drive there was a great view of The Alyeska Pipeline.

(see it, in the middle of the photo, up top?)

Here is a better shot of the pipeline my sister took with her camera.

This book came in handy!

Fireweed

This beautiful wildflower is everywhere!

Prickly Rose

Last one,

 Arctic Lupin

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I hope to have a few more posts from Alaska, before 

I return home at the end of the month.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Cheers!