March 30, 2008

Ding, Dong, The Bells Are Going to Chime!


I’m old as dirt. Well, I feel old as dirt. Our eldest daughter got engaged today. It was unofficial for quite a while and we all knew it was just a matter of Daniel figuring out some great way (and it was!) to actually “ask” her, but now it’s official and we have two kids getting married this year. Our youngest son, Evan, is marrying Kimber this June. Sarah and Daniel haven’t decided on a date yet, but it will definitely be this year.

So even though I’m old as dirt, I’m happy as hell. My future daughter-in-law and son-in-law are both wonderful and they make our kids very, very, very happy. Which is all we ever wanted – happiness for our children. I don’t feel the slightest sense of loss, like some parents do....I never understood that. I mean, you finally get them independent and out of the house, (can I hear a hallelujah???) and then they meet someone who loves them for who they are, and makes their life joyful and complete. They’re young, full of plans and dreams, and to see your kids that happy is just about the most amazing thing ever. What’s to cry about? Well, maybe the fact that I’m old as dirt. That, and I have to wear a dress. Two times. There better be good cake. And, no, I’m not doing it. Get your own baker, kids!!!


I really am digging this look for the wedding...what do you think? Especially the hat. I'd look like a mother-in-law IN CHARGE!

So, after a busy weekend, and the buzz of an engagement, I took a look in the freezer (I DO NOT shop on Sunday afternoon…that’s amateur day at the supermarket, and I get very freaked out at watching people wearing slippers load their carts with Kool-Aid and Lean Cuisine while screaming at their kids) and found a pound of shrimp. I remembered a recipe that’s been pinned up on my bulletin board for almost a year, one I found in Gourmet last summer – the June issue. Whenever I thought to prepare it, there wasn’t ever any shrimp around. With the shrimp out of the freezer and everything else on hand, I made this. It was really very delicious. The recipe calls for fresh corn, right off the husk, but we’re not in that wonderful corny season yet, and canned corn worked just as well.


Crispy Chipotle Shrimp with Corn and Scallions




1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons finely chopped chipotle chiles in adobo PLUS 1 teaspoon of the sauce
¾ teaspoon salt
4 cups corn (if using canned corn, drain well)
1/3 cup water
4 scallions, sliced thin (well, dang it, I didn’t have the scallions! So I used some very thinly sliced thin asparagus, which I have lots of!)
3 small tomatoes, thinly sliced (my idea, not in the original recipe)
1 lb. peeled and deveined large shrimp (about 21-25)
1 – 1 ½ cups panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

Cilantro leaves and sour cream for garnish

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 475 degrees.
2. Stir together the mayonnaise, chipotle chiles, chipotle sauce, and salt in a bowl.
3. Pulse 1 ½ cups of corn in a food processor with the water and 2 tablespoons of the chipotle mayonnaise until coarsely pureed. Transfer mixture to shallow 2 qt. gratin baking dish (I used a glass 9” pie dish). Stir in remaining corn and scallions. Arrange tomato slices on top.
4. Toss shrimp with remaining mayonnaise to coat.
5. Put panko into another bowl, and add shrimp in small batches, tossing to coat evenly and shaking off excess. Arrange shrimp on top of corn and tomatoes, in one layer.
6. Roast in preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until shrimp are just cooked through and panko is golden brown.

Serves 4 (well, tonight it served two – that’s right, it’s just us, no kids….they’re too busy getting engaged, having fun, making plans, and doing stuff without their parents! Wait…do I feel a good cry coming on???)




12 comments:

Jenny said...

Yay Catherine,
What wonderful news! Congrats on the engagement of your daughter. You are NOT old and you are absolutely gorgeous! Nothing to worry about!

Your recipe sounds delicious. Love the plate too! Have a great week!!

Peter M said...

Congrats on the wonderful news for both your kids...being called grandma can't too far off now can it? lol

As for the shrimp, I love the inital crunch and then you taste the sweet, soft shrimp...and then chioptle...yum!

Cakespy said...

This made me laugh out loud--nice mother in law fashions! And yes, the cake better be good. I got married last year and told the baker the cake was for an anniversary and it tasted way better and wasn't made too far in advance. Plus it was a third of the cost of a wedding cake. Fantastic!

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Two kids getting married this year. What a celebration:D

Chibog in Chief said...

hi catherine, that's one lovely news you have for us!!i wonder how it will feel for me when that day comes for my daughter's engagement (she's only 7 months old hahaha)..must be mixed emotions you are feeling right now!! dont worry on feeling old and stuff like that.women are like wine..the more we get old the better!! have a pleasant week dear!!

Catherine Wilkinson said...

dearest jenny,
Thanks babycakes! She's very happy as are we. Oh yes, the oldness is coming! Thanks for the encouragement...you're blind.

peter,
Thanks, oh Greek one! I can't WAIT to be a Grandma! We'll listen to Sublime, and set off firecrackers! And you're so right about the shrimp...actually, I thought the whole shabang could go in a taco!

cakespy! Wonderful suggestion! I'm trying to stay out (butt out) of most of the planning, but I'll pass that idea along!

val,
yeah, we'll be broke in no time!
lol!

dhanggit,
I'm so glad you're home safe and sound. And, believe me, the time FLIES and your sweet one will be going off to college and dating, and you'll be wondering what happened!

Melly said...

I am the same way about the grocery store. I try to only go on a weekday before 10:00 a.m. Slow shoppers and gaukers make me insane. Glad to see I am not the only curmudgeon out there. HAHA

Emily said...

Congrats to your daughter! That's great!
Don't say you're old, because you're not. I saw you on Food Network, so I know.

2008 is the year of the wedding. When's the other one getting hitched? He hasn't met the right girl. Yet. ;)

The shrimp look crispy and delicious. I agree about the store on Sundays. I'm familiar with that scene.

RecipeGirl said...

wow, what a busy, joyous year you have coming up!!

Your shrimp sounds divine, and I love the plate!

Catherine Wilkinson said...

melly,
yeah, I'm cranky. Especially when the 80 year old deaf guy gets his cart sideways in the aisle!

emiline,
oh, little missy...you just wait until I hook you up with the remaining one! Then my kingdom of daughter-in-laws would be complete!!

recipegirl,
Busy is right! And those plates...$2 each at Ross! I love that store...you don't always get a full set (just random ones), but some are very beautiful. Another good place I find gorgeous plates is the Anthropologie sale table...I've found some amazing deals!

Tracy said...

Congrats on the engagement!
Your dinner looks fabulous.

Anonymous said...

Well, congratulations to the whole family! :-)
What could be better than to celebrate with shrimps and mayo... my kind of food!

 
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"The Dish" by Catherine Wilkinson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.