Spicy Shrimp and Sausage Pasta — Surf & Turf Made Easy!

August 22, 2014June 21, 2016 The Culinary ChroniclesLeave a comment

Now let me admit this to you.

Some girls love flowers delivered to their door and some gals love chocolate.

Me?

You’d have my attention with a nice bottle of vino or meat. 🙂

Yes, you read that correctly.

So when our friends at Farmer John sent over a box of their latest Cheese & Wine Flavor Smoked Sausage, I squealed with joy.

Seriously…squealed.

Not only because I was so excited to try it out but we coincidentally were having our monthly Sunday Family Dinner just a few days after. Complete divine intervention since a part of our menu required for us to bust out our beloved habachi grills.

It was perfect since our proteins mainly consisted of seafood (calamari, prawns, shellfish, lobster) and sausage was a much welcomed addition.

We sliced a few links up and threw them on the habachi which imparted even more of a smoky flavor. The sausage itself turned out to be a tad on the sweeter side (likely because of the wine) but it paired well with the salty-briny seafood.

So when it came time for me to use the sausage in a dish, I wanted to make sure to balance out the flavors.

Cue in spices, herbs and tomatoes.

I played around with a few ideas and decided to use the browned sausage with a heavily spiced shrimp in a tomato sauce.

I finished the whole sha-bang with a mountain of fresh herbs and tossed it with linguine — a pasta that can hold up to a hearty sauce.

It. Was. Delish.

Don’t believe me?

Well…shame on you!

Because it was.

Fo’ reals!

The entire dish was then showered with a mound of freshly shaven parmesan cheese….and then I paused…..

Because when you make happy things in your kitchen, it deserves a moment of silence…

Followed by a serious dance-it-out session and a swig of chianti…or whatever you’re sipping on.

It’s completely mathematically sound.

And yes, all of the flavors balanced out perfectly.

The salty, sweet sausage paired well with the spicy shrimp. The acidic tomato sauce with its aromatics added the much needed punch to the dish. And the cheese—well, the cheese added love.

Obvi.

Much thanks again to our friends at Farmer John – we love ya!

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Spicy Shrimp and Sausage Pasta
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

½ pound shrimp, cleaned and deveined
½ teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning (or other Cajun spice blend)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
black pepper
½ teaspoon garlic salt
kosher salt
olive oil
1 pound smoked sausage (I used Farmer John® Wine and Cheese Sausages), sliced
¼ cup sliced shallots
1 tablespoon minced garlic
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
¼ cup white wine
1 28-ounce can crushed Roma tomatoes
5-6 fresh thyme sprigs
½ tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 pound dried linguine
¼ cup chopped Italian parsley
1 cup parmesan (shaven, grated, etc.)

In a bowl, mix the shrimp with the Old Bay Seasoning, cayenne pepper, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, garlic salt, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Set aside.

Heat 2-3 tablespoons oil in a heavy bottom, deep skillet (or pot) to medium. Add the sausage slices and brown on both sides. Toss in the shrimp and cook until they turn pink – approximately 2 minutes. Remove the contents to a clean bowl and set aside.

Add the shallots to the skillet and cook for a minute before adding the garlic. Cook for a minute and stir in red pepper flakes. Add tomato paste and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat to high and pour the wine into the skillet. Use a wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the skillet to release all the brown bits. Allow the wine to come to a boil and reduce the liquid for 2-3 minutes on the high heat.

Add tomatoes with its juices and bring to a boil. Once it comes to temperature, lower the heat to medium-low. Use the wooden spoon to crush and break apart any large pieces of tomatoes. Stir in the thyme and oregano and simmer the sauce, partially covered for 20 minutes.

While the sauce cooks, boil the linguine for approximately 10-12 minutes in heavily salted water until al dente. Drain the pasta and reserve ¼ cup of the starchy water that the pasta was cooked in.

Stir the shrimp and sausage into the simmered tomato sauce. Toss in the cooked linguine, coating the pasta well. If you want a looser based sauce, add a tablespoon at a time of the pasta water until you reach your desired consistency. Season with additional kosher salt and black pepper as needed.

Plate the pasta and sprinkle each dish with parsley and the freshly shaved parmesan.

Enjoy!

**Disclosure: I did receive products from Farmer John, but as always, my opinions are my own.**

Appetizers/Small Plates · Pork · Sponsored

Crunchy Jalapeno-Bacon wrapped Avocado Fries

July 22, 2013June 21, 2016 The Culinary Chronicles5 Comments

Remember when I made the Double Jalapeno-Bacon Cheeseburgers using Farmer John Jalapeno Bacon? The burgers were so baconlicious that plain ol’ fries just wouldn’t cut it.

Because once you decide to go big, you’ve got to go all in.

And in this case, going “all in” comes in the form of crunchy avocado “fries” that are wrapped with bacon. I know it sounds like a food stand at the summer fair but before you totally nix it, you’ve got to give them a try.

It’s the only Bacon thing to do, after all.

These “fries” have a great play on textures. Super crunchy from the panko breadcrumbs & crispy bacon balanced by the buttery avocado. Dunk them in a Roasted Poblano Aioli or a cool Cilantro Ranch Dressing and you have a perfect appetizer or side.

Have a Baconriffic Day!

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Crunchy Jalapeno-Bacon wrapped Avocado Fries
Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 large avocado
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
kosher salt and pepper
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
4 slices jalapeno bacon, cut in half
vegetable oil

Slice the avocado into 8 equal wedges. Place on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 20 minutes.

In a shallow dish, whisk together the egg and water. Place the Panko breadcrumbs and flour into two separate shallow dishes. Season the flour with cayenne pepper, kosher salt and black pepper.

Once the avocados have chilled, take one wedge and dredge it into the flour. Gently shake off the excess flour before dipping it in the egg wash. Roll the avocado wedge in the Panko and gently shake off the excess. Set aside. Continue dredging the remaining avocados.

Take a 1/2 slice of bacon, wrap around each wedge of avocado using toothpicks to secure them together. Place back into the freezer for another 10 minutes.

Fill a heavy bottom pot with 2 inches of vegetable oil. Heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees F.

Fry the avocado fries for 4-5 minutes, turning them from time to time until they become golden brown. Remove the fries and drain them on a wire rack or plates lined with paper towels. Season with additional kosher salt immediately when they come out of the oil and carefully remove & discard the toothpicks. Serve warm with Roasted Poblano Aioli or condiments of your choice.

**Disclosure: I did receive products from Farmer John, but as always, my opinions are my own.**

Beef · Condiments/Sauces · Pork · Sponsored

Double Jalapeno-Bacon Cheeseburgers with Roasted Poblano Aioli

July 5, 2013June 21, 2016 The Culinary Chronicles6 Comments

Summer has been beating down my door lately with gorgeous sunny days and warm weather. And of course, what’s better to do in the summer than grilling up some delicious eats?

So when this glorious box of Farmer John Jalapeno Bacon showed up at the doorstep, it was a no brainer what had to be done.

Burgers.

Ultimate, jalapeno bacon loaded burgers.

With a bit of heat.

Awwww yea….

These decadent burgers are not only topped with a pile of crispy jalapeno bacon but there’s also chopped up bacon INSIDE the patty!!

Yea, I totally went there.

And because burgers are the perfect canvas to go BIG, I dressed these bad boys up with spicy pepper cheese, crispy cornmeal onion strings, peppery arugula and a creamy roasted poblano aioli.

These burgers not only have a ton of great textures, a balanced level of heat, but were ultimately bacon-licious! The jalapeno component to the bacon was not at all overpowering but rather mild. Perfect for folks who just want a tad of heat.

And if you think these burgers are bacon-riffic, just wait for my upcoming post on Jalapeño-Bacon wrapped Avocado Fries!

Have a fantastic weekend folks!!
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Double Jalapeño-Bacon Cheeseburgers with Roasted Poblano Aioli
Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 large poblano pepper
½ tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup mayonnaise
½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro
kosher salt
black pepper
1 pound ground beef (80/20 blend)
½ tablespoon garlic salt
½ tablespoon garlic powder
½ tablespoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne powder
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 pound cooked jalapeno bacon
vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced into rings
½ cup flour
½ cup yellow corn meal
4 slices pepper jack cheese
1½ cups fresh arugula
4 burger buns, split and toasted

Prepare the aioli. On your stovetop range, char the poblano pepper on all sides. This can also be done under your oven broiler. Once charred, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 10 minutes. This will help the skin loosen from the pepper. Once cooled, peel the skin from the pepper and discard along with the stem and seeds. Finely chop up the pepper and transfer to a clean bowl. Whisk in the garlic, mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice and cilantro. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.

In a large bowl, mix the ground beef, garlic salt, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne and Worcestershire. Season generously with kosher salt and pepper. Take ½ of the bacon and roughly chop into small pieces. Add the bacon to the beef and mix until just combined. Form the meat into 4 patties and create a small indentation in the center of each patty. This is to help the patties from puffing up. Transfer them to a plate and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Prepare the onion strings. Fill a heavy bottomed pot with 2 inches of oil. Heat to 375 degrees F. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. In batches, place the onions into the dry ingredients, tossing well to coat. Gently shake out the excess and carefully lower into the oil. Fry the onions for about 5-6 minutes, stirring every so often until golden brown. Drain the onions on a plate lined with paper towels and season immediately with additional salt. Repeat until all the onions have been fried. Transfer the onion strings to a large baking sheet. Keep warm in a 200 degree F oven while you grill the patties.

Remove the patties from the refrigerator and lightly brush them with vegetable oil. Light your grill (or preheat grill pan). Place the patties over medium heat and grill on each side for about 4-5 minutes. About 1-2 minutes before the second side is done, lay one slice of cheese over each patty. Cover the grill and cook until the cheese has melted. Remove the patties and tent with aluminum foil while you’re assembling the burgers.

On a toasted bun, place a small mound of the arugula and then lay a patty on top. Spread a few spoonfuls of the aioli on top of the patty before adding a few strips of the remaining bacon. Next, add a small pile of the crispy onion strings and then top off with the other side of the bun. Serve immediately.

**Disclosure: I did receive products from Farmer John, but as always, my opinions are my own.**