Crayfish Fried Rice

I had a wild hair to catch some crayfish last week. I hadn't done it since I was a kid but I had caught them back then so why not now? I put the trap out and waited a couple days and I ended up catching 5 decent sized ones. Now I had to figure out what to make with them. I thought fried rice would be a good choice and it actually turned out really good. You could substitute shrimp or leave the meat out all together and it would still be tasty.

Crayfish Fried Rice

10-12 Crayfish, cooked and meat picked, roughly chopped (See Below)

2 Tbs canola oil
3 c cooked white rice, cooled
1 c chopped mushrooms
3 green onions, chopped
3 Tbs cilantro, chopped
2 eggs, beaten
1 Tbs soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Bring pot of water to boil, drop crayfish into boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove and drain in a colander and rinse with cold water to shock. Once cool enough to handle, pull off tails and claws and remove meat. Then chop large pieces roughly and set aside.

Heat a large skillet on medium high heat and add canola oil. Saute mushrooms for 1 minute then add green onions and cook until wilted. Stir in rice and let cook stirring occasionally for 2 minutes. Next add cilantro, soy sauce and egg and stir to incorporate. season with salt and pepper to taste. Once egg is set plate and garnish with more cilantro.

Blackened Salmon with Mango Salsa

Blackened Salmon with Mango Salsa

• Portioned Salmon fillets with skin on
• 1 tsp per portion olive oil
• 1-2 tsp per portion, Traeger Blackened Saskatchewan Seasoning

Heat grill to high heat or 400-450 degrees. Take a double layer of foil and fold up the edges to make a pan of sorts to hold in any juices. Place the salmon skin side down on the foil and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle with the seasoning and rub into the fillet.

Place on the grill and cook for 12 minutes or until firm to the touch. While the salmon is cooking make the salsa that follows.

Mango Salsa

• 2 large mangoes, chopped
  
• 1/2 to 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
• 2 Tbs minced red bell pepper
• 2 tsp lime or lemon juice
• 1 tsp sugar or honey
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

In a bowl combine all ingredients and let set aside for about 10 minutes to let the flavors meld. Serve over the fish or can be used as a salsa with tortilla chips.

Lemon Poppy Seed Scones

Lemon Poppy Seed Scones

So I have been very absent lately! We moved and have limited Internet access among other things and just have not found time to blog lately but really want to get back into it. I thought this was a good opportunity to start it up again. I saw a recipe that inspired this in CountryLiving magazine. They really did turn out great and are not a dry scone which I love!

2 c flour
3 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs poppy seeds
1 tsp powdered lemon peel (from Penzey's)
(If you don't have this you can use 1 Tbs fresh zest)
1 Tbs baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c butter, cold and cut into cubes
1/2 c milk
1/4 c lemon juice

In a large bowl combine the first 6 ingredients. Working with your hands combine the butter into the flour mixture until it is like coarse crumbs. Pour in the milk and stir until just combined then add the lemon juice to make a soft dough.
Turn out on a lightly floured surface and form into a disk where the dough is about 1 1/2 inch thick. Cut into eight wedges and transfer to a lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes. Let cool.
Make a glaze with about 1 c powdered sugar and 1 Tbs lemon juice. Alter the ration until you get the consistency you like for drizzling. Drizzle the glaze over the scones and let dry about an hour. Serve at room temp or warm. Fabulous!