The Eager Eater

April, 17...sunny...72 degrees...6:00. After my (justified) weather rant a few days ago, Mother Nature has redeemed herself. This, however, is central
Ohio in April, and it is going to get cold and rain tomorrow (who saw that one coming?). For this one night, we sat on the deck, and basked in the warmth.

Stephanie made a dish perfect for a warm spring night.  A riff on the classic Chinese dish  Mapa Tofu.  An aside: Several times when we went to her hometown in Texas we would regularly drive past a particular Chinese restaurant. She would often share stories about  meals at that restaurant when she was younger. Her grandfather would always order Ma Pa Tofu.   It is funny how the foods of our childhood  often find their way into  our  modern repertoires. 

Ma Pa Tofu is a saute of minced pork and tofu in a deep brown sauce (a basic recipe here). Stephanie's version is delicious, and I'm sure a considerable bit spicier.  It is also much tighter and less saucy than some restaurant versions. Paired with bib lettuce leaves, a salad of julienned cucumbers and jicama and some sriracha sauce it is a real winner.

After dinner, Sophie found a small flower in the lawn and showed it to me. What a beautiful night. I love spring. To bad tomorrow it is going to rain.

Eric

It is April 14th...35 degrees...a steady drizzle of rain. My yard is a swamp, and my dogs are going stir crazy. Tomorrow it might snow! This is just not right. We deserve better.

So, we decided to defy the season and have a taste of the tropics inside. The initial inspiration was a post I was reading by the Homesick Texan about the perfect flour tortilla. It got me thinking about tacos (I know...again...I'm kind of obsessed).  I was craving something fresh and spicy.

I started by making those fresh tortillas, which turned out so delicious and chewy. I filled them with grilled shrimp marinated in a Caribbean marinade that I adapted from Dunstan Harris' book Island Barbecue: Spirited Recipes from the Caribbean (adapted means I didn't have some of the ingredients). The shrimp was roughly chopped and topped with a slaw of green cabbage, mango, red pepper and cilantro.  The final touch was a creamy "fish taco" style dressing that included some of the marinade. We dished it up with a side of black beans well fortified with smoky bacon.

I'm telling you what...this meal  brightened this dreary day.  It was one of the tastier things to come out of our kitchen in a while.

Oh...I almost forgot. You can't have a  Caribbean meal without a icy Mojito. I had to make a last minute run to the store for some mint to make that possible.

This will definitely make an appearance again. Hopefully next time I don't have to grill in the rain.

Jerked Shrimp Tacos with Mango Slaw
(serves 4)
8 Fresh Flour Tortillas (find the recipe here)
1 Pound of fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 Cup Jerk marinade
2 cups Mango slaw
1/2 cup dressing

Toss shrimp in 1/4 cup of Jerk marinade and store refrigerated for at least one hour.  Reserve some marinade for the dressing. Grill shrimp until done. Chop shrimp into large pieces.Distribute shrimp evenly between taco shells. Top with slaw and dressing. Serve with a slice of lime.

Jerk Marinade (adapted from Island Barbecue by Dunstan Harris)
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup finely chopped scallions
3 Jalapeños  stems removed, cut in 1/2 retaining seeds
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup Soy sauce
2 Tbls vegetable oil
1 Tbls Salt
Pinch garlic powder

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree.

Mango Slaw
1 Cup cabbage,finely shredded
1  Mango, peeled and seed removed, julienned
1/4 Cup red pepper, julienned
1 Tbls cilantro finely chopped
Pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients  and set aside fro at least 1/2 hour.

Dressing
1/4 Cup Mayonnaise
1/4 Cup Sour Cream
1/8 Cup Milk
1 clove garlic minced
2 Tbls Jerk Marinade
2 tsp hot sauce
1/2 tsp salt
pinch of cracked black pepper

Combine all ingredients