spiced grilled shrimp with avocado, mango and roasted corn salad

ok, back at this and will give it another go, only this time sharing recipes of things cooked.  rob and i have started trying to eat healthier which means doing our best to have gluten and dairy free meals during the week and then eating whatever the heck we want on the weekends.  can't give up everything after all!

spiced shrimp:
2 -3 teaspoons of your favorite taco seasoning
raw shrimp - about 8-10 per person in the 21-30/lb size
olive oil

salad:
one large ripe mango
one medium ripe avocado
one corn on the cob,cooked or roasted
one small red jalapeno or similar mildly hot chili
2 TBS green onion or chives chopped

dressing:
1 TBS shallot, diced
1 TBS rice wine vinegar
1 TBS Mirin seasoning
1 TBS dijon mustard
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons Tamari (wheatless soy sauce)
2 teaspoons agave nectar or syrup
2 TBS olive oil
juice of 1/2 lime
S & P to taste
fresh cilantro to taste

marinate shrimp in taco seasoning and just enough olive oil to coat the shrimp.  set aside for 10-15 minutes while you prep everything else.

in a small bowl, whisk all the dressing ingredients together except the olive oil until smooth.  continue whisking and slowly drizzle in the olive oil until you like the consistency.  taste and season with S & P and cilanto to taste.

dice mango and avocado in 1/2' cubes.  dice the jalapeno into small pieces.  put the diced mango, jalapeno, corn and chive or green onion in a bowl.  leave out the avocado until the very end.

grill or saute shrimp until cooked.  toss the salad with just enough dressing to coat.  add the avocado at the very end to avoid mushing.  plate salad, add shrimp and garnish with green onions/chives.

A $26 Burger - WTF?

OK, ok, so I was going to share my cooking escapades, recipes, and how to cheat cooking just a little to make a great meal.  However, I'm traveling for work and so you get this instead.  On the plane I paid the obligatory $6 and watched the new Cooking Channel the entire time.  The one thing that stood out?  The Black Label Burger at Minetta Tavern.

Is a twenty-six dollar burger really worth the money?  HELL YES.  OMG, this had to be hands down the best burger I've ever eaten.  The famed Black Label Burger at the Minetta Tavern in NYC is made from 4 different cuts of prime beef - dry aged rib eye, NY strip, skirt steak and brisket.  Beef lovers - you cannot even imagine how good this is.  I couldn't, neither could the multitude of bloggers I found on Google, each one with the same conclusion.

Monday night, 8-ish, I take a cab from Mid-Town to MacDougal Street in the Village.  There is nothing like MacDougal street in Seattle.  This is back-to-back restaurants, one after the other, a true plethora to tempt the tastebuds.  I got out of the taxi, was a bit dizzied by the neon signs and shingles to read from and found the one for the Minetta.  I managed a seat at the bar after about 10 minutes.

I ordered my burger medium rare, more to the rare side the bartender warned me (I told him it could come raw and I'd be fine) served plain with nothing but caramelized onions.  Sounds great - just give me the beef.

Words cannot describe this burger.  Hands down the best burger I've ever had.  The burger came on a small bun, what resembled a pretzel but in reality was probably brioche.  Dark brown shiny top with large specs of sea salt on them.  The burger itself had a nice crust on it - something only a flattop grill can produce.  I cut the burger in half.  It was red and it oozed.  The first bite, the juices and the fatty goodness of  a warm but not thoroughly cooked burger coated my tongue.  "Great mouthfeel" for the fancy eaters out there.  Every bite was juicy, with true beef flavor and texture.  No flimsy patties here, no sir-eee.  Every bite delicious beefiness.  So good I didn't even eat the frites (amazing I know).

Did I mention this was the best burger I've ever eaten?  Worth every single one of those two thousand sixhundred pennies.  Put it on your "must eat in NYC" list.

Sorry, no pictures you'll have to use your imagination or find the Cooking Channel's "Unique Eats" episode.  People in NYC are simply not on their phones at every given moment like Seattlites and I surely would have been laughed out of the place.

Cheating the System

Hi All (or the few that read my blog),  I decided in the shower this morning that instead of blogging about the food we eat out, I will share my recipes, tips, tricks and ways I've learned how to 'cheat' the cooking system here.  Hope you enjoy it and possibly even learn something.  Please stay tuned.