Spotting Lunch - Crab Melt on Wholewheat English Muffins

For as long as I can remember my mother's choice sandwich was a tuna melt. A summer or two ago I remember her bringing home half a tuna melt sandwich from The Summer Kitchen in Newtown, Pennsylvania that looked so good every time I go to that restaurant I see if it's on the menu. We'd also make tuna melts at home for a quick lunch of dinner. I like it better than the average tuna salad sandwich (although I did make a tuna salad with grilled ahi tuna - AMAZING)... When I was on TasteSpotting looking for something for lunch and found cafenilson's crab melt - I was sold! I'll probably be trying this recipe out for my mom for Mother's Day - I know she'll love it!

Photo from cafenilson

Crab Melt on Wholewheat English Muffins
via cafenilson

Ingredients:

• 1 cup crab meat (you can use the real thing or the imitation crab, either way it still tastes good)
• 2 tbs butter
• 1 tbs flour
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, fat -free half and half or milk (I use whatever I have in my refrigerator)
• 1 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded and divided into two or 4 portions depending on size of muffins used (see below)
• paprika
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 halves english muffins or 2 large ones

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a medium hot sauce pan. Add flour to make a roux. Add cream (or milk) and cook until thick. Add more or less cream to make a thick enough white sauce. Add crab meat pieces, stir carefully and season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
2. Place muffin halves in a baking sheet. Divide the crab mixture in half (or four if using regular sized english muffins.)
3. Add crab mixture on top of muffin, enough to cover. Add the cheese on top. Cheese need not cover the muffin as it will melt and spread so watch out how much you put. Sprinkle with paprika on top.
4. Broil in the oven until cheese melts and top is crusty golden brown, usually 10 - 15 minutes.
5. Remove and serve with salad of choice.

The serving suggestion from cafenilson is that you serve the crab melts with a salad and I agree. This would be great with almost any kind of salad that you could think of. I came across a cucumber salad in Barefoot Contessa "Back to Basics" which would be a nice along side this. But a simple red onion and heirloom tomato salad would be equally as nice. Ina's tabbouleh salad (minus the pitas) would be a great choice too!

Here's to Alaska and full bellies.
- Cait

Spotting Lunch Birthday Edition - Lobster Roll and Lobster Bisque

I love lobster... I never actually get to eat it though. I think today being my birthday is the perfect excuse to enjoy a lobster filled lunch. While on TasteSpotting I found timelessgourmet's traditional New England lobster roll and thought it would be a great alternative to a salad or everyday type sandwich. I also found peabody's lobster bisque garnished with chives. What's more special than a lobster packed birthday lunch?

Photo from timeinthekitchen

New England Lobster Rolls
via timeinthekitchen

New England Lobster Roll recipe one:

• Meat from half of one small (1 1/4 pond) Maine lobster, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 stalk peeled celery, minced
• A few grates of freshly ground black pepper
• New England style hot dog bun, toasted

Mix the first three ingredients together and add to the bun.

New England Style Lobster Roll recipe two:

• Meat from half of one small (1 1/4 pond) Maine lobster, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise

Mix these two ingredients together, and serve with:

• 1 wedge fresh lemon
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Squirt some lemon on top, and use the melted butter as a dipping sauce!

Photo from northwestnoshings

Lobster Bisque

via northwestnoshings

2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tsp tomato paste
8 ounces unsalted butter
1-1/2 lbs Maine lobster
32 ounces water
2 cups heavy cream
2 bay leaves
½ cup dry sherry
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Steam lobster in water until done, about 8 minutes. Save stock. Remove lobster meat from shell; set aside. Break up lobster shells, then place them back into the water; simmer over low heat until reduced by half.
Heat half the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add shallots, garlic and celery and saute until soft, about 10 minutes.
Add bay leaf, tomato paste and sherry and simmer for 10 minutes or until reduced by half.
Add cream and lobster stock and simmer over low heat (Do not boil.) for 30 to 40 minutes or until soup begins to thicken.
Season with salt and pepper. Remove lobster shells and bay leaves. Chop up lobster meat and add to bisque. Stir in remaining butter.
Serve hot with a little crème fraiche and fresh chives.

I think I'd wash all that lobster down with a simple green salad and my favorite white wine. I think I'd fall into a food coma after this lunch, but hey - it's my birthday!

Here's to Maine and full bellies.
- Cait

Spotting Lunch - Caribbean Steak Wraps

When I was checking out TasteSpotting for a lunch idea I came across cheesypoof's wrap. It's got prefect island flavors which would surely brighten up my mood. It's been raining here so much, you'd think I was in Seattle! Not to mention that I watched a Bobby Flay's Throwdown tonight that involved Miami kind of flavors. It got me into some kind of warm weather food mood.

Photo from deestroyer

Caribbean Steak Wraps
via deestroyer

3 T. olive oil
3 t. jerk seasoning (purchased, or make it as follows)
1 t. salt plus more to taste
1 lb. thin steak (flank or carne asada cut)
2 cloves garlic
1 can black beans
1/4 cup water
1 ripe mango
1 ripe avocado
1 T. lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
pepper
1 T. rum
4 large flour tortillas

Instructions:
Preheat the broiler.
Combine 1 T. of the oil with 2 t. of the jerk seasoning and 1 t. salt in a small bowl. Rub this mixture into both sides of the meat and place the meat on a baking sheet. Broil until medium rare, about 5 minutes per side for flank steak (less for carne asada cut). Let it rest until ready to serve.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 T. oil in skillet. Add the garlic and remaining teaspoon of jerk seasoning and saute for a few minutes. Add the beans and and water and simmer gently for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, dice the avocado and mango and place in serving bowl. Drizzle with lime juice and add chopped cilantro. Toss with salt and pepper to taste.
Add the rum to the beans, and increase the heat to cook off the alcohol for a couple minutes. Season the beans with salt and pepper.
Slice the steak into thin strips. Serve fajita style with each component laid out, or roll everything into a burrito for your lucky guests. I also added a dollop of sour cream because I thought it was lacking in sauciness.

Easy Jerk Seasoning
1 T. brown sugar
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. cayenne pepper
1/2 t. ground allspice
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/4 t. ground ginger


After reading what's in the easy jerk seasoning, I thought it was funny. I often make spice combinations that use these kind of ingredients - so I'm sure the mixture will taste great! I absolutely cannot wait to try this recipe out. Now all I need is a few people to make this for.

Here's to Miami and full bellies.
- Cait

Spotting Lunch - Red Lentil Soup

Sometimes I crave a good bowl of soup. Something rather new to me (my parents weren't too adventurous with foods when I was growing up) are lentils. I had lentil soups several times thus far and greatly enjoy it. When I was looking up some soup on TasteSpotting and found rhyleysgranny's soup, I was rather excited. I saw a dish with lentils cooked on Barefoot Contessa the other day, and finding another recipe for using them is going to inspire me to try cooking with lentils.

Photo from tea and wheaten bread

Red Lentil Soup
via tea and wheaten bread

Ingredients

250 gms/8 oz smoked streaky bacon
1 medium sized onion chopped
1 medium potato chopped
2 or 3 carrots chopped
2 red/orange/yellow pepper chopped (The more wrinkly they are the sweeter they are)
225g/8oz red lentils
1 teaspoon of paprika
A good pinch of cayenne pepper
A 400g/14oz can of tomatoes
900mls/1 1/2 pints approx. chicken stock (Keep some more to the side in case you find the soup too thick)
Black pepper
A little oil

Add any veggies around that need using up.


Method

Cut up the bacon and fry gently in the oil.
Add onion and spices and cook slowly until soft.
Add the carrots potatoes peppers and tomatoes then the lentils.
Give it all a good stir.
Add the stock and simmer until the lentils are nice and soft.

Using a stick blender, purée the soup.
Add more stock if you find it too thick.

It freezes well too if you are like me and incapable of making a small pot of soup.


I love how simple this recipe is - a great thing for trying a new major ingredient! One of my favorite ingredients is crème fraîche, which would be perfect to top the soup off. I'd have a simple salad and some bread with this bowl of soup to make a nice lunch.

Here's to new ingredients and full bellies.
- Cait

Spotting Lunch - Pasta Salad Niçoise

When the weather is warm, I love pasta salads. I probably associate warmer weather with pasta salads because my dad would always make them in the warmer weather for dinner. My dad never made a pasta salad quite like the one I found on TasteSpotting posted by Gastronomer (Sorry Dad).

Photo from gastronomersguide

Pasta Salad Niçoise
via gastronomersguide

6 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
12 ounces cavatappi
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 6-ounce cans solid white tuna in olive oil, drained
1 red bell pepper, trimmed and cut into 1-inch slivers
1/3 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

Make garlic oil by heating 2 tablespoons oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; saute 1 minute. Let cool.

To a pot of rapidly boiling, liberally salted water, add green beans. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl and rinse with cold water. Drain.

Cook pasta in the same pot until al dente, a few minutes short of package directions. Drain.

In a large bowl make vinaigrette by combining garlic oil, 4 tablespoons oil, mustard, lemon juice, lemon zest, vinegar, salt, and pepper; whisk well. Add pasta, beans, bell pepper, tuna, olives, and capers. Toss gently to coat all ingredients with vinaigrette.

Yield: 6 servings.

To make this pasta salad even more special, you could get a nice fresh tuna steak at your local seafood counter and grill it. I love grilled tuna with just a bit of salt, pepper, maybe some lemon zest, and olive oil. Tuna is nice with any of your favorite herbs though.

Here's to fishes and full bellies.

- Cait

Spotting Lunch - Pancetta, Fontina and Caramelized Shallot Panini

I got a panini press for Christmas a few years ago. It's one of my most favorite small kitchen appliances. Instead of making grilled cheese sandwiches or the like in a buttered skillet I've been making them in the press. It's super quick since the panini press cooks the sandwich from both sides - always resulting in a crispy brown sandwich. I found PaniniKathy's delicious looking pancetta, fontina and caramelized shallot panini on TasteSpotting and decided that would be "lunch" today.

Photo from paninihappy

Pancetta, Fontina & Caramelized Shallots Panini

via paninihappy

INGREDIENTS:

Shallots, peeled and halved lengthwise
Olive oil
Pancetta, thinly sliced
French baguette, halved lengthwise
Fresh sage, coarsely chopped
Fontina cheese, thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the panini grill to medium-high heat (375 degrees).

Toss shallots with olive oil to coat and place cut-side down onto the panini grill. Close the lid and grill for 6-7 minutes until caramelized. Leave the residual shallot-infused oil on the grates - it will add great flavor once you grill the sandwich. Alternatively, you could roast the shallots on a rimmed baking sheet in an oven or toaster oven at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the slices of pancetta - either in a toaster oven broiler pan at 375 degrees for about 5 minutes or in a skillet over medium-high heat until the fat renders and the pancetta is crispy.

Place 3-4 shallot halves on the bottom baguette (fan out the layers to cover the bread). Sprinkle sage on top of the shallots. Add pancetta and Fontina and close the sandwich. Grill for 5-6 minutes until the cheese melts. Serve immediately and enjoy!

The great thing about a sandwich like this is that you can easily change up the ingredients depending on what you have in the fridge. You could use red onion instead of shallot or applewood smoked bacon instead of pancetta... I'd try this recipe just the way it is though. It'll be wonderful. If you happen to be really hungry you could serve this with a salad or your favorite soup.

Here's to panini presses and full bellies.

- Cait

Spotting Lunch - Mussels with Saffron Broth and Spinach Salad with Gorgonzola

These mussels caught my eye the other day, so I had to post them today... I love different kinds of seafood, mussels are great. I've never made them for myself before, but this recipe is something I'm going to have to try. I thought this dish would be great along with a salad. I knew the spinach salad was it when I saw it. What a wonderful lunch these two recipes would make. I found both dishes on TasteSpotting... the mussels were posted by sippitysup and the salad was posted by beloit08.

Photo from sippitysup

Mussels in Saffron and Mustard Broth
via sippitysup

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

1/2 cup chopped shallots

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon thyme, leaves only

salt and pepper

1/3 cup Dijon mustard

2 cups dry white wine

2 big pinches saffron threads

4 lbs mussels

1/4 cup minced parsley

freshly ground black pepper

1. Melt 1 1/2 sticks of butter in a large pot over medium heat. Once the butter bubbles, but before it gets brown add shallots, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low.

2. Cook this mixture until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

3. At this point add 2 cups of a dry white wine. Bring the heat back up and let the liquid come to a boil.

4. Once it boils, bring the temperature back down to low, and reduce it for a few minutes.

5. Once a little viscosity is built in, add the saffron to the pot. Then remove the pot from the heat and cover it with a lid. You want to keep all that saffron essence inside your pot. You can also do this hours in advance, letting the broth wait at room temperature and re-heat it at serving time.

6. When you are ready to serve whisk 1/3 cup of Dijon mustard into the prepared broth. Bring this to a simmer (not a boil).

7. Add the clean and de-bearded mussels to the pan. Turn the heat up a bit, cover the pot and cook about 2 minutes, quickly remove the pan from the heat. The mussels should have opened up and look spectacular! Toss in a few tablespoons of chopped parsley and give it a good grind of black pepper.

8. Serve immediately…

Don't those mussels sound good?

Now onto the salad...

Photo from G.Turner

Spinach salad with Gorgonzola and balsamic walnut vinaigrette

By G.Turner

(serves 2, 4 if served as a side salad)
Enough spinach to fill a good-sized bowl (you know how much you want to eat)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
4 tbl crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
4 tbl extra virgin olive oil
2 tbl balsamic vinegar
kosher salt

Tear the spinach leaves and pile them in separate bowls. Divide the crumbled cheese and sprinkle liberally over the spinach. In a small skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When it develops a slight sheen, carefully add the walnuts. Cook them until they begin to release a rich, nutty aroma (probably about 2 minutes), and the color begins to deepen. Add the balsamic vinegar and let it sizzle and reduce, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle with a couple good pinches of salt, then pour the walnuts, oil and vinegar over the spinach and cheese. Serve warm.

If you happen to drink in the afternoon... Serving this lunch with a glass of white wine would be amazing. You could go with red if you prefer, but the weather is getting warmer and I prefer cool drinks... I'd suggest serving with some freshly baked baguette. Is there a great local bread bakery in your area?

Here's to warm ovens and full bellies.

-Cait

Spotting Lunch - Grilled Lamb Pitas

I love lamb... I don't eat it often at all (maybe once or twice a year) so it's a real treat for me. I enjoy it roasted, braised, grilled, seared... For me, it's best cooked rare - medium rare. When I was checking out TasteSpotting for a lunch inspiration I came across healthydelicious's marinated grilled lamb pita with yogurt sauce. It would make for such a perfect lunch that I actually want to make it this week.

Photo from Healthy. Delicious

Mediterranian Lamb in a Pita
via Healthy. Delicious

• 1 lb lamb leg slice (can substitute boneless chicken breast)
• 3 T olive oil
• juice from 1 lemon, divided
• oregano, marjoram and thyme
• 1 small container fat free plain Greek yogurt
• 1 cucumber, shredded
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1 tsp dill
• sea salt (optional) and cracked pepper
• 2 c romaine hearts, torn
• 12 kalamata olives, chopped
• 4 tsp crumbled feta
• red onion, sliced
• 4 pita breads

Mix together oil, 1/2 the lemon juice, oregano, marjoram, and thyme. Let lamb marinate in the mixture for a half hour.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: wrap cucumber in a paper towel and squeeze out excess water. Combine cucumber, yogurt, remaining lemon juice, garlic, dill and cracked black pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Grill lamb to your desired level of done-ness (I suggest medium-rare). Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing against the grain into thin strips. Rub each pita with a little sea salt (optional) and throw on the grill for a few seconds to warm. Top each pita with yogurt sauce, romaine, lamb, feta, olives, and onion.

This recipe is simple and looks delicious... It would be perfect on a warm spring or summer day and could be a great substitute for the traditional grilled summer burger. If your lemon is extra firm - roll it on the counter or stick it in the microwave for a few seconds to help release the juices.

Here's to spending warm spring afternoons outdoors and full bellies.

- Cait