Big Easy on the Mountaintop

You know how when you learn a new word, all of a sudden it seems you hear that word every time you turn around.  I had this experience this weekend with a recipe, or rather, with a dish.

On a food blogger page that I'm a part of, someone posed the question of taking the Ruth's Chris recipe for New Orleans BBQ shrimp and turning it into a cream-based pasta sauce.  She asked for advice, opinions, batted around some ideas of other ingredients to add, et cetera. I've read this Ruth's Chris recipe before but haven't gotten around to making it myself.  It looks and sounds awesome so I need to just quit thinking about it and make it happen.  

So, this past weekend I took my little Wunderkind to visit my sister up in Asheville.  It's that time of year again, so we were making a trip to the apple orchard.  (Now I've got apples up to my ears and need to start up all the apple recipes.) My sister says to me on the evening that we arrived, "Hey I was going to make this for dinner.  I made it not long ago when we had a friend over and he went crazy over it."  She hands me a recipe for New Orleans BBQ Shrimp.  To quote Shatner in Airplane II, "irony can be pretty ironic sometimes."  Now it seems this shrimp recipe is really making the rounds and I'm running into it everywhere!

So, Katherine's version was, in a word, delicious.  If you aren't familiar, the shrimp is left in the shell and covered in this New Orleans style sauce and baked.  Since everyone at the table peels their own shrimp, this makes life really easy on the cook. It's loaded with spices and herbs and creates a fantastic sauce.  So make sure you have a good crusty loaf of bread and sop that stuff up like a starving Frenchman. Didn't expect to be transported from the mountains to New Orleans! Take a look at how beautiful this turned out...

Just gorgeous and tasted divine.  I'm not sure exactly which recipe it was that Katherine used, but the Ruth's Chris recipe is posted below, if you want to give it a try.  This would be a great dish to serve to a crowd at the beach; a nice alternative to the ubiquitous Frogmore Stew. 

Ruth's Chris New Orleans-Style BBQ Shrimp

Ingredients:
-Makes 4 servings
-20 large (16/20) shrimp, peeled and deveined
-1 ounce canola oil
-1 tablespoon plus 5 teaspoons green onions, chopped
-2 ounces dry white wine
-1 teaspoon fresh chopped garlic
-4 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
-1 teaspoon Tabasco
-1/2 teaspoon cayenne
-1/2 teaspoon paprika
-8 ounces (2 sticks) salted butter

Directions:
Place a large cast iron skillet on a burner and heat over high heat. Add oil and cook shrimp until they are just done. It's best to prepare shrimp in batches if you do not have large skillet. Remove shrimp and set aside on a large platter.

Add green onions to the oil in the skillet and cook for 1 minute. Add white wine and let simmer until it is reduced by half.

When the wine is reduced by half, add chopped garlic, Worcestershire, Tabasco. cayenne pepper and paprika. Shake the pan well and cook for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low.

Cut butter into small chunks with the knife and slowly add into pan, shaking fast to melt butter.

Continue to add butter and shake until all butter is melted. Add shrimp back to pan and toss well to coat shrimp with butter and seasonings and to heat the shrimp. Place shrimp on four plates and enjoy.

Riverfront Revival

As a Realtor, it pains me to see empty buildings around town.  One in particular has been the former New Orleans restaurant.  This building occupies one of the most prime locations and views of the city than anywhere else in town.  Sadly, since January 2010 the building has sat empty and lonely. Until now.

Stone River has recently (like 3 weeks or so) opened.  They are touting themselves as Columbia's premiere wedding and event hall. Extensive renovations/changes have been made to include new stacked stone accents inside and out, new big beam timbers framing the entrance and what appears to be an outdoor covered space, walls have come down to open up the building and the decor is sharp & modern (lots of wood, black & white.) And, they also serve lunch. 

I headed over there today with my mom and dad to try out the lunch menu and to check the place out.  I really like the upfitting that's been done to the building. It's very attractive.  While at first glance, the new openness may seem too open, when you consider what they've designed the place to be (events) it really makes sense. The dining areas have all been pushed out toward the windows, overlooking the Saluda river and downtown Columbia.  And of course, there is dining on the porch. Where previously there had been rows of tables in the center of the room, there is now open space for dancing, cocktail mingling and bouquet throwing.  The tables are dressed with white tablecloths under black, simple black chairs and I know you may think I'm nuts to say this, but I even like the water glasses.  They are a highball size rather than a giant milkshake sized glass.  I rarely drink a whole glass of water during any meal and I really hate it when this huge vessel of water ends up just flooding my table with condensation.  (Does anybody remember the simple little "bev-nap"?)  Valuable little square of paper, in my opinion but today, you have to request them if, like me, you hate a drippy, wet table. With this shorter glass, I don't feel like my table is so cluttered nor is there as much surface area to sweat all over my placesetting!

So, how about if we talk about the food?  Yes, let's.

My mom ordered the club sandwich with baked potato salad. Like a lot of clubs, it is huge.  Nice, homemade looking bread loaded with turkey, ham and bacon, pretty red tomato and a little mayo.  Mom really liked the potato salad, which is noteworthy because usually potato salad (of any kind) is the last side dish she orders.  But she opted for this rather than fries and was pleasantly surprised.  The salad was warm and had gooey melty cheddar in it.  I tried a bite and it really had that baked potato flavor.  I'd order that myself.

I love the way they stand the sandwich up! Side of baked potato salad.

My dad chose the three salad plate (chicken, tuna and shrimp.)  In a nutshell, he said his tuna and chicken salads were very nice, but the shrimp salad, and this is a direct quote, "is a total disaster."  I knew the answer, but I asked it anyway.  Pre-cooked and/or frozen shrimp.  You know the kind.  They end up looking translucent, feel slick & rubbery in your mouth and have zero flavor.  I tried a bite.  No bueno.  Here's my thing about this.  We live in a coastal state.  The shrimp is only a couple hours away.  Hell, you can find a fisherman in Charleston who would meet you halfway on I-26 every morning with fresh shrimp, crab and fish. So what in the world is any restaurant in Columbia doing buying sub-par shrimp from a freezer?  If the Stone River guys take this piece of advice, throw out that junk and serve SC shrimp, this dish will improve exponentially. 

Chicken, tuna and shrimp salads with homemade pita chips.

I ordered the Cobb salad.  I always joke about installing a salad bar in my house right after I win the Powerball.  I am a salad junkie.  I love them, I crave them.  Cobb salads are one of my favorites because I am also addicted to bacon and blue cheese.  This is one righteous salad, friends.  It was served with a very generous amount of fresh blue cheese crumbled on top, pinwheels of smoked turkey and ham, fresh bacon pieces, avocado chunks and bright red, tasty tomatoes.  Traditionally, a Cobb is served with hard-boiled egg, which I loathe.  So, I always request no egg.  However, unless I really missed it big time, the menu didn't list egg, so I said nothing.  Yep, egg was on the plate.  However, since the salad was laid out in rows as a Cobb should be, it was a piece of cake for me to just eat around the egg. No big deal.

Cobb salad-isn't that pretty?

As for the people, everyone we encountered was very pleasant.  We were welcomed by the owner, Chris and later greeted by the GM, Jay.  Our waiter was Cameron and he was very personable, knew the specials and was attentive to us. It's so exciting to see something happening in this space after sitting vacant for so long.  As far as using it for an event hall, I can see loads of potential there.  You overlook the river and the riverwalk, have an awesome view of the ornate Gervais Street bridge and enjoy a great view of Columbia's skyline.  How could you not be happy sipping champagne at your cousin's wedding or enjoying lunch with friends while a couple of kayaks glide by? 

It's such a prime spot for a restaurant and an event space.  I wish Stone River well.  I think they've put together a great multi-purpose venue and they serve a nice lunch as well.  

Feelin' New Orleans

I need to go back to New Orleans.  The words "New Orleans" have always been in my vocabulary because it's where my parents went on their honeymoon.  So, growing up, I'd look at photo albums (my parents looked like babies!) and I'd hear stories about this magical far-off place.  Somehow, it seemed like a familiar place, like I'd somehow been there, even though I'd be in my 30's before I ever actually made it over there. 

The way I ended up finally hitting the 'Big Easy' was that the National Association of Realtors(r) Annual Convention was being held there.  The dates of the convention actually coincided with Neil's birthday.  So, of course, we decided we'd both go...I'd do the convention, write it off, and we'd celebrate his birthday in the coolest city in the U.S.  It was a great plan!

Since I'm in business with my mom, she was also attending.  She was rooming with a good friend and Neil and I had our room as well.  Ours was on a really high floor...I can't remember which.  But, we had this incredible view over the city.  We were facing the water and were right across the street from the French Quarter.  One night there was a huge thunder storm that came through.  Our room had floor-to-ceiling windows and being so high up, we had an incredible lightning show to watch!  

We got settled in, and immediately walked into the Quarter looking for lunch.  I don't remember the name of the place we chose, but it was so cool.  We were led through the place and out into the courtyard to a table.  I ordered shrimp remoulade.  It was all I had hoped it would be.  Sorry, it's been so long that now I can't remember what Neil ordered.  But, we still talk about that lunch to this day.  We spent the rest of the day wandering around exploring.  We found restaurants we wanted to seek out, found the hotel that mom and dad had stayed in for their 1966 honeymoon, we ate and we drank.  The following day, we found the Convention Center:  I checked in, got my bag of swag, and we left and went right back to the Quarter.  I never made it back to the Convention Center.  Dohh!

The rest of our trip was filled with great food and drink and fun.  One night we met friends at a place called Herbsaint for a great meal and LOTS of wine.  We had dinner with mom at Commander's Palace.  All I can say about Commander's is O.M.G.  I bought their cookbook.  We had lunch at the Court of Two Sisters.  We were going to have beignets at Cafe du Monde, but Kevin Bacon was filming a movie there, so we went to a similar cafe across the street instead.  We spent way too much time at the Absinthe House and a pool hall that was a hangout of locals who lived in the Quarter.  And then, there was Mother's.  This place was rockstar.  There was a line out the door, kind of like at Jestine's in Charleston.  While you waited, their doorman, "Elvis", would walk the line taking Bloody Mary orders.  It almost made you want the line to move slower.  Then, once in, you went through the order line which was very reminiscent of the Beacon in Spartanburg.  Mother's signature food is this oven roasted ham piled super high on giant french rolls.  They will also serve you "debris" which is the little roasted bits that accumulate in the bottom of the roaster.  In fact, you could add debris to your sandwich, or have one made completely of debris.  It may not sound very tasty, but I'd eat a bucket of that stuff!  One other day that we went there, the special was a soft shell crab sandwich. Neil ordered it and we were both shocked by what arrived.  It was two of those enormous french rolls, each with a huge crab hanging out of the sides.  He could only eat one so we went walking back through town with a huge crab sandwich in my pocketbook!

I don't see a trip to N.O. in our near future, unfortunately.  So, tonight I may make a small tribute for dinner.  I'm thinking of grilling some smoked beef sausage and then using it in 'red beans and rice.'  It's not as glamorous as Commander's bread pudding, Mother's debris or the crawfish etouffee at Two Sisters, but it'll be delicious nonetheless!  Let's just cross our fingers that it doesn't turn out too spicy for the Vivinator.