Favorite Seafood Filling

SHRIMP RAVIOLI

Steps:

• For the pasta: Mound the flour on a work surface. Season with a pinch of salt. Make a deep well in the middle of the flour, about 6 inches in diameter. Combine the eggs, egg yolks, olive oil and a pinch of salt together in a mixing bowl and mix well. Slowly add the egg mixture to the well in the flour, using a fork to start grabbing bits of flour from the outside of the well to mix into the egg mixture in the middle. Keep incorporating the sides of the well into the center until a tacky dough ball is formed. Knead the dough ball by hand until all the flour has fully incorporated. Wrap the dough ball well and let rest in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
• For the filling: Combine the shrimp, Calabrian chiles, bacon, lemon and pinch of salt in a food processor. Puree for 10 to 15 seconds, then scrape down the sides and add the basil. Puree briefly until combined.
• Using a pasta roller, roll out the dough into 2 sheets of pasta thin enough to where you can feel your fingers through them (usually a number 5 to 6 on the sheeter setting). Place one sheet of the pasta dough on a well-floured surface. If using a cutter to make ravioli shapes, gently mark on the pasta sheet to see where the filling should be piped. Brush the dough with water. Add dollops of filling spaced out evenly across the middle of the sheet, using the marks as a guide. Gently brush a little bit of water over the second sheet of pasta. Place the sheet, dampened-side down, over the one with the filling, gently lining up the edges. Using your fingers, press and seal around the filling, making the seal as airtight as possible. Use a ring cutter or knife to cut out ravioli. Use your fingers to gently seal the edges and remove any air pockets and transfer the ravioli to a baking sheet sprinkled with semolina.
• For the sauce: Put a bit of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, garlic and thyme leaves, then add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to soften and burst, 7 to 10 minutes. Move the shallot mixture to one side of the pan, then remove the pan from the heat and deglaze with the vodka. Carefully ignite the vodka, slightly tipping the pan away from you. Once the flame subsides, return to the heat and cook at a simmer until the vodka has been reduced to 1 tablespoon, about 2 minutes. Add the cream, crushed Calabrian chiles, lemon juice and basil leaves and cook until the sauce is thickened and has reduced by about half, about 5 minutes.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and drop the fresh ravioli in. Cook just until it floats, about 1 1/2 minutes. Take the ravioli out of the pot with a skimmer or slotted spoon and place in the saute pan with a splash of pasta water. Toss the sauce and ravioli together over low heat.
• Using a large spoon, place the ravioli on plates and add more sauce over the top. Drizzle with olive oil and garnish with fresh basil leaves and grated Parmesan.

SHRIMP AND SCALLOP CREPES

Steps:

• Combine milk, flour, eggs, and melted butter in a blender. Process until smooth, for at least 1 minute. Set aside and let rest for 30 minutes.
• Coat a crepe pan or nonstick small skillet with melted butter. Pour in 1/4 cup crepe batter and swirl the pan until entire bottom is covered in a thin layer of batter. Cook until small brown spots appear on the bottom of the crepe, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Loosen crepe carefully from the pan using a spatula and gently flip to brown the other side, 1 to 2 minutes more. Slide crepe onto a plate. Repeat with remaining batter, re-buttering the pan as needed and stacking crepes onto the plate.
• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and scallops and cook until shrimp are bright pink on the outside and scallops are golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from skillet.
• Melt 1 teaspoon butter in the same skillet and increase heat to medium-high. Add mushrooms and green onions; saute until mushrooms are tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat until bubbling. Whisk in flour until mixture becomes paste-like and lightly golden, about 2 minutes. Add milk and chicken broth and whisk until sauce is smooth and thickened. Thin out with more milk if needed.
• Add Swiss cheese, wine, and sherry to the sauce; stir until cheese melts. Season with salt and pepper. Reserve 2/3 cup sauce. Add shrimp, scallops, mushrooms, and onions to the remaining 1/3 of the sauce and stir until heated through.
• Spoon about 1/4 cup of the filling across the lower third of each crepe. Roll crepes up jellyroll-style and serve at the table with the reserved sauce.

FAVORITE SEAFOOD FILLING

Steps:

• Prepare, put into a bowl, and toss together the crab meat, cabbage, and olives.
• Blend in lightly a mixture of the olive juice, paprika, and Tabasco sauce.
• Spread on desired bread.

WORLD'S BEST SEAFOOD SEASONING

Steps:

• Blend together and store in a sealed glass jar.
• Sprinkle over any and all fish and seafood.

SEAFOOD CREPES

Steps:

• In medium bowl, beat all crepe ingredients with wire whisk or hand beater until smooth. For each crepe, lightly butter 7- or 8-inch skillet; heat over medium heat until bubbly. Pour slightly less than 1/4 cup batter into skillet; rotate skillet until batter covers bottom. Cook until light brown; turn and cook other side until light brown. Stack crepes, placing waxed paper between each. Keep crepes covered to prevent them from drying out.
• In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook mushrooms and 2 tablespoons of the onions in butter, stirring occasionally, until onions are tender. Stir in shrimp, crabmeat, half-and-half and cream cheese. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until cheese is melted.
• Spoon about 1/4 cup seafood mixture down center of each crepe; roll up. Place in 11x7-inch (2-quart) glass baking dish. Sprinkle with Swiss cheese.
• Microwave uncovered on High 4 to 6 minutes or until cheese is melted and crepes are heated through. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons onions.

SEAFOOD CANNELLONI

Steps:

• Make sauce:
• Cook shallot, carrot, celery, reserved shrimp shells, and reserved scallop muscles in 3 tablespoons butter in a 2- to 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and pale golden, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine and boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 6 to 8 minutes. Add water, seafood glaze (if using), and parsley sprigs and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.
• Discard parsley and purée stock, including shrimp shells, in 2 batches in a blender (use caution when blending hot liquids). Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on and discarding solids.
• Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in cleaned saucepan over moderately low heat, then add flour and cook roux over low heat, stirring, 3 minutes. Add warm seafood stock all at once, whisking, and bring to a boil, whisking. Add 1/2 cup cream and gently simmer sauce, whisking occasionally, 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
• Transfer 1/2 cup sauce to a bowl set in a larger bowl of ice and cold water to cool for filling.
• Make seafood filling:
• Cut one third of shrimp and one third of scallops into 1/4-inch pieces and toss with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Purée remaining shrimp and scallops in a food processor with Cognac, cooled 1/2 cup sauce, remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add remaining 1/2 cup cream and pulse just until combined. Transfer mousse to a large bowl and stir in shrimp and scallop pieces and chives.
• Cook pasta and assemble cannelloni:
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Boil lasagne noodles a few at a time in a large pot of boiling salted water , stirring to separate, until al dente, about 2 minutes for fresh noodles or about 6 minutes for no-boil. Gently transfer noodles with tongs and a slotted spatula to a large bowl of cold water to stop cooking, then lift out, shaking off water, and lay flat on dry kitchen towels (not terry cloth). Spread 1/3 cup mousse over each noodle, leaving a 1/2-inch border on both short ends. Starting with a short end, loosely roll up each noodle.
• Spread about 1/2 cup sauce on bottom of casserole dish and arrange cannelloni, seam sides down, snugly in 1 layer over sauce. Pour remaining sauce over cannelloni and bake, covered with foil, in middle of oven until sauce is bubbling and filling is just cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes. (To test filling for doneness, insert a metal skewer into a cannelloni and hold it there 5 seconds. Remove skewer and press it against your bottom lip: If metal is warm, casserole is hot all the way through and filling is cooked.)
• Preheat broiler.
• Remove foil and broil cannelloni about 3 inches from heat until brown spots appear, 3 to 5 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
• Available at some supermarkets, specialty foods shops, and More Than Gourmet (800-860-9395).