Gazpacho With Mashed Avocado And Smoked Seafood

PASTA AND SEAFOOD

Steps:

• Bring water to a boil for pasta. Cook for 10 minutes or until al dente. In one saucepan heat half of the olive oil. Add garlic and saute for a few seconds. Add tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes or until thickened; season with salt and piper. In another skillet cook the shrimp in half the remaining olive oil. remove from heat and toss in the parsley; season with salt and pepper. Drain pasta and transfer to a serving bowl; add shrimp and tomato mixtures and toss; do not serve with cheese.

GAZPACHO WITH MASHED AVOCADO AND SMOKED SEAFOOD

Steps:

• Combine half of the chopped tomatoes with half of the cucumbers, onions, and red, yellow, and green bell peppers in the bowl of a food processor with the canned tomatoes and their liquid, and puree on high speed. Combine the remaining half of the chopped ingredients in a very large bowl. Add the pureed vegetables, the tomato vegetable juice, and all of the remaining ingredients and stir well to blend.
• For the Smoked Seafood: Prepare a stovetop smoker. Toss seafood with Essence. Add to smoker and smoke for 6 to 8 minutes, or until cooked through, but not overcooked. Remove the seafood from the smoker and set aside in a bowl, refrigerating as necessary.
• For the mashed avocado: Place the avocado in a medium bowl and mash with the back of a fork. Fold in the remaining ingredients and mix until blended and creamy.
• To serve, ladle the soup into small bowls or large cups, top each with 2 tablespoons of the mashed avocado and garnish with the smoked seafood.
• Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
• Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Published by William and Morrow, 1993.

PAN FRIED FLOUNDER IN CORNMEAL WITH SMOKED OYSTER-ARTICHOKE RELISH

Steps:

• Combine the yogurt, thyme, and salt and pepper. Spread the yogurt mixture on both sides of the flounder fillets. Season the cornmeal with creole spice. Dredge the flounder in the cornmeal. Heat 1/4 cup of oil in a skillet. Place the crusted flounder into the hot oil. Cook for 3 minutes on each side Drain the fish on a paper towel. Serve the flounder on a plate, topped with the oyster relish. Garnish with parsley.
• Combine, season, and set aside.

LINGUINE WITH SEAFOOD

Steps:

• Set a large, 1-gallon stockpot filled with water to a boil and season with 2 tablespoons of the salt. Add the linguine to the pot and stir until the water returns to a boil.
• Once the pasta is cooked, but still slightly firm, or al dente, remove from the heat and drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water separately. Place the linguine in a large, warmed bowl and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Wrap with plastic and set aside as you finish the sauce.
• While the linguine cooks, make the sauce. Set a large, 14-inch saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil and the onions. Saute the onions until lightly caramelized, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, Essence and red pepper flakes to the pan. Toast the garlic until browned, about 30 to 45 seconds. Add the white wine to the pan and cook until nearly completely reduced, about 2 minutes. Add the tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, reserved pasta cooking water, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to the pan. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the shrimp, clams, mussels and basil to the pan, cover, and cook until the clams and mussels open, about 4 to 5 minutes. Toss to combine, and remove the sauce from the stove. Add the pasta sauce and parsley to the cooked pasta and toss to combine. Serve with Parmesan for garnishing.

AVOCADO GAZPACHO WITH SPICED CROUTONS

Steps:

• Make spiced croutons up to 2 days ahead. Store in an airtight container.
• In a blender, puree cucumbers, lime juice, 1/2 cup broth, 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, jalapeno, green onions, and 1 of the avocados, diced. Season, to taste, with salt. Cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours or until next day.
• To serve, thin gazpacho with additional broth if desired. Dice remaining avocado finely and add to gazpacho base. Pour into bowls and garnish with cilantro leaves and croutons.
• Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F. Cut bread into small cubes and spread on a baking sheet. Toast in oven until crisp and golden, about 10 minutes. Melt butter and stir in ground chile powder, salt, ground cumin, thyme, and pepper to taste. Pour over bread cubes and toss to coat. Return to oven and toast 5 minutes more.

AVOCADO GAZPACHO

Steps:

• Mix tomato-vegetable juice, vegetable broth, tomatoes, avocados, cucumber, canned tomatoes with juice, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, olive oil, green onions, lemon juice, cilantro, vinegar, hot pepper sauce, salt, and black pepper together in a large bowl. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours before serving to allow flavors to blend.

SEAFOOD GAZPACHO

Steps:

• Combine the bread crumbs and garlic and set aside.
• Mix together the cucumber, red peppers, jalapeno peppers, onion, and tomatoes in a large bowl.
• Pour in the tomato juice and lime juice and stir to combine.
• Add the bread crumb mixture and stir in the oil.
• Puree half the soup in a food processor or blender and stir it back into the half that is not pureed.
• Season with cumin and salt and pepper to taste.
• Refrigerate until cold.
• Just before serving, stir in the crabmeat and avocado.