I think I’d have no problem eating shrimp every day.  It’s high-protein, low-calorie and there’s a million delicious ways to serve it up. If you ever visit Boston, you can always find a storied seafood restaurant with baked stuffed shrimp on the menu.  Here’s one of our favorite stuffed shrimp recipes that’s a breeze to make:

Baked Stuffed Shrimp

18 Ritz crackers, finely crushed (should make 3/4 cup)
3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted
1 can of minced clams, drained
3 tablespoons of fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 tablespoon of garlic powder
Salt & pepper to taste
touch of dry sherry
12 lg. jumbo shrimp

Shell the shrimp, leaving only the tail attached. Butterfly the shrimp with a cut through the center that leaves the two halves barely attached. Open the shrimp, remove the vein and rinse clean. Combine the crushed Ritz crackers and melted butter. Add 1 can of minced clams, drained. Add the chopped parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Mix all thoroughly and stuff each shrimp.  Put small amount of dry sherry in the bottom of a casserole dish.  Add the stuffed shrimp and bake for 20 to 25 minutes in a preheated oven.  Serve hot and garnish with lemon wedges. Makes 4 servings.

There are many ways to spice up the basic stuffed shrimp recipe, like East Coast Gourmet’s Crab Baked Stuffed Shrimp featuring a special blend of blue crab meat and spices.  They make the perfect seafood appetizer and all you need to do is pop them in the oven when the guests arrive!  And for more great shrimp recipes click here!

Warm weather in New England will have the sweet corn crop ready a couple of weeks ahead of schedule. Here’s a great new recipe for Grilled Corn Chowder. Try it and you’ll see why corn chowder became so popular. Serve with freshly baked corn muffins and you’ve got yourself a meal.

Grilled Corn Chowder
Grilled fresh corn, red and green chilies simmered in a vegetable stock, thickened with heavy cream and garnished with a dollop chili cream.

Estimated Time: 1 Hour and 45 minutes

YIELD: 12 Servings

INGREDIENTS:
5 cloves Garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
5 ears Fresh Corn on the cob, husks and silks removed
2 quarts Vegetable Stock
2 each Jalapeño chilies, preferably red, washed, seeded, and finely minced
5 Ounces Heavy cream
Salt, to taste
1 cup Carrots, washed and peeled and diced ½ inch
1 cup Celery stalks, washed and trimmed and diced ½ inch
1 cup Onions, peeled and diced ½ inch
¾ cup Chili cream, optional
¾ cup Sour Cream
1 tablespoon Cilantro, fresh, minced
1 each Jalapeno chili, green or red, finely minced

METHOD OF PREPARATION:
1. Preheat oven to 400° F.
2. In a small sauté pan over medium heat, sauté the garlic in oil for 1 minute, remove cloves from pan, wrap in aluminum foil, and roast in the oven for 15 minutes.
3. Brush the corn cobs with the garlic oil from the sauté pan, and place on hot grill, turning frequently, until golden brown.
4. In a large stock or soup pot, combine the vegetable stock, diced vegetables, and Jalapeño Chilies. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat, and simmer for 20-30 minutes.
5. Using a sharp knife, remove the corn kernels from each cob and add them to the soup pot. Continue to simmer until all of the vegetables are very tender.
6. Pour the soup in a food processor and purée. Do not strain. Return to the soup pot, bring back to a boil, and reduce to desired consistency.
7. Temper the heavy cream, and then add it to the soup. Season, to taste, and serve immediately in pre-heated cups, garnish with Chili cream.

To Make Chili cream:
1 . Place ¾ cup of sour cream in a small bowl. Add 1-tablespoon fresh minced cilantro and 1 finely diced red or green jalapeno pepper. Place a small dollop on each serving.

Chef Notes: Here is a suggested variation for this recipe:
•Do not Puree the soup
•Thicken it with strips of Flour tortillas, continue whisking until well combined
•Serve a Corn Muffin on top of crisp tortilla wedge with a dollop of Chili cream as a garnish.

Do you love shrimp? Be sure to try East Coast Gourmet very own Shrimp and Corn Chowder! Enter CH10 at online checkout and get $10 off your chowder order!

This is a classic Connecticut Lobster recipe.

We recently found ourselves with an extra shipment of lobsters and Charlie tipped us off to this ol’ New England chowder recipe…the results were amazing!  The recipe harkens back to the days when crumbled ship’s crackers were used to thicken soups—as they were a staple of the fishermen and lobster who invented chowder (god bless, ‘em!)

2 pounds of live lobster
 ½ 2 teaspoons of salt
4 dill springs
1 whole onion
2 tablespoons of butter
¼ cup of finely crushed cracker crumbs
4 cups of milk
½ onion, sliced
Salt and pepper

Take your lobster or lobsters and boil in just enough water to cover them completely.  Add in the salt, dill and onion and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the lobster is bright red.  Remove the lobster and reduce the leftover water by boiling briskly.

Remove the meat from the lobster—but don’t throw out those shells and scraps!  Drop ‘em back into the kettle, and let water continue to boil while you prep the other ingredients.  

In case you’re not already an expert, here’s how to get the most meat from your lobster:
1. Twist and pull the claws and large legs away from the body.
2. Break the claw away from the leg; put legs aside.
3. Gently crack the knuckles, upper and lower parts of the claws with a lobster cracker and remove the meat.
4. Remove the tail from the body. Use a knife to trim away the soft membrane on the underside of the tail and pull out the meat in one piece using the seafood pick.
5. Use the seafood pick to remove the meat from the legs. Takes a little effort, but it can be worth it!

Cut lobster into medium-to-large size cubes.  Cream butter together with the cracker crumbs (oyster crackers or saltines with unsalted tops are modern day stand-ins for the original ship’s biscuit). Scald the milk with onion slices and strain.  Stir milk into butter mixture, and add lobster meat.  Strain the reduced liquid from your kettle and add as much of it as needed to make the desired quantity of chowder.  Season to taste.  Best served in heated bowls with warm biscuits and plenty of butter on the side.  Makes 4 to 6 servings.

If you want to enjoy some lobster chowder without doing all the work yourself…pick up some delicious Nantucket Lobster Chowder from East Coast Gourmet!

Here is a homegrown recipe for wild blueberry muffins—so delicious. Did you know Maine is the largest producer of wild blueberries in the world? Maine produces 15 percent of all blueberries in North America!

Blueberry Muffin Ingredients
Makes 16-18 blueberry out-of-this-world blueberry muffins.

6 Tbsp. butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs

Cream butter and sugar thoroughly, then add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.

2 cups flour, unsifted
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup milk

Sift dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture alternately with milk.

1/2 cup blueberries, crushed with fork, and mixed into batter.
1 1/2 cup blueberries, crushed with fork, and mixed into batter.
1 12 cup blueberries, washed and dried on paper towels.

Mix well into batter. Pour batter into lined muffin tin filling cups 7/8 full. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool 30 minutes BEFORE removing from oven. Store uncovered or they will become too moist.

Be sure to mark your calendar for the 35th annual Machias Wild Blueberry Festival- Every year in mid August (August 20th– 22th) the town of Machias (pop. 2,353) rolls out the blue carpet with crafts, food, entertainment, contests, and all things blueberry. There’s no admission charge. Enter the blueberry pie-eating contest, cooking contest, and road race! More than 250 vendors offer Maine-made items and more! Enjoy some true Down East fare

Here is an original East Coast recipe for shrimp chowder.

Ingredients for Shrimp Chowder
1 1/2 lbs. North Atlantic Shrimp, heads of, but shell still on.
1 teaspoon whole allspice
4 tablespoons olive oil
6 cups water
3 cups water
1 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 small, ripe tomato or 2 tablespoons canned tomatoes
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 cup diced potatoes
1 cup tiny macaroni cooked

Tie allspice in cheesecloth and add to the 6 cups of water along with olive oil. Boil for 10 minutes, then add shrimp and wait until shrimp turns pink and curls (3-4 minutes.) Remove shrimp from broth. Set shrimp aside to cook, then peel. Discard spice bag. Add the 3 cups water to stock and bring to a boil; add celery, onions, carrots and tomato. Simmer 10 minutes. Then add peas and diced potatoes. When potatoes are just about cooked, add the cooked drained macaroni along with shrimp.

Have fresh chowder shipped direct to you from East Coast Gourmet.

A steaming bowl of mussels and some crusty bread are simple and delicious. Here is a classic recipe for steamed mussels ready in about 10 minutes. Offer a large bowl into which guests can discard empty mussel shells.

Serves 2 main course or 4 appetizer servings.

Mussels Steamed Ingredients
2 pounds cultured (farm-raised) mussels
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons diced Vidalia or other sweet onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs such as basil or parsley, or 2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 to 3 teaspoons butter or extra virgin olive oil (optional)
Freshly ground back pepper

Gently rinse mussels under cold running water. Discard mussels with broken shells. Squeeze the sides of mussels with shells that are open (or gaping). If they do not firmly close, discard these gapers as well.

2. In a large pot, combine the wine, water, onion, herbs, and garlic. Add mussels to pot and bring to a boil over high head. Reduce heat to medium.

3. Time for 3 minutes (the minimum time mussels need to steam). Using a large spoon, stir mussels gently, cover pan tightly, and steam until all shells open, about 3-5 minutes. Remove pot from heat.

4. Using a slotted spoon, divide mussels among individual rimmed soup plates. Leave any unopened mussels in pot, cover pot tightly, and continue cooking for 1 to 2 more minutes to see if mussels open. Discard any mussels that remain unopened at this point.

5. Return heat to high and vigorously boil mussels broth for 1 minute to concentrate the flavors. Enrich broth with butter or olive oil, if desired. Add pepper to taste. Ladle the broth equally over the mussels. Serve with crusty bread for dipping.

For tips on how to buy fresh mussels like a real shellfish purveyor check out this post from LobsterAnywhere.com.

Broiled Scallops

When selecting scallops to broil, always insist on fresh dry sea scallops. There is no added moisture or other additives like those commonly found in the grocery store–so they retain their flavor and don’t shrink when cooked.

1 1/2 lbs. scallops
1 stick of butter melted
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Serves 4

Preheat broiler. Rinse and dry scallops. Roll them into the melted butter an place them close together in a shallow pan. Pour over any remaining butter over them, sprinkle with parmesan cheese, and broil for 5 minutes. And for variety, put slices of bacon on top of the cheese. Cook a little longer, until bacon is crisp.

Or…just as delicious, rinse and cut the large scallops in half or in third; then dip them in a slightly beaten egg, roll them in seasoned bread crumbs, and place in a shallow baking dish. Pour melted butter over them (tutning, so they’re coasted), and broil for 5 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

The leaves are turning bright beautiful fall colors on the East Coast. It’s Charlie’s favorite time of year to enjoy a heaping bowl of chowder and his favorite pumpkin bread spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Pumpkins were one of the first plentiful New England crops. Along with corn and fish, this sweet vegatable was the mainstay of many a Pilgrim diet.

Foliage isn’t the only reason to travel to northern New England in October! Last year, 25,644 pumpkins decorated the streets during the annual Pumpkin Festival in Keene New Hampshire! The largest pumpkin ever displayed, weighing in at a hefty 1,300 pounds, was brought by Cheshire Medical Center/Dartmouth-Hitchcock Keene.

East Coast Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients
4 eggs
3 cups sifted flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegatable oil
2 cups canned pureed pumpkin
1 cup raisins

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt 2 times. Butter 2 loaf pans. Line the buttered pans with paper cut to fit. Mix oil and sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs one a time, beating after each until mixture is light. Add flour alternately with pumpkin, beating well after each. Stir in raisins. Pour into pans. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour or until toothpick when inserted into center comes out clean. Makes two loaves.

Looking for a fun spot on Cape Cod? Be sure to stop in the historic sea captain’s town of Brewster, Massachusetts. It is centrally located on the bay side of Cape Cod. The town owns two championship golf courses and there are miles of salt water beaches. Don’t forget to visit the Great Cape Herb Farm, offering organic medicinal herbs. And if your a baseball fan like Charlie, don’t miss the Brester White Caps, members of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Former alumni include such big league stars as Geoff Blum, Mike Myers, Chase Utley, Billy Wagner. The Cape League marks in 125th season in 2009 attracting the country’s top college players.

When Charlie travels to the lower Cape to play golf in Brewster, he enjoy a nice ice cold beer and a couple of stuffed clams. Here’s a delicious recipe for baked stuffed clams.

Stuffed Clams Recipe

12 medium-size cherrystone clams
2 tablespoons water
rock salt (optional)
2 tablespoons butter
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cups soft bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon dry basil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
2 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dry white wine
Freshly ground black pepper
8 slices bacon, cut into thirds

Place the clams and water in a pan, cover and steam until clams open. Reserve the liquid, remove the clams form the shells and chop finely. Wash the shells and place on rock salt in shallow baking pan. Melt butter in a skillet and saute the shallots and garlic until just tender. Add the bread crumbs, celery, parsley, basil, oregano, cheese, oil, wine and pepper. Mix well. Stir in enough of reserved liquid to moisten crumbs but not make it soggy. Distribute chopped clams among the shells, top with bread crumb mixture and a piece of bacon. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes and then broil until browned. Serves 4.

In the little State of Rhode Island you can find three types of clam chowder: white clam chowder, red clam chowder, and clear clam chowder. Native Rhode Islanders and purists favor a clear, thin broth chowder. Rhode Islanders and tourists alike also enjoy the creamy, white chowder also served in Boston and on Cape Cod. Finally you’ll also find the tomato-based red chowder. All three RI chowder varieties share two common ingredients: Quahogs and salt pork. Quohogs are the large clams, chopped and featured in the chowder. Why salt pork? Salt pork gives chowder some flavor and helps create the broth. It also can keep for months, especially on the sailing ships of the 18th century!

Is Rhode Island’s red chowder the same as Manhattan clam chowder (also called New York chowder or Fullton Market chowder)? No way! Rhode Islanders make their own version of. Unlike the Manhattan clam chowder recipe, the Rhode Island chowder contains no vegatables and uses a tomato base, not tomato chunks.

Charlie asked Ray Testa, a long time Rhode Islander and author of Rhode Island Favorites: Back Home Recipes, for his favorite chowder recipe. Below you will find the chowder recipe served for decades at the Shore Dinner Hall at the Rocky Point Amusement Park*, located on Narragansett Bay. The hall could seat a 1000 people and was advertised as the largest shore dinner hall in the world. Although the park and the hall are no more ( closed in 1996 and demolished in 2007), the food from the Shore Dinner Hall lives on.

Rocky Point Clam Chowder

1/2 lb. Salt Pork (finely diced)
1 lb. Onions (chopped)
1 lb. Potatoes (diced)
2 cups Tomato Puree
1-1/2 qts. Quahogs (chopped)
1 Tbsp. Paprika
Water as needed
1 gal. Clam Juice
Salt & Pepper to taste
Oyster or Saltine Crackers (broken)

In a large kettle, heat the salt pork until the fat melts. Add the onions. Cook over medium heat until very soft. Add the clam juice, potatoes, seasonings, tomato puree and a little water. Simmer until the potatoes are soft, then add the quahogs. Heat and taste for seasoning. Add water if needed. Crush some saltine crackers and stir them into the chowder to thicken it further, near the end of the cooking. Makes about 15 servings.

*The Rocky Point Amusement Park was a popular landmark on the Narragansett Bay side of Warwick, Rhode Island. Rocky Point closed in 1995.To learn more about Rhode Island’s famous seaside playground visit Joe Nisil’s excelent resource and photo history page.