This weekend we celebrated my Mom's birthday. We decided to have a shrimp boil and fish fry since we would be eating lots of comfort foods this week for Thanksgiving. It was so yummy! We used bags of large frozen uncooked shrimp that we got from Walmart (since we live in the midwest and fresh isn't an option for us), cooked in a big pot on my stove in "shrimp boil" seasonings with new potatoes and little corn cobs.
We started the water with the spices and the potatoes until they boiled (this took MUCH LONGER than we thought it would). Once it started to boil, we let the potatoes boil about 10 minutes, then added the corn (we had to use frozen so I had heated them in the microwave to take the chill off since we were about the starve to death.. LOL.) We let the corn boil for about 3 minutes, then added the shrimp, which need to boil only a minute or two until it was pink and ready to serve!
My sister-in-law even made her own cocktail sauce using ketchup and horseradish (I don't have the recipe for that YET, but I'm getting hold of that one!) We also fried crappie that my dad caught this summer as well as my kids' favorite crinkle cut french fries. We used the fish fryer outside for the grease and boiled the shrimp, etc. in the house. I also served:
We started the water with the spices and the potatoes until they boiled (this took MUCH LONGER than we thought it would). Once it started to boil, we let the potatoes boil about 10 minutes, then added the corn (we had to use frozen so I had heated them in the microwave to take the chill off since we were about the starve to death.. LOL.) We let the corn boil for about 3 minutes, then added the shrimp, which need to boil only a minute or two until it was pink and ready to serve!
My sister-in-law even made her own cocktail sauce using ketchup and horseradish (I don't have the recipe for that YET, but I'm getting hold of that one!) We also fried crappie that my dad caught this summer as well as my kids' favorite crinkle cut french fries. We used the fish fryer outside for the grease and boiled the shrimp, etc. in the house. I also served:
- Pasta Salad, which is so DELICIOUS! Its sweet and the cucumbers and tomatoes, onions, and peppers, just make it a real treat. The recipe is HERE:
- Easy Cole Slaw, and every time I make this I swear I will make it more often. This is super easy, uses few ingredients and turns out perfect. I used one bag of cole slaw mix with about 1/2 onion chopped small. I made the dressing recipe found HERE: The secret is to dump on your dressing, stir well, and then let it "mesh" in the fridge for a few hours so that it gets all moist and juicy. It is even good the next day... I'm having a fish taco for lunch today with a leftover piece of crunchy crappie and some of the slaw.
- The grand finale for the birthday dinner was the BIRTHDAY CAKE that my sister-in-law made for my Mom. My sister-in-law has been taking cake decorating classes and I'm convinced she must be the star student! This cake was a scratch cake and it had the perfect crumb, texture, and taste! It was stellar! I don't know who was more excited about the cake, my Mom (the birthday girl) or me, because I just love birthday cake! Here's a picture of the beautiful cake:
The birthday dinner sounds wonderful and the cake is gorgeous! Great idea using the leftovers for fish tacos-that is a favorite meal of mine!
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