As we mentioned before, our latest trip to Las Vegas was really about getting some down time and relaxing. When traveling to Las Vegas, food is always a highlight of any trip and this trip was no different. We went to a few of our favorite places to eat, but also purposely chose to go to some places that we hadn’t eaten before. Obviously, there are a plethora of celebrity chef owned restaurants, each one having multiple restaurants in several casinos, but there are other choices that are not as expensive.
Jardin RestaurantFestive Fajitas at El SegundoOmelet at Morels
One of the places that we returned to was The Yardbird at the Venetian, a restaurant specializing in eggs and chicken. We had fried chicken with hot sauce, chilled spiced watermelon, and a fresh baked biscuit. Another place that we returned was Jardin in the Encore, which has an open-air feel overlooking the pool area as well as some creative meal choices. We also went back to Gordan Ramsey’s Pub in Caesars, which offers traditional British fare and a nice variety of beers and ales.
Fried Chicken and WatermelonGordon Ramsey’sShrimp and Pasta at Jardin
One of the new places that we ate at was a Mexican restaurant called El Segundo, which is at the Fashion Show Mall and features wonderful food at reasonable prices as well as happy hour margaritas. Another new restaurant for us to eat at was Morels in the Palazzo where we had quiche and a very large omelet as well as two for one drink specials.
Margaritas at El SegundoQuiche LorraineRaw Oysters
We always love a good deal on Oysters, so we even had a dozen oysters at the Oyster Bar in Harrah’s, which was nicer than restaurants in Harrah’s used to be. All in all, we enjoyed a wonderful variety of food and even found a few bargains along the way. The buffet seems to be making a comeback as several casinos offered them as well, but since we aren’t heavy eaters, it doesn’t make sense for us to sit down at an all you can eat buffet. Las Vegas has so many food options that you could spend a month on the strip and never eat at the same place twice, although you might go broke in the process.
Patio at JardinInside of the YardbirdGordon Ramsey’
Over the summer, when we were in Fort Collins, Colorado, we had ordered shrimp and grits at Jax Fish House. It was a special that they were experimenting with and we had talked to the chef about it after our meal, which was very gracious of him. In the spirit of “imitation is the greatest form of flattery”, we decided to do our own variation on their recipe. We found the Tabasco butter to be a little too oily, so we chose to do Hollandaise with a Louisiana pepper sauce instead. The Hollandaise sauce turned out nice because it gave a little bit of a lemon taste to the shrimp, but it still had some heat. We also used some Old Bay Seasoning on the shrimp, a little reminder to our east coast roots. We’re not sure if they used cheese in their grits or not, but who can argue with a little cheese. The centerpiece was the soft-boiled egg that had been fried. We have to admit, trying to replicate that was quite the challenge and took us a couple of tries. In the end, we think we hit the mark, perhaps not the same as the original, but we quite enjoyed it. We hope that you will as well. 🙂
Shrimp and Grits with a Fried Soft Boiled Egg
Ingredients
3/4 cup Quick Grits
3 cups Water
1 cup Whole (or Skim) Milk
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 cup Hollandaise Sauce (Packaged or Homemade)
1 – 3 tbsp Louisiana Pepper Sauce (or Tabasco)
4 Soft Boiled Eggs
1/2 cup Flour
2 Eggs – whisked
1/2 cup Panko (or Bread Crumbs)
2 lbs Large Shrimp
1 – 2 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning
1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 tbsp Fresh Parsley – finely chopped
Salt and Pepper
Shrimp with Old Bay Seasoning
Instructions
This is one of those meals that has a lot of things that have to come together at the same time, but if you do them in the right order, it all comes together quite well. We’ve given the instructions for each of the pieces, but we recommend that you do the steps in a specific order, multitasking whenever possible. First, soft boil the eggs. When the eggs are done, start cooking the grits and bring the oil up to temperature to fry the eggs. While the grits are cooking, prepare the Hollandaise sauce. When the grits are done, start sautéing the shrimp. When the shrimp are done, fry the eggs and then set them aside on a paper towel to dry while you plate the meal.
Fried, Soft Boiled Eggs – For the soft-boiled eggs, bring a small pot of water to a boil and carefully add the 4 eggs to the boiling water, cook for 6 minutes and immediate place the eggs into an ice bath. In a fryer or sauce pan, heat vegetable oil to approximately 350 degrees. Roll the eggs in the flour, then the whisked egg, and the Panko in order to batter them. Carefully place the eggs into the oil and fry for no more than 2 minutes. You may need to roll the eggs over to ensure that they brown evenly.
Fried Soft-Boiled Egg
Cheesy Grits – In a sauce pan, over medium-high heat, add the 3 cups of water plus a pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Add the grits and milk to the water, bring back to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer for 4 minutes until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Add a pinch of pepper and the cheese, stirring constantly until the cheese has fully melted. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Cheese and Grits
Hollandaise Sauce – Prepare the Hollandaise sauce according to the package or directions and then add the pepper sauce (adding more or less to your desired heat), stirring to mix completely.
Hollandaise Pepper Sauce
Sautéed Shrimp – In a large skillet, add the oil and butter and heat on medium heat until the pan is hot. Add the shrimp and Old Bay Seasoning and cook until the shrimp are pink and translucent, approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side. Once cool enough to handle, remove the shells and set aside.
Sautéed Shrimp
To plate the meal, place the desired amount of grits on the center of the plate, add 1/4 of the shrimp to the grits. Cut one of the eggs in half and place on the grits. Pour Hollandaise sauce around the grits (and over top of the shrimp, if you’d like). Sprinkle with parsley and a little Old Bay Seasoning. Makes 4 servings.
We made this as an appetizer for our Halloween party, but it would be just as good over a bed of linguine noodles. The original recipe called for bay scallops, but we chose to use shrimp instead because we couldn’t get scallops. Since we’re in Colorado, finding fresh seafood can sometimes be a challenge, but based on the way our guests gobbled them up, shrimp seemed to be a fine alternative.
Pumpkin-Sage Shrimp
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs Raw Shrimp – medium size, peeled and de-veined
1 stick (8 tbsp) Softened Unsalted Butter
1 1/2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1/4 cup Canned Pure Pumpkin
1 tbsp Fresh Sage – chopped
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Lemon – cut in half
Instructions
In a bowl or food processor, combine the softened butter, pumpkin, sage, and salt. Whisk or pulse until smooth. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 of the shrimp to the skillet, making sure that the shrimp aren’t crowded, and cook until pink, about 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the pumpkin-sage butter and a squeeze of lemon juice. Remove the shrimp from skillet and repeat the steps until all of the shrimp has been cooked. Serve warm or at room temperature with picks.
Pumpkin-Sage ButterSauté ShrimpStir in Pumpkin-Sage ButterShrimp Sautéed in Pumpkin-Sage Butter
