Fish and Seafood Recipes for All Seasons

On February 27, 2019 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Recipes3 Comments

We enjoy eating seafood whenever we travel to places, especially those located near the ocean. Our choices for fresh seafood can be somewhat limited at times, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t enjoy trying to recreate some of the meals that we’ve had throughout our travels. Regardless of the time of year, we can always find a seafood recipe that meets the need of the season. Although we often think of eating seafood during the summer months when we’re looking for lighter meals, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t recipes that work perfectly for the cold winter nights as well. Here are a few of our favorite recipes that we have created in the past.

Pan Fried Tilapia – Lightly breaded with herbs and lemon, this dish can be paired with just about any side-dish. It is great for a weekday dinner, but is versatile enough to serve for a special occasion.
Pan Fried Tilapia with Oven Roasted Asparagus
Seared Scallops with a Lemon Butter Sauce – Sea scallops make for an easy and elegant meal, especially when sautéed with lemon, butter, and little bit of saffron. Served over a bed of pasta, it is a delicious meal for any time of year.
Seared Scallops with Lemon, Butter, Caper Sauce
Pumpkin-Sage Shrimp – If you are looking for a seafood recipe that is perfect for autumn, then pumpkin-sage shrimp is a perfect solution. It is also a meal that works perfectly with scallops as well.
Pumpkin-Sage Shrimp
Crab Lasagna – Using a béchamel sauce with crab meat to create a lasagna is an excellent way to take a new twist on an old favorite. Since it is warm and cheesy, it is a perfect meal for a cold winter night.
Cheesy Crab Lasagna
Salmon Oscar – Serving a breaded, crab mixture over steak or flounder is quite common, but we had Salmon Oscar in Old Town Alexandria in Virginia. We loved it so much that we had to create it ourselves for a wonderful dinner at home.
Our Version of Salmon Oscar with Asparagus
Shrimp and Grits – Grits are very similar to palenta and it pairs perfectly with shrimp. We have had shrimp and grits in several places, including our recent trip to New Orleans. This one is a little unique as it is paired with a soft-boiled egg.
Shrimp and Grits with a Fried Soft Boiled Egg
Salmon with an Herb and Honey Sauce – Sweet and savory sauces work great with salmon and we have tried several different styles. This is a perfect meal for a warm summer day or even a cold autumn night.
Enjoy the Salmon with the Capers and Honey Sauce
Shrimp Frittata – This was a recipe that we did not that long ago and it was a great way to do something different with shrimp. Frittatas are so versatile and can be a perfect vehicle for serving whatever vegetables are in season at the time of year that you are cooking.
Plated Portions of Shrimp Frittata

Having had so many unique seafood dishes around the world, taking a look back at our recipes has reminded us that we have not recreated nearly enough of them. It really is one of our favorite things to do, to recreate a meal from someplace we’ve visited and letting the flavors take us back to the time we were traveling. Tastes and smells are as much of a reminder of places as the photographs that we have taken.

Easy and Delicious Shrimp Frittata

On January 23, 2019 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Recipes9 Comments

One of the things that you can find throughout your travels is some variety of a frittata. They are light, easy, and can be adapted for the cuisine of almost any country. We really enjoy fresh seafood when we travel, so we decided to do a shrimp frittata that was not only easy, but extremely delicious. The use of lemon and fresh parsley also helps to brighten up the dish and make it even more luscious. Frittatas, like a good quiche, can be a meal on its own, but we decided to pair it with some green beans and red peppers. This recipe serves two, but can easily be adjusted to serve a larger group. It also would work well with other shellfish such as lobster or crab instead of the shrimp or even a combination of all three.

INGREDIENTS

6 Large Eggs
1/4 cup Fresh Parsley – chopped
1/4 cup Fresh Parmesan Cheese – grated
Zest of 1 Medium Lemon
1 tsp of Fresh Lemon Juice
6 oz Shrimp – peeled, deveined, and fully cooked
1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes – more or less depending on your taste
Salt and Pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Steam the shrimp until pink and fully cooked. Let them cool, peel and devein them, and then roughly chop the shrimp. Preheat an oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and then add the parsley, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, Parmesan cheese, shrimp, and the lemon zest and juice. Stir to mix all of the ingredients together. Heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat in a small, oven-proof, pan until it just begins to bubble (don’t let it start to brown). Add the egg mixture and lightly stir for about a minute and then place the pan in the oven. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes until the egg mixture sets up and begins to lightly brown. Remove from the oven and let it stand for just a minute or two before cutting into portions to serve.

Blue Island Oyster Bar and Seafood in Denver, Colorado

On October 25, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Colorado, Food2 Comments

We were spending the weekend in Denver and had heard about a seafood restaurant that was celebrating “Oystoberfest” for the entire month of October. The Blue Island Oyster Bar in the Cherry Creek area of Denver has an excellent happy hour every day and a wonderful selection of fresh seafood. One of the things that we learned during our time in Frankfurt, Germany, is that cities have an airport that is a major hub, restaurants can get deliveries of fresh seafood on the same day that the fish are caught. Denver is no different as it is centrally located and can receive seafood from both coasts daily. Blue Island has partnered with Blue Island Shellfish Farms in New York to get their seasonal oysters and other seafood delivered as fresh as possible.

We have mentioned previously that we don’t typically eat a large meal, but eat a few small plates to try as many different foods as possible. Obviously we had to get oysters and they were so good that we ended up getting a second dozen before the night was over. The menu stated that their clam chowder was the “City’s Best Clam Chowder”, so we had to give that a try as well as some chilled shrimp. The clam chowder was nice and thick with a lot of clams and the flavor was wonderful. There were a lot of other choices on the menu and based on the food that we did try, we are sure that you couldn’t go wrong with anything that you might choose. Their prices were very reasonable, especially considering the quality of the food, and we would definitely recommend them to anyone visiting Denver and looking for fresh seafood.