Many years ago, I volunteered to help my friends Guy and Pat move into a new home. Since I'm not able to offer much help lifting heavy boxes or carrying furniture, I asked if I could make dinner for the moving crew instead.
I knew this meal had to be really easy and not call for many cooking utensils, since I wasn't sure if we'd get them unpacked in time to make dinner. I decided to make my favorite New Orleans Boiled Shrimp and serve it with a big tossed salad and some French bread. I made a Dutch Pear Pie for dessert which I baked the night before, and had chilling in the refrigerator.
This summer, when Guy and Pat tore down their old cabin in northern Wisconsin and had a new home built in its place, I told them I'd once again bring dinner. This time, we all knew what the menu would be.
New Orleans Boiled Shrimp
2 tablespoons salt
10 tablespoons shrimp spice (found in the spice aisle of a supermarket)
1 lemon slices
1 large onion, sliced
6 garlic cloves
3/4 cup celery tops
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
5 lb raw (green) shrimp in their shells, heads and tails on
1/2 cup butter, melted
In large kettle, add water until half full. Bring water to a boil. Add all ingredients except shrimp and butter. Return to a boil. Add shrimp. Boil about 5 minutes, removing cooked shrimp with a slotted spoon when they float to the top and turn pink. Serve with melted butter.
4 to 6 servings
Dutch Pear Pie
(This is the dessert Guy and Pat's oldest son, Aaron, always requests on his birthday, after I served it that first moving night.)
Crust
1 Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crust (from 15-oz box), softened as directed on box
Filling
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg, beaten
3 cups coarsely chopped fresh pears (2 to 3 medium pears)
Crumb Topping
1 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1. Heat oven to 425°F. Make pie crust as directed on box for One-Crust Baked Shell using 9-inch glass pie plate; do not prick crust.
2. Carefully line pastry with a double thickness of foil, gently pressing foil to bottom and side of pastry. Let foil extend over edge to prevent excessive browning. Bake 10 minutes. Carefully remove foil; bake 2 to 4 minutes longer or until pastry just begins to brown and has become set. If crust bubbles, gently push bubbles down with back of spoon.
3. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, mix filling ingredients. Pour into warm baked pie shell.
In medium bowl, mix crumb topping ingredients with pastry blender or fork until mixture looks like fine crumbs; sprinkle topping evenly over filling.
4. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until top is light golden brown. After 30 minutes of baking, cover top of pie with foil to prevent excessive browning. Cool at least 30 minutes before serving. Store in refrigerator.
8 servings