Moules à la Marinière - Fresh Mussels Stemead in Wine and Flavorings

I made this recipe for dinner...i know, i know i still haven't put the other ones but this one deserves to go first! It's simple, easy, but at the same time it's elegant, just perfect. Specially if in that sauce that will be in your plate when you finish you take a piece of bread and dip in this sauce and eat...gosh it's heaven!!!

Ingredients
2 cups of light, dry white wine or 1 cup of dry white vermouth (i prefer the white wine)
An 8- to 10 quart enameled kettle with cover
1/2 cup minced shallots
8 parsley sprigs
1/2 bay leaf
1/4 ts thyme
1/8 ts pepper
6 tbs butter
6 quarts screbbed, soaked mussels
1/2 cup roughly chopped parsley (to sprinkle in the plate)

Directions
Bring the wine to boil with the shallots, parsley sprigs, bay leaf, thyme, pepper and butter. Let it boil for 3 minutes. Add the mussels to the kettle. Cover tightly and boil quickly over high heat. Frequently grasp the kettle, making an up and down movement. When the shells open it means that it's ready, if you let it overcook it will get like rubber. With a skimmer, dip the mussels into wide soup plates. Allow the cooking liquid to settle, so if there's any trace of sand it will stay in the bottom of the kettle. Then ladle the liquid over the mussels, sprinkle the parsley and serve with bread.

Steamed Lobster Tail

Ingredients

1 tablespoon sea salt
4 (6 ounce) lobster tails
1/2 cup butter, melted
Directions

Pour about 1 inch of water in the bottom of a large pot and bring to a boil. Add the salt and place a steamer insert inside the pot so that it is just above the water level. Put the lobster tails on the rack and cover the pot. Cover and steam for 8 minutes. And don't peek! Serve with melted butter.

Shrimp Niguiri

Today we had this "sushi night" at my house. Of course i don't have much of an idea how to make a great sushi but it's worth trying. Since the friends from me and my fiance don't like raw fish as we do i had to improvise. But at the end it wasn't as bad as i thought!

Ingredients:

10 large uncooked shrimp
1 cup cold water
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 cups cooked sushi rice
1 to2 tablespoons wasabi paste, to taste
Soy sauce, for dipping

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Skewer the shrimp from head to tail with toothpicks.

2. Add skewered shrimp to boiling water and cook 3 minutes; transfer to bowl of ice water to stop cooking.

3. When cooled, remove the shell and skewers from shrimp. Make a slit in the underside of the shrimp and cut through almost to the top but not completely. Remove the dark vein.

4. Moisten your hands with a mixture of cold water and vinegar. Take a 1 1/2 tablespoons of the sushi rice and form into a rectangular block about 2-inches long with rounded edges and sides.

5. Scoop up a tiny amount, about ¼ teaspoon, of wasabi paste with the tip of your finger and spread it on the inside of the shrimp.

6. Place the shaped rice on top of the wasabi and press gently. Press into the shrimp, but make sure it holds its shape.

7. Serve with soy sauce for dipping.

Scallops with White Wine Sauce

This recipe is simply delicious!!! You'll need some patience with the sauce but it's totally worth it!!! Believe me, this meal is so Yummy!!! I made it for my family and they eaten so fast! And here is a tip: Serve with asparagus with butter ;)

Ingredients

1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon shallots
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup butter

24 sea scallops
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Directions

In a medium saucepan, combine white wine, wine vinegar, and shallots. Cook until liquid is almost evaporated, approximately 1 tablespoon left. Stir in heavy cream and let boil down until reduced by half. Stir in butter 1 tablespoon at a time, allowing each to melt before adding the next. Keep warm while preparing the scallops.
Preheat oven on broiler setting.
Brush scallops with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place under preheated broiler for 2 minutes on each side, until scallops are opaque, with a bit of brown around the edges. Place a spoonful of sauce on each plate, and top with 4 scallops.