Cooking a fall harvest (sea and land)

Grilled Garlic Shrimp on Pasta with Plums

Oriental, NC had some really good produce and fresh seafood.

Breakfast Egg Omelet

Mixing egg with fresh vegetables is an easy way to make a delicious breakfast.

At a low heat, I added green peppers, tomatoes, zucchini and some cheddar cheese. Fresh basil would have made it perfect, but alas none on the boat!

Vegetable Pot Pie

This took some time, but seemed like a great way to use some left over vegetables we had on the boat. I mixed in zucchini, onion, potatoes, squash and a little bit of ham in with some butter, 1/3 c. flour, 2/3 c. milk (I used soy milk), 1 3/4 c. chicken broth, 1/4 tsp. celery seed and some fennel seed. Any vegetables or meat on hand would work great!

The crust , probably the simplest on the planet, was made by stirring together 2 c. flour, 1 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 c. oil, and 1/4 c. cold milk.

Served with plantains for some fruit, it was very good. Next time I plan to only do the bottom crust to make it healthier, because two crusts was a bit much!

Catch of the Day: Fresh Flounder

On our way to Cape Lookout, we caught a flounder and bass (we think) just outside Beaufort Inlet. They gave us some nice filets and we paired with steamed vegetables. To prepare the fish, on the light flounder I just added a little butter, and on the harder bass I spread on some of my mom’s delicious fish rub which is:

1 tbsp. each: paprika, garlic powder, ground black pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano and thyme

We use it mixed together in its own spice jar. (Originally used and great for swordfish.)

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Using a great pumpkin recipe book from my friend, I learned how to properly cook the seeds with a little oil (or butter) and salt at around 250 degrees for 45 mins. It went much better this year than last year (when I tried broiling them) and they were delicious!

Pumpkin Bisque

1/4 c. butter, 4 scallions (I used some onion), 3 cups pumpkin puree (to puree the pumpkin I could only bake it and mash it with a fork, but a blender would make it smoother), 1/4 c. honey, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. allspice, 1 c. light cream (I used some soy milk)