Fantastic Shrimp Cakes Recipe

I came up with this recipe many years ago and forgot about it since I don't cook with eggs due to Sam's egg white sensitivity. So we've eaten my Egg-free Tuna Cakes Recipe instead for the last 8 years. Recently, I was craving crab cakes and remembered my Fantastic Shrimp Cakes recipe. Sam is doing better with eggs these days, and I decided to make the shrimp cakes using two egg yolks instead of the whole eggs. Sam (8 years old) was a trooper and tried them, but she much prefers my Tuna Cakes Recipe, so now she gets tuna when we want shrimp, and I can use whole eggs in this recipe again. These shrimp cakes are amazing! The Parmesan, zucchini, and small shrimp are a great taste combination. The texture is creamy on the inside once you crunch through the outside. The dark green from the zucchini and the purplish/red from the red potato really make these cakes beautiful to look at, too. These Shrimp Cakes are incredible eaten with sour cream and chopped tomato, and it's a complete meal! The picture above shows the shrimp cakes served with my Best Brussels Sprouts recipe on the side.

Fantastic Shrimp Cakes Recipe

1 large zucchini
1 small red potato
3/4 lb bay shrimp (the little ones)
1 cup plain bread crumbs (divided)
1/2 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 small tomatoes or 1 large tomato
Sour cream

Wash and dry the zucchini and the potato. Chop the ends off the zucchini. Do not peel the zucchini or the potato. Use a cheese grater and shred the zucchini and the red potato onto a plate.  Take handfuls of the shredded mixture and squeeze the liquid out before adding it to a medium mixing bowl. Add the shrimp, 1/3 cup of the bread crumbs, the Parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper. Put the remainder of the bread crumbs on a plate. Crack the eggs into a small bowl and beat them with a fork, then pour it over everything in the mixing bowl. Gently mix it all together.

Wash and dry the tomatoes, de-seed them, and chop them into small pieces. Set the tomatoes aside for later.

Use a tablespoon to scoop out a couple of heaping spoonfuls of the mixture into your hand. Roll it into a ball in the palm of your hand, then flatten it into a 3/4" thick patty. Gently press each side of the patty onto the breadcrumbs on the plate to coat each side. Do this 7 more times for 8 total patties. You can make these ahead of time and refrigerate them for frying later.

In a large skillet, add the cooking oil and heat the skillet to High heat. Wait for the oil to get hot enough to sizzle when you drop a small crumb in it. When a crumb sizzles, you can set the patties in. Let them fry for about 3-5 minutes per side until both sides are golden brown. When done, set them on a paper towel and blot off any excess oil. Serve the shrimp cakes with a dollop of sour cream and a spoonful of chopped tomatoes. Plan on 2-3 shrimp cakes per person. Serves 2-4 people as a main course.

Egg-free Tuna Fish Cakes Recipe (Gluten-free)

Richard and I love my Fantastic Shrimp Cakes Recipe, however, Sam doesn't. She's 8 years old and much more prefers my Tuna Fish Cakes. So on the nights I make shrimp cakes, Sam gets tuna instead. These tuna cakes are super easy to make using a few basic ingredients from your pantry. Sam has been eating these cakes off-and-on for years and it's the only way I can get her to eat tuna. It's a great kid recipe, and served with a green vegetable, it's a complete meal. The picture above shows the tuna cakes served with my Best Brussels Sprouts recipe on the side.

Tuna Fish Cakes Recipe

2/3 cup water
1 tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup instant mashed potato flakes
1 can tuna packed in water
1 cup Rice Krispies cereal or Rice Chex cereal (divided)
Salt and pepper
3 tbsp vegetable oil for frying

First, make the mashed potatoes. In a small pot over High heat, add the water, 1 tbsp of olive oil, and salt. When boiling, add the potato flakes and mix it until you have firm mashed potatoes.

Put the mashed potatoes in a medium-size mixing bowl. Open a can of tuna and drain the water. Add the tuna to the bowl. Use a coffee grinder to grind the cereal into fine crumbs. Add 2 tbsp of the rice crumbs to the bowl and put the rest of the rice crumbs on a small plate. Mix the potatoes, tuna, and rice crumbs until well-combined. Divide the tuna cakes mixture into 4 pieces. Take each piece and roll them into balls in the palm of your hand, then flatten them into 1/2" thick patties. Gently press each side of each patty onto the rice crumbs on the plate to coat each side. Lightly salt and pepper each patty. You can make these ahead of time and refrigerate them for frying later.

In a medium skillet, add the cooking oil and heat the skillet to High heat. Wait for the oil to get hot enough to sizzle when you drop a small crumb in it. When a crumb sizzles, you can set the patties in. Let them fry for about 3 minutes per side until both sides are golden brown. When done, set them on a paper towel and blot off any excess oil. Makes 4 tuna cakes. Serves 1-2 people as a main course.

Sesame Ginger Marinade for Fish Recipe

I've been wanting a new way to cook cod these days, and decided to come up with an Asian marinade for it. My goal was to use ingredients I readily have in my fridge and pantry, and for a marinade that was a little sweet so Sam would like it. After a few tries, I came up with a great combination of flavors (savory, sweet, and tangy) that work great with fish and that my family loves.

Sesame Ginger Marinade for Fish Recipe

2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp light agave nectar
1 tsp rice vinegar (not rice wine vinegar)
1/2 tsp ground ginger spice
1/2 tsp toasted sesame seeds
Pinch of black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk them together. Lay your fish in a single layer in a pan and pour the marinade over it. Turn the fish over so the marinade covers both sides. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before you grill the fish. This recipe makes a little over 1/4 cup of marinade.

Tuna Salad Recipe (No Mayo)

We haven't had mayonnaise in our house in years due to Sam's egg sensitivity. All of the no-egg mayos have oils or starches in them that she also can't have. So I gave up, and we eat our turkey sandwiches with a little olive oil and salt, or occasionally cream cheese, on the bread. The one thing I missed pretty quickly when we cut out mayo was tuna fish sandwiches. So I came up with a flavorful dressing for the tuna that completely replaces mayo for me. This recipe is great for anyone with an egg sensitivity or allergy.

Tuna Salad Recipe

For the dressing:

1/4 tsp dry yellow mustard
1/4 tsp sugar
Pinch of salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp apple cider vinegar

For the tuna:

1 can of chunk white tuna in water (5 oz.) - drained
1+ tbsp finely diced Mexican style hot chile peppers (optional)
1+ tbsp finely diced dill pickle (optional)

In a small bowl add the dry ingredients for the dressing and mix them together. Add the oil and vinegar and whisk it together until it is well combined.

Drain the tuna and put it in a bowl. Finely dice a few small hot chile peppers and a small dill pickle, or use whatever you want for a little crunch and flavor like celery or onions, and add them to the tuna.

Pour the dressing over the tuna mixture and stir it all together. You can eat the tuna salad by itself over some lettuce, or put it in a sandwich. Serves 1 to 2 people.

Maple Dijon Glaze (for Fish and Meat) Recipe

I've been wanting a new way to cook fish lately, and came up with this simple maple dijon glaze that works really well with baked salmon and pan fried pork chops. It would also go great on chicken or ham. It's tangy, slightly sweet and spicy, and a perfect addition when you want to jazz up a meal.

Maple Dijon Glaze (for Fish and Meat) Recipe

3 tbsp dijon mustard (your favorite brand)
2 tbsp pure maple syrup

Combine the mustard and maple syrup. Store it in a covered dish in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. When ready, pour some over the fish or meat and use a pastry brush to brush it evenly over the fish/meat before you put it in the oven. Pepper to taste, no need to salt.

Baked Salmon with Apricot Glaze Recipe

We love baked salmon. I came up with this recipe because I wanted a slightly sweet glaze over the salmon, but wanted to stay away from soy sauce and teriyaki-type glazes. Apricot jam fits the bill perfectly and gives this moist salmon a really nice, not-too-sweet flavor, that compliments the fish perfectly. We love this salmon!

Baked Salmon with Apricot Glaze Recipe

1-1/2 to 1-3/4 lb fresh Salmon fillet with skin on
1/4 cup Smuckers Simply Fruit Apricot Spreadable Fruit jam
1 tbsp water
Salt and pepper

Spray a 9x12 baking pan, or a cookie sheet, with non-stick cooking spray and lay the salmon fillet on it. In a small bowl, combine the apricot jam with the water and mix it thoroughly. Use a pastry brush to spread the apricot glaze evenly over the salmon. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or more before baking.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take the salmon out of the refrigerator to come to room temperature while the oven is heating up. When the oven is ready, remove the plastic wrap, salt and pepper the salmon to taste, and bake the salmon, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes. Serves 4-6 people.

Mango Shrimp Tostadas Recipe

I created this recipe many years ago for Richard and I to enjoy a light, refreshing, seafood-based Mexican entree. All of the components go great together, and it is a quick and simple meal to prepare.

Mango Shrimp Tostadas Recipe

3/4 to 1 lb whole, raw, medium shrimp
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 mango
1 large avocado -OR- 2 small avocados
1/2 bunch of cilantro
2 limes
1 jalapeno pepper (optional)
4-6 Los Pericos Tostadas, or make your own baked tostadas in the oven (how to at end of post)
Hot sauce

For the shrimp, remove the shells, make a slice along the dark line and remove the waste, rinse, and cut them in half. Set the shrimp aside.

For the mango, peel the skin and remove the pit. Cut the mango pieces into small squares and add the cubes to a medium size mixing bowl.

Cut the avocado in half along the pit, open and remove the pit. Use a knife to make slices in the avocado half, first in one direction, then in the other direction to make the cubes. Use a spoon to scoop out the cubes and add them to the mixing bowl with the mango.

Wash the half bunch of cilantro, chop the leaves, and add them to the mixing bowl.

If you are adding a jalapeno, wash and dry it, then slice it in half and remove the seeds. Mince the jalapeno halves into very small pieces and add them to the mixing bowl.

Cut one of the limes in half and juice the lime halves into the mixing bowl. Use a spoon to gently mix everything together.

Heat a skillet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray to High heat and add the shrimp. Drizzle the shrimp with a little olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, and saute them for a couple of minutes until the shrimp are pinkish-white and curled. Remove the shrimp from the heat and add them to the mixing bowl.

Cut the second lime in half and juice the lime halves into the mixing bowl. Use a spoon to gently mix everything together one last time.

Spoon some of the mango-shrimp mixture onto a tostada, add your favorite Mexican hot sauce, and sour cream if you do dairy. Serves 2 adults (and one small child). On a side note, Sam likes to eat all of the components of this dish separately (she's only 6), so I set aside a small amount of each ingredient for her on a plate and she eats it that way.



To make your own oven-baked tostada shells, just follow these instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay out corn or flour tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet or two, spray both sides of the tortillas with olive oil cooking spray, and lightly salt the one side. Bake them for 5 minutes, then flip them over and bake for 5 more minutes.  Enjoy!

Dad's Fried Trout Recipe

This is based on my Dad's recipe. He used to fish for trout when I was growing up, and this is how I remember him cooking it. I absolutely love Dad's fried trout. So much so that I asked him to get me a vintage fish skinner just like his so I could make it for my family (I couldn't wait for visits to their house). The best part of the fried fish, in my mind, is the crispy fish tail and fins. Oh how my brother and I used to fight over them! Unless you grow up eating them, it's probably not something that would interest you to try, but believe me, you should. Sam has been eating this fish forever now, and is my current competition to share the tails and fins with. Thanks, Dad, for the wonderful memories of eating this fish growing up, and for this great recipe!

Fried Trout Recipe

1 large whole trout (approx 1.25 lbs) or 2 small whole trout
1 cup of cornmeal
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
Salt and pepper

I buy the whole trout already cleaned (stomach sliced open and guts removed) from the store, but they still need the heads removed and need to be skinned. Larger fish are harder to work with than smaller ones, so I usually prefer to buy 2 small ones.

To prepare the trout:

Wash off the trout. Hold the fish firmly by its body and cut off its head. Next, insert a very sharp fillet knife under the skin of the fish along its back to the dorsal fin (the top fin), and lift, cutting a slit in the skin. Insert the knife under the skin again from the dorsal fin all the way to the tail, and lift, completing the slit along its back. Use a vintage fish skinner to remove each side of the skin, leaving the tail and as many fins as possible (fins are harder to keep attached while skinning).

When done, put the cornmeal in a large plastic bag and put the fish into the bag, seal the bag, and shake until the fish is coated with the cornmeal. Now it is ready for frying.

In a large skillet, add the oil and heat to Med. High heat. The oil is hot enough when you drop a piece of cornmeal in it and it sizzles. Add the fish, then salt and pepper to taste. The fry time really depends on how thick the fish is. Generally, for a larger fish, fry on one side for 7 minutes, or until you see golden brown around the bottom edges. Use a spatula to turn the fish over and fry the other side for around 5-7 more minutes. When both sides are golden brown, the fish is done. Remove the fish from the pan and lay it on a paper towel to blot off the extra oil. Serves 2 adults (and one small child).

On a side note, this cornmeal fry method also works great for tilapia fillets and thinly sliced cod. This is cod: