Tag Archives: spreads

August 7, 2010 · 2:51 pm

Tip Toe and Peep

Howdy Susitna Cafe’ friends!  Glad you made a stop at the Cafe’ today!  Seems like we’re always talking about something interesting here…today we’re discussing bird peeping.

What?  Haven’t heard about bird peeping?  Well, you know…it’s like when you look at birds and tip toe around them so as not to scare them away…here at the Cafe’ we call it bird peeping.  “R” and I enjoy the outdoors and nature, and although we’re not regular bird peepers per se, we did do some bird peeping recently.

Actually it all started during our fishing trip in Fulton and Rockport, Texas USA.  We took our camper, fishing gear and Golden Retriever, Gus, to catch “The Big One”.  We fished at night on some piers.  However, some dolphin friends paid us a visit with their babies while we were fishing…i think they chased the fish away because after that we didn’t get anymore nibbles…at least i hope that’s why we only caught a few teeny tiny flounder…i really hope that it doesn’t have anything to do with my BIG Alaskan fishing skills…gee, do you think that i’m getting rusty or something?  Oh, i hope not…

Well, I’m just not going to think about that anymore.  Now, where were we?  Oh yes, bird peeping.  Anyways…the dolphins scared the fish away and that’s that.  Sooo, since the fish weren’t biting, we decided to partake in other activities.  So we did.

We went to Charlotte Plummer’s Seafare Restaurant in Rockport for lunch.  Charlotte Plummer’s Restaurant has big picture windows that overlook the Fulton Harbour activity…

We ordered grilled seafood atop mixed green salad and some fried onion rings.  Quite honestly, the grilled seafood was OK and nothing to write home about, but the fried onion rings sure were TASTY.  In addition, the view was really nice.

Charlotte Plummer Seafare on Urbanspoon

While we were enjoying those TASTY onion rings, we looked out over the pier and noticed some beautiful birds. I got sooo excited, I ran out of the restaurant (with Big TASTY onion rings in hand) and started taking some photos and before we knew it both “R” and I were bird peeping.

Boy, bird peeping is some serious business.  You actually have to do alot of tiptoeing and pretending like you’re peeping at something else other than the bird(s) of interest.  Tiptoeing and peeping prevents the bird(s) from getting annoyed and flying away.  Actually, after a few toe cramps, we got good at it!

However, i’m sure that the customers looking out of the bay windows at Charlotte Plummer’s were sort of wondering what we were doing tiptoeing and all…

After our toes got cramped and sore, we decided to take a break and get some coffee at the Daily Grind.  The flavored iced coffees were sooo good and refreshing…we just got all energetic again!  So, we drove back to Fulton Harbour and bird peeped some more.

Daily Grind on Urbanspoon

Eventually, the sun started to set and our toes got sore again.  But before returning home to our camper, I took one more bird peeping photo…

"Gulf of Mexico - Waiting...Wondering..."

Do you like it?  Hope so!  While taking the photo, I thought the birds looked like they were waiting and wondering as they looked out over the Gulf of Mexico waters and oil rigs.  Since I took the photo about 4 weeks after the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and prior to Hurricane Alex’s arrival, I named the photo “Gulf of Mexico – Waiting…Wondering…”.

Oh, did I tell you?  My bird peeping photo will be on display with other talented geo-artists’ work at the Geo Sapiens II exhibit at The Two Wall Gallery on Vashon Island, Washington USA from Sept. 4 – 30, 2010.  Do stop by and see it if you’re in the Seattle/Vashon Island area.  Oh, and don’t forget the Susitna Cafe’ Chronicles’ bird peeping tips while you’re viewing the exhibit at the Two Wall Gallery!  Cheers!

Susitna Cafe’ Hot Crab Dip

Gulf Coast blue crab meat is sooo delicious…we make crabcakes and hot crab dip at the Cafe’ whenever we get fresh crab meat.  We find that the claw meat is sweeter than the lump crab meat, however use either for this rich and decadent dip…

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon olive oil

2 Tablespoons butter

1 shallot, minced

1 cup rainbow peppers, chopped (use yellow, orange and red)

8 ounces Neufchatel cream cheese

1 cup sour cream (I use organic Wallaby European style)

1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use SmartBalance Omega Plus)

1 cup cheddar cheese, grated (I use a mixture of Vermont white, yellow sharp and mild cheeses)

1/2 cup romano cheese, grated

1 pound crabmeat (juice and all)

2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/3 cup green onions, chopped

2 teaspoons Gulf Coast seasoning (I use “Slap Ya Mama” white pepper blend, but Tony Chachere’s seasoning will do too)

2 teaspoons Hungarian hot paprika

Heat olive oil and butter in medium sized saucepan over medium heat.  Saute’ shallots and rainbow peppers in hot oil/butter til tender.  Add cream cheese.

Stir until melted.  Add sour cream, mayonnaise and the remaining cheese.  Stir on low heat until the grated cheese is completely melted and the dip is smooth and creamy.

Add crabmeat (juice and all), lemon juice, green onions, and seasonings.  Stir until combined.

Pour into a buttered oven safe baking dish.  Bake at 300 degress for 20 minutes.  Serve warm with crackers or poured over toast points..

Cook’s Note:  Try substituting small sweet Gulf Coast shrimp for the crab meat…another rich and decadent dip for you, your family and your guests!

Traveler’s Notes:  These are some great suggestions from our Susitna Cafe’ friends…

Rockport Restaurant(s) to Try:

The Boiling Pot

Panjos Pizza Pasta and Burgers

Things to See/Do:

Visit the many downtown Rockport art galleries and The Rockport Center for the Arts


Advertisement

1 Comment

Filed under August 2010

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

January 27, 2010 · 11:20 pm

I’m So Excited!

I’m so excited! This is my first post.  All I can say is…uh…salmon! Salmon…molded into a delectable cream cheese and herb mixture and rolled in pecans…oh my…yes, salmon.

But, perhaps I should back-up before we dive into this together my Cafe’ friends.  Shouldn’t I say more about salmon?  Those ambitious and shiny wonders that spawn every year in Alaskan waters give us so many healthful benefits–how about all that healthy protein and omega 3?  How about the bragging rights when you catch one?  Oh joy!  I’m so grateful.

Every summer while Ron (“R”) and I visit my mother in Alaska, we do what every person in the Land of the Midnight Sun does.  We FISH.

Since the FISH in Alaska are big, we catch BIG FISH.  Oh…I should inform you that everything in Alaska tends to be BIG.  Yes, BIGGER than Texas. ..

In fact, there is a big brag sign to prove it.  The sign located upon entry to the Great State of Alaska from the Alaska “Alcan” Highway (via the Lower 48 states) is there to inform you that you are about to experience BIG everything.  BIG land, BIG waters,  BIG moose, BIG fish, BIG people with BIG feet and coat sizes, etc.  You get the picture.

Well…so, we fish.  Usually we catch BIG (and oh so beautiful) salmon and halibut.  Sometimes, we catch some rockfish or flounder too.  Here’s a brag picture for you:

BIG Salmon

This BIG King Salmon was caught while enjoying a cup of Joe in Homer, Alaska.  Well…OK, my nose seems to be getting larger as I’m writing this.  Sort of like Pinnochio, you know?  I guess this pic is just a bit of Alaskan humor.

The truth is that my mother (the petite woman on the left) and “R” are actually proudly displaying what we had hoped to catch on this nice day in Homer, Alaska after we had finished our Joe.

Truth be known, that we did not catch the BIG one in Sept. 2009 in Homer on that particular day.  However, upon getting back to Anchorage, our home, with little to show of our BIG fisherman skills, our friends came to the rescue.  Alaskans are like that.  They gave us lots of Kenai River Red and Silver Salmon to bring home to Texas.  So we, once again, came home with a cooler full of fish to grill, smoke, and bake into some kind of wonderful delight.

Hmm…How about a few Smoked Salmon Logs?  Good stuff on crackers or perhaps a bagel.  Let me get a cup of Joe and then we’ll get started here.

Ingredients

This is what you’ll need to make two (2) logs:

(2) 8 oz. pkgs. of cream cheese at room temp.  (you may use lite or neufchatel)

(3) Tablespoons of Alouette cheese (garlic and herbs or vegetable)

(1) 5 1/4 oz. can of smoked salmon (Red or King is best, but any will do)

1/4 – 1/3 cup of salmon jerky, chopped (not a requirement, but this adds a wonderful intense flavor)

1/2 cup red onion, finely chopped

(2) Tablespoons garlic or regular chives, chopped

(1) Tablespoon fresh or dried dill

1/3 cup italian parsley, finely chopped

And for later (after the logs have been mixed and rolled), you will need the following ingredients:

1/2 cup italian parsley, finely chopped

3/4 cup toasted pecans, chopped (chopped pistachios are a good choice too)

Now that we have the ingredients ready, you can mix the cheese, salmon, onion and herbs together using a mixer or your hand until thoroughly mixed.  It will look something like this:

Mixed Ingredients

How about spreading this on a bagel :o)

Next, on a clean surface, mix your additional chopped parsley and chopped toasted pecans together.  This will constitute your herb-nut mixture.

Toasted Texas Choctaw Pecans

Now spread-out the herb-nut mixture into a rectangle.  Let’s make the logs next:

Spoon-out 1/2 of the cream cheese mixture and begin forming a 3″x6″ log by rolling the mixture back and forth between your hands.  The cream cheese mixture will be sticky.  Once the log is formed, place it atop your herb-nut mixture as shown below:

Logroll

More tasty bits...

Now begin rolling the cream cheese log back and forth until it is completely covered by the herb-nut mixture.  You may wish to roll the log back and forth until it is longer and thinner, perhaps about 2″x7″.

Roll Log til Covered

Oh my, the anticipation...

Next, you may begin spooning-out the remaining cream cheese mixture and form your 2nd log following the steps above. Or, you may wish to save the rest as a bagel spread–how about a little Sunday brunch?

Oh my…looks like someone may have taken a bite while I wasn’t looking…

Finished Log

Smoked salmon spread on a rice cracker anyone?

Traveler’s Notes:  Take note my Cafe’ friends, you too can take your own photo with the Big Salmon in Homer, Alaska.  Hint:  the Big Salmon is not real…it’s actually sculpted and painted by an Alaskan with a good sense of humor.  You can visit it at the Homer Spit while you enjoy your cup of Joe.

6 Comments

Filed under January 2010

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , ,