1. Shrimp Cocktail at St. Elmo Steak House, Indiana

You didn’t expect this, did you? So many spicy cuisines out there and we pick the hottest dish from Indiana? Well yes, when we heard known food critic and blogger for Travel Channel, Allison Stein Wellner has dubbed this shrimp cocktail the strongest dish in the world, we knew it had to be true.

Here is what miss Wellner said she felt after trying the shrimp cocktail at St. Elmo Steak House: “I dropped my cutlery as a sensation that I can only describe as what electrocution must feel like, shot down my throat and then up my nose, forking its way into my brain My hands started to rise and—yes!—I had the urge to clap my hands on my skull to keep the top from blowing off.”

And it doesn’t even contain chilies, the spiciness comes from the 20 pounds of horseradish grated over the shrimps, every day.

The shrimp cocktail in the photo above is not the one served at St. Elmo.

Szechuan Shrimp

Total Time :25 mins

Prep Time  :20 mins

Cook Time :05 mins

''A delicious spicy stir-fry. If you like it hotter, stir in some sambal oelek (chile paste) to your dish at the end. Goes great with rice or noodles.''

Ingredients:

1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined 

1 tablespoon heinz chilli sauce

1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 teaspoons canola oil (peanut oil if you prefer)

4 green onions, chopped

2 tablespoons minced gingerroot

2 teaspoons minced garlic

Directions: 

1. Mix ketchup, chili sauce rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, salt, pepper flakes, and corn starch in small bowl to make sauce
2. Pour oil in seasoned wok before heating and wipe around
3. Heat wok and add scallions ginger and garlic
4. Stir-fry for a few seconds, then add shrimp
5. Stir constantly for about 2 minutes, adding small amounts of water if food starts to stick; cook until shrimp turns pink.
6. Stir sauce again, then add to wok, stirring constantly until mixture thickens.
7. Serve with steamed rice.

Spicy Crab Cakes Topped with Guacamole

Ingredients

Crab cakes:

1 pound lump crabmeat, picked over to remove any shell, broken into small pieces, 2 tablespoons mayonnaise., 1 large egg, beaten,,, 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs  , 1/4 cup chopped scallions (white and pale green parts only) ,1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves ,1/2 teaspoon habanero hot sauce; Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Breading:

1 cup panko bread crumbs 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves  3 tablespoons olive oil

Guacamole:

Ingredients
3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
1 lime, juiced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic, minced

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/guacamole-recipe.html?oc=linkback

Directions 

Crab cakes:  Mix the crabmeat, mayonnaise, egg, bread crumbs, scallions, the lime juice, 1/4 cup cilantro, and the hot sauce together in a small bowl. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Form the mixture into 8 (3/4-inch-thick) patties and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Breading: Mix the bread crumbs and 1/4 cup of cilantro on a plate. Carefully turn the patties in the bread crumb mixture until coated on both sides.In a large nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. In batches, fry the crab cakes until golden, about 3 minutes each side..

Guacamole: 

In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. Drain, and reserve the lime juice, after all of the avocados have been coated. Using a potato masher add the salt, cumin, and cayenne and mash. Then, fold in the onions, jalapeno, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved lime juice. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve.

Spicy Eggplant and Cauliflower With Basil

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups basmati rice
• kosher salt
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste (such as Thai Kitchen)
• 3 small or baby eggplants (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut lengthwise into wedges
• 1/2 head cauliflower (about 1 pound), broken into florets
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn if large

Quick Tip

If you don’t have basmati rice, use long-grain white or jasmine rice instead.

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450º F.
2. In a large saucepan, combine the rice, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 2 ¼ cups water and bring to a boil.
3. Cover and simmer on low until the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside.
4. Meanwhile, whisk together the garlic, ginger, oil, curry paste, 1 ¼ teaspoons salt, and ½ cup water. Toss with the eggplants and cauliflower.
5. Transfer to a roasting pan in a single layer. Roast until tender, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, adding the chickpeas during the last 5 minutes.
6. Remove the vegetables from oven and toss with the bean sprouts and basil. Place 1 cup of rice on each of 4 plates and top with some of the vegetables.

By Kay Chun , December, 2003

a Focaccia Caprese.

Focaccia is a type of flatbread from Italy, thought to have originated in ancient Greece but now associated with the north eastern part of Italy. Today however, it is a flatbread that is found all over Italy and baked in a variety of ways. While most of us think (at least I do) think of Focaccia as a savoury flatbread, there is also a sweet variation called the Focaccia Veneta ( also called Focaccia Pasquale Veneta , Focaccia Dolce Veneta or the FugassaVeneta) that is baked in Venetia at Easter time and made with wheat, eggs, butter, sugar and flavouRS.
The name Focaccia originates from the ancient Roman “PanisFocacius” which was originally a flatbread that was baked on the hearth. 






Focaccia Caprese
Adapted from The Kitchen Whisperer

I halved the recipe and made two not-so-small sized ones, which served me and my two teen children comfortably as an evening snack!

Ingredients:

For the Dough:

2 tsp instant yeast
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
3 1/2 cups bread flour*
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup oil (preferably olive oil)
1 to 1 1/2 cups warm water
A little more olive oil for brushing dough

For the Topping:

4-5 larg-ish tomatoes, sliced thin
1 6-7” round piece of fresh buffalo mozzarella, cut into1/4” slices**
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips
For theHerbed Oil:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tspdried oregano
1 tspdried basil
1/4 to 1/2 tsp red chilli flakes
1/2 tspfinely minced garlic/ paste
Salt to taste

Fresh basil leaves for garnishing


Method:                             

BEFORE AND AFTER Rising

First make the herbed oil. Put all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk them together. Keep aside till required.

The dough can be mixed and kneaded by hand or machine. Put the yeast, sugar flour, salt and oil in the bowl of the processor and pulse a couple of times to mix well. Then add 1 cup of warm water (and as much more as you need) and knead until you have a soft elastic dough that is just short of sticky.
Remove the dough from the processor bowl, shape into a round and place in a well oiled bowl turning the dough around so it is coated. Cover and let it rise till almost double in volume. This should take about an hour.

                                              BEFORE AND AFTER BAKING

You can make this as 2 medium sized Focaccia or 4 smaller ones. I made 2 smaller ones since I had halved the original recipe.

 For the rectangular Focaccia, take two rectangular pans/ jelly or Swiss roll pans (I used an 11" by 7" tins)and oil them well. Then divide the dough into two equal portions and lightly roll them (or press out) out into approximately 11” by 7”. If making 4 Focaccia, then divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion out (or press out) evenly into approximately 5” by 7”. It alright if it’s an odd shape because Focaccia is really a “rustic” bread.
Transfer the dough to the baking tins. The dough will shrink a little. Use your fingers and push it out a bit making sure it’s evenly thick throughout. Let it rise for 20 minutes. Lightly oil your finger tips and press into the dough creating evenly spaced “dimples” in it. Generously brush the surface with oil.
Bake at 210C (410F) for about 18 to 20 minutes till it is almost done and is beginning to turn golden brown. Take the Focaccia out and turn up the heat of your oven to 230C (450F).

                                               Topping - Before and After Baking 

 Lightly drizzle some of the Herbed Oil over the Focaccia and then evenly arrange some slices of mozzarella over the bread, leaving very little space between them. Arrange the tomato slices over this and a little sprinkle the chopped basil over this. The topping should cover most of the surface of the bread.

Drizzle some more Herbed Oil over the topping and return the bread to the oven. Bake the Focaccia for 5 to 8 minutes or until the cheese has just melted. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil leaves.

Note:

* If you cannot find bread flour, you can add 1 tbsp of Vital Wheat Gluten to 3 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour and mix together well. Otherwise just use 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour. I used just APF.
**I don’t get fresh buffalo mozzarella here. So I used regular mozzarella instead, the kind we use on pizzas. Use any “melty/ stringy” kind of cheese you can find.