Smoked Tuna Dip

I absolutely love tuna dip at the beach and nobody does it better than Destin's Harbor Docks.  (In my opinion!)  Anyway, I have been looking for a way to make this dip at home without the freshly smoked yellowfin tuna.  The original recipe I tried called for canned tuna with liquid smoke added.  It was AWFUL!  Then I found another recipe that informed me that there were tuna pouches with already smoked tuna inside.  This had to be better than liquid smoke.  I gave it a try yesterday for lunch because my mom is in town and it certainly isn't Harbor Docks but it will do here at home.

Smoked Tuna Dip

2 pouches smoked tuna, drained if necessary
3/4 c. mayo
1 Tbsp. prepared horseradish
1/3 c. chopped green onions
1/8 tsp. ground pepper

Process all ingredients in food processor until smooth.

Tuna Cakes with Creole Mayonnaise

You'll remember that I am not crazy about seafood, although I am trying more and more.  I can't be a good eating example to The Bun if I don't at least try.  I have always enjoyed tuna fish, oddly enough.  I thought this sounded interesting to try.  I will use less lemon zest in the cakes next time.  Also, the longer the mayo sat, the saltier it became.  Maybe a little less Creole seasoning next time, too.

Try Chicken Cakes as an alternative.

Tuna Cakes with Creole Mayonnaise 

2 (12 oz.) cans solid white tuna in spring water, drained well
1-1/4 c. Italian bread crumbs
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp. lemon zest
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 c. mayonnaise, divided
1-1/4 tsp. Creole seasoning, divided
1/4 c. olive oil
1 tsp. lemon juice

Drain and rinse tuna.  Place tuna and breadcrumbs in a large bowl; stir in eggs, lemon zest, mustard, 1/3 c. mayo, and 1 tsp. Creole seasoning.  Shape mixture into 8 patties.

Cook 4 patties in 2 Tbsp. hot oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until golden; drain on paper towels.  Repeat with remaining tuna cakes and oil.

Combine lemon juice and remaining 2/3 c. mayo with 1/4 tsp. Creole seasoning.  Serve with hot tuna cakes.

Low-Country Boil

I am resolved to get in the kitchen and start trying new recipes again.  My brain is in recipe overload and I have several that are already on my to do list.  The ingredients are purchased...I'm ready!  I can't guarantee that I will always take a picture which really stinks, because I love looking at pictures with food!  But my pictures are never that appetizing anyway, so I guess it doesn't really matter!  Obviously, my idea of printer friendly recipes is also a disaster and so that shouldn't be expected either.  I'm just going to stick with sharing the recipes!! 

We went the whole summer without having our Sunday school supper club and The Dish Washer and I were really missing it, so we decided to host August.  We love having people over to the house and The Dish Washer decided he wanted to do a low country boil as a good way to end the summer.  First of all, we have never made it before.  Second of all, I HATE shrimp!!!  But I took one for the team and Low-Country we were!  I think it is a pretty basic thing and other than our potatoes getting a little overcooked (meaning they didn't hold their shape and wanted to mash whenever you went to scoop) it was a pretty good success for our first time.  The Dish Washer even built a special cooking station.  He actually built it for frying fish.  We've only done one fish fry since we have been married, but now that we have this maybe we will do more!  It's empty right now, but here is the picture.

Random side note is that you can see one little sprout of basil.  Normally I have basil coming out the wazoo, but this year my basil has disappointed me.  I blame it on a pesky chipmunk living in the vinca you see behind the table.  I tried to scare him off with some dashes of cayenne pepper!  I bet that really woke him up the first morning he got a sniff!  :)  Anyway, from all of my "chatting" you can tell I have missed this.  Let's get to the recipe:

Low-Country Boil

1/4 pound fully cooked, smoked sausage per person, cut into 1 inch pieces

1/4 c. Old Bay seasoning, or more to taste (we used MUCH more but we had a LARGE pot!)

2 small new potatoes per person

1 ear fresh corn, per person, shucked, silked and broken in half (The Dish Washer prefers white corn)

1/2 pound large fresh shrimp per person, shell on

Fill a large pot with enough water to cover all of the ingredients.  Add the sausage and Old Bay seasoning and allow to boil for about 20 minutes so that the sausage can flavor the water.  Taste, and add more seasoning if you think you need more.  Add the potatoes and boil for about 15 minutes.  Add the corn and boil about 10 minutes more.  Finally, add the shrimp and allow to cook for 3 minutes.  Taste shrimp and it is cooked through, drain immediately and serve.  We dropped ours down in a cooler to keep it cooler while everyone fixed a plate and went back for seconds, but I think it more fun to dump it out on newspaper.  And EVEN better if you drop the tailgate and dump it out on newspaper! 

Serve with cocktail sauce and tartar sauce.