2014 on the coast




M and I returned home to Hfx after a lovely Christmas break filled with food, family, and friends...and food. Did I mention food? Because there was a lot of food. Food is one thing that our families have in common; they both wholly appreciate all types of cuisines and love to share long and languid meals. M and I definitely inherited our love of eating from our families, and it's something that we've brought with us to the coast, a piece of our own homes that we share in our new apartment by the sea.



It was fitting that our first maritime meal of 2014 was from a cookbook that my (not so little) brother A gave me for Christmas, another in Yotam Ottolenghi's superb series. Simply titled 'Ottolenghi', this book is breathtaking, both in the diversity of the dishes he includes as well as in the photographs that color the stories he tells. 





The magic in the recipe that we chose to try is in the olives; pungent, fresh, and juicy, they set the stage for the flavors of the dish. The buttery sauce is buttery-er in their shadow, the tomatoes sweeter, the shrimp meatier. We substituted Pernod for arak, which has a similar black liquorice flavor, and chose to add a little bit more that was called for because we liked the thick depth it added to the broth. We paired this dish with a Nova Scotian white, a fresh green fattoush-esque salad with radish, cucumber, tomato and mixed greens, and a crusty baguette dipped in balsamic vinegar and divine extra-virgin olive oil.



Buttered prawns with tomato, olives and Pernod
Adapted from 'Ottolenghi'

Ingredients
- 4 plum tomatoes
- 12-16 large shelled shrimp (or a similar number of tiger or king prawns)
- 2 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tbsp red pepper flakes (less if you want to cut the heat)
- 1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives
- 5 tsp Pernod liquor or arak
- 4 cloves of garlic, very thinly sliced
- coarse sea salt

Prep time: 10 min
Active time: 15 min
Total time: 30 mins

1. First, prepare the tomatoes. Make a tiny, shallow cross with a sharp knife at the bottom of each tomato and place them in boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove them from the boiling water, immerse in cold water, and drain. Then, peel the skin away and discard; cut each tomato into 4-6 wedges.

2. Place a frying pan over high heat; when it is very hot, add 1 tbsp butter and sauté the shrimp quickly for 2 minutes, shaking the pan as you go. Add the tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and olives, and cook for another 2-3 minutes, until the shrimp is almost fully cooked through.


3. Add the Pernod carefully, making sure that it does not catch fire; allow the alcohol to evaporate for a minute before adding the remaining butter, garlic and salt. Toss so that everything comes together, adjust seasoning, and serve immediately.

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