Garlic-Saffron Seafood Soup w/Instant Ramen for “You Can’t Take It With You”

Since a critical scene in “You Can’t Take it With You” features a stuffy, rich family and an eccentric, middle-class family coming together for an impromptu dinner party , we decided to do our take on a high-low family dinner combining some high-quality ingredients with some ingredients that are more likely to be found in a college dorm room:

Garlic-Saffrom Seafood Soup w/Instant Ramen – (Serves 2)

Ingredients:

1 bulb of garlic

2 frozen tilapia filets (or another flaky whitefish) – defrost before cooking

6-8 pieces of shrimp

2 packets of Top Ramen instant noodle soup (you will not be using the flavor packets)

1/4 cream of whole milk

1/2 cup of frozen corn

1 quart organic vegetable broth

pinch of saffron

dash of black pepper

Directions:

First roast the bulb of garlic in your oven.

When garlic is fully cooked, pour vegetable broth into a large soup pot and add the saffron.

Bring to a boil.

While broth is cooking, take roasted garlic clove and place in a blender with the cream/milk and liquify.

Once the broth reaches a boil, stir your milk mixture into the pot and bring the heat down to a low-medium temperature.

Place fish and shrimp into pot to cook for approximately three minutes and stir.  The fish will break up into chunks during the stirring process.

Add ramen noodles and corn and let simmer until both corn and noodles are fully cooked (approximately 3-5 minutes).

Sprinkle on the black pepper.

Take off of heat and let cool before serving in a large soup bowl.

Champagne cocktail

The beverage for your high-low meal should be a glass of your favorite brut champagne with a splash of fruit punch.

 

 

 

Polynesian-Style Papaya/Shrimp & Pineapple/Tofu Skewers for “Mutiny on the Bounty”

“Mutiny on the Bounty” is based on a true story and the main mission of the actual Bounty was to take breadfruit plants from Tahiti to the West Indies.  During Kristy’s study abroad time in Jamaica, she ate quite a bit of breadfruit and learned some techniques on how to prepare it, however, due to it being difficult to find in the States (especially on short notice) we decided to prepare this healthy, Polynesian-influenced dish instead.

Ingredients – This recipe makes approximately 6-10 of each type of skewer.

1 package of long wooden skewers

1 package of firm tofu

1 can of pineapple chunks (including the pineapple juice)

1/2 pound large raw shrimp (peeled)

1 medium papaya

4 cloves of garlic

1 small onion

1 can of diced tomato

1 tablespoon Bragg’s Liquid Amino All-Purpose Seasoning or Low-Sodium Soy Sauce

1 tablespoon Stevia

1 bag of shredded coconut

1 green pepper (optional)

Directions

First you’ll want to take out as much of the water out of the tofu as possible.  To do this you will need to take your tofu out of the water, wrap it in paper towels, and place a heavy object on it (such as a bowl or a pan).  Let it sit while you prep your marinade.

Marinade – mince your garlic and chop your onion and put them into a pan on medium heat.  Add the Braggs while stirring occasionally.  Cook for around five minutes.

Take your can of tomatoes and your Stevia and place them in the pan with your onion and garlic mixture.  Open your can of pineapples and pour in a generous half cup of the pineapple juice.  Take ten or so pineapple chunks, chop them, and mix them into your mixture.  Cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes and then remove from heat to let it cool.

Skewers – take your tofu and cut into one-inch cubes. Alternate tofu cubes and pineapple chunks along the skewer (you can also rotate in chunks of the green pepper as well).  You will probably need around 3-4 of each to fill a skewer.  For the shrimp skewers, slice your papaya into chunks and alternate between the shrimp and the papaya (feel free to rotate in pineapple and green pepper as well if you would like).

Once your marinade has cooled, place your skewers in a pan and glaze each side generously.  Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for minimum of one hour (overnight preferred).

Cooking – Skewers will be best cooked on a grill, however, we will be roasting them in this recipe.

Set your oven at 400 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.

Remove your skewers from the marinade and sprinkle shredded coconut on each side before placing on the baking sheet.

Roast the skewers until cooked throughout for 8-10 minutes, flipping over half way through.

Transfer the skewers to a bed of greens or rice and enjoy!