Let's Do Dinner Club!: 01/02/11

Yes, it’s the New Year…. Time to pack up the decorations, get back to a normal family routine and return to eating habits that are within the boundaries of maintaining a waistline rather than it appearing as though my resolution was to look by Henry VIII by 2012!

This blog is one of encouraging you to entertain via food in your home, whether it be starting your own Dinner Club group or simply making it more of a focus to invite friends to dinner. That doesn’t mean that I “cook like we’re kings” day in day out around my own home! I do keep focus on experimentation and keeping my weekday menus fresh and ever-changing (because I enjoy the cooking so much), however, I prepare healthy, simple meals much of the year. Dinner Club is our splurge once a month to be more decadent! Besides, it’s a blast to spend time with our friends – the true purpose of the group to begin with.

Garlic Baked Oysters and White Wine!

Later this week on the blog I will re-enter the Dinner Club realm. I can get back to keeping you informed about what we’re planning for food and fun (and let me tell you January 2011 is sure to be a doozie of a good time!). For now, I wanted to give you one more “entertaining worthy” item that my own family enjoyed this week as a last hurrah to the holiday eating we’ve been so enjoying around here. Invite some friends or family over and try it out!

The reason I’m posting this one is that it is special. It’s special but SO EASY! You really do have to be a “seafoodie” for this, but for those of you that are, give it a try. My family - children included – always dispute over who gets the most, and unfortunately, if you live in Nebraska, it’s just never enough to satisfy us it seems! We enjoyed these “Garlic Baked Oysters” before a simple meal of steamed Gulf shrimp, basmati rice, and a simple- to-prepare gratin of zucchini and tomatoes with a little breadcrumb and parmesan topping. Delicious! Plus I threw the entire thing together in about 20 minutes - no kidding – this weekend.

One tip for this… If you do like oysters and you DON’T like shucking them while stabbing your hands over and over again until you look as though your pitiful palms are part of the meal…. (say that three times fast!)…

Zucchini and Tomato Gratin

Shuck oysters once. I repeat, shuck them once then keep the shells for future use. I make Oysters Rockefeller each year for my holiday party and, unless some end up in the trash can at the end of the night, I re-use the shells – same shells for these Garlic Baked Oysters. All you have to do is wash them gently, rinse and dry them well and keep them in open-topped zip top bags (don’t seal the bags unless you know the shells are COMPLETELY dry).

Once every few uses you can boil them in water with a bit of lemon juice before storing again; this keeps them fresh and sanitized for use after use! I simply buy already shucked oysters (the fresher the better) and use my same shells each time. When a few get broken or thrown in the trash I’ll buy more oysters and shuck them myself, but why do it each and every time?

Freshly Steamed Gulf Coast Shrimp

If you are afraid to try oysters, don’t be! These are so delicious and yummy garlicky good! Try them as an appetizer before any meal. Sometimes instead of baking them, we put them on the grill in the summertime! Also, I like to remove the tough “adductor muscle” from each oyster before placing them on the shells. (You can feel it on the raw oyster in your hands). I don’t prefer the chewiness of this part of the oyster in this particular dish. In other applications (with thicker sauces or more ingredient elements) it doesn’t bother me. You be the judge for yourself; make it the way you like it!

Garlic Baked Oysters the Way Mama Taught Me

Approximately 24 – 30 shucked oysters (separated from shells, shells scrubbed separately)

1 stick of butter
6-8 cloves of crushed garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
2 dashes of hot sauce; like Tabasco or Frank’s Red Hot
Bread crumbs
Warm baguette to serve with the oysters for mopping up any extra sauce

Place the oyster shells on a baking sheet. I like to crumple up some aluminum foil on the surface of the sheet and press the shells down onto it so the oysters will stay upright on the sheet. This reserves all of the delicious liquor of the oyster and the garlic butter – it won’t tip and spill over.

Melt the butter and garlic in a microwave safe dish. Add salt and pepper to taste and a couple dashes of hot sauce – don’t overdo the hot sauce – you want to taste the oysters! Using a spoon, place a drizzle of the garlic butter in each shell. Top with an oyster on each shell. If the shell is especially large, I put two or three oysters on the shell. Top the oysters evenly with spoons of the remaining garlic butter. Sprinkle about ½ tablespoon or so of breadcrumbs over the top of each filled shell depending on the size of the shell.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake at 375 degrees for about 10-15 minutes or until the butter sauce is bubbling hot. Serve with the baguette bread for mopping up the extra sauce!