Maiz brothers' seafood feast

The Maiz brothers prepared a delicious Christmas Eve dinner with nearly seven fishes in Minneapolis this year. The full meal included a delicious aguachile (http://maizwaller.blogspot.com/2015/12/feliz-navidad-from-minneapolis-2015.html?m=1) grilled octopus that Pedro made and was to die for (baby octopus from Spain - $29 for two babies!), whole grilled Bronzino, mussels in a garlic and butter broth and roasted pork belly with onion and fennel. So, so yummy. I'm thankful for these brothers who get along so well in the kitchen!

The next day I did some jumbo sea scallops feared in butter and olive oil with a spritz of lime, served on top of a fresh guacamole with reduced balsamic.

Forget the gravy; give me chimichurri!

Pedro's brother Sebastian is preparing prime rib for Christmas dinner and instead of gravy he's making a red and green chimichurri sauce (I believe at my suggestion after seeing it on a PBS program this morning in Minneapolis. I love that the Maiz brothers are up for any challenge - though the green chimichurri captured below is one that Sebastian regularly makes :)

Let's start with the red version. Simmer finely diced onion (maybe shallots next time) with olive oil and saffron. Let it cool. Add half cup of chopped parsley, 1 garlic clove, one tbsp of paprika, 3 tbsp of sherry, pinch of cayenne, and salt to taste to a mortar and pestle. Add this paste as the base to a bowl and slowly mix in about a half cup of olive oil along with the simmered onions. Smokey and delicious!

Now for the green sauce (get it? They're Christmas colors!) Add to a mortar and pestle salt to taste, one 1 clove of garlic, chile flakes, 1 part parsley, half a part cilantro, a quarter part fresh oregano, couple tbsp of finely chopped shallot and sherry vinegar to taste. Add fresh lemon to the paste in the mortar and pestle, and then transfer it to a bowl and slowly incorporate olive oil. So much better than gravy!

Feliz Navidad from Minneapolis 2015 - Aguachile!

Pedro and I are enjoying our first married Christmas together with his brother and sister-in-law in Minneapolis. Jaime is due to give birth to their first son in a few weeks and the weekend has lots of treats in store. This first, pictured below, is a delicious Aguachile made with chiles from a chile piquin tree in their sunroom. Simply ground 3 chiles with salt and lemon using a mortar and pestle. And then pour the lime sauce over raw shrimp (or cooked like we did tonight) and enjoy. Be warned - this dish is totally addictive.