Thursday, June 20, 2013

Jalapeno Orzo Mac & Cheese, Tilapia and Shrimp with Tarragon Cream Sauce


Here is the same story again.  After work today, I was feeling extra lazy and did not want to move from the couch...let alone cook (shocking I know).  A couple minutes went by, and I realize that we had nothing in the fridge that was quick...did not even have cold cuts or cheese to make sandwiches.  So I asked Crystal to take some tilapia and shrimp out.  After a little while, I checked on the fish and shrimp and saw that it was defrosted.  This is when it all started...

I had forgotten I had some leftover jalapeno and cheese orzo risotto.  I took this and just ran with it.  I took this and quickly turned it into jalapeno orzo mac & cheese.  I quickly seasoned the fish and shrimp with some herb de provence, salt and pepper and set that aside.  I knew I wanted to do a fun presentation tonight so I buttered the shrimp.  

As I did the prep work, I knew I needed a sauce and a jalapeno tarragon creamy sauce sounded delicious over the fish and shrimp.  I quickly diced up some jalapeno, onion and garlic and cooked that down a bit.  Threw in some tarragon and added milk.  I let that simmer low to get all the flavors to fuse together.  

My mom had given me two of her circle serving dishes over the weekend so I decided to have some fun with tonight's presentation.  I used a small sauce bowl to mold the jalapeno orzo mac & cheese and put that on the plate.  Plated the fish as it came out the pan to make room for the shrimp.  The shrimp was a bit of a challenge because I did not want to just throw a cluster of it on the plate so I spread them out a bit.  As I was spooning the tarragon sauce over the fish and shrimp, I kept adding a bit more and more and did almost a "ying yang" effect on the plate around the orzo.  

Stood back and looked at the presentation and was very happy the way it looked out.  My goal had been working on my presentation and in my opinion, I thought this goes to the top of list.  




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