Poached Shrimp with Aioli

By Jennifer Knapp

As a caterer, I’m often asked to prepare shrimp for my clients. It’s always one of the most popular items on the menu, and most guests gravitate towards the shrimp on the buffet table or as a passed appetizer. Kids and adults seem to love it equally. Versatile and fast-cooking, shrimp is delicious on its own or served with any number of sauces. It can be prepared in several ways such as sautéing, broiling, grilling and poaching.

Poaching is one of the easiest ways to prepare shrimp and it requires no added fat. Poaching is also a great cooking technique because it results in a nice, moist texture.

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Summer Nights at the Bowl

By Andrew Hunter

Five years ago we celebrated our first Fourth of July in L.A. at the Hollywood Bowl and it quickly became our patriotic tradition. Every year we go to the iconic amphitheater, nestled in the beautiful Hollywood Hills, for the concert and fireworks. That fateful first year, as the crowd sang along to I Love L.A. with Randy Newman, we realized Los Angeles was going to be our home for years to come.

One of the fun things about The Bowl is you sit in boxes with tables and chairs, and are free to bring in picnic food, wine and any myriad of treats you can manage. This year, in the spirit of Yankee Doodle, the boys made Snickerdoodle Shortcake…fresh summer strawberries piled on Snickerdoodle cookies and topped with sweet whipped cream.

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Celebrate the Fourth with Corn

By Lori Powell

Too hot to cook…so don’t! Take it outside along with the rest of your Fourth of July BBQ dishes.

Now is the time to use the best produce the season has to offer and in this case, it’s corn, which is a bit early this year. It is the perfect pick of the crop right now.

Since my house is surrounded by fields of corn it only seems appropriate to celebrate the Fourth with some of the earth’s golden bounty.

Take the corn outside and give it a brief spin on the grill along with a poblano pepper and a good set of long tongs. This salad takes only minutes to prepare. My real goal is to give the corn a slight smoky flavor to complement its inherent sweetness and accent it with the slight heat of the poblano.

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Breakfast for Dinner: Short Stacks

By Katie Barreira

Who says pancakes are only to be eaten before noon? Whip up a fluffy stack for dinner with this classic flapjack recipe and step-by-step tips for making the perfect pancake.

5 Ways to Get Your Perfect Pancake:

My mom always separates the egg yolks and whites, adding the yolks to the liquid ingredients, then whipping and folding in the whites just before cooking; her pancakes are always light and airy.

My favorite way to cook pancakes is on an electric griddle. The steady, even temperature makes for fluffy, golden flapjacks and the large surface area means fewer batches.

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How to Peel and Devein Shrimp

By David Hu

Shrimp is one of the fastest cooking proteins – and while it often comes shelled and deveined, sometimes you have to do it yourself. If you’ve never done it before, don’t fret, it’s very simple. And besides, you’ll have a tastier dish because shrimp that has been pre-peeled and deveined loses some of its flavor by the time you get it home and cook it.

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