Casino Connection Atlantic City

Fresh Catch

Over the years, we’ve featured a lot of seafood recipes from restaurants at the Jersey Shore. Here are a few of our favorites.

by Robert Rossiello

Sofia’s Seafood Plaki

This traditional Greek delicacy comes from Sofia’s in Margate. It’s baked in a terracotta pot to help infuse the flavors, but a covered baking dish can be substituted. Serves four.

Ingredients:

4 pieces of fresh cod (8 oz. each)

8 peeled & deveined shrimp (size 16-20)

10 diced, medium-sized vine ripe tomatoes

1 cup tomato puree

8 garlic cloves (sliced)

1 cup of Chablis (or white wine)

1/4 cup basil

1/4 cup parsley

1 tblsp. Old Bay seasoning

1/2 cup whole kalamata olives

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup chopped scallions for garnish

To Prepare:

Saute garlic in olive oil. Add the diced tomatoes and simmer 10 minutes. Add wine and tomato puree. Season with salt, pepper, basil, parsley and Old Bay. Simmer for another 5 minutes.

Arrange cod and shrimp in the terracotta pot or baking dish with black olives and feta cheese. Add the stewed tomato mixture to the top of the fish and cover.

Bake at 400 degrees for approximatly 30 minutes or until the fish is tender. Garnish with chopped scallions.

Crispy Crab Cakes with Roasted Corn & Key Lime Buerre Blanc

Here a classic crab cake from the Crab Trap in Somers Point, with the perfect accompaniment.

Ingredients:

1 lb. fresh jumbo lump or backfin crabmeat

1/2 cup quality mayonnaise

 2 eggs

1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning

1 ear of white corn (if available; yellow is fine)

1 small onion

2 medium red bell peppers

1 tsp. chopped cilantro

1/2 tsp. ground cumin juice of 1 lime

bread crumbs

To Prepare:

Cut onion in half and roast on grill with corn and red pepper. After roasting let cool. Remove corn from ear and dice pepper and onion, place in a bowl. Add cilantro, cumin and lime juice.

Combine crabmeat, eggs, mayonnaise, salt and Old Bay seasoning. Mix together gently. (Note: some of the roasted corn salsa can be added to the crab meat for a twist on the traditional crab cake; serve the remainder as a side-dish.) Form into cakes. Coat with bread crumbs. Saute in oil over medium high heat until golden brown.

For Sauce:

1 diced shallot, juice of 2 limes, 1 cup white wine and 1/2 cup water reduced in saucepan by half.

In a separate pot, melt 1/4 lb. butter. Add 1/2 tblsp. flour, whisk vigorously to create a roux. Add 1/2 pint half & half and wine and lime juice reduction.

Plate: Spoon 2 ounces of sauce on serving plate, place crab cakes on sauce and roasted corn on each side. Garnish with lime slices, chopped chive or a sprig of cilantro.

Pan-Seared Scallops with sauted broccoli rabe, oven roasted tomatoes and Yukon mashed potatoes

This simple and healthy dish comes from Dock’s Oyster House in Atlantic City.

Ingredients:

5, 8 oz. sea scallops

1 cup broccoli rabe

2 Yukon potatoes

1 tomato, quartered

1 tsp. garlic

1/4 cup olive oil

Dash crushed red pepper

To Prepare: Season tomatoes with salt and pepper and a little olive oil and roast in a 350 degree oven for a half hour. Boil potatoes until tender. Mash by hand or with mixer, adding butter and milk.

Blanch broccoli rabe in boiling water for approximately 10 seconds. Place in cold water to stop cooking process, drain. Coat a pan with olive oil and saute garlic and red pepper until golden brown. Add broccoli rabe and heat through (do not overcook), season with salt and pepper.

Saute scallops in a smoking hot pan of olive oil, searing on both sides aprroximately 2 minutes until firm. Serve scallops on top of potatos, with tomatoes and broccoli rabe on side.

Wasabi Crusted Sea Bass with Asian Drop Dumplings

For fish with an Asian twist and a bit of heat, try this sea bass recipe from The Inlet in Somers Point.

Ingredients (for fish):

8 oz. sea bass filet

Equal parts mayonnaise and wasabi paste

Panko (Japanese) bread crumbs

Ingredients (for dumplings; makes 4)

1 baked potato, peeled

1 egg

1 tblsp. chopped chives

1 tblsp. wasabi powder

Half cup flour, salt & pepper to taste

To Prepare

Brush fish with mayo/wasabi mixture on top side. Coat with panko bread crumbs. Bake in 400-degree oven for approximately 12 minutes.

For dumplings, finely grate the baked potato. Add the remaining ingredients and knead the mixture until it becomes a dough. Separate into four 1 oz. balls, then flatten into patty. Boil in salted water for about 30 seconds, until the dumplings float. To add crispness the dumplings can be finished off by sauteing in oil for about one minute on each side.

(Note: The Inlet serves this dish with sauteed vegetables and a miso and orange ginger vinaigrette. A quality soy sauce can be served in place of the vinaigrette. The dumplings can be made in advance and frozen after boiling for future use.)

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