Every year, the night before
Thanksgiving, I like to treat my family to a luxuriously delicious dinner. I usually choose a dish (like pasta or seafood) that is simple to make, not too rich, and has nothing to do with the traditional flavors of Thanksgiving.
Tonight I'll be serving up a huge pot of mussels.
The shellfish known as the oyster has long been thought to have aphrodisiac properties, but now researchers at Louisiana State University have come up with yet another reason to eat
them: they may help
prevent and treat cancer.
Oysters contain fat compounds called ceramides, which researchers found can restrict the growth of breast-cancer cells as well as prevent the formation of blood vessels, which inhibits cancer from spreading. In a seven-day study, cancer growth
decreased by 57 percent.
When preparing mussels most people abide by the rule that any mussels still closed after cooking should be thrown away. However, some scientists claim this is simply an old wives' tale and that the
rule is actually a myth. Nick Ruello, an Australian fisheries biologist, cooked and ate more than 30 batches of mussels for a seafood report.
The cost of Maine lobster, which accounts for 80 percent of lobsters in America,
has plummeted. What may be a bargain for some has left others in a snag: Lobstermen and northeastern fishing communities, hit hard by the price drop, are struggling to survive.There are a couple of reasons for this price drop. The budget conscious are consuming less of the luxury seafood item.
If you've got leftover
shrimp in your fridge, it's the perfect start of a weeknight meal. The quick-cooking shellfish, when combined with
couscous and field greens, is a healthy, delicious meal.
It takes a minimal amount of time to make, so you can even prepare extra shrimp and field greens to put in a salad for the next day's lunch.
When cooking with a slow cooker, it's easy to overlook the fact that shellfish like
shrimp and crab are just as simple to make as any other protein.
Gumbo can be time intensive and require a lot of expensive spices, but this recipe turns the Southern favorite into a realistic meal. To round out the menu, serve it over rice.
A while back, you told us that
you love oysters. We do, too! My favorite way to enjoy them is on the half shell, with a little bit of soy sauce and green onion.
Linguine with clams: The dish is an Italian classic for a reason — because it's a crowd pleaser. Once upon a time, I didn't enjoy eating clams, but I would make an exception for linguine con vongole. The bounciness of the clams, the briny flavors, the chewy linguine flavored with white wine all come together to make the ultimate comfort dish.
If you've got
scallops on hand, this dish is perfectly convenient, because there's a good chance you'll have the other ingredients, such as parsley, lemon juice, and tomatoes, in your kitchen already. Simply add a plate of linguine or
saffron risotto, and you've got a square meal. To get your hands on this recipe, .
[recipe|nid=1902729]
