Fancy Shmancy Cocktail Sauce

I felt like a crazy cajun chef in the kitchen tonight. I had the zydeco music cranking. I was dancing around the kitchen with the dog. And we were having scallops and corn on the cob. A bit eclectic, but it was what we had in the fridge. I needed a marinade/sauce for the scallops. I found a recipe for "barbecue" sauce for scallops, and decided to go for that. Of course, we were missing half of the ingredients, so I improvised. After tasting it, I decided that it would make a much better cocktail sauce (for shrimp, or whatever else you like to eat with this sort of zesty tomato-based sauce). I like my scallops rich and buttery, sans zip. But it was not bad. Here's my recipe. Sounds weird but tastes delish!

1/4 c. ketchup
1 T. lime juice
1 T. raspberry preserves
2 T. orange fruit spread (ours is from Trader Joe's... now in Albuquerque. Yeehaw!)
1 T. bottled teriyaki sauce
1 T. horseradish sauce
1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper

Mix everything together and serve with chilled shrimp (cooked, of course) or whatever you fancy.

Try it and post your evaluations!

Spring Has Sprung!

Now that my muscles have finally recovered from the incredible beating they took at Snowbird (or as my friend Ivan puts it, "I felt like I needed bilateral ankle transplants.") I am moving on to bigger and better things. Thanks to the Murphey clan who has supplied me with multitudes of gorgeous beads to continue my start-up necklace-making industry. Truthfully, it's not much of an industry. More of a hobby yearning to be so much more. But Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is the case for my jewelry business. But I digress.

For the past two days, it has been balmy in Albuquerque. Spring is in the air. Just the little taste of delectable warmth has sent my imagination flying... I am envisioning barbecues, camping trips, riding my bike everywhere, sitting on the patio at Kelly's, sipping a tall cool IPA. Going running on the bike trail at 9pm because it's still light out! Well... maybe I don't typically run at 9pm, but it sure sounds good.

So on that note, I have received my Seeds of Change catalog, and am eagerly planning this season's vegetable garden. Two years ago, we had great luck with tomatoes, green beans, radishes and basil. Other things (peas, peppers, carrots) didn't do so well. Keep in mind that was two years ago. Last year, on the other hand, we got a big fat zippo, zero, nada. Not for lack of planting, either. Oh no. We spent an entire weekend slaving away, tilling, weeding, and planting corn, sunflowers, melons, beans, peas, radishes, even brocolli. Some of these things, admittedly, were poor choices for this region. But that has never stopped me before. The fatal blow was when we went on vacation only about a week after planting, and like an idiot, I left no water timer whatsoever. Everything wilted and died, or never came up in the first place. It was a disaster. Suffice it to say, I have vowed not to repeat the same mistake. This year will be different. Nevertheless, I will remain a wee bit more cautious in my selections. This is why my favorite selections for this year are... drumroll please... the Sonoran Gold Bush Tepary Bean and its partner in crime, the Blue Speckled Tepary Bean. These guys are dry soup beans. Maybe not the height of culinary bliss, but they are drought tolerant, and when you're a brown thumb like me, you've gotta like that.

Sonoran Gold Bush Tepary Bean, from Seeds of Change catalog. Yum!