Paella

There is nothing better than a last minute get together! I got a text from my foodie neighbor asking if we were free for Veteran’s Day as her husband Randy’s trip was cancelled due to the snow storm in Minnesota. I was thrilled and could not answer her text quick enough! We have been planning this get together for some time but with all of our schedules it was very difficult. Okay, if you follow my blog you might know that a friend of ours Craig (who works with Jim at the fire department) created something special for me…well this is the recipe and why I asked him to make it! Craig created a cooking surface for me to put on top of my fire pit. How awesome is that? I should probably explain a little more.

Our neighbors Rosalie and Randy, along with our family have taken a number of camping trips together and have cooked the most fabulous meals over an open fire… everything from pizza to cookies! You name it, we cooked it, and most times shared it with many campers next to us! Sadly we sold our camper a couple years ago as we had outgrown that camper and Jim was leaving for Afghanistan. We did not want the camper to just sit for a year, so not wanting to give up our great outside fire dinners this was the best solution! Thank you Craig! Rosalie is an amazing cook and every time I am in the kitchen with her I learn something new and love it! I have to say I think the boys love it just as much as they eat like kings! We had the most amazing day as the weather was perfect, we could not have picked a better day. Rosalie was wonderful and did all of the shopping and came over to start our day where Randy was the mixologist for the afternoon.  Jim was in charge of the fire pit …I know, not much of a stretch there as he works for the fire department and Rosalie and I went to work with chopping , dicing and we both deboned chicken thighs for the first time!  Kitchen shears are your friend for that task! I told you I learn something new every time. We even roasted our peppers! yup…two foodies in action! We divided and conquered all of the chores that making a Paella entails. If you are new to Paella, it is made up of three “pillows” the first being the sofrito, that is the colorful base, a combination of caramelized diced onions, garlic , tomato and parsley and in addition to flavor and color this helps thicken the sauce as the rice thickens. The second layer is the saffron, I had to laugh as when Rosalie was talking about ingredients we both said we had saffron on hand…true foodies right there! Saffron is the soul to every Paella. It adds taste and fragrance identifiable with every bite! The third layer is the sucorrat.  This layer is the finishing touch. Once the rice is ready the paella is done and the secret is the balance of ingredients. This also adds the crunchy finish to the bottom and sides! Are you drooling yet? This was delicious! You don’t have to make it on an open fire pit but if you get the chance to do it go for it! I will tell you one tip though and it is a very important tip…If you make this and wrap the dirty pan up in Saran Wrap without cleaning it that night, but do it in the morning…please have a gas mask on hand!  :))  This is from experience! So wait no more… here is the recipe!

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine (we used Sauvignon Blanc)
1 pound large shrimp (we used gulf shrimp, but any large shrimp will work) peeled and deveined
2 bay leaves
1 pound haddock
2 red bell peppers, roasted
1 cup frozen peas
8 ounces Chorizo sausage (out of the casing and sliced into pieces)
1 Spanish onion, diced
1 (15 ounce) roasted tomatoes
2 small carrots, chopped
12 mussels, cleaned and debearded
2 1/2 cups rice, we used Arborio
6 chicken thighs, skin on, cut out the bone
1 lemon, sliced in wedges
6 cups warm water
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons oregano
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
Cook chicken in hot oil 5-6 minutes to brown the skin, remove from heat and set aside.  Add onions to the hot pan cook 2-3 minutes then add all of the other veggies cooking 2-3 more minutes. Add the rice and the water and give it a really good stir. Now this is the important part… don’t stir for ten minutes. After ten minutes has passed, add the chicken, seafood, wine and lemon. Simmer until cooked through and the sucorrat forms. Remove Bay leaves and serve warm.

Enjoy,

NOTES
To roast red peppers rub them with olive oil and place them on a grill heated on medium turning every five minutes. When all of the sides have been charred take them off the heat and place them in a bag or cover in aluminum foil and let cool until they can easily be handled. When you can handle the pepper, remove the stems, cut the pepper in quarters and remove the peels and seeds. This can also be done in a 500 degree oven.

To debeard and clean the mussels:
When you get home with the mussels, unwrap them and discard any chips of broken mussels and any mussels that are open. Your mussels should be tightly closed.  Soak the mussels in fresh water for about 20 minutes. To remove the beard hold the mussel in one hand and a dry towel in the other and grasp the beard and give it a sharp yank toward the hinge of the muscle. You will also need to brush off any additional sand and oceanic attachments.  Finally rinse the mussels under cool tap water and set aside. When you are ready to use them, dry them with a towel, then add to your dish.