Hobbs Family Spanish Seafood Paella as learned from Mark Hobbs Medford MA
These proportions are for a 15 inch pan which you can acquire at World Market, Walmart or Williams Sonoma
• 2 heads fresh garlic chopped (yes that’s right... lots of garlic)
• 2 bunches fresh parsley chopped (curly or flat, it doesn’t matter)
• Half of one dried Spanish chorizo sliced in rounds. Chorizo matters...get the authentic Spanish dried. They sell it at World Market. It is a game changer.
• 1 cup short grain white rice, sometimes labeled as paella rice.
• One TBSP (more or less) of imported sweet Spanish paprika. You can use the hot paprika if you
want.
• 2 and a quarter cups of chicken stock heated gently with about 4 or 5 threads of saffron added
• 2 boneless chicken thighs cut into 2 inch chunks.
• Seafood of your choice...12 littleneck clams and 12 mussels will be perfect. You don’t want to
crowd the pan with too many shells because they won’t heat properly and open up. You can
also add firm fleshed fish if you wish. There is no wrong...this is like making chili.
• Optional nice to have but not essential...a handful of squid tentacles and 6-8 peeled shrimp.
• About a cup of frozen or fresh peas
Pour about 2 TBSP olive oil in the pan and heat on stove or grill with medium heat until olive oil shimmers.
Render the chorizo until it is crispy, remove and set aside. (The chorizo will give off smoke when it renders so make sure you have a good ventilation system if cooking inside.)
Cook the chicken until it is springy. Remove and set aside.
Add 1 TBSP olive oil to the pan and add garlic, parsley and paprika. Stir for about a minute or until the parsley is limp.
Add the rice and stir to incorporate. Add the heated broth and stir with a spatula to distribute the rice evenly.
Add the chicken and chorizo back to the pan as though you were making a pizza by placing on top.
Press seafood into the liquid to make contact with the pan so the shells will heat properly and open. Sprinkle peas on top of the whole mess.
The pan should be gently simmering but not boiling furiously. Let it cook for about 20 minutes until a small amount of liquid remains and remove from heat.
Cover loosely with foil or a paper bag for about 15 minutes. Crack open a nice bottle of Spanish Tempranillo and destroy it!
Donna’s absolutely delicious egg-less Caesar dressing (bottle)
Yields 6-8 servings
Three large cloves minced garlic
2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
4-5 shakes of Worcestershire sauce
25 turns of pepper
Anchovy paste
Whisk—
Then stir in 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons of lemon juice whisk—-
From ramekin, slowly pour
7 tablespoons of olive oil while whisking
Before tossing the dressing into the salad, add another tablespoon of Parmesan cheese
Sue Nathanson’s Eggplant Parmesan
This version of an Italian favorite is lower infat than the traditional recipe and is very easy to prepare: just slice, dip, and bake.
½ cup plain dry bread crumbs
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (2 ounces)
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
1 medium-size eggplant
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup Herbed Tomato Sauce or can (8 ounces) low-sodium tomato sauce
1½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (6 ounces)
1 medium sized eggplant (1 pound), peeled and sliced crosswise ½ inch thick
1) Preheat the oven to 400° F. Lightly grease a 9x 11×2" baking dish. In a shallow bowl or pie pan, combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.
In another shallow bowl, beat together the egg and water. Dip the eggplant slices in the egg mixture, then into the crumb mixture. Place the slices in a single layer in the prepared baking dish. Drizzle the oil over the top.
2) Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and tender. Pour the tomato sauce over the eggplant, then sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese. Bake another 7 to 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Serve with a lettuce and tomato salad and crusty bread. Serves 4.
PREPARATIONTIME: 15 MIN. COOKING TIME: 37 MIN.