MARITIME 



MORSELS 



Chill 

 Out 

 With 



Summer Seafood Salads 

 T 



-Lake 



By Kathy Hart 



.ake the heat out of a sizzling 

 summer day by serving a chilled seafood 

 salad for lunch or dinner. Add some crusty 

 bread, a light white wine and a medley of 

 ripe, sugar-coated berries over almond- 

 flavored pound cake to create a summer 

 meal worth repeating. 



Nutritious and easy to prepare, seafood 

 salads can be made ahead and stored in the 

 refrigerator overnight, allowing flavors time 

 to blend and penetrate. The resulting salad 

 can be served in small portions as a light 

 first course or heaped on fresh lettuce as the 

 main attraction. 



As the primary ingredient for this 

 summer delight, use cooked shrimp, 

 crabmeat or flaked fish. Almost any delicate 

 or moderately firm fish can be steamed, 



poached, broiled or baked, then raked with 

 a fork into flakes. 



For added flavor, marinate the fish 

 prior to cooking or season it with herbs on 

 the stove or in the oven. You can use a 

 store-bought marinade or make your own 

 using oil, your choice of herbs and citrus 

 juice (lemon, lime or orange) or soy sauce. 

 If you don't have time to marinate, simply 

 brush your fish with oil and sprinkle it with 

 herbs. 



If you're counting calories or 

 watching your fat intake, substitute low-fat 

 or reduced-calorie versions of binding 

 ingredients such as mayonnaise or sour 

 cream in seafood salads. You won't detect 

 any difference in flavor once the other 

 ingredients are added. 



Season your seafood salad with 

 celery, green pepper, onion, garlic, pickle 

 or a variety of herbs. Or stir in a few drops 

 of lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot 

 sauce or tamari (an aged soy sauce 

 prepared with little or no wheat). Taste as 

 you mix to arrive at a balance of flavors 

 pleasing to your palate. 



When serving, make sure your 

 seafood salad looks as good as it tastes. 

 For a color contrast, mound it on a lush bed 

 of greenery — green or red leaf lettuce, 

 romaine, spinach, endive or arugula. Or 

 stuff the salad into a buttery, ripe avocado 

 half or a bright red tomato cut into eighths 

 (stop the cuts about 1/2 inch from the 

 bottom of the tomato so that it holds 

 together like the petals of a flower). For 



32 HIGH SEASON 1998 



