It's the kick off of the holiday season. A time of house parties, work parties and well, parties! What makes a great party is not only the crowd invited but the food served. I, like most people really love a lot of different appetizers being served rather than a heavy meal. This 'grazing' style is perfect as the individual portions are neat and easy to eat, are the perfect 'trial' size (because you never know if you'll like something or not) and it's always good to have something in your stomach if you are also serving drinks. Lastly, a nice selection of appetizers is much, much better than opening a bag of chips and calling it 'done'.I found an old budget recipe book in my files - one of those that probably didn't go far when it was first printed as it's the one you find in the clearance bin of the dollar store. There is a good reason for that - There are many typo's and little goof-ups in the book but almost anyone could recognize them and knows what to do. (Like it will tell you to add the sugar to the butter, vanilla and milk mixture... but it never told you to mix the butter, vanilla and milk together in the first place!) Don't worry - I'll catch and correct their goofs before I add them to my collection here.
Yet, I love all recipe books, big, small, expensive, or even the freebies. I adore recipes and love food and cooking so they are all equal in my eyes!
Here is a great recipe for Crumb Breaded Squid - served with a coconut sauce
7 oz. pkg. cheese flavored corn chips, crushed into fine crumbs
7 oz. small, clean squid - thin sliced into rings
1/3 c corn starch
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 T milk
oil for frying
Sauce
1 t canola oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 t curry powder
1/2 t turmeric
2 t cornstarch
1 c canned unsweetened coconut cream
1/2 t sugar
Combine the egg and milk in a small bowl. Toss squid in cornstarch, shake away the excess and dip in the egg and milk mixture. Dredge in the crushed corn chips. Press the crumbs on firmly and cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
Deep fry the squid in hot oil about 30 seconds until done. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot with sauce.
Sauce;
Heat oil in pan. Add garlic, curry powder, turmeric. Cook fo r2 minutes. Remove from heat. Blend the cornstarch with 1 T of the coconut cream. Stir into the curry mixture with sugar. Return to heat. Gradually stir in the rest of the cream. Stir until it boils and thickens. Simmer 1 minute and serve.
