Mystic Wedding

This weekend we attended a beautiful wedding in Mystic, CT for Derek's friends Soren and Carrie.

First, I made a quick and easy pasta on Friday night. I simmered a large chopped tomato with garlic and shallots in the oil from my slow roasted tomatoes. Then I tossed in all that was left in the slow roasted tomato jar to make a tasty sauce.



I tossed 2 small zucchinis that I had sliced in my spiralizer, then added spaghetti and topped it with toasted slivered almonds.

I also squeezed some lemon juice over the whole thing. The acid was nice with the sweet tomatoes.

Saturday morning I was supposed to go on an 8 mile run, but misjudged my loop and ended up running 7.25. Still a pretty good run though! We headed down to Mystic for the wedding in the afternoon. The ceremony and reception were beautiful and they really lucked out on the weather. The whole thing was very fun and casual, but still lovely and very personal.

The ceremony was held in the old Mystic seaport by the water, with beautiful boats and houses in the background. The groom's sister officiated.



The bride and groom read their own vows. For Carrie's she re-enacted a series of emails between her and her maid of honor before and after her and Soren's first date.


It was totally adorable. Soren followed up by inviting some of his musician friends up to perform a song as part of his vows.


Equally adorable. Then the happy bride and groom headed back down the makeshift aisle to the tunes of a fun brass band.



The band also provided the music for the reception, which was near by in an old boat house.


Dinner was a seaside barbecue with clam chowder, corn on the cob, grilled veggies, and grilled catfish, chicken, and steak. All the food was very good - but unfortunately I didn't get any pictures because the light was a little too low at that point. And I totally missed the pastry tray that was brought out for dessert along with watermelon slices. I'm still pouting about that one.
But other than that - it was an amazing wedding and very fun! Derek and I both agreed that if we were actually having a wedding, we'd definitely want something along these lines.

Sunday we headed back home - a bit worse for wear. I made a special batch of cookies that I'm contributing to Caitlin's bake sale at next weekend's Healthy Living Summit.

Recipe to follow after they've been sold - but trust me, they're delicious!

Sunday night dinner was partially inspired by watching Rick Bayless on Top Chef Masters. While drooling over his amazing Mexican-inspired creations on the show, Derek commented that I should make more Mexican food. I love the Mexican "flavor profile" (as they say on Top Chef), so I didn't think that was a bad idea.

I started with Mexican-inspired crab and lobster cakes.





I also cooked some black beans with kale, cumin, garlic, and lime juice. I just simmered it all together until it was soft.



And when I was shopping I came across an ingredient that I'd always wanted to try working with but never had the guts to - plantains! These plantains were pretty ripe but not all the way black. I halved and then thinly sliced them and fried them in peanut oil until they were golden.

They were pretty delicious and so easy. I don't know why I never made these before!


Using our CSA tomatoes, I whipped up some fresh salsa to top the crab cakes. An amazing Bayless-inspired meal!


Mexican Crab and Lobster Cakes with Salsa Fresca

makes 5 - 6 crab cakes
5 oz jumbo lump crab meat, picked over

5 oz lobster meat, picked over (I used claw and knuckle meat)

1 ear of corn, kernels cut from cob

4 Tbls fresh chopped cilantro, divided

1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced

3 chopped green onions, divided

1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs

2 Tbls mayonnaise

1 large tomato, diced

juice of 1/2 lime

peanut oil for frying

• In a medium bowl, stir together crab and lobster meat, corn kernels. 2 Tbls cilantro, 1/2 diced jalapeno, and 1/2 chopped green onions.  Add bread crumbs and stir to combine.  Add mayonnaise and stir to combine.  Add more mayonnaise if mixture seems dry.
• Form into 5 - 6 patties and lay on plate lined with parchment paper. Chill in fridge for about 30 minutes
• Meanwhile, combine the remaining cilantro, jalapeno, and green onion in a small bowl with diced tomato and lime juice.  Set aside to allow flavors to blend.
• Heat about 1 inch of peanut oil in a large skillet (preferably with a splatter screen) over medium heat until very hot but not smoking
• Add crab and lobster cakes to skillet and cook until golden, about 4 minutes, then flip and cook until golden on both sides
• Remove from pan and lay on paper towels to drain
• Top cakes with salsa fresca to serve