Cooking with Kelly: Seafood nachos

My fridge situation should be remedied by the end of the week, which means although I won't be doing baking at any point in my time here, at least I'll be able to cook things with perishable ingredients. Until then, I'm making do with what I have.

Perhaps I was inspired by my lovely taco dinner at the National Press Club, but I had a craving for all kinds of pseudo-Mexican food lately. Luckily, recreated regional food did not necessary require a fridge or stove.

First, I trekked off to the Soviet Safeway. I came back to tomatoes, onions, an avocado, limes, shrimp and tortilla chips. I would have enjoyed cilantro or jalapeno, but they were no where to be found.

With that, I made these guacamole and shrimp appetizers bites, which actually served as a meal for me. First, I marinated the shrimp in a bit of lime juice and steamed them through in the microwave. I did this in 20-second intervals to make sure I didn't overcook the shrimp -- you're looking for pink, not completely plastic in texture and appearance. I also used tiny shrimp, I think they were 350s, so it took no time at all to cook.

While that buzzed away, I used a fork to mash up an avocado with the juice from half a lime to prevent it from discoloring. I added half a chopped tomato and one quarter of a large red onion, diced finely. This provided a mild flavor, but heat could have been added easily enough by folding in an extremely finely diced serrano chili, minus the ribs and seeds (a poblano chili is another alternative -- adjust the amount of finely diced chili to suit your tastes. One is good for me, half of a serrano may be too much for others). A tablespoon of chopped cilantro would have also added a bit of spice, but not necessarily heat, that would have gone with this nicely.

For preparation, I used Tostitos Scoops chips for a cute presentation and layered a tablespoon of guac on the bottom, then topped with a sprinkling of the baby shrimp. It would be simple to add a little garnish of shredded pepperjack cheese, a small dollop of sour cream or a sprig of cilantro, if you would like to serve this to company. For a personal salad, you could put one scoop of the guac on a plate, top it with the shrimp and surround it with chips.

For me, the basic was just fine, although I would love if Soviet Safeway offered some cilantro or any type of fresh chili. I'm not that picky ...