In this thread, we help Kevin to plan a "welcome home" meal for his wife

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by Kevin

She enjoys shrimp . . .

I think things like spaghetti, while good, can be very heavy for a summer meal, especially after a trip. Can you get fresh shrimp in OKCity without paying an arm and a leg? If so, here's what I would fix for my wife for a summer "welcome home" meal:

Fresh shrimp, steamed:

Boil water, add seasonings if you want to (like Old Bay), drop the shrimp in the boiling water and boil until nice and pink -- literally a few minutes. You want to do this when you're ready to sit at the table so the shrimp will still be hot. It's just boiling water -- you can't screw this up.

If you want to, peel the shrimp before she gets home and cook it unpeeled, but in my family we always served it unpeeled, especially if we were having company. Put a large bowl on the table and peel as you eat; what this says is that conversation and being together are at least as important as eating, since peeling frees your mouth up to talk. It makes for a nice, leasurely and relaxed meal, perfect for catching up.

Corn on the cob:

If you're feeling really cooking challenged, leave it in the shucks and microwave it on high for 4 minutes per ear. If you're only slightly more adventurous, shuck the ears, rub with butter and pepper, wrap each ear in foil with a few raw onion rings, and roast in the oven at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes.

Green Beans

Probably about a half pound of fresh green beans will do. In advance, snap the ends off the beans, and break them into bite-sized pieces. Also in advance, roast 1/4 -1/3 cup chopped walnuts in the microwave (about 30 second on high should do it -- be careful, they keep cooking a little after you take them out, so you don't want them to roast quite all the way in the microwave.

Since we're keeping this simple, get a package of the already-cooked, heat-in-the-microwave bacon. Cook 3 or 4 slices per the directions, and then crumble it (which will be easier if you let the bacon cool first). Hold on to the paper towel or wax paper (works better) that you cooked the bacon in. This can be done somewhat in advance, too.

When you're getting ready for supper, bring water to a boil. When it comes to a boil, drop in the beans. Cook them for about 3-4 minutes, then pour them in a colander and blanche them by running cold water over them. (This stops the cooking and sets a bright green color.) Take the paper you cooked the bacon in and grease a skillet. Toss the beans, the walnuts, the crumbled bacon, about 1/4 cup of bleu cheese and some cracked pepper into the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the cheese is really melted and coating the beans. Serve warm.

It may sound complicated, but it's really not at all. It just tastes complicated.

For dessert, I'd get something really good from a bakery.

And of course, wine or beer.

If you plan ahead by having the table set before she gets home and doing in advance what you can, like snapping the beans, peeling the shrimp (if you're going to do that before cooking), wrapping the corn and setting the table, the whole thing can be thrown together in 20+ minutes.