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Wednesday, November 21, 2012

The Flattened Seafood Tower

Last year during our annual trip to Marco Island, FL, we went to Naples for lunch at The Dock At Crayton Cove where I discovered the Shellfish Tower, which is described as "6 oysters, 12 Prince Edward Island mussels, ½ pound Alaskan snow crab, 6 Gulf shrimp, and 6 middleneck clams with mignonette, mustard and bloody mary cocktail sauce - $34.95."  I’d been looking forward to another one this year but ended up staying home with Madison rather than making the trip to Marco.

Bev had bought a couple of Living Social half priced coupons for the Shrimp Dock Seafood Market and I decided to spend part of it on the makings for my own version of the shellfish tower.  So I invited my buddy Joe over and we just hung out with Madison, made up a batch of margaritas, watched the ferrets play, and made this meal.

Mine was different from The Dock’s in three ways – I forgot to get the crab, part of mine was served hot (theirs is all cold), and mine was flat rather than in the shape of a tower.  We began with 6 cold boiled shrimp, 6 raw oysters, 6 cherrystone clams, Ina Garten’s cocktail sauce, mignonette sauce (from Epicurious), and saltine crackers.

My plan was for each of us to have 6 raw and 6 grilled oysters, but the raw ones were going down so good, we just saved 2 each to grill.

For the warm part of the meal, we had grilled shrimp (for Madison) which were dusted with Emeril’s Essense and basted with garlic butter while cooking, grilled oysters topped with the same garlic butter, and steamed mussels using the recipe from Mary at One Perfect Bite.  Here’s the oysters and shrimp headed for the grill and my plate ready to eat – I poured the liquid from the pan over the mussels, but forgot the garnishment for the plate.

We eat a lot of good grub around Almost Heaven South, but I don't remember ever making a better meal.  While I missed enjoying the Shellfish Tower at The Dock, sitting open-air and looking out on the water, I believe my version was even better as I prefer the mussels hot and liked the addition of grilled shrimp and oysters. And, as a bonus, I’m pretty sure I only had about $35 in everything we ate.  Joe and I decided we need to do at least part of this meal, mainly the raw oysters, on a regular basis.

Happy Thanksgiving To Everyone.

I'm now responding to your comments and hoping you will stop back by - photos best if enlarged by clicking on them.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

11/17/12 meal date

21 comments:

  1. We've been waiting for the seafood tower and you did NOT disappoint Larry. What a fabulous feast.

    From our house to yours, Happy Thanksgiving to you, Bev, and Madison. Happy turkey day to you too Joe.
    Sam

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    1. Thanks Sam and the same for you and Meakin. Joe and I are having seafood again.

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  2. You are so brave Larry! This is lovely - flat or not. I will have to look into that restaurant next time we're in Sanibel. Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

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    1. Thanks Tricia - Bev went last week and was a little disappointed

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  3. Who cares that it's not in tower form.. this looks stunning! And definitely a meal to be talked about... especially if you say it's one of the best you've made! YUM!!!
    Happy Thanksgiving to you, Bev and Madison!!!

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    1. Thanks Jenn and I'm sure it will come up in future conversations and we had a similar meal yesterday.

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  4. Terry would love your flat tower! My tower would look different, but still be flat! I would love the shrimp, clam, and crab part (if not forgotten...:-) I am not a fan of oysters or mussels...

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    1. I think you are in the majority when it comes to oysters and clams, especially when served raw.

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  5. I have a sudden craving for seafood... it looks AMAZING Larry! Love the new header - drool worthy picture.

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    1. Thanks for the nice comments Pam - I was actually pretty pleased ith the pic, which I rarely am.

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  6. Oh my gosh, that looks amazing. You do have fun while Bev's away ;) I can't imagine eating mussels that aren't hot either. I would love everything in your 'flattened' tower.

    Happy Thanksgiving, Larry!

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    1. Thanks Susan - I try to have fun when alone within the bounds of legality, marriage, and reasonably good judgement :-)

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  7. Hi Larry - Just stopping by to wish you and Bev a very Happy Thanksgiving. Wow, what a meal!

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    1. Thanks Cathy - Hope you had a nice holiday as well.

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  8. Well, using those coupons and making your own tower is the least you could do. Didn't realize this whole "home alone" thing meant missing Marco Island. :::sigh

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    1. Since I stayed home, the seafood has been my indulgence. Madison left Wed so I'm totally alone (except the dogs) Thu, Fri, Sat and will love having no demands on me.

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  9. Your flattened seafood platter sounds much better than the tower you had in Florida.

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    1. Thanks Karen - it was and we had a similar version yesterday for Thanksgiving.

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  10. Did that garlic butter flare up when basting on the grill? Not that that is a deal breaker for me ha ha. Hey, speaking of crab legs, I noticed Monday that Kroger on Kingston Pike had them for $5.99 a lb.

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    1. Chris - Flare ups are a requirement for the char grilled flavor I'm looking for, so I put on enough butter to ensure it happens.

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  11. Your a man after my heart with the oysters! This is truly a great meal!

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