One-Hit Wonders

Today is One-Hit Wonder Day.  Fun!  Some articles say that to be considered, an artist has to have reached the Top 40 on the Billboard 100, and then never again.  Some say it has to be number 1.  I SAY if I heard a song by someone...and then never heard from them again...it can be on my list.

Sorry David Gates if you had more hits as the lead singer of Bread, but as a solo artist, I've never heard you on my radio unless you're singing "Goodbye Girl".  You should have made the list but I knocked you off for Deee-Lite.  Maybe next year.

SO:  here's Christine's list of One-Hit Wonders (my favorite, plus 10 more), in order by date because I can't play favorites with these gems.  I'm sure you know all of them, and I hope they make you smile as much as I did while I was compiling the list.  And no worries, if "What Might Have Been" makes your mascara run, just move on to "Hot Child in the City"...it makes everything better :)

Me and Mrs. Jones (Billy Paul) 1972

Hot Child in the City (Nick Gilder) 1978

Rappers Delight (The Sugar Hill Gang)  1979

Tempted by the fruit of another (Squeeze)  1981

Come On, Eileen (Dexy's Midnight Runners)  1982

Let the Music Play (Shannon)  1984

I Touch Myself (Divinyls)  1990

Groove is in the Heart (Deee-Lite)  1990

What Might Have Been (Little Texas)  1993

Naked Eye (Luscious Jackson)  1996

And my favorite One-Hit Wonder:  Lips of an Angel (Hinder)  2005

Peel 'n Eat Shrimp

Summer’s over, and what better way to say goodbye than with some peel  ‘n eat shrimp?  Just like the season:   it’s unpretentious, laid back, and easy.  And the recipe can easily be doubled (or tripled!) depending on how many people you decide to share it with.

It’s a seasoned, spicy boil, so your fingers will be messy and your lips tingly by the time you’re done.  So, put some Coronas on ice, call your friends, and get cooking.  Before you know it the days will be shorter, the nights cooler, sweater weather will be upon us, and summer will be a distant memory.  This is the perfect way to hold on to it just a little bit longer 

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WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

crab and shrimp boil (I use BOTH McCormacks packets and Old Bay Seasoning)
   --you will need both for this recipe
2 lbs unpeeled shrimp (16/20 count), rinsed
4 lemons, sliced in half
1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
for dipping:  cocktail sauce or butter

Fill large pot with water and bring to rolling boil.  To water, add 2 packets McCormack shrimp boil, 1/4 cup Old Bay seasoning, garlic cloves, cayenne pepper, and onion.  Squeeze juice from 2 1/2 lemons into water and drop in.  Boil all, stirring occasionally, approx. 20 minutes.  Add shrimp.  Let boil approx. 4 or 5 minutes, or until shrimp turn pink (not too long, or they will be rubbery).

ingred added, now stir

Drain in colander.  Sprinkle with a little more Old Bay. 

Serve with cocktail sauce or warm drawn butter.  Cut the remainder of the lemons into 1/8ths and serve alongside.

The way we eat in my house, this recipe serves 2

NOTE:
This boil is spicy so I like to serve it with a cool tomato salad:
variety of tomatoes (here I used beefsteak and cherry), fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with course salt and fresh cracked pepper

Tuna & Tuscan White Bean Salad

 

I was having lunch with my good friend Chris Payson a few years ago, at Aqua-- a then very trendy restaurant in the Waterside Shoppes.   It was summer…and hot…so I ordered something cool and light—mixed greens with tuna salad on top.  Halfway through eating when we finally took a minute out from talking (he loved himself more than I do ME), he asked me how my lunch was.  “Not sure” I told him…”I can’t tell if it’s tuna or chicken!”  It was tasteless, and I learned then and there to stick to the quiche because at least that has bacon in it…lol.

This Mediterranean tuna salad has vibrant flavor, and its fresh, cool ingredients are perfect for hot summer lunches.  I make it for me and my mom on weekends when we want to relax and catch up, my daughter loves to take a container to school in her Vera Bradley lunchbox, and after golf it's THE BEST.

It takes 5 minutes to make and then it chills in the refrigerator while you go about your day.  Bacon or not, there’s no quiche in the world easier than THAT!

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WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

1 can good quality albacore tuna in water, drained
1  16-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
olive oil
1 lemon
I bunch Italian flat-leaf parsley, washed
cracked pepper/salt/cayenne pepper
crackers  (I use saltines) or loaf of crusty bread


Drain and place tuna in bowl, breaking up gently with fork, though I like mine to have some texture.

Drain and rinse beans in colander.  In colander, sprinkle beans lightly with salt and pepper, and mix.  Taste beans, they should be flavorful but not too salty.    Add to bowl with tuna. 

Sprinkle cayenne pepper and cracked pepper (to taste)  over all and drizzle with a little olive oil.  Squeeze 1/2 lemon over and add approx. 1 handful rougly chopped parsley.

Mix all gently, being careful not to break it up too much or it will become mushy.  Adjust  seasonings and lemon if needed and chill in refrigerator til ready to use. 



Serve with crackers or break up some crusty bread.