Run, don't walk to your nearest Whole Foods Market seafood department, or call your local fish store.   The little pink gem
of the sea known as the Pink Shrimp is in season.  This morsel of love is available from Dec. till April, maybe, but is currently
in season right now.  Our local Whole Foods has these diminuitive shrimp (oxymoron?) on sale for $ 3.99 @ lb.  Most  of
the shrimp for sale in stores is farm-raised, chemically enhanced or preserved, and always frozen.  Unless of course you
are lucky enough to live in one of America's coastal shrimping regions...You can get  the shrimp fresh off the boats and
experience pure shrimp love....the texture is  the difference, firm, but not too firm...sweet, briny, tasting of the sea...
I experienced fresh shrimp a few times, what great fortune that was!!!  At an all-you-can eat shack in Northern Virginia on
a river, coming home from a Traders' Convention.  Wish I remembered the name.  You were given a plastic bucket to throw
the shells in. The shrimp were boiled or fried, fresh, as in never frozen, and local...cornbread...tartar sauce, paper plates and
tablecloths on picnic tables...
     Another fresh shrimp experience was in Avalon, on Catalina Island, off the coast of L.A.  These were from the local Pacific
waters, and were small, tempura battered, served with an Asian hot sauce, or tartar sauce...or in my case, both.  Throughout
the Mediterranean I enjoyed locally caught shrimp as well...sauteed or charcoal grilled, olive oil, parsley, hot pepper...
 So. all this fresh shrimp talk
now takes me to my dinner tonight.  I spotted these shrimp at the store and when I found out that they come down
direct from Maine, on ice, NEVER frozen, I knew I had to make them.  They are small, like 50 to a pound.  A hungry
person could eat close to a pound of them, no problem, they are small.  And, they cook up REALLY fast, under 5
minutes.  They need only a small amount of seasoning, whether is it butter, salt, pepper, a lightly seasoned
olive oil with garlic...and a dab of Tabasco, throws this American treat over the top.

     Are you feeling my enthusiasm for this seafood??  An American Regional Seasonal treat, that you cannot
eat in a few months...that is what makes cooking and eating almost a sport. That's right.  Knowing that I can't
have them until next year, that is special to me.  The texture of the meat is soft but not unpleasant, and it's sweetness
sings in your mouth. 


I heated some unsalted butter with olive oil...added 4 minced cloves of garlic, and let that sizzle for about
5 minutes.  Then I added the shrimp, 2 1/2 lb..(I'm reserving a 1/2 lb for lunch tomorrow, going to make
a ceviche with it...you'll read about that tomorrow) and quickly tossed them around in the pan for about
2 minutes on medium high.  I added a bay leaf, and 2 tbs. of Chardonnay.  Cooked the shrimp for another
21/2 minutes, stirring the shrimp.  Then, turn off the flame, and let the shrimp sit for 5 minutes.  Grind
some good sea salt and black pepper over them, stir, and serve with Tabasco on the side.  Lots of
bread to sop up the bisque-ey flavored juices...These shrimp are so small, they do not need to be
peeled or deveined...peel and eat licking the garlicky, shrimpy goodness off your fingers.



If you're lucky, your shrimp will have some of the heads thrown in there...flavor my friends..
lots of flavor...I served these babies up with roasted yukon golds, simply coated with
good Olive Oil, salt, pepper...no need to compete with the delicate shrimp essence. 
A "fancy" side of wilted leeks braised in a mushroom cream sauce..

   Your other option to find these shrimp, is to go up to Maine, and buy them from the
back of pick-up trucks, where the fishermen sell them for as little as $ 1.00 @ lb.  Is
that not a real slice of Americana??  In closing, again, call the stores and see if they
are still carrying them before you go...but you will truly be rewarded with a Winter
seafood gift, better than any holiday present...