The last few days in the foothills have been just spectacular. Warm, still weather has kept the colourful leaves from dropping or just being blown off the trees, which is often what happens here. It has given me time to clean up the garden slowly and to enjoy whatever time we may still have enjoying being outdoors.
A garden mystery presented itself on Monday when I went out to find an entire (though short) row of carrots pulled clean out of the ground and eaten.
I had seen a few pulled up the day before but it looked to me as though the dog had found reason to dig at the end of a row and had inadvertently pulled out a few and then decided she should munch on one or two. This garden raiding thing is new for her and we discovered this year that she had taken to helping herself to the green peas.
But this was not the dog.
Every single one of these carrots had been pulled up and eaten clean to the stem, with the greens left scattered as evidence. As I searched for clues I found one, not very clear, little footprint. About the size of a large cat, it appeared to have long but thick claws.
Evidence of claws was also found when I pulled up the beets in the next row just in case the critter had its eyes on them too. Though it hadn’t pulled any beets, there were a few that had been clawed while the carrots were being uprooted and I’d say from the gashes that powerful claws are definitely a part of the mystery raider.
The next morning was spent trying to identify the track or find some inter-web reference to carrot eating critters but no solid clue was found so for now it remains a mystery. If anyone in the Alberta foothills knows if porcupines will dig carrots or if a skunk’s stomach is big enough to scarf several pounds of carrots in one night, I’m interested in hearing about it!
Anyway, the pleasant fall has had me wanting to savour the last bit of summer so I was hankering for a nice, light and fresh meal that wouldn’t have me in the kitchen for long.
Grilled seafood to the rescue.
These shrimp and squid tubes were treated to a super simple preparation. A bit of olive oil and salt, then onto a smokin’ hot barbecue for just a few minutes. Once done I tossed a lemony, greek inspired dressing over the top and sprinkled with a little parsley for fresh colour.
Carrots will be served on the side of everything for the next while. That critter can’t have them all.
Ingredients
- 3 large squid tubes cleaned
- 1 lb shrimp
- 1 1/2 tsp salt divided
- 4 Tbsp olive oil divided
- 1 large clove garlic pressed or minced
- juice from one lemon plus additional wedges for serving if desired
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- fresh ground pepper
- red pepper flakes optional
- fresh parsley or oregano for garnish
Instructions
For the grill
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Preheat your grill to very hot
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Thaw seafood if frozen
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Cut squid into tubes, remove shells of shrimp if they are not peeled
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Place seafood into a bowl and drizzle with olive oil, about 1 Tbsp
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Using your hands mix in about 1 tsp of the salt
For the dressing
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In a small bowl combine remaining olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, oregano, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, set aside
Put it together
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Place squid and shrimp into an oiled grilling basket and put over hot grill, tossing occasionally until just cooked. Do not overdo them or they will be rubbery
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Put cooked seafood into a bowl or serving dish and toss dressing over all, mix to combine
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Serve with a sprinkle of fresh parsley or oregano and a wedge of lemon
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