Alice's Kitchen Cabinet

Alice Waters, west coast culinary pioneer, is urging Obama to create a 'kitchen' cabinet. We'll see what happens with Obama's food policy.

Food talk is everywhere! Losing weight is the nation's #1 new year's resolution and advertisers are capitalizing on this.

Here's my first recipe for 2009. Savory, cinnamon-y and delicious.

Greek-Spiced Baked Shrimp
Gourmet | November 2008 (epi)

These saucy shrimp spiked with cinnamon, allspice, and feta quickly disappeared in our test kitchen. Have plenty of bread on hand for sopping up the juices.

Yield: Makes 4 servings
Active Time: 15 min
Total Time: 1 hr

ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
Pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice, and chopped
1 1/4 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 pound feta, crumbled (2/3 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped dill

Accompaniments: crusty bread or steamed white rice; a green salad

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Cook onion and garlic in oil with 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 4-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in spices and cook, stirring, 30 seconds. Add chopped tomatoes with juice and sugar and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Season shrimp with 1/8 teaspoon salt, then stir into tomato sauce. Transfer to a 2-quart shallow baking dish and top with feta. Bake until just cooked through, 18 to 20 minutes. Serve sprinkled with dill.

Shopping List:

1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained, reserving juice, and chopped
1 1/4 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 pound feta, crumbled (2/3 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped dill
Bread or rice
Lemon for salad
Greens for salad