Author Serves Up Delicious Recipes

Mouths were watering at the Tuesday night as a Florida gourmet demonstrated how to prepare shrimp scampi – with samples for the lucky guests.

Warren Caterson, author of Table for Two: The Cookbook for Couples, shared some of his culinary secrets and he signed copies of his book.

“Don't cook this with the windows open and neighbors working in the backyard,” said Caterson, as the smell of sizzling shrimp wafted through the library, and more patrons drifted over.

Caterson's shrimp scampi has just four ingredients: shrimp, olive oil, lemon, and white wine. The wine makes salt unnecessary, just one of the author's many tips.

Caterson has been cooking for 25 years, and wrote this book specifically for couples. He said that too many recipes are intended for four to eight people, and take too long to prepare. Most of the dishes featured in Table for Two can be prepared in under an hour, many in under half an hour.

The author said his book is also ideal for people on a budget.

“I'm a frugal cook,” he said. “My friends call me a cheapskate. I prefer to use the word frugal.”

Caterson shared some of his secrets for getting the most from one's grocery-shopping dollar.

“I rarely buy my spices in the spice aisle,” he said. “I go over to the ethnic aisle.”

Caterson said that a smart shopper will find that spices in the ethnic aisle are a better value, and he is not above refilling his spice containers with those.

The author shared some other tips with the crowd as well.

Don't use garlic or onion powder, he said. The real thing is worth it. As for one of the unfortunate side effects of using real garlic, you can't get rid of garlic breath. The only solution is to make sure everyone eats heartily. Then, “everybody will smell the same,” he said.

Don't bother buying fresh thyme. It's better dried. Herbs that are best fresh include: parsley, cilantro, basil and mint. If you are tired of buying a large bunch of herbs only to have them go bad before you can use them, Caterson suggested chopping them up and freezing them in ice trays, with white wine.

Caterson's culinary philosophy? “I'm going to keep cooking till I get it right," he said. 

The library patrons seemed to believe he was onto something, as they quickly lined up to sample Caterson's shrimp scampi, which disappeared in record time.

Table for Two: The Cookbook for Couples is 272 pages, published by Winfield & Scott Press, and available at your local bookseller or library.

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