` #2 Overall Best-Seller – Award-winning – Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Savannah Hot Crab Dip with Dave’s House Salt

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table’s Dave’s House Salt

This old Savannah holiday party favorite is so simple to make: just stir it together and bake until it’s heated through. It’s even easier with The Salt Table’s Dave’s House Salt, which is perfect with seafood. Other good pairings are The Salt Table’s Truffle Salt used together with Old Man River Blend or Tybee Island Coastal Blend.

Serves 10-12

Ingredients:

• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• ½ pound picked claw crabmeat
• ¼ cup minced scallion or other green onion
• Dave’s House Salt or Old Man River Blend
• Black Truffle Salt (only if using Old Man River Blend)

How to make it:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375° F. Whip the cream cheese and then blend in the mayonnaise until smooth. Fold in the crabmeat and onion and season well with Dave’s House Salt or with Old Man River Blend and Truffle Salt. Transfer it to a lightly buttered 1-quart baking dish or 8-inch gratin dish and smooth the top.
2. Bake until hot through, about 15-20 minutes. Serve it directly from the baking dish or transfer it to a chafing dish, offering crackers or toast rounds to go with it

Suggested Seasonings

Dave’s House Salt

Black Truffle Sea Salt

Wild Porcini Mushroom Sea Salt

Old Man River Grinder Blend

Pasta Shells for Two with Oysters and Tybee Island Coastal Blend

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Blend, Savannah Pride Rainbow Blend or Southern Italian Seasoning Blend.

Oysters are but rarely paired with pasta in Italy, but they’re so plentiful in our area that it seems a shame not to take advantage of them. Salt Table’s Tybee Island Blend is perfect for seafood pasta dishes and makes the seasoning of this one very simple. Other perfect Salt Table blends for this are Savannah Pride Rainbow Blend and Southern Italian Seasoning Blend.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1 cup drained shucked oysters, preferably local, drained but liquor reserved
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon toasted breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup dry white wine or dry white vermouth
• Tybee Island Coastal Seasoning Blend, Savannah Pride Rainbow Blend or Southern Italian Seasoning Blend.
• The Salt Table Sea Salt
• 3-4 ounces small pasta shells
• 2 teaspoons minced flat leaf parsley, optional

How to make it:

1. Pick over the oysters for bits of shell. Put at least 3 quarts of water on to boil over medium-high heat. Put 2 teaspoons of oil in a heavy-bottomed 10-inch pan over medium low heat. When it’s warmed, add the crumbs, tossing to coat them, and lightly toast them, stirring constantly. Remove the crumbs from the pan.
2. Add the remaining oil to the pan and let it get hot, then add the oysters and toss until they’re plump and firm, about 1 minute. Season them lightly with the Tybee Island Blend then remove them with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Add the wine and reserved oyster liquor to the pan, bring them to a boil, and cook until they’re reduced and thick. Turn off the heat.
3. When the pot of water is boiling, stir in a small handful of salt and the pasta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente (firm to the bite but not pasty at the center). When it’s almost done, reheat the sauce over medium low heat. Cut the oysters into 2-3 pieces, return them to the sauce with any accumulated juice, and simmer until they’re hot through and the sauce is thick again. Stir in the parsley, if using, and taste and adjust the Tybee Island Blend, Savannah Pride Rainbow Blend or Southern Italian Seasoning Blend.
4. Turn off the heat. When the pasta is ready, drain and add it to the sauce. Add the toasted crumbs, toss, and serve at once.

Suggested Seasonings

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Savannah Pride Rainbow Spice Blend

Southern Italian Grinder Blend

Herb Roasted Salmon

 Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring your choice of several Salt Table Seasoning Table Blends

One of these excellent Salt Table Blends, enhanced with lemon essence and sea salt, is ideal for most fish but especially compatible with spring salmon. Roasting in a hot oven is a simple way to cook fish fillets that is easy even for novices.

Any of these Salt Table blends are perfect:

Totally Awesome Grinder Blend

Southern Herb Garden Grinder Blend

All Round Good Grinder Blend

Southern Italian Grinder Blend

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Serves 4

***

INGREDIENTS:

4 6-ounce wild salmon filets

Choose one of the Salt Table Seasoning Blends 

Extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons finely chopped Italian (flat-leaf) parsley

HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Position a rack in upper third of oven and preheat to 450° F. Season the fish on all sides with Southern Springtime Blend. Rub a roasting pan, rimmed sheet pan, or large metal (copper or enameled iron) gratin with oil and put in the filets, skin-side down. Drizzle with more oil.
2. Roast until the fish is done to your taste, about 10 minutes per inch of thickness. Sprinkle with Salt Table Seasoning Blend and serve it from the pan or transfer it to individual plates and serve immediately.

Baked Fish with Potatoes and Onions

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table’s All Round Good Grinder Blend (or Tybee Island Coastal Blend, or Southern Italian Blend, or Spanish Moss Blend)

Based on a classic dish from the traditional cooking of Genoa, Italy and a strikingly similar dish that my mother made often during my childhood, this is so easy to put together and the All Round Good Grinder Blend is a perfect seasoning to enhance its earthy character.

Other Salt Table Seasonings that are perfect for this dish are Tybee Island Coastal Blend, Spanish Moss Blend, and Southern Italian Blend.

Serves 4

1½ pounds small, waxy boiling potatoes
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, trimmed, split, peeled, and sliced as thinly as possible
Salt Table All Round Good Grinder Blend
1 tablespoons minced flat leaf parsley, optional
4 fresh fish fillets (catfish, cod, perch, snapper, or even shad), about 8 ounces each

How To Make It:

1. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 450° F. Scrub the potatoes under cold running water. Peel and slice as thinly as you can—no more than 1/8-inch-thick.
2. Lightly rub a 9 x 13-inch bake-and-serve dish with butter or oil and put in the potatoes. Scatter half the onions over the potatoes and drizzle them with 4 tablespoons of oil. Toss gently to coat and then season liberally with All Round Good Grinder Blend. Toss, and spread them so that all the potatoes are lying flat. Bake in the upper third of the oven until the onions wilt and begin to brown and the potatoes are beginning to get tender, about 15-20 minutes.
3. Remove the dish from the oven, toss the potatoes again, and lay the fish fillets over the top in a single layer. Season them well with All Round Good Grinder Blend, then scatter the remaining onions over the fish, drizzle with the remaining oil, and bake until the potatoes and fish is just cooked through and the onions are lightly browned, basting occasionally with the oil in the dish, about 15-20 minutes more, depending on the thickness of the fillets. Serve hot from the baking dish.

Suggested Seasonings

All ‘Round Good Grinder Blend

This recipe also works well with Tybee Island Coastal Blend, or Southern Italian Blend, or Spanish Moss Blend

Baked Fish with Lemon and Crumbs

 Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table’s All Round Good Grinder Blend or Tybee Island Coastal Blend, or Southern Italian Blend

Equally perfect for busy weeknight dinners as well as weekend entertaining, these crumb-topped fillets are simple to put together, even more-so when they’re seasoned with All Round Good Grinder Blend. They would also be delightful with Tybee Island Coastal Blend or Southern Italian Blend.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• Extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs, preferably homemade (see method)
• 4 fresh fish fillets (preferably locally caught flounder, snapper, grouper, or shad)
• Salt Table All Round Good Grinder Blend 
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley, optional
• 1 lemons cut in wedges

How to Make It:

1. Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 450° F. Put 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. When the oil is warm, sprinkle in the crumbs and toss until they’re coated evenly. Turn off the heat.
2. Rub the bottom of a baking dish that will snugly hold the fish in one layer with olive oil. Pat the fish dry, put them into baking dish, skin-side down, and season well All Round Good Grinder Blend. Sprinkle them with the parsley if using and then the oiled crumbs.
3. Bake until the fish is cooked through and the crumbs are toasted, about 8-15 minutes, depending on thickness of fillets. Serve at once with lemon wedges.

Homemade Dry Breadcrumbs

Even if the ready-made boxed crumbs were from good bread (they aren’t), their texture and flavor is never as good as those that are homemade, and making your own is not enough trouble to justify taking the short cut. Here is my method.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Trim the crust from stale, unflavored (without sugar, herbs, garlic, cheese, olives, etc.) European-style bread and cut into 1-inch cubes. Spread the cubes on a rimmed baking sheet in one layer. Bake, stirring occasionally, until dry and crisp and just barely golden. Let them cool completely. In batches, transfer to a sealed freezer bag and crush to crumbs with a rolling pin. You may also process in a food processor fitted with a steel blade until evenly ground. Keep in mind that the dry, crisp bread is likely to scratch the sides of the plastic work bowl over time. If you want to keep that from happening, go to the trouble of crushing them by hand. Dry crumbs keep indefinitely when stored in airtight tins.

Suggested Seasonings

All ‘Round Good Grinder Blend

This recipe also works well with or Tybee Island Coastal Blend or Southern Italian Blend

Baked Fish Fillets with Orange-Ginger Sherry Butter

 Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table’s All Round Good Grinder Blend (or Tybee Island Coastal Blend)

Adapted from my book Essentials of Southern Cooking (Lyons Press/2013), the recipe was originally intended for grouper, but it also works well with sea trout (photographed), sea bass, snapper, pompano, and cod.

The Salt Table’s All Round Good Grinder Blend not only simplifies the seasoning but actually enhances the orange, ginger, and sherry combination better than the original seasonings. Another great Salt Table Seasoning for it would be Tybee Island Coastal Blend.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 thick grouper, sea trout, sea bass, snapper, or cod fillets (about 2 pounds, or 8-ounces each)
• Salt Table’s All Round Good Grinder Blend (or Tybee Island Coastal Blend)
• 4 small or 2 large scallions or other green onions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
• 1 large lemon
• 1 medium orange
• ½ cup dry sherry
• 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger
• 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into teaspoon-size bits

How to Make It:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 450° F. Rinse the fish under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Butter a flameproof casserole that will hold fish in one layer. Season the fish well on both sides with All Round Good Grinder Blend and put in dish, skin-side down. Sprinkle the scallions over it, reserving 2 tablespoons of the greens. Remove the zest from the lemon and half of orange with a bar zester (or vegetable peeler and cut into julienne with a sharp knife). Sprinkle these over the fish. Cut the lemon and orange in half.
2. Juice the lemon and one half of the orange through strainer set over a glass or stainless-steel bowl. You should have equal parts orange and lemon juice—about 2 tablespoons of each. Stir them together and stir in the sherry and ginger. Pour it over fish. Bake in center of oven, basting several times, until it’s just cooked through (it will flake slightly and be opaque in the center), about 15–18 minutes, depending on thickness.
3. Remove the fish to a warm platter. Put the casserole over direct medium-high heat (or if it’s not flameproof, transfer the cooking liquid to a saucepan). Bring it to a boil, and boil, stirring and scraping the pan occasionally, until the liquid is reduced by half. Turn off heat, and whisk in the butter by bits. Spoon a little of the sauce over the fish and pour remainder into a sauceboat. Sprinkle the fish with reserved green onion tops and serve, passing the sauce separately.

Suggested Seasonings

All ‘Round Good Grinder Blend

Asparagus alla Parmigiana (Asparagus Gratin)

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table’s Shamrock Dust

(Salt Table blends that are also great with this asparagus recipe are Leek, Chive, and Onion Seasoning and Dip Blend and Tybee Island Coastal Blend.)

One of the great dishes of spring’s table in Parma, Italy, is fresh, fat asparagus, layered with butter and cheese and baked until the cheese is just barely golden. The Salt Table’s Shamrock Dust really brings out the fresh spring flavor in this classic dish.

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 pounds fresh, fat asparagus
• Salt Table Crystal Clear Sea Salt
• Salt Table Shamrock Dust*
• 4 tablespoons best quality salted butter, melted
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

HOW TO MAKE:

1. Cut off about an inch of the asparagus stem base and stand it in a vase or bowl of cold water for at least half an hour. Peel the tough parts of the stem with a vegetable peeler and drop them into a basin with cold water. Leave the asparagus in the water until you are ready to cook it, but for no more than 2 hours.
2. Bring 2 inches of water to a boil in a large, deep skillet and prepare a basin of ice water. Add about a tablespoon of salt to the boiling water and slip in the asparagus. Cook 1-2 minutes, then immediately drain and drop into the ice water until cold. Drain and pat dry. This can be done up to 2 days ahead.
3. Half an hour before serving, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 450° F. Butter a 3-quart casserole or gratin dish. Layer the asparagus with a sprinkling of Shamrock Dust, melted butter, and a little Parmigiano, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake until golden brown, about 10-15 minutes.

Suggested Seasonings

Savannah Shamrock Dust

* Another Salt Table Blend that are great with asparagus is Leek, Chive, and Onion Seasoning and Dip Blend and Tybee Island Coastal Blend.

Seafood Stuffed Tomatoes

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Tybee Island Coastal Blend (or River Street Cobblestone Blend, or Southern Herb Garden Blend)

Ripe tomatoes filled with local shrimp and crab and baked are an old Lowcountry-Savannah favorite in the summer, when all the ingredients are seasonal and at their most flavorful. They’re pretty simple to make, but even simpler with The Salt Table’s Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend. Other great seasonings for them are River Street Cobblestone Blend and Southern Herb Garden Blend.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 large ripe tomatoes
• Kosher salt
• ½ pound small to medium shrimp
• ½ pound (1 tightly packed cup) picked crabmeat
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• ½ cup minced yellow onion (about half a medium onion)
• 1 cup coarsely crushed cracker crumbs
• Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend, 
• ¼ cup fine cracker crumbs

HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Cut ¼-inch from the stem end of the tomatoes, scoop out and discard their seeds, and carefully scoop out the inner pulp with a sharp spoon or melon baller, leaving the outer walls of each tomato intact. Roughly chop the pulp. Lightly salt the shells and invert them over a colander for 30 minutes.
2. Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil and add the shrimp. As soon as they’re curled and pink, about a minute or less, immediately drain them. Rinse them under cold running water, peel, and if they aren’t very small, cut them into 2 or 3 pieces. Pick over the crabmeat for bits of shell.
3. Put 2 tablespoons butter and the onion in a sauté pan over medium heat and sauté, tossing, until the onion is translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the tomato pulp and cook until it is beginning to break down and its juices are thick, about 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the coarse cracker crumbs, crab, and shrimp and toss to mix. Season well Tybee Island Coastal Blend.
4. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat it to 375° F. Bring a teakettle full of water to a rolling boil. Butter a 9-inch casserole. Pat the inside of the tomato shells dry and put them in the casserole, open side up. Divide the filling among them, mounding it on top.
5. Wipe out the pan in which the filling was made and add the remaining tablespoon of butter. Melt it over low heat, add the fine crumbs, and toss until the butter is evenly absorbed. Turn off the heat and sprinkle the buttered crumbs over the tops of the tomatoes. Carefully pour boiling water around them until it comes not quite halfway up their sides. Bake until the tomatoes are barely cooked and the filling is hot through, about 20 minutes.

Suggested Seasonings

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

This recipe also works well with River Street Cobblestone Blend or Southern Herb Garden Blend

Shrimp and Potato Salad

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Inspired by Damon’s dear friend Sallie Ann Robinson. She taught him how to make her mother’s shrimp and potato salad, which was a staple during the long hot summers of Daufuskie Island.

Serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound medium shrimp
• Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend
• 1½ pounds small red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed under cold running water
• Dry white wine, dry white vermouth, or chicken broth
• ½ cup thinly sliced scallions (about 4 scallions)
• 2 tablespoons green tops set aside for garnish
• ½ cup small-diced celery (about 2 medium ribs)
• 3 tablespoons nonpareil capers, drained
• 1/3 cup chopped bread-and-butter pickles or sweet pickle relish
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons Creole or coarse Dijon mustard, or to taste
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley

HOW TO MAKE

1. Bring 2 quarts water to a rolling boil. Add the shrimp and cook until they’re curled and pink and 2 or 3 float, about 1 minute. Don’t let the water return to a boil. Pour them into a colander, drain, and rinse well under cold running water. Generously grind Tybee Island Coastal Blend over them, toss to coat, and let them completely cool.
2. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into 1-inch chunks. Put them in the pot in which the shrimp cooked and add enough water to just cover them. Bring it to a boil over medium high heat, adjust the heat to medium-low, and simmer until they’re just tender, about 8-10 minutes. Drain and put them in a large bowl. While they’re still hot, sprinkle them generously with the wine or broth and season with several grindings of Tybee Blend. Gently toss and let them cool.
3. Peel and devein the shrimp and add them to the cooled potatoes. Add the scallions, holding back a 2 tablespoons of their green tops for garnish, the celery, capers and chopped pickles. Gently toss. Blend together the mayonnaise and mustard. Add it to the salad and gently but thoroughly fold it in. Taste and adjust the mustard and Tybee Blend. Chill at least 2 hours and serve on lettuce leaves, garnished with the reserved green onion tops

Suggested Seasonings

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Creamy Clam Dip

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring

Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

The Tybee Island Coast Grinder Blend is one of Carol’s award-winning blends and best selling blends for seafood of all types. This recipe features this versatile blend for the perfect appetizer. Serve it with crackers and chips and enjoy it at any picnic or backyard party.

Makes about 2 cups

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 8-ounce block cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup sour cream
• 2 teaspoons or to taste freshly-ground Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend
• 1 6½-ounce can minced clams, drained but juice reserved
• Worcestershire sauce
• Hot sauce such as Tabasco or Louisiana Hot Sauce
• 1 lemon cut in half
• 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
  Sturdy “scoop” style corn chips or ruffled potato chips

HOW TO MAKE:

1. Whip together the cream cheese and sour cream with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Blend in 2 teaspoons Tybee Blend and 3 tablespoons of reserved clam juice. Blend in several dashes of Worcestershire and hot sauce and a teaspoon of lemon juice, and fold in the parsley. Let it sit for 10 minutes or so to allow the flavors to blend.
2. Taste and adjust the Tybee Blend, Worcestershire, hot sauce, lemon juice, and clam juice. It can be served right away, but will be better if chilled for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend. If you’ve chilled it, let it sit at room temperature at least 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley if liked and serve with “scoop” corn chips or ruffled potato chips.

Suggested Seasonings

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Marinated Shrimp, Avocado, and Tomato Salad

Recipe by Damon Lee Fowler, featuring your choice of several terrific Salt Table Seasoning Blends

Southerners love their seafood, and shrimp is on the top of that list because it is so versatile in so many dishes, especially salads. This salad features one of The Salt Table’s best-selling flavors, and we think you’ll absolutely love it!

Completely peel the shrimp for this. Nothing is more irritating than having that pretty but inedible bit of tail fin on the end of a shrimp that you’re trying to eat with a knife and fork.

Perfect with one of these fine Salt Table Seasoning Blends:

Leek, Chive, and Onion Seasoning Blend

Totally Awesome Grinder Blend

Tybee Island Coastal Grinder Blend

Leek, Chive & Onion Seasoning and Dip Blend

Serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 pounds medium shrimp
• Salt Table Tybee Island Coastal Blend
• 1 medium clove garlic, lightly crushed and peeled
• Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons white wine or sherry vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons or more, to taste, one of the Salt Table blends mentioned above
• 1/2 cup washed, strung, and diced celery
• 1/2 cup washed, trimmed, and sliced scallions, optional
• 2 tablespoons nonpareil capers, drained
• 1 head romaine lettuce, pulled apart, washed, and spun dry
• 2 medium to large ripe tomatoes
• 2 ripe avocadoes
• 6-8 small fresh basil leaves
• 12-16 Butter Toasted Croutons, optional (see note below)

HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Bring 3 quarts of water to boil in a large pot. Add the shrimp and simmer until 3-4 shrimp float, about 1 minute. Drain, rinse under cold running water, then grind Tybee Island Blend liberally over them and toss well. Let cool completely, then peel and devein. The shrimp will pick up the seasoning as you peel them.
2. 2. Make the vinaigrette: chop the garlic and sprinkle it with salt. Rub it to a paste with the flat side of the knife. Scrape it into a mixing bowl and whisk in the lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard. Whisk in the oil a few drops at a time until emulsified and whisk in 2 tablespoons of one of the Salt Table blends mentioned above. Set it aside 10-15 minutes, taste, and adjust seasonings and lemon juice. Put the shrimp in a bowl and pour all the vinaigrette over them. Add the celery, scallions, and capers, toss well, cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours or until needed.
3. To serve, line a platter with lettuce leaves. Tear the remaining lettuce into bite-sized pieces in large salad bowl. Core and if desired peel the tomatoes, then halve, seed, and dice them and add them to the shrimp. Halve, pit, peel and dice the avocadoes and add them to the shrimp. Gently toss. Lift the shrimp, avocado and tomato from the vinaigrette with a slotted spoon and add them to the lettuce. Toss well, taste, and add the reserved vinaigrette as needed. Spread the salad on the lettuce-lined platter, tear the basil into small pieces over it. Scatter croutons over salad if using and serve immediately, with the remaining marinade passed separately.

Butter-Toasted Croutons: Cut 2 1-inch thick slices firm, crusty bread into 1-inch cubes. Warm 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add bread and toss to coat. Pan-toast, tossing regularly, until evenly browned and crisp, about 6-8 minutes.