Celeb chef, mom "clash" over Mom's Day souvlaki
With Mother's Day on Sunday, "The Early Show" thought it would be fun to pit its new contributor, celebrity chef Spike Mendelsohn, in a friendly competition against the woman who taught him everything, his mother, Catherine Mendelsohn, to find out who's really got the cooking chops in the Mendelsohn family!
Each prepared their version of one of the Mendelsohn family's favorites, the Greek classic, souvlaki. Their versions couldn't be much more different.
Co-anchor Chris Wragged team with Spike, and co-anchor Erica Hill helping out Catherine.
Enjoy all our "Early Show" recipes!
RECIPES
Spike's Soft Shell Crab Souvlaki
Tzatziki sauce:
- 2 cups Greek yoghurt
- 2 cups ranch dressing
- 2 teaspoons old bay
- 1 cup diced cucumber(peeled and seeded)
- 1 tablespoon lemon
- chopped parsley
Soft Shell Crab:
- 4 soft shell crab, quartered
- coconut milk or regular milk
- flour
- olive oil for frying (4in of oil in pan)
- Salt and pepper
Garnish:
- sliced tomatoes
- shredded lettuce
- pita bread
METHOD:
Clean and quarter the soft shell crabs. Place in the coconut milk and let sit for about a half hour. Remove the crabs and dredge in the flour. Heat oil to 375 degree F and fry the crab for about 3 minutes turning once. Remove the crab and drain on paper towels. While the crab is draining brush the pita with olive oil and toast.
Layer the lettuce and tomato in the pita, top each pita with one soft shell crab, dollop on the sauce, wrap and enjoy!
Catherine's Traditional Lamb Souvlaki
- Butterflied Leg of Lamb
- Peeled garlic, sliced thin
- Sea salt
- Pepper
- Olive oil
- Juice of 2 lemons
- Oregano
- Cup of regular black tea
- Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
- Vine ripe Tomatoes, roasted
- Baby arugula
- Pita bread
METHOD:
Butterfly and open leg of American lamb. Put thin slices of garlic and generously season with salt and pepper
Rub with olive oil and lemon juice
Sprinkle with oregano
Place on BBQ until it has a great roasted color on both sides and then place in a roasting pan and into the oven at 400 degrees F until medium rare approximately15-20 minutes.
Remove the lamb from the roasting pan and shave thinly. Do not discard the pan juices. Add the cup of tea to the pan juices and flash boil on stovetop until liquid has reduced slightly, pour over the lamb.
Tzatziki Yogurt Sauce:
- 2 cups strained Greek Yogurt
- 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
- 1 cucumber, unpeeled and grated very finely, strained and dried with paper towels
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
METHOD:
Mix all the Tzatziki ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
ASSEMBLY:
Have each pita bread brushed (only on one side with olive oil) and lightly
toasted.
Place lamb in the middle on the oiled side, put 2 tablespoons of Tzatziki on top of lamb. Place a roasted tomato over and add the onion and a small amount of arugula salad.
Wrap with wax paper and top with 1 teaspoon of tzatziki and sprinkle sauce with a mixture of salt, pepper and oregano