The Kruischeren Hotel is a former cloister located in Maastricht. This old church from the 15th century has been transformed into a very peculiar hotel by interior designer Henk Vos, acquiring thus the label of a "Designer Hotel". Fancy!
The main door to the lobby gives a hint of what's inside: three lounges were created where once was the side chapels of the church. Look to your left and you will see the hotel bar with an inviting wine cellar above the ground. Look to your right and you'll see the reception desk with a panoramic elevator, then look up and you will see a library and....oh wow...the ceiling!
Huge light fixtures created by the German artist Ingo Maurer appears to be flying over your head. They are massive glass discs that seem almost like UFOs adding color and light to the path from the elevator to the restaurant on the "middle floor". Needless to say, I am in awe at this point and can't wait for dinner.
We had a four-course dinner that started with a salmon ceviche trio, followed by a delicious shrimp with cauliflower soup, a perfectly cooked venison as main course and an ice cream trio for dessert. All washed down with a Chateau Beau-Sejour Becot. Spectacular, spectacular!
Everything was delicious, I just didn't get the popcorn on my salmon ceviche, but I guess it was supposed to add a funny note to the dish...anyway...our favorite dish was the shrimp with cauliflower soup. Unfortunately, we only took a photo after we had cleaned up the plate. It was certainly a heavenly experience at the Kruischeren Hotel.
So, after we got back in Houston I had to re-create the dish at home and the result was successful! To make it a main course, I added some extra shrimp to it! :-)
Ingredients:
1 cauliflower
1 small onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 lemon
Salt
Pepper
For the shrimp:
1 1/2 pound of shrimp - deveined, shelled, tail-on
2 lemons
salt
pepper
2 cloves of garlic
How to make it:
1. Wash the shrimp and place them in a bowl. Add crushed garlic, salt and pepper to taste and the juice of two lemons. Cover and place bowl in the refrigerator while you prepare the vegetables.
2. Remove and discard any leaves and the hard core of the cauliflower. Wash and thickly slice the florets. Set aside.
3. Peel and chop the onion. Crush the garlic. Set aside.
4. Heat the olive oil in a pot and add the onions and garlic. Sautee for about 5-8 minutes in medium heat until onions are translucent and the garlic is slightly golden.
5. Add the cauliflower, stir and sautee for another 3-4 minutes. Add water until the vegetables are covered.
6. When the water begins to boil, cover the pot, lower the heat and let it simmer for 25 minutes or until cauliflower is tender.
7. Set the pot aside and let it cool for about 10 minutes.
8. Place contents of the pot in a blender and puree until smooth. The trick is to get rid of any lumps or grains, so you may want to do this in batches. The soup should be a silky and shiny cream.
9. Add the juice of one lemon and stir. Taste it and adjust salt and pepper. Cover and set aside.
10. Drain shrimp and discard the marinade.
11. Heat a grill pan and drizzle 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil over it.
12. When hot, add the shrimp.
13. Grill shrimp for about 3 minutes, flip and grill for another 3 minutes.
14. Arrange shrimp with tail up on a soup plate.
15. With a soup scoop, pour the cauliflowers soup around shrimp and serve!
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