A fond farewell to a good friend...

My friend & colleague, Aida is moving to Manila on a 2 year assignment for our company. She & her husband are packing up their 2 beautiful little girls and heading out bright & early on Friday morning. I wanted to make sure to pay tribute to her on this blog… if it were not for Aida; there would be no blog and I wouldn’t be working as diligently on my book as I have been. If not for Aida, I wouldn’t have a fan base in a little cul-de-sac in New Hampshire or an honorary sister-in-law in New Jersey.


I just spent the last hour writing about all of the things that I love about her; her kind heart (sniff), wonderful sense of humor (err-hum), her love for her kids (sniff, sniff)… then I realized… this was not a tribute to Aida… it sounded more like a eulogy!!! So I deleted every word I wrote, dried my eyes and imagined her laughing at me & calling me a fool!

I will miss her none the less; the smell of Beef-a-Roni wafting out of her office in the morning while constantly insisting it was healthy to eat for breakfast… the little blue container of Nivea that she carries with her everywhere… the free Altoids that I managed to snitch while she constantly left her little tins everywhere… all of the instant message interruptions while I was busy working; asking for recipes, tips & techniques so she didn’t have to pay for my cookbook!  I always tell her that with each recipe I give to her, I'll tear that page out of the book and still charge her full price… aaahhhhh… friends!

In light of her departure (not from this earth; just from this country), I decided to post one of the first recipes that I ever shared with her; “Tangy Ginger Shrimp”… it’s quick, easy and what your taste buds will experience almost compares to viewing a sunset from the famous Manila Bay… add a nice “Rum Runner” or a couple of “Mai Tai’s” and you are good to go!

Tangy Ginger Shrimp with Yellow Rice

2 lbs. Uncooked Shrimp (peeled & deveined)

5 T. Olive Oil

1 Jar Ginger Marmalade

1 Lg. Lime

1 Bunch Fresh Cilantro

2 Lg. Boxes Goya Yellow Rice

Cook rice according to package directions; keep warm. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil then add shrimp; stirring constantly. Cook for about 3-4 minutes. Turn heat to low then add the marmalade and the juice from the lime (you can actually use 2 limes if you like).

Pour cooked rice onto serving platter and top with shrimp mixture. Top entire platter with a couple of generous handfuls of cilantro.

Serve with green vegetable or salad.

**If serving as an appetizer, leave tails on the shrimp and delete the rice.

From this point forward, whenever I make this dish I will think of you fondly, my friend and quickly remember to write another page so the book is done by the time you return! Safe travels to you, Brad, Lily and Nora…