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Selecting fresh seafood at a local fish market. Photo by Sean Kelly Conway. While many of us have become more aware of the importance of supporting our local food system when buying produce and meats, we may not be as familiar with ways to create a resilient seafood industry. Ben Williams, former owner of Fisherman’s Dock, offers these tips for supporting our First Coast seafood economy: • Prioritize local and domestic. Regulations ensure the species are harvested sustainably. • Eat seasonal. Consume the species fresh while they are in season. “Enjoy the snow crabs when they’re available during winter, then move on,” said Williams. • Trust your local fish markets. Owners have a stake in what you buy. They want to make sure their customers are satisfied. • Eat the whole fish and extend the resource. For some reason, many consumers are resistant to eating whole fish. When you eat the whole fish, you waste less, and you get more for your money. “This approach puts you into the buying realm of fish that aren’t big enough to fillet, like grunt,” Williams said. “That little fish’s meat tastes identical to mangrove snapper. And a 1½-pound fish will feed two people.”

Israeli couscous is easy to make and adds variety to your selection of grains. Photo by Miya Kusumoto. Serves 2 Ingredients 8 scallops 1 cup Israeli couscous 1/2 medium red onion, diced 1/2 cup plus 4 tablespoons olive oil 1/4 cup chives 1/4 cup parsley 1 large egg yolk 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 clove garlic 1/4 cup dry white wine 1 tablespoon butter Salt, pepper Chopped parsley for garnish Instructions To make the couscous: Cook couscous according to package instructions. Just before fully cooked, remove couscous from pot and drain into a small bowl. Set aside. In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add onions and saute until softened and beginning to brown. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the couscous and cook, stirring occasionally, until the couscous is crispy, 10-15 minutes. To make the aioli : In a blender, combine garlic, herbs, and 1/2 cup of olive oil. Blend until uniform and liquid. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolk with a few drops of lemon juice. Add the herb mixture, continuously whisking, slowly at first. Whisk until the mixture has emulsified. Season with the remaining lemon juice, salt and pepper. To make the scallops: Remove the side muscle from the scallops, rinse and pat dry. In a skillet, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the scallops in a single layer with at least an inch of space between each of them. Cook, undisturbed, for about 2 minutes, until a crust has formed on the bottom of the scallop. Turn the scallops and cook for 30 seconds on the second side, ensuring that the scallop is still translucent in the center. Remove the scallops from the pan and, with the pan set over medium heat, deglaze with 1/4 cup of dry, white wine, scraping the bottom with a wooden spatula to release all the particles from the pan. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and stir until the sauce has thickened. Set aside. To serve: Spread a generous portion of the aioli on a plate. Top with a scoop of crispy couscous,the scallops and the pan sauce. Garnish with parsley and enjoy.

A southern classic! Serve these fried oysters on top of deviled eggs or place them in a bun for easy-to-eat sliders. Photo by Amy Robb. Makes 2 dozen Ingredients 4 cups vegetable oil 2 dozen Shucked oysters 2 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups cornmeal Salt and pepper to taste Instructions Preheat a large pot of vegetable oil to 350° over medium heat. Mix the flour and cornmeal together. Drop shucked oysters into the flour mixture, toss with mixture and remove. Carefully drop coated oysters into the hot oil and fry for two minutes or until lightly golden brown. Remove oysters and season with salt and pepper.

This hors d’oeuvre requires less than 10 ingredients and can be made even easier if you substitute 2 cups of prepared smoked fish dip. Photo by Melissa Marcarelli. Serves 16 Ingredients For dip 1 (8-ounce) package creme fraiche 1 tablespoon chives, sliced thinly 1 tablespoon shallot, chopped in small cubes Zest of 1/2 lemon 1 (8-ounce) package smoked trout For potatoes 1 (11-ounce) russet potato 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon clarified butter Chopped chives or parsley, for garnish Instructions To make smoked trout dip : In a medium bowl, combine creme fraiche, chives, shallot and lemon zest with a spatula. Remove and discard the trout skin. Flake the trout into small pieces, taking care to remove any bones. Fold into creme fraiche mixture. To make rosti potatoes : Preheat a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Peel potatoes and shred with a cheese grater, using the largest hole into a medium mixing bowl. Wrap in cheesecloth or squeeze shredded potato by hand and discard the liquid. Clarify the butter by microwaving for one minute in a small dish. Mix the butter and salt into the shredded potato. Add oil or more clarified butter to the preheated pan. Form small silver dollar sized clumps (8-10 at a time, depending on the size of your pan). Cook for 4-5 minutes until golden brown, flip and cook for another 4-5 minutes until golden and crispy. To serve, top each potato with a small pinch of trout dip and garnish with chives or parsley, if desired.

The color of this aromatic side dish adds an artistic touch to any meal. Photo by Jenna Alexander. Serves 6-8 Ingredients 1 large cauliflower 1 tablespoon coconut oil 1 cup coconut milk yogurt 2 cloves garlic 1 teaspoon turmeric 1 teaspoon cumin 1 teaspoon coriander 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon cayenne Sea salt and pepper to taste 2 tablespoons lime juice 1 teaspoon lime zest 1/4 cup chopped cilantro Instructions Break cauliflower into small florets. To make marinade, blend together coconut oil, yogurt, garlic, spices, salt, pepper and lime juice. Toss florets in marinade and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Place florets on parchment-lined baking sheet and roast at 400° for 25 minutes or until golden. Top with lime zest and cilantro and serve.

The greens can be swapped out for whatever is in season, making this a year-round favorite side dish. You can use kale, spinach, bok choi, etc., and add meat if desired. Photo by Sara Schober Serves 8 Ingredients 1 unbaked deep dish pie crust 1/2 bunch mustard greens 1/2 bunch Swiss chard 1 tablespoon butter 1 small shallot, diced 3-5 dashes Worcestershire sauce Pinch of red pepper flakes 3 large eggs 1-1/2 cups heavy cream Pinch black pepper 8 ounces Fontina cheese, shredded Instructions Preheat oven to 375°. Remove stems from mustard greens and Swiss chard. Thoroughly wash leaves then roughly chop. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat and add butter. Melt butter, then add shallots, greens, pepper flakes and Worcestershire sauce. Sauté for 3-5 minutes. Set aside and let cool. Combine eggs, heavy cream and black pepper in a large bowl and whisk until combined. Stir shredded cheese and cooled vegetables into egg mixture and pour into pie crust. Place pie on cookie sheet in the middle of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes or until the top of the quiche is golden and firm. Let cool for a few minutes before slicing.

Hummus packs the protein, but you could easily add lamb meatballs, grilled chicken or shrimp skewers. This meal is vegan, but would be great with some freshly-crumbled feta. Photo by Amanda Rosenblatt. Serves 4 Ingredients For roasted vegetables 3/4 pound okra 1 head cauliflower 2 tablespoons neutral oil (like avocado or canola) Salt, pepper and onion powder, to season 1 tablespoon za’atar For cucumber-tomato salad 3 Persian cucumbers 1 pint cherry tomatoes Zest of 1 lemon Handful fresh parsley, chopped 1-1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar For turmeric-tahini dressing 3 tablespoons lemon juice (from about 1-1⁄2 lemons) 3 tablespoons olive oil 3 tablespoons warm water 2 tablespoons tahini 1-1/2 teaspoons maple syrup 1/2 teaspoon turmeric Pinch cayenne pepper Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste 1-1/3 cups cooked farro 5 ounces choice of greens, like arugula or spinach 1-1/3 cups hummus, fresh or homemade Olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper Ingredients To roast vegetables: Preheat oven to 425°. Slice okra in half lengthwise and cauliflower into small florets. Place on a sheet pan and spread the vegetables out so they’re not touching. Drizzle with oil and season with kosher salt, freshly-ground black pepper and onion powder. Roast for about 20-25 minutes, until charred slightly, tossing vegetables halfway for even cooking. Once removed from oven, toss with za’atar. To make the cucumber-tomato salad: Cut ends off cucumbers. Slice in half lengthwise, then slice into 1⁄4-inch semicircles and place in a large bowl. Slice cherry tomatoes in half and add to the bowl along with chopped cucumbers, lemon zest and parsley. Season mixture with salt and pepper and a splash of both olive oil and red wine vinegar. Set aside. To make the turmeric-tahini dressing: Add all ingredients to a small jar and shake until combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper. To assemble: Place a handful of greens into a large, shallow bowl. Working in segments, add farro, roasted okra, cauliflower, cucumber-tomato salad and a dollop of hummus. Make a “swoosh” in the hummus with the back of a spoon and drizzle with good olive oil. Lightly drizzle the dressing over the bowl or serve on the side.

This recipe was the winning entry in the 2019 Peace Out Pie Contest, held at the St. Augustine Amp Farmers’ Market. Fresh tomatoes atop a goat cheese filling on a Parmesan cheese crust make for a delectable brunch dish. Photo by Wesley Parsons. Serves 8-12 Ingredients For parmesan crust 1-1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt 10 ounces grated Parmesan cheese 3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces 4 to 5 tablespoons ice water 2 to 3 cups granulated sugar for blind baking* For creamy basil goat cheese 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 8 to 10 ounces goat cheese, room temperature 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves Sea salt For vanilla sea salt 1 vanilla bean 1 cup flake salt (such as Maldon) For tomato topping 2 to 3 medium heirloom tomatoes 1 to 2 pints small heirloom tomatoes Vanilla Sea Salt Whole basil leaves Instructions Preheat the oven to 400°F. To make parmesan crust: Place flour, sea salt and parmesan cheese into a food processor and pulse until combined. Place the cold cubes of butter in food processor and pulse until the mixture has small pea-sized pieces of butter remaining. Add a few tablespoons of ice water, one or two at a time, and pulse until combined. Add more ice water until the dough holds together when you squeeze it. The dough should not be sticky. Using a 14-inch tart pan, press dough firmly into the bottom and sides of the dish. Lay a piece of parchment paper over the top of the crust and carefully fill the pan with granulated sugar as a weight for blind baking. Place the tart pan into the oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or just until the edges start to golden in color. Pull the tart out of the oven and carefully remove the parchment paper and beans. Return the crust to the oven and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until it is golden throughout. Remove the crust from the oven and let it cool completely. To make goat cheese filling: Combine the heavy cream and goat cheese in a bowl. Stir well. Chop basil into small pieces and stir into the goat cheese mixture. Add a pinch of sea salt. Using a spreader or icing spatula, add the goat cheese filling to the cooled crust and spread to the edges of the crust. To make vanilla sea salt: Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. In a small bowl, gently scrape the vanilla bean seeds into the sea salt and mix to combine. Store any leftover vanilla sea salt in an airtight container. To assemble tart: Thinly slice heirloom tomatoes. Just before serving, top the tart with tomatoes and a sprinkling of vanilla sea salt. Garnish with fresh basil leaves. *Note: Blind baking refers to the process of baking a pie crust without the filling and is usually done when the crust will be filled with an unbaked filling. Granulated sugar or dried beans are used to hold the crust in place while baking.

St. Augustine Pot Distilled Rum and peppers? Why not! Shishito peppers are on the sweet side, though occasionally you will get one that is hot, so be prepared! Photo by Amy Robb. Makes 1 cocktail Ingredients 1-1/2 ounces St. Augustine Pot Distilled Rum 1 ounce fresh watermelon juice 3/4 ounce fresh lime juice 1 shishito pepper, gor garnish Instructions Shake all ingredients except peppers and strain over fresh ice. Garnish with a shishito pepper.

An inviting atmosphere, pool tables and crowd favorite beverages make Park Place Lounge in Riverside a popular neighborhood bar. Photos by Amanda Rosenblatt. There seems to be a favorite hangout wherever you live. Historically, neighborhood bars were small, dimly lit and smoke-filled basement operations considered risky environments that patrons would "dive" into. Nowadays, these places are still tight on space, a touch shabby (although mostly smoke-free) and have withstood the test of time. While they may be a little intimidating, chances are they're simply unpretentious and low-key, and more importantly, they're surprisingly warm and welcoming. A perfect example in Jacksonville Beach is Ginger's Place, a small, somewhat unassuming gray box of a building. Whatever's going on inside, you'd never know by looking at its windowless walls and opaque red door. Patronized by locals and intrepid souls of all ages, it's an easy place to meet with friends and down a few cocktails. Their most popular drink, the Rocket Bomb, is the only thing dangerous about this place. It goes down easy but packs a wallop. In Riverside, the Park Place Lounge (pictured above) is another enduring neighborhood favorite. A bit on the dark side, which adds a touch of mystery and intrigue, this place is intimate, welcoming and a haven for the LGBTQIA+ community. Its bar is well stocked, offering everything you'd expect and more. The "Hooker Shot" (tequila with a pickle juice back) and Bloody Marys are crowd favorites. Plenty of seats along the rail make this place ideal for passing a little time and making friends. In a sea of trendy bars and restaurants sprouting all around San Marco, Sherwood's has become a venerated drinking destination. Serving all the basics, their bar menu features a few specialty cocktails including "No Thym to Die" (mezcal, Thym liqueur, lime, agave and grapefruit soda), their most popular. While they've made a few changes, including the undeniably festive mural that adorns its exterior, this time-honored watering hole delivers everything its loyal customers have come to expect. With a long and storied history, the Tradewinds Lounge is one of the oldest bars in St. Augustine. Located directly across from the Bridge of Lions, locals and visitors alike have been keeping this place busy for decades. Surprisingly small, it's the impressive lineup of live music, quirky tiki bar vibe and undeniably casual atmosphere that's kept this place jumping. Considering its island theme, the most popular drinks are their house rum punch and margaritas. Adding to local legend, Jimmy Buffett performed at Tradewinds in the 1960s, and it’s believed that he was fired from a gig there. Whether you raise a bottle of your favorite lite beer, seek out a nonalcoholic beverage or just want to hang out with your pals, cheers to finding your neighborhood drinking hole. Perhaps it’s one where everyone knows your name.

Oyster farming is a relatively new, rapidly growing industry in Florida. Boat Drinks in St. Augustine offers a variety of bivalves, including some farm raised Florida oysters and from the Northeast. Photos by Melissa Marcarelli. Ask any resident of Northeast Florida about our local oysters and you’ll get a wide range of opinions. You may hear locals claim that they’re “best in the world,” extol plentiful, cheap steamed buckets from years past or praise the abundance of our local waters. Others, meanwhile, will tell you they only eat cold water oysters, or those from “back home,” i.e., the states north of North Carolina. I have heard almost every opinion about eating oysters, and I can tell you that I don’t agree with most of them. Nowadays we can eat oysters all year long thanks to modern refrigeration, seed selection and water quality testing. I know this all too well as the chef and owner of Boat Drinks, an oyster bar located in historic St. Augustine. I grew up here, and I am the first to admit that our local oysters could be better, a lot better. They could and should be farmed! Oyster farming is a relatively new, rapidly growing industry in Florida, but it's not a new concept. In fact, the practice of oyster farming dates to at least the ancient Romans. But farmed seafood is bad, right? In the case of oysters, this is one of the rare occurrences where the farmed product is better tasting, higher quality and more beneficial to the environment than the wild-harvested variety. Oyster farming in Florida involves growing oysters from seed in bags or cages suspended in the water column. Since oysters are filter feeders, raising them off the bottom provides better access to phytoplankton and other small bits of algae. A full-grown oyster, which reaches harvest maturity in 6 to 18 months in Florida, can filter around 50 gallons of water per day while removing algal biomass, filtering silt, removing nitrogen for shell growth and depositing pseudofeces that become food for other organisms. Therefore, oysters can be a major part of the solution in cleaning up our waterways while also providing economic opportunities in aquaculture. This seems almost too good to be true. So why isn’t anyone in Northeast Florida farming oysters? To help answer this question, I spoke with Cainnon Gregg, owner of Pelican Oyster Company in Spring Creek, Florida. Gregg was born and raised in Jacksonville but has been farming oysters in Florida’s Forgotten Coast since 2018 after leaving his art career behind. According to Gregg, the biggest barriers to entry in Northeast Florida are: (1) the cost of nominating a lease site as an Aquatic Use Zone (AUZ); (2) the lack of a local oyster hatchery; and (3) the fact that oyster farming requires physical work, mostly in and on the water. Nominating an AUZ as an individual requires approvals from multiple governmental organizations; however, the state of Florida also could create AUZs, as they have done along Florida’s Forgotten Coast. In fact, the oyster industry is thriving in that region that stretches the coastline along the Gulf of Mexico to the south-southwest of Tallahassee. Despite being a born and raised Floridian, I had to look up the area when I first heard the name Forgotten Coast; it comes from the exclusion of this region in most of Florida’s tourism promotions. It’s the proverbial no-man’s land of the Panhandle before you reach the high-rise condos, Spring Break beaches and uber-wealthy beach communities at the western end of the state. However, the Forgotten Coast is rich in relatively new oyster farms as well as in the storied history of oyster harvesting in Apalachicola, which is at the westernmost end of this region. In the 19th and 20th centuries, oyster houses were a common sight in and around Jacksonville and the surrounding regions, as oysters were cheap and plentiful. Northeast Florida used to comprise the state’s second largest oyster harvesting region after Apalachicola. Oyster beds are still plentiful in this region, but they are not as robust or thriving as before. There are many factors that have contributed to this decline in the natural oyster reefs along with other marine life in Northeast Florida. While I applaud the efforts of organizations such as the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve, who have multiple programs dedicated to oyster research, monitoring and shoreline restoration with oyster shells, I feel that a local oyster hatchery supporting local oyster farmers and their oyster efforts is the most direct solution. Oyster farming is one of the most straightforward ways to rebuild our oyster population and marine ecosystem, given that every oyster seed we put back in the water is an additional one that wasn’t previously there. “Oysters are a keystone species,” says Gregg. “They are the beginning of the foodchain.” Another added benefit is that the invertebrate marine life like shrimp, crabs, barnacles and others find new homes and protection amongst the floating bags of oysters, which then attracts fish like sheepshead, black drum, mullet and redfish. Oyster farming is net-positive for the environment as seed from the farmed oysters also finds its way to the natural oyster reefs. Within the Northeast Florida region, only St. Johns County has an approved, albeit small, AUZ for shellfish, and it’s only being used for clams currently. However, there are a few marine regions that are open to wild oyster harvesting in St. Johns County. After a moratorium on shellfish harvesting in Duval County that has gone on for decades due to lack of water quality monitoring and questions about pollution levels, a section between Fort George and Big Talbot Island State Parks has recently been conditionally approved for shellfish harvesting. This seems promising for Duval, and I hope it is the first step forward. It is going to take more than the opening of small segments of waterways for shellfish harvesting in our region. In addition to developing an oyster farming industry, we need to educate local consumers about southern oysters, particularly the delicious, local resource that is Florida oysters. I grew up along the banks of the Tolomato River in Vilano Beach, and I fondly recall eating grilled and steamed oysters that our neighbors would harvest across the river in their jon boat, as well as the big oyster roasts at the St. Augustine Boating Club across the street. When I was young, the preferred way to serve local oysters was cooked, and that preference persists today. At my oyster bar, we source farm raised oysters from multiple seafood suppliers; however, these vendors generally favor oysters from the northeast parts of the US and Canada. I am always pushing for more farmed oysters from Florida, and thankfully they are starting to become more accessible. Some of our most vocal oyster customers are the ones who swore they will only eat cold water oysters, and now they are asking what we have from Florida. We are in the middle of an oyster renaissance because of farmed oysters, especially oysters raised in the south. The path to oyster farming in Northeast Florida isn’t going to be easy, but it’s not insurmountable. It is going to start with interested citizens and communities banding together and talking to our local and state representatives. Let’s bring the oyster industry back to our region. What’s the worst that can happen? More jobs, cleaner water and a stronger marine ecosystem? At the very least, maybe we’ll all have a chance to share some briny, plump, deep-cupped local oysters that just came out of our local waters.

Make an Okinawa spinach pesto spread and top with crumbled goat cheese for a satisfying warm weather meal. Photo by Mitch Wiisanen. Makes 2 sandwiches Ingredients For the Okinawa spinach pesto ½ cup chopped walnuts 2 cups Okinawa spinach, washed and dried thoroughly ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 cloves garlic, chopped Salt and pepper to taste For the grilled eggplant-corn salad 1 large eggplant, sliced into ½-inch-thick rounds 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 ears fresh corn 4 ounces crumbled goat cheese 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil ¼ teaspoon black pepper 4 slices bread or 2 pieces focaccia, split Instructions To make pesto: Toast walnuts in dry skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a food processor, pulse Okinawa spinach, toasted walnuts, Parmesan cheese and garlic until finely chopped. While food processor is running, slowly stream in olive oil until the pesto is a smooth consistency. To finish, season with salt and pepper to taste. To make grilled eggplant-corn salad : Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Brush sliced eggplant rounds with olive oil over rounds and season with salt and pepper. Grill eggplant around 4-5 minutes per side until tender and slightly charred. Grill corn on the cob, husk fully removed, until charred light brown, about 5-7 minutes. Cool grilled vegetables about 10 minutes. Chop eggplant into bite-size pieces. Remove corn kernels from cob. Place vegetables in large bowl and combine with goat cheese, parsley, basil and pepper. To assemble: Layer Okinawa spinach pesto on bottom slice of bread or focaccia. Add a half of cup of grilled eggplant summer corn salad on pesto and top with another slice of bread or focaccia.