SHOW & RECIPE FOR FEB. 17

A LIFETIME OF WANDERLUST
Longtime Houston chef Joe Mannke took his first breaths in a country that doesn't exist anymore - Pomerania, a place long German, now a part of Poland. But in the years since, he has traveled and cooked on nearly every continent. His new autobiography with recipes, titled Wanderlust, is his intriguing personal story with the dishes that make it even more so.

A BIT OF POLO
Chef Polo Baccera has been a semi-discovered treasure of the Houston dining scene for some years now. With the opening of his new restaurant, he not only kicks his own cooking up a notch but seeks a wider audience for all he's about. Polo joins us in the studio to tell us all about it.

AUSTRALIA BY WAY OF FRANCE
Roman Bratasiuk's name doesn't sound Australian OR French, but his incredible wines are a dazzling taste of both. Roman happens to be Australian, and that's where he makes his wines. But he is so enamored of the wines of France that his style is primarily French. Try a bottle of Clarendon Hills before or after today's Grape & Grain segment, and you'll see what we mean.

This Week's Delicious Mischief Recipe...
SEARED YELLOWTAIL SNAPPER
WITH SHRIMP-CELERY ROOT CROQUETTE

Croquette:
1 pound celery root, peeled and quartered
1 Yukon gold potato, peeled
2 quart chicken stock
1 ½ pounds peeled and deveined raw shrimp
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
6 eggs, beaten
3 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil

1 fresh coconut, peeled and cut from shell
2 cups shrimp stock
1/6 cup light soy sauce
3 tablespoons ginger juice
1 tablespoon jalapeno juice
½ tablespoon garlic juice
1/6 cup cilantro juice
6 (6-7 ounce) snapper fillets, preferably skin on
Garnishes: grilled scallop, lump crabmeat, chopped bok choy (optional)

Cook the celery root and potato in the chicken stock until tender, 35-45 minutes. Let cool and puree in a blender or food processor. Add the shrimp and puree to thoroughly incorporate. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Form the puree into croquettes using a ring mold, then dip in sequence into flour, egg and breadcrumbs. Heat grapeseed oil in a pan and saute the croquettes until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side.

To make the sauce, puree the coconut meat in the shrimp stock, then add the soy and all the juices. Mix well. Heat in a pan but do not boil, to preserve the fresh flavors. Saute the snapper with the skin side down for 6 minutes, then turn and complete cooking, 4-6 minutes more. To serve, ladle the sauce onto the bottom of a bowl, position croquette on the sauce and lean the snapper against the croquette. Garnish other seafoods or vegetables if desired. Serves 6.