Who: Me!
Where: The Merry Pier in Pass-A-Grille, Florida. More precisely, the North East Corner at the pilings.
What: Snapper. Mangos. Lot’s of ‘em. Most about a foot long.
When: Sunday, starting about 7 a.m. High tide was around 8:40, and the bite peaked around 10:30
How: Tossing hand picked live shrimp tail hooked (with the point buried to reduce snags) on a #2 hook WAY upcurrent (despite a 1/2 oz weight). The tide quickly swept the shrimp back to the pilings, where the mangrove snapper were waiting. I used a 2 foot florocarbon leader (30 lb - those barnicals are sharp!) and 15 lb mono. The hooks were from Owner.
Why: Simple. I finished fishing by noon, spent a few hours on the beach, then had some friends over for a fresh snapper dinner. A new recipe:
Spray a glass baking dish with a thin layer of Pam 100% extra virgin olive oil. Layer the botton of the pan with snapper fillets (in a single layer). Add some fresh ground sea salt and pepper. In a seperate dish, combine seasoned Italian breadcrumbs, small cooked bay shrimp, a dash of Paul Prudhomme’s seafood seasoning, and mayonnaise. Layer this over the snapper fillets, then add a layer of jumbo lump crabmeat. Lots! Finally, top with another layor of snapper fillets, spray on olive oil, add a dash of fresh paprika, and throw it in the oven. Good stuff!
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