Shrimp Salad On Cucumber Slices

One of my new favorite sites to get recipes from is Skinnytaste.com.  There are lots healthy recipes that actually taste delicious!  I picked a couple to try out on the bunco girls.  This was a winner!  Super easy too!  Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2010/08/shrimp-salad-on-cucumber-slices.html

Shrimp Rolls with Homemade Potato Chips

These were so good.  The recipe comes together quickly and you probably have the ingredients on hand.  I am looking forward to making these in the summer!  Very refreshing.

The recipe calls for a pound of cooked, shelled shrimp.  I personally think the precooked shrimp tastes very bland.  I always have a bag of uncooked, frozen shrimp in the freezer, so I pour half the 2 pound bag into a bowl of warm water while I am getting all the other ingredients out.  Then I take off the tails and put them on a paper towel to get the water off of them.  I find the best way to cook shrimp is to put them on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Roast in the oven at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

These shrimp are good  if you chill them and serve them with cocktail sauce too!!  YUM.

Here are the ingredients that make the "shrimp salad."  If you have never used Greek yogurt, you should.  It is awesome and I can use it for lots of things.  I substitute it for sour cream all the time.  You can add fruit and granola to it for a quick and healthy breakfast.  YUM.  My son loves it with a scoop of strawberry jam as a snack.  

These are all things you probably have on hand (minus the yogurt).  I always have it on hand.  They now sell Greek yogurt at costco, which makes me very happy!  Oh did I mention it is good for you?

Once you mix all your ingredients with the cooled shrimp.  You put a lid on it and place it in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

I can hear the Bunco girls teasing me now..."you know you can buy a bag of chips for a few bucks."  :)  Yes, I know this.  I am not really a chip eater though.  I love oven fries and potato wedges, but chips are not my favorite.  I do find the kids get huge smiles when they think they are getting "junk" we don't usually buy.  

Chips are very easy to make.  Use a mandoline to slice the potatoes 1/8-in thick.  Season with oil, salt and pepper (or whatever seasoning you like), and bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

Take some whole wheat hot dog buns and brush them with olive oil.  Place them in a grill pan and toast them until grill marks appear.  Fill with shrimp mixture.

Yum!  

Serve with homemade chips.  Yes, mine are slightly overcooked!  lol  I think next time I will slice them thicker!  Or pay attention!!  

Shrimp Roll

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup nonfat plain Greek-style yogurt 
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped scallion green (about 1 scallion)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 pound cooked, shelled medium shrimp
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 whole-wheat hot dog buns
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Directions

If using regular yogurt, place it in a strainer lined with paper towel and set the strainer over a bowl. Let the yogurt drain and thicken for 20 minutes. 

In a bowl, stir together the thickened or Greek-style yogurt, mayonnaise, celery, scallion and lemon juice. Fold in the shrimp and season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Chill until ready to use.

Just before serving, open the hot dog buns and brush the inside with olive oil. Heat a grill pan over moderately high heat and grill the bread, cut side down, until toasted, about 3 minutes. Fill each with 3/4 cup of the shrimp mixture and serve immediately. 

Roasted Shrimp with Feta

Yes, there ARE shrimp under there!  :)  I forgot to take a pic of it served up.  This dish is a definite replay at our house.  My husband and I loved it.  The kids would have if I didn't mistake a can of diced tomatoes with chilis for regular diced tomatoes...oops.  BUT it was a delicious mistake most adults would enjoy!

The full recipe is at the end of this post.

I substituted regular onions for fennel since I didn't have any on hand.  It was just fine with onions sauted in olive oil.

Add garlic and cook for one minute more.

Add wine and let it reduce.  Then add tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt and pepper to the skillet.  Simmer 10-15 minutes.

Add shrimp.  It said to leave the tails on and I did, but next time I will take them off.  I don't see the sense in it.  I'd rather not have to wipe my hands 5 times when eating my dish.  

Cover with feta cheese.

Mix bread crumbs, parsley and lemon zest with olive oil and sprinkle over the shrimp and feta.  Bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

Squeeze lemon juice over shrimp when you take it out of the oven. 

ROASTED SHRIMP WITH FETA

adapted from The Barefoot Contessa's "How Easy is That?" cookbook

Serves 4
4 tablespoons good olive oil, divided
1 1/2 cups medium-diced fennel (1 bulb) ...I used onion.
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained ...I used diced tomatoes with green chilis.
2 teaspoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon Pernod ...couldn't find it, so just omitted it.
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
12 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 pounds (16 to 20) shrimp, peeled and deveined with the tails left on ...next time leave them on.
5 ounces feta cheese, coarsely crumbled
1 cup fresh bread crumbs ...I used progresson Italian bread crumbs.
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 lemons

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in 10- or 12-inch heavy ovenproof skillet over medium-low heat. Add the fennel and garlic and sauté for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender. Add the wine and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits clinging to the bottom of the skillet, and cook until the liquid is reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, Pernod, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to the skillet. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes.

4. Arrange the shrimp artfully in one layer over the tomato mixture in the skillet. Scatter feta evenly over the shrimp. In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs, parsley, and lemon zest with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle evenly over the shrimp.

5. Bake the shrimp for about 15 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through and the bread crumbs are golden brown. Squeeze the juice of 1 lemon over the shrimp. Serve hot with wedges of lemon.

Shrimp in Saffron Broth and Couscous with Golden Raisins

Are you ready to try something new?  This is a great dish to try.  I am working my way through my Martha Stewart Dinner at Home cookbook.  My whole family enjoyed this dish (kids included).  Lets just get right to it!

Chop two cups fennel bulb and one cup carrots.  Heat a saute pan and add 1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil, add the chopped veggies and 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads.  I got mine at Trader Joe's.  Cook for about 4 minutes. 

Season 1 1/2 pounds of peeled and deveined shrimp (about 21-25 count).  Add them to the pan and cook for one minute, then turn them over.  Add 1/2 cup dry white wine and 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock.

On another burner cook Israeli couscous.  Add golden raisins, salt, pepper and a tablespoon of unsalted butter.

Serve shrimp, veggies and broth over the couscous.

Enjoy!!

You can find the recipe's here:  www.marthastewart.com

Shrimp Shau Mai and Mushroom Dumplings

 

My 5 year old, Marcus, LOVES dumplings.  This came about after a trip to House of Kobe for my birthday, followed by Kung Fu Panda.  There is a previous post of Kung Fu Panda night on my blog.  The boys loved it!  So from time to time, I will endure making homemade dumplings to make my boys happy.  Here is how you can enjoy them too:

Start by sauteing onions and mushrooms that you have finely chopped.  I used a food chopper this time around to chop up all of my ingredients and it went a lot faster.  Wish I used it the first time around!  This mushroom saute is for the mushroom dumplings.

Add cheese, chives, parsley, salt and pepper.  Allow to cool.

For the shrimp dumplings, you chop water chestnuts, scallions and shrimp.  Mix them in a bowl so that the ingredients are evenly distributed.

Here is the steamer I use.  (I cannot get the picture to post right side up...again.  Thanks blogger.)  Anyway, you place this onto a wok with water in the bottom and it steams whatever you are cooking inside.

I line the steamer with cheese cloth.  I just cut it to fit the inside of the bamboo steamer.  Next time I will spray it with pam.  If you remove them right away they don't stick, but if they lose the steam underneath they start to stick...very quickly.

Here is a look at everything set up and ready to start the dumplings.  I use wanton wrappers that you can purchase in the grocery store in the produce area.

Here is a look at the dumplings with about a teaspoon of mushroom into the middle.  Take a brush and dip into water and wet around the outside of the square so that they will adhere when you fold it over.

Fold into a triangle and gently press the edges to seal the ingredients inside.

Wet the outside of the triangle and press the ends together.

Place them into the steamer.

Here are the bamboo steamers filled with dumplings.

This is what it looks like after it has been steamed for 6-8 minutes.

I cooked brown rice and heated a steamer bag filled with stir fry veggies to serve with it.  I have a microwavable rice cooker, so all I have to do is put the ingredients inside and start the microwave.  Super easy.  I added sat, pepper, ginger and soy sauce.

To cook the shrimp dumplings I put them into a pot of chicken broth to cook, along with broccoli and mushrooms I sliced.  I also boiled cellophane noodles to serve in the soup....since that is what Marcus wanted.

Here is how it all came together.

The Shrimp Shau Mai recipe came from http://www.marthastewart.com/.  She has them steamed and served with a sauce.  We did that last time, so I changed it a bit.  The Mushroom Dumplings came from Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home cookbook.

Linguine With Shrimp Scampi

This is a delicious and easy meal that never disappoints!  I always have frozen shrimp in the freezer (not the cooked ones).  To thaw them I dump the shrimp into a stainless bowl of hot water and let them sit there while I get the pasta water boiling and into the pot. 

After getting the shrimp in the bowl, I realized I only had 1/4 of a package of linguine.  So, I decided to call it "crazy pasta night" and added all the little bits of each kind of pasta I had in the pantry bins.  I used linguine, bow tie, and cavatappi.  The kids thought it was hilarious.  This recipe is another Barefoot Contessa recipe.  One of the first I learned to make by memory because we had it often! 

 

In a separate pan you add olive oil and butter. Saute the garlic and then add the shrimp (don't forget to take the tails off!). Season with salt and pepper. Add lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon slices (I forgot this one!) and parsley. Drain pasta and put into the pan with the shrimp scampi. Combine and add parmasean cheese (I added this). The kids like freshly grated paremsan on everything! A little goes a long way when you grate it fresh!

 

You can put it in a nice serving dish when you have guests over and it looks fantastic.  Since it was just the kids and I it stayed in the pan on a trivet on the table.

 

Git it a try!

This used to be my oldest son's FAVORITE meal from 3 years old to probably 7 years old...then he switched to salmon. lol. Everyone always asks me how I get my kids to eat so healthy and not have to cook a separate meal. I'm gonna let you in on it...THERE IS NO OTHER OPTION. What is on the plate is what is for dinner. I actually went to my son's pediatrician when he was 2 years old and asked what I should do, he told me exactly that. I listened, and never made a separate meal again. Will there be whining? Yes. Will there be nights they don't eat dinner? In the beginning, yes. But when they see they are not getting to place their special order, they go with the flow.  They will live. Trust me!

Linguine With Shrimp Scampi

Barefoot Contessa (Family Style Cookbook, p 106)

Serves 6

Ingredients

Vegetable oil  (I used olive oil)

1 tablespoon kosher salt plus 1 1/2 teaspoons
3/4 pound linguine  (I used a few different kinds!)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 1/2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic (4 cloves)
1 pound large shrimp (about 16 shrimp), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/2 lemon, zest grated
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/4 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds  (totally forgot to do this!  lol)
1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes   (left this out)

Directions

Drizzle some oil in a large pot of boiling salted water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the linguine, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or according to the directions on the package.

Meanwhile, in another large (12-inch), heavy-bottomed pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute. Be careful, the garlic burns easily! Add the shrimp, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, and the pepper and saute until the shrimp have just turned pink, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat, add the parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon slices, and red pepper flakes. Toss to combine.

When the pasta is done, drain the cooked linguine and then put it back in the pot. Immediately add the shrimp and sauce, toss well, and serve.

Roasted Shrimp with Quinoa Blackbean Salad and Broccoli

Are you saying, "what is quinoa?"

"Quinoa is pronounced as KEEN-WAH.  Quinoa is 100% whole grain and is close to being a perfect food source in the balance of nutrition it provides. Technically it's not a grain but the seed of a leafy plant related to spinach. Quinoa is an excellent source of protein - 12% to 18%" (source: quinoarecipes.com).

Go to link http://www.quinoarecipes.com/index.html for more information and fantastic recipes that use quinoa. 

My all time favorite quinoa recipe is Quinoa Black Bean Salad from Clean Eating Magazine.  I will post the recipe at the end for you to try for yourself! 

My 9 year old loves the quinoa so much he will even take it to school. It can be served hot, at room temperature or chilled. It is good any way you want it!

I roasted shrimp in the oven for this meal.  I had seen Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa) do it on one of her shows and I had the cookbook on hand to get the accurate oven temp.  It is so easy!  And you don't have to stand over the shrimp watching them so they don't overcook, or even flip them!  Place your shrimp on a sheet pan.  Sprinkle with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and make sure they are evenly coated.  Place sheet pan in a 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.  Take them out and they are PERFECT!!!

I also steamed fresh broccoli as a side.  Delish!! 

Give it a try.  This is so good for you and will be a winner for anyone you cook it for.  You can even entertain them with some fun quinoa facts! 

Quinoa Black Bean Salad
serves 6

Ingredients
1 cup quinoa, washed and drained  (mine is prepackaged, so I skip this)
2 cups water  (I used chicken broth, I think it adds more flavor)
1/4 cup olive oil  (oops, just realized I forgot this..still was good!)
Juice of 2 fresh limes  (I used lemon, that was what I had in the fridge)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes  (I usually omit this because of the kids, and did so today)
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes cut in half  (I substituted sundried tomatoes, the fresh ones are better in this recipe for sure, but it was still good!)
5 green onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
Wash and rinse quinoa.  In a saucepan, bring quinoa and water to a boil.  Reduce to simmer, cover and cook until all the water is absorbed, about 10-15 minutes.  Let cool.  (I like it served warm.)

In a bowl, whisk together olive oil, lime juice, cumin and red pepper flakes.  (I told you I forgot the EVOO and omitted the flakes.)

Combine quinoa, beans, tomatoes and onions in a large bowl.

Drizzle dressing over salad and toss in cilantro.  Season with salt and pepper.