Shrimp and Grits

We're loving shrimp right now.  Especially when you buy it frozen at $5 a pound, whoohoo!  Give this one a try, even if you think you don't like grits (as my sweetheart thought before he tried this dish)!  It is killer delicious, relatively healthy (look for "Lite Polska Kielbasa" made by Hillshire Farms) and comes together so quickly.  You won't regret this one! 

1 Tbsp. canola oil

1 turkey kielbasa sausage, sliced into rounds

2 scallions, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced

Salt and black pepper to taste

1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/2 c. quick-cooking grits

1/4 c. shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Heat oil in a large cast-iron skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat until lightly smoking.  Add kielbasa; cook a few minutes, until lightly browned.  Add scallions, garlic, and mushrooms.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until mushrooms are lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes.  Add shrimp and continue cooking until shrimp are just pink and firm to the touch.  Stir in broth and cook another 3 minutes, until liquid has reduced by half and shrimp are fully cooked.  Meanwhile, cook grits according to package directions, salting generously.  When thick and creamy, add cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Divide grits and shrimp mixture among 4 bowls.

Shrimp Rolls

Delicious, easy, quick (cooked, eaten, and cleaned up in 20 minutes), reasonably priced, and easy to make for just one or two if you buy frozen shrimp and portion out.  We bought "Extra Large" frozen shrimp (31-40 per pound... Not large by this girl's standards, but whatevs.  $5/lb is fine with me) and portioned 6 shrimp per roll.  These are an excellent summer dish when you want something light with a little mayo, but not your greasy, nasty, overloaded-with-mayo potato salad.  Give these a shot - you won't regret it!  

1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

2 celery hearts, diced

1/4 c. minced red onion

2 Tbsp. mayonnaise

1-2 Tbsp. lemon juice

Salt to taste

4 high-quality hot dog buns, toasted

Bring a small pot of water to boil.  Drop in shrimp, remove from heat, and let sit for 6-8 minutes.  When shrimp are pink and firm to the touch, drain and cool.  Mix together remaining ingredients.  Divide the shrimp mixture among the hot dog buns and serve immediately. 

Italian Subs

Sooo yummy.  Sinfully delicious and insanely easy.  Just pick up a few deli meats (it's way cheaper than getting 4 packages of presliced meats, since you only need 1/4 lb. of each) and a loaf of french bread, and you're pretty much on your way.  LOVE this recipe!  (We skipped the onions, but feel free to stick 'em in if you like.  Also, we added WAY more vinegar than oil.  Yum!) 


1/2 large onion, thinly sliced

12-inch loaf soft Italian bread

5 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/4 lb. deli-sliced provolone cheese

1/4 lb. deli-sliced Genoa salami

1/4 lb. deli-sliced boiled ham

1/4 lb. deli-sliced mortadella

1/4 lb. deli-sliced capicola

1/2 head iceberg lettuce, finely shredded

1/4 to 1/2 c. pickled banana peppers (optional)

3 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced

1-1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Soak the onion slices in a large bowl of cold water, 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, split the bread lengthwise, then pull out some of the bread from the inside.  Mix together olive oil, vinegar, and oregano; sprinkle half over the bottom of the bread.  Season with salt and pepper.  Layer cheese and meat on bread.  Drain onion and pat dry.  Top the meat with the onion, lettuce, banana peppers, and tomatoes. Season generously with salt and pepper.  Drizzle the cut side of the bread top with the remaining oil-vinegar mixture, then place on top of the sandwich.  Cut into 4 pieces.

Spaghetti and Seriously Awesome Meatballs.

Try them.  SOOOO worth your time.  Serve with any pasta you like - but I prefer Dreamfields (super healthy and low carb without tasting low carb!).   If you like, add a handful of grated Parmesan to meatball mix.

1¼ lbs. ground sirloin
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 egg, beaten 
1/2 c. Italian bread crumbs, a couple of handfuls 
1/4 yellow onion, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, chopped 
Salt and pepper 
1/2-1 c. beef stock
1 jar spaghetti sauce (whichever brand you prefer)

Mix beef and Worcestershire, egg, bread crumbs, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Roll meat into 1½-inch medium-sized meatballs.  Heat a medium pan over medium-high heat.  Brown meatballs on all sides (no oil needed).  When sufficiently brown, add beef stock, cover, and allow to steam 10 minutes or until brown all the way through.  Add spaghetti sauce and allow to warm through.  Serve over hot cooked spaghetti.

Loaded Mashed Potatoes

Absolutely. Delicious.  Seriously - you need to give these a try.  If you're not into the individual ramekins you can always just put it into one smaller baking dish and have everyone dish up for themselves.  Also, while I'm usually opposed to the kind of dishes you have to cook once and then cook again, this is totally worth it.  It's not that big of an effort.  Plus, you can totally make these ahead and refrigerate them until you're ready to bake, which is extra nice if you're dealing with company.  Besides, the presentation is gorgeous!  One side note on bacon: if you're concerned about the horrible-ness of bacon, especially its fat content - check out Center Cut Bacon.  I was shocked to learn that 3 (count 'em, THREE!!!) pieces of cooked, center-cut bacon only have 8% of your daily saturated fat content!  (a.k.a., each slice is 1/3 the fat of a normal slice.)  Compare that with 1/4 c. shredded cheddar jack cheese, which has 30%!!!  Bacon is NOT that bad!  Especially when you're spreading it across 4-6 servings... seriously!  Especially for the flavor boost.  Give it a shot!

Finally, I only give the ingredients without the specific measurements because most people know how to make mashed potatoes, and some people like them thinner while others like 'em thicker.  It's up to you.  Make them how you like them, then add in the toppings... you'll love them!  Comfort food at its finest.

Loaded Mashed Potatoes

4-6 large russet potatoes, peeled, cubed

Milk

Butter

Sour cream

Shredded cheddar jack cheese

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2-3 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled

Chives, snipped

Preheat oven to 350° F.  In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook potatoes until fork-tender.  Drain water and return potatoes to warm pan.  Allow to dry a few minutes, then add milk, butter, sour cream, 1/2 c. cheese, salt, and pepper to taste.  Mash to desired consistency.  In 4-6 buttered ramekins, spoon 1 serving of mashed potatoes.  Sprinkle more cheese, crumbled bacon, and snipped chives over top.  Place ramekins on a lined baking sheet.  Bake for 5-8 minutes, or until cheese is hot and melted.  

Lemony Shrimp Scampi Pasta

I love Shrimp Scampi, but I could never find one that didn't include a ton of butter or white wine (which I don't like to buy because I hardly ever use it, so it's kind of a waste of money).  This is SUCH a delicious dish, and is really quite healthy!  Be sure you add the pasta back to the sauce and let it fully absorb before you serve it.  Also, if you have large cloves of garlic, you can cut it down to 3-4.  6 large cloves is quite a lot!  Finally, when you make the shrimp stock, save half of it and freeze to use next time.  The second preparation goes a lot quicker that way.  :)  Serve with a green salad or some roasted broccoli.  Delish!  There are never any leftovers in my house!  Up the "healthy" factor by using whole wheat or Dreamfields pasta, and turn down the butter just a bit.  Such a great dish overall!  Give it a try - you'll be SO glad you did!

Lemony Shrimp Scampi Pasta

6 garlic cloves, pressed or grated

2 lemons, zested and juiced

5 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3/4 pound medium shrimp (21 to 25), peeled, deveined and butterflied (reserve shells)

1/4 onion

3/4 lb. thin linguini

2 Tbsp. butter

1 small bunch parsley, leaves chopped

In a bowl, combine the garlic, zest and juice of 1 lemon, olive oil, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, to taste, and the shrimp. Set aside.

Meanwhile make a quick shrimp stock: In a small pot, over medium heat, add the shrimp shells and onion.  Cover with water and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.  Strain into a bowl and discard the shells and the onion.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and add a generous amount of salt.  Add the linguini and cook until just tender, 2 minutes less than instructed on the package.  Drain and reserve 1/2 c. cooking water.

Heat a skillet over high heat.  Add the shrimp and cook until they turn pink and start to caramelize, about 3 minutes.  Remove the shrimp from the pan to a plate and add the remaining marinade.  Let cook a few minutes then add about 1 cup of shrimp stock and about 1/2 cup pasta water.  Continue to cook until sauce reduces by half.  Add the zest and juice of the remaining lemon, the butter and the parsley and stir to combine.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.  Add in the shrimp and pasta and toss to combine with the sauce.  Turn out into a serving bowl and serve immediately.  

Shrimp Lo Mein

We loved this because it is so reasonably priced (check Walmart's frozen section for raw shrimp that is already deveined and butterflied - around $6 a pound!) and chock full of vegetables, which I love.  Also, if you use Dreamfields pasta (available at Smith's or Kroger), it becomes even healthier.  The garlic, ginger and scallions give it tons of flavor in a healthy way, and the little bit of soy sauce and oyster sauce give it tons of flavor without sacrificing the healthy aspect.  Be sure you use a large skillet and add the pasta back into the skillet after it's cooked - it makes a big difference!.

Shrimp Lo Mein

12 oz. lo mein noodles
1 Tbsp. peanut or vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
2 scallions, whites and greens separated, chopped
3-4 medium carrots, cut into thin slices
1 red bell pepper, sliced
4 oz. shiitake mushrooms
3/4 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce

Prepare noodles according to package instructions.  In a wok or large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.  When oil is lightly smoking, add garlic, ginger, and scallion whites, and stir fry for 30 seconds, until lightly golden.  Add carrots, bell pepper, and mushrooms, and continue cooking for 3 to 4 minutes, using a metal spatula to keep the vegetables in near-constant motion.  Toss in shrimp and cook until just pink and slightly firm.  Add cooked noodles, oyster sauce, and soy sauce to the pan.  Cook for 1-2 minutes more, until the sauce is thickened and covers the noodles in a light sheen.  Divide the mixture among 4 plates and garnish with scallion greens.