Caribbean Shrimp & Rice

While most people are probably enjoying some traditional Memorial Day weekend BBQ food like cheeseburgers and hot dogs, I'm standing in my kitchen looking at a pound of raw shrimp with no game plan.  My first thought whenever I see shrimp is scampi...a buttery garlic heaven, one of my all-time favorite dishes served over pasta. Today is different though, the weather is nice and something is telling me to make a dish out of the ordinary...an entree my husband won't expect because I know for sure while he sits on the patio he's thinking I'm inside the kitchen making none other than my classic shrimp scampi. Well surprise, surprise!  I am not a one trick pony when it comes to shrimp!  I see a can of pineapple chunks in the pantry and I think Caribbean shrimp.  Minus the turquoise water and white sand beach it turned out very close to island cuisine with a little kick from the red pepper flakes and sweetness from the pineapple it was a success. here's my recipe:

1 lb raw shrimp, peeled
1 can pineapple chunks (8 oz)
1 red pepper, chopped
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tsp olive oil
8-10 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/2 lime
1 cup brown rice
1 cup frozen peas
2 tsp Caribbean jerk seasoning
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
salt & pepper to taste

Cook rice according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet saute the garlic, onions and red pepper in olive oil until softened.  Add pineapple chunks (reserve juice).  Brown the pineapple.  Add the shrimp and sprinkle with Caribbean seasoning, red pepper flakes and salt & pepper, squeeze lime juice over the shrimp.  Cook shrimp for about 4 minutes on each side until they turn orange in color. Steam the peas in the microwave for 2 minutes, drain water.  Add rice, pineapple juice, peas and tomatoes.  Serve & enjoy!

makes 2 servings

I don't know if there's anyone out there reading this blog but I wanted to update this and let you know I made this recipe again tonight (7/8/2013) and I added a can of black beans...it was a great addition!!

Salted Caramel Corn (Homemade Cracker Jack)

I have been eating handfuls of this since I made it....its extremely addicting! It satisfies both a sweet and salt craving while at the same time bringing your mind back to childhood memories of looking for a prize within the Cracker Jack box.  I am not responsible if you eat all of this in one day!

INGREDIENTS:
12 cups plain popped popcorn
2 cup pretzels
1 cup salted peanuts or pecans
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 - 2 teaspoons coarse salt (I prefer 2)
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda




DIRECTIONS:

preheat oven to 300' F.

Toss together the popcorn, pretzels and peanuts in a 9 x 13 pan

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, salt, corn syrup and butter; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking without stirring for 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and carefully stir in vanilla and baking soda.

Pour the salted caramel mixture over the popcorn, pretzel and peanut mixture and quickly stir together until all of the popcorn, pretzels and peanuts are coated with the caramel mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes stirring the mixture half way through the baking time.  Pour mix onto a large sheet of parchment paper to cool.  Pull apart into pieces and enjoy!  

Zucchini...the unexpected Side Dish

Don't be afraid of it, zucchini is a delicious vegetable.  There's lots of different ways to prepare it and lately this recipe seems to be my favorite.

My husband came home tonight with with steaks for dinner and I needed a quick and easy side dish to prepare.

Zucchini is inexpensive when its in season.  Go to a farmer's market mid-summer and you can find monster sized zucchinis for $0.50/each.  Non-summer, ALDI sells zucchini for $1.99 for 4-5 small zucchinis.  Oh, how I love that store!  Brief tangent ...I used to be a grocery store snob until I became a stay-at-home-mom and needed to tighten up my spending.  ALDI is awesome!  It is owned by Trader Joe's and I have saved so much money shopping there over the past year.  The produce is HALF the cost of Giant!  Once you get comfortable with the produce start trying some of their other products.  I haven't been disappointed with anything so far.

Okay, back to the zucchini.  This makes 2 servings (use your elementary math skills if you have a larger family or you're if you're serving guests)

1 1/2 small zucchinis chopped into quarter sized pieces (a little over 1 cup of zucchini)
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese
salt & pepper to taste


Saute the onions, zucchini and seasonings in the olive oil and butter until softened.  Add cheese and its ready to serve once the cheese melts.

Its the beginnings of a great zucchini pie recipe* but that takes more time and we're sticking to quick and easy on this one.

I served this with our grilled steaks and a baked sweet potato. Does your microwave have a "baked potato" button?? Mine does and it makes perfect baked potatoes.  Sweet potatoes do not need anything added to them!!

Our steaks were coated in olive oil and Montreal Seasoning. If you don't have this steak seasoning in your pantry you're steaks are missing out on some fine flavorings.

Dinner turned out great served with a Cabernet and my husband loved the zucchini.


*Super Easy Zucchini Pie ...
1 package crescent rolls
1 teaspoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

3 cups sliced zucchini
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
3 eggs
salt & pepper to taste

Open a package of crescent rolls and flatten with a rolling pin.  Press the dough into a pie pan. Same ingredients/instructions as above just different amounts.  Saute the onions and zucchini in a pan until softened.  Add the cheese & seasonings.  Once the cheese starts to melt, remove from heat and stir in three eggs. Place mixture in the pie pan, top with sliced tomatoes (optional).  Bake at 350' for 18 min or until the pie dough is a golden brown.  Let cool a few minutes before serving.  no longer a side dish, this time the zucchini takes center stage as the entree.

Salsa Chicken

This is one of the easiest recipes and yet still has a ton of great flavors.  Why go out for Mexican when you can make it at home??  One of the benefits of being a stay-at-home-mom is getting together with other moms and their children for playdates. What does a playdate have to do with this awesome chicken dish you're asking yourself...well, while my daughter was playing with one of her friends I noticed the ingredients for what looked like the beginning of a yummy dinner on the kitchen counter.  After hearing the explanation of the recipe I had to head to the grocery store and try it out myself. delicious!!! The spiciness can be easily controlled depending on the amount of hot sauce & jalapenos you use.  I am not a big fan of crockpot recipes but this one is a "winner winner chicken dinner"!!



in a crockpot add the following:
2-3 chicken breasts (thawed or frozen)
1 small jar of medium salsa (or 1 cup)
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 packet taco seasoning
1/4 cup - 1/2 cup jalapenos, chopped
2-3 tablespoons hot sauce
1 tsp ground cumin

cook on low for 5-6 hours, shred chicken by pulling apart with two forks
serve in soft tortillas or over rice or as a dip with tortilla chips
you can top with extras such as shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream, jalapenos

this recipe makes about 6 cups. I divided our leftovers into plastic containers and froze them so the next time we are hungry for salsa chicken it will be ready to go.

enjoy!!!

mine is shown served on a soft corn tortilla topped with shredded pepper jack cheese and salsa

Salted Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

I CAN'T stop eating these cookies!  I made them last night and they are soooo delicious!!!  They are a chewy, brownie-like texture with salt on the top and just a little crunch from the peanuts plus the extra burst of chocolate from the chocolate chips.  I wish I had some people to share them with so that I do not eat the entire batch of cookies myself!  Eating these cookies is like having peanut butter and chocolate angels dance on your tongue while the snack gods of salty and crunchy sing...they're that good!

The recipe can be found at http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/11/04/salted-double-chocolate-peanut-butter-cookies/print/