Shrimptastic

Hello blog,

Today, I went to a cooking class. It was hosted by a chef from one of the oldest (and famous) restaurants in our community. The menu included a shrimp appetizer. This got me started thinking about shrimp recipes.

The other night I whipped up a quick and easy shrimp dish. This is a great weekend dish or a "If I see another chicken dinner I will scream..." recipe. I call it "Shrimp Dish." Creative right? LOL

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add extra light olive oil (be sure to swirl the oil to coat the entire skillet. 1-2 tbs should do the trick. Saute 1/2 diced shallot and 1 tbs of minced or finely diced garlic until translucent. Next add 1 pound of peeled shrimp to the skillet. I like to clean the entire shrimp (deveined). I hate to see the little veins in the spine. UGH!!! Add a 1/2 cup of light olive oil, 1 tsp of finely chopped parsley (you can use dried) and a dash of garlic powder. Cook shrimp until pink (DO NOT OVER COOK).

I like to cook my rice or pasta before I start my shrimp. Sometimes I make a salad and skip the carbs.
Try linguine or angel hair. The other night I mixed 1 oz of linguine with 2 oz of spinach spaghetti. It makes a nice presentation. There are lots of low carb or wheat pastas available at the grocery store. Experiment with different brands until you find a favorite. Do not forget to calculate the calories per serving. NOTE: I find it best not to eat pasta before a weigh in- it never yields a good result for me.

After your shrimp is prepared toss it over the pasta. Use the leftover olive oil from the skillet to moisten your pasta. Sprinkle with 1 tsp finely shredded Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy a serving of 1 cup pasta and 1 cup shrimp per person. Add a salad with fresh veggies like chopped portabella mushrooms and red onion.

slice 4-6 slices of wheat baguette and brown the slices in the skillet using 1 tbs of grape seed oil. Serve bread on the side. Yummie.

(warning: Eating shellfish may be hazardous...make sure that you are not allergic and be sure to cook carefully. All of the recipes on my blog are for information purposes. Please modify to your specific taste or needs.)

Have a VEGGIE GREAT DAY!!!!
FitandSlim4ever.

Greens Greens Greens

Hello,

It has been ages since I wrote on my blog. What can I say? Life happens. I am still on WW and making steady progress. I am 3 dress sizes smaller since I started this blog. YEAH!!!

Today, I want to talk about GREENS. Collards, Mustard, Kale and other members of this vegetable family. Many people walk through the produce section of the grocery store and sneer at the GREENS. Why are people afraid to tackle GREENS? Is it because they think that GREENS are hard to prepare?
I used to think that GREENS had to be cooked for hours with pork or turkey seasoning before they were edible. The days of GREENS loaded with salt are gone.

Out with the old and in with the new.

I am happy to report that you can prepare easy dishes made of GREENS in under thirty minutes.  I created the following recipe for Collard Greens Casserole. It is easy to make and veggielicious.

Ingredients:

1 large bag pre-washed collard greens
1 cup bread crumbs
1 cup crispy onions
1 cup low skim mozzarella
1 tbs season salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 cup half and half
2 garlic cloves
1 shallot
1/4 cup extra light olive oil
1 glass pie plate

Mince garlic and shallot.  Saute garlic and shallots in extra virgin olive oil until tender and translucent. Add collard greens and cook until greens are tender and soft. (approximately 10 minutes at medium heat)  Add garlic powder, onion powder, season salt and pepper.  Next add half and half and turn heat on low. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Mix onions and bread crumbs together. (make sure to mash onions until they look like the bread crumbs) Spread the crumb mixture across the bottom of the plate like a pie crust. Add collards (I like to use tongs) .Spread the collards evenly over the pie crust.  Sprinkle mozzarella cheese and 1tbs of crispy onions over the collards.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Enjoy.

Tip: Try cooking some greens. Let your imagination soar.

Go green and have a VEGGIE GREAT DAY,
FitandSlim4ever