Eat. With. Hands

Some foods are just meant to be eaten with your hands. They taste better that way.

You know, the kind you eat with the full intention of licking your fingers. It's food that forces you to abandon the thought of keeping your hands clean or free from food smells like garlic and onions.

You're eating dirty and it's okay.

Really okay. It's part of the appeal.

Chicken wings, burgers, summer things made on the grill like hot dogs, chicken, ribs and seafood boils...

Which leads me to this....

These succulent shrimp, they wanted to come home with me. I obliged. I steamed them with some Old Bay and then we at them up. But that wasn't enough. Nope. I needed more. WE needed more. 

We devoured them and with the shrimp bits yet under our nails, we locked eyes. I said it first. 

"We need some more of these."

Inspired by the impending summer and outdoorsy food I wanted to make a boil-inspired dish. However, we didn't have potatoes or corn cobs, but my husband said, "We do have sweet potatoes."

And that settled it. I diced them up along with some peppers and onions, roasted them together with spices creating a hash. Then, in a skillet I charred some frozen corn and onions.  These veggies made a nice comfortable bed for the shrimp. A final resting place. 

Ingredients

Shrimp

Old Bay Seasoning

Sweet Potatoes

Green Pepper

Red Pepper

Onions

Frozen Corn

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

Red Pepper Flakes

Granulated Garlic 

Shrimp:

Clean your shrimp. I left the shell on for the peel-and-eat fun. But you could remove them prior to cooking if you don't want your hands dirty and would like to eat the meal with a fork. Season liberally with Old Bay. Toss in pot and steam. I have a makeshift steamer. I put my metal colander inside of a soup pot that has water in it and let the steam cook the shrimp. If you don't have that, you could surely just toss them in a pot with a little water and do the same. 

Hash:

Dice your peppers, potatoes and onions. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic and toss them all in a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Just enough to coat the veggies. Spread them on a cookie sheet and bake at 425 for about 25 minutes. 

Corn:

Dice up a small onion. Toss it in a skillet that's coated with olive oil. Add your corn. Sautee on high heat until the corn is charred to your likeness. 

Combine your corn and hash if you'd like. It's all so good and you can eat that part with fork. :)

Grits and things

Some weekends, I take really good care of myself.

I get plenty of rest, eat a big breakfast and feed myself luxurious lunches like this.

I make just what I want and just enough for me... not enough to share.

It's okay to be stingy with your shrimp & grits with garlicy braised spinach, they taste better that way.

Ingredients

Grits

Shrimp

Frozen Chopped Spinach

Butter

Garlic (minced)

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

Red Pepper Flakes 

Cream

1. Season your shrimp with salt, pepper, garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

2. Put on a small pot of water for your grits. Bring to a boil. Salt the water!

3. In a small pan saute your spinach with minced garlic. Let any water evaporate and toss in a tablespoon of butter. Remove from heat once the butter has melted. Set aside.

4. Drop your grits into the boiling water. Follow package instructions for the number of servings you want.

Stir immediately so they don't clump. Toss in 2 tablespoons of butter. Keep stirring. When they come to a slow simmer turn them on low and go get the shrimp.

5. Now place the spinach in a separate dish and reheat that small pan for your shrimp. Toss in one table spoon of butter to coat the pan. Once it melts cook the shrimp until they are no longer translucent. Remove from heat.

6. Back to the grits, keep stirring. They should be rather thick. this is when I add about a half cup of cream (milk will work too) and stir it all in. Once it's absorbed, you can dish it up.

7. Serve it with the grits on the bottom and top with your spinach and shrimp.

Spring Pasta

Sometimes a meal just floats around in my head for a while before I actually make it.

This one did.

Yes, I daydream of food. I fantasize about flavors. This is just who I am.

That being said, I decided the frozen shrimp in the freezer, the angel hair pasta in the pantry and a jar of Bertolli Vodka sauce in my fridge really needed to get better acquainted. I've just been too busy to introduce them.

Last night, I stopped being so selfish and organized a meeting. They just loved each other. They got along so well and my tastebuds were rewarded for being so kind.

Swiss Chard in Rice

Rice.

It's so reliable and very supportive. 

No matter what, you can trust it to back you up.

I prepared this recipe for some clients recently. It's called Swiss Chard Rice with Peas and Toasted Almonds. That's a long name, I know, but the dish is simple and fresh and light. We just loved it. 

I bought some Swiss Chard to recreate the dish at home for myself, but of course, I couldn't just leave the recipe as is. I added smoked turkey sausage, onions and shrimp. Delish!

Ingredients

Rice

Onions (Diced)

Chard (rough chopped)

Peas

Turkey Sausage (sliced)

Shrimp 

1. Cook your rice, set aside and let it cool. Fluff with a fork to make sure the grains separate and cool. Otherwise, if you leave them in the pot, the heat will keep cooking  your rice, it'll get mushy and stick together. 

2. In a sautee pan, with a little olive oil, cook onions and sausage. Let the sausage brown a bit and the onions soften. 

3. Add the chard and let it wilt and darken. 

4. Toss in the peas, I use frozen peas. At this point add some salt and pepper. 

5. Season your shrimp. 

6.  Add the shrimp, letting them cook for about 2 minutes. 

7. Now add the rice to the skillet and fold it all together. Let it warm all the way through. 

8. It's ready to eat.

Shrimp Stir Fry

It's spring now. Isn't that exciting?! 

Feels good, the weather is getting nicer and the sun lingers in the sky a little bit longer each day.

I don't mind it one bit. 

And since I like to be outside more during this time of year (even if I'm just walking through the mall parking lot), my meals are quick fixes, or things I can make in a short, lil itty bit of time.

This stir fry is one of those things. 

I didn't even bother to make any rice. In and out, that's the goal. 

Ingredients

Broccoli

Carrots

Shrimp

Butter

Salt, Pepper, Garlic

1. Rinse off your produce, get the carrots peeled up too. 

2. Chop up the broccoli and carrot.

3. Heat a skillet, toss in a tablespoon of butter. =)

5. Season the shrimp in a separate bowl with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

6. Back in the skillet, when the butter is melted, saute the veggies until the color brightens, you don't want to cook them to mush, just heat them up and let the carrots get very slightly tender. It's good for these to maintain their bite!

7. Now toss in your shrimp. It'll only take 2-3 minutes for the shrimp to curl up and turn opaque. 

Ta da!

Jumbo Stuffed Mushroom

Whenever I go out to eat, I'm the last one at the table to order. Seeing a menu full of choices overwhelms me, because I love so many things it's hard for me to focus on just ONE dish. But there are some ingredients that immediately draw my eyes.

BACON

CREAM

CHEESE

AVOCADO

TROUT

SHRIMP

MUSHROOMS

One day I was moseying along through the Farmer's Market and these large portobello mushrooms caught my eye. I had to have them and when I got these fellas home I decided to stuff them, to the best of my ability, with some of my favorite things. Anything that wouldn't fit got eaten prematurely.

It was an exercise in selfish because no one else in my house would eat them, but I didn't mind.

Ingredients
Whatever you want!
Some Mushrooms

1. Cook your stuffing first, especially if you're using proteins like shrimp, bacon or sausage (as I did)
2. Brush your mushroom with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper
3. Stack your filling inside and bake for 15- 20 minutes, long enough for everything to heat thoroughly and your cheese to melt.

Pepper Lime Shrimp Salad

When the weather breaks it's definitely time for salads. Standing over the good ole range is not as enjoyable when it's already 90 degrees outside. So expect to see many more salads coming up. There are just so very many ways to make one of these things.
This one features Spinach leaves and Shrimp. Delightful!

Spicy Shrimp & Grits

My husband was out of town this weekend. I anticipated a couple days of relaxation and some pre-spring cleaning. That's about it. But on my way home Friday I got the urge to get some seafood. He doesn't eat it, so I rarely buy any. I ususally get my fish fix when we dine out. And occasionally I'll buy some frozen filets to prepare at home. Friday I bought some shrimp too.

Then, Saturday morning something remarkable happened. I made shrimp and grits. They were soul stirring. The grits were creamy and smooth and the shrimp were succulent and tender with a slightly charred exterior. It was perfection.

Ingredients
Shrimp
Grits
Heavy Cream
Onions
Chorizo
Provolone Cheese
Butter
Spices (Cayenne, Garlic Powder, Salt, Red Pepper Flakes)
BBQ Sauce

1. Bring water to a boil for your grits, add half stick of butter.
2. Season shrimp with red pepper flakes and bbq sauce.
3. Add grits to water and stir faithfully. We can't let these get lumpy!
4. In a separate pan saute some chopped onion and sausage, let the sausage bits get crispy.
5. When grits start to solidify, add cream slowly, while continuing to stir. Then add cheese and sausage/onion mixture, spices
6. Toss shrimp into the empty sausage pan and cook.
7. Plate grits and top with shrimp.
8. If you did it right, it will look like this.