Cilantro-Lime Shrimp

Recently, I came across this recipe on pinterest, and I knew that it would be a perfect, quick week night meal.  I paired it with our favorite rice from Trader Joe's, and the two went perfect together.  Rick called it one of his favorites!  This recipe is another one that is going to be come a repeater on our table! I'm going to post the original recipe here since the only change that I made from the  is to use our Garlic Olive Oil from The Crushed Olive instead of regular. 

Here's what I did...

Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Ingredients

2 tsp olive oil
2 lb shrimp, shelled and deviened
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime
salt and pepper 

Directions 

Heat a large frying pan on medium-high heat. Add oil to the pan, when hot add shrimp. Season with salt and pepper. When the shrimp is cooked on one side, about 2 minutes, turn over and add garlic. Sauté another minute or two until shrimp is cooked, careful not to overcook. Remove from heat. Squeeze lime all over shrimp and toss with cilantro.

Enjoy!

Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp with a Chipotle Ranch Sauce

Last night, Rick and I had planned on grilling out, but instead, we decided to stay indoors.  It's starting to get darker earlier and a wee bit cooler, too.  I wanted to do something with some shrimp that I needed to use, and I was also leaning towards doing something with the canned chipotle peppers that I've had in pantry for a while.  After browsing foodnetwork.com and myrecipes.com, I decided to wrap my shrimp with bacon and broil them.  For the dipping sauce, I wanted to make something similar to the chipotle ranch sauce that they have Longhorn.  Man, I miss that stuff.  By combining ranch dressing, light sour cream, and a little bit of the chipotle peppers, I made an awesome sauce!  Rick loved it, and I can see us having this one again!  By using a pound of shrimp and a whole package of bacon, we had enough to enjoy tonight, too!  Here's what we did...

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp with a Chipotle Ranch Dipping Sauce

Ingredients

1 pound 21-25 count shrimp, peel and deveined

1 package of low sodium bacon

5 Bamboo skewers

1/4 cup lite sour cream

1 cup ranch dressing

1 1/2 tablespoons diced chipotle peppers from a can with adobo

Directions

Soak the bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes. While the skewers are soaking, combine the sour cream, ranch dressing, and chipotle peppers in a bowl and mix.  Cover and refrigerate until time to serve.

Preheat broiler (or grill if grilling).  Take the bacon and cut all the pieces in half.  Cook the bacon in a large pan until halfway cooked.  Wrap the bacon around the middle of each shrimp and skewer.  Place 5 shrimp on each skewer. 

Broil (on a foil lined baking sheet) or grill for 5 minutes per side until shrimp is done.  Serve with sauce and enjoy!

Super Easy Grilled Shrimp

Rick and I decided to grill out last night (yum steaks!!) and for an easy starter, I decided to grill some shrimp that I had in the refrigerator that I was afraid were about to go bad.  This recipe was inspired by this one from Food Network's Barefoot Contessa.  I made some changes based on what ingredients that I had on hand in my kitchen.

Here's what I did...

Super Easy Grilled Shrimp

Ingredients

• 1/2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 sweet onion, diced
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
  
• 2 tablespoons dried basil leaves
• 1/4 cup Dijon Mustard
  
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Juice of one lime
• Bamboo skewers

Directions

Soak bamboo skewers in water for at least 30 minutes.

Mix all of the ingredients (minus the skewers) in a bowl and marinate the shrimp for about 20 minutes in the refrigerator.  Skewer the shrimp on the bamboo skewers.  Heat the grill to medium heat and grill the shrimp for around 1 minute per side.  Grilling time depends on the size of the shrimp (larger ones may require a little more time).

Enjoy!

Bacon- Wrapped Shrimp with Basil-Garlic Stuffing

Rain, rain, go away!!!  It's basically rained all weekend.  I've found myself trapped in my car three times as I have oh-so-patiently waited for the rain to slow down a bit so that I could dash to wherever my destination was.  The last time happened this afternoon when I was on my way to Publix.  When I left the house, it was dark, but by the time I made it to Publix, it was pouring!  I sat in the car and then moved it to a closer spot so that I could run inside to get some ingredients for the app that I wanted to do for dinner tonight.  Rick and I were planning to grill out, but it turned into steaks in the oven on a cast iron skillet.  We did some baked potatoes, too.  Publix had their large shrimp on sale which I thought would be a perfect starter that I found on myrecipes.com.  This recipe was originally found in Coastal Living magazine.  I adapted it with one of the suggestions from the reviewers and mixed light cream cheese (my goat cheese had mold :( ) with Parmesan cheese for the stuffing.  I did 10 shrimp since there is just the two of us. The recipe called for a fruit-based BBQ sauce, and when I saw the Sweet Baby Ray's Raspberry Chipotle one, I knew that was the one for us! 

The shrimp turned out to be a perfect appetizer to hold us over while our potatoes baked and before we did the steaks.  We probably could've done just 3 each because the large shrimp were filling.  Definitely a keeper!

Here's what I did...

Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp with Basil-Garlic Stuffing

Ingredients

10 large pound shrimp, peeled, deveined, and butterflied

10 pieces of bacon (cutting 1/4 of each slice off)

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

1 tablespoon light cream cheese

1 tablespoon shredded Parmesan cheese

1 clove of garlic, minced

 Sweet Baby Ray's Raspberry Chipotle BBQ Sauce

Directions

Preheat oven to 400F.

Mix cheese, basil, and garlic together in a bowl.

Cut slit deeper into the shrimp (but not totally through). Stuff cheese in the slit and press closed.

Cook bacon over medium heat until partially cooked. Drain on paper towels.

Wrap one slice of bacon around the each shrimp.  Place shrimp on a greased baking sheet.  Brush the shrimp with the BBQ sauce.  Bake in the oven for 9 minutes.  

Enjoy!!!

Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro, Lime, and Goat Cheese

On the 4th, Rick and I decided to grill some shrimp on his new grill as an appetizer.  I found this recipe tucked away in my epicurious.com recipe box, and I thought that it would be perfect to help use up the cilantro and lime that we had leftover.  Since Rick's not a huge feta fan, I opted to follow the suggestion of one of the recipe reviewers who recommeded using goat cheese instead.  I also used 3 shallots as I totally forgot to pick up an onion at the new Harris Teeter.

After all was said and done, we had wished that we had made some pasta to go with it because it was just begging for it!  Instead, we just snacked and paired it with some garlic bread (for dipping if you are me!).  Turns out that it was enough of a meal for both us, though!  Very yummy! 

Here's what we did...

Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro, Lime, and Goat Cheese

Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/2 cup cilantro

Juice of 1 lime

4 cloves garlic, pressed

3 shallots, chopped (can use any type of onion)

1/4 cup white wine

2 1/2 tablespoons goat cheese

Directions

Mix oil, garlic, lime, and 1/4 cup of cilantro in a large bowl.  Add shrimp and shallots; toss to coat.  Refrigerate and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat grill to medium and spoon shrimp and shallots into a grill pan.  Cook for about 3 minutes per side for the shrimp (until pink). 

On the stove, bring the remain liquid to a boil with 1/4 cup white wine.  Mix in cheese and remaining cilantro.  Remove from heat and then mix in shrimp and shallots.

Serve with crusty bread for dipping or over pasta.

Enjoy!

Katie's Spicy (game)Cocktail Sauce

Rick bought a tabletop gas grill for his new place, and tonight, we are going to be watching the Gamecocks play some baseball against their rivals the Clemson Tigers for a chance to go to the College World Series Championship games.  Rick's excited that his team is doing well and of course about the new grill.  I decided to get some local shrimp from Sammy's Seafood (a little stand up Hwy 41 from where we live) to throw on the grill as an appetizer to go with our steaks and veggies.  For the sauce to go with the shrimp, I decided to make some cocktail sauce.  I used a recipe from myrecipes.com as a guide, and here's what I came up with.  It's a little bit on the spicy side so it's definitely not kid friendly.  I was really unsure how it was going to turn out so I brought over some McCormick's in case it was yucky.  We didn't need it! 

Here's what we did...

Spicy (game)Cocktail Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup ketchup

1/4 cup garlic chili sauce

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Juice of one lemon

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 cup horseradish

Directions

Mix all ingredients together and chill for about 1-2 hours.  Serve with grilled (or boiled) shrimp.

Enjoy!

Memorial Day Weekend Grillin'...the starter!

Ahh, Memorial Day Weekend...it's a time synonymous with grilling.  Last night, we went over to our neighbor's house (The Simpsons) for dinner.  I brought my famous shrimp bruschetta as an appetizer.  I felt bad because I was a little unorganized and running late so I didn't have them for us snack on while grilling, but they were a hit!  We had a good time last night, and I look forward to our next joint grilling adventure!

Today, Rick was at his new place and unpacking the smaller loads that he's been taking over there.  I chilled inside today (tried to nap but failed miserably) and finished up the latest Southern Vampire Mystery that I've been reading.  Hello, new addiction!  For dinner tonight, Rick and I are grilling out (again).  I picked up some delicious looking steak kabobs at Publix as well as some zucchini to go with them.  For starters, I decided to make a smoky pecan relish that I found while flipping through the latest issue of Southern Living to serve with some grilled shrimp.  I apologize for not having pictures, but they were gone before I could get one!  They were the perfect little snack while we did the rest of our meal. I really like what we did with the shrimp--much more flavorful than what we normally do. I can foresee us making them a lot this summer!  (The relish goes great with Triscuits, too!)

Here's what we did....

Grilled Shrimp

Ingredients

1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 clove of garlic, pressed

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Lemon pepper seasoning

1/2 lemon

Directions

Prior to peeling and deveining shrimp, soak bamboo kabobs in water (should soak for at least an hour).  In a medium bowl, mix shrimp, olive oil, garlic, and sprinkle with lemon pepper seasoning.  Thread shrimp on to kabobs.  Just prior to put on the grill, squeeze lemon juice over the kabobs.  

Heat grill to medium and grill shrimp.



Smoky Pecan Relish
Ingredients
1 12 oz jar of roasted red peppers, drained
1 glove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoonsalt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 cup recipe ready pecan pieces


Directions
Combine all ingredients but the pecans into a food processor and process until finely chopped.  Add pecans and pulse 10 times.  


Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving.  It can be kept for up to one week.


Enjoy!

Thai Night....the main dish!

Before I get to last night's main dish, I wanted to share a giveaway that a friend of mine is having on her blog!  Please be sure to stop by The Nest and check it out!  She's giving away a set of Rachel Ray bakeware...how cool is that????   Regardless of the giveaway, you gotta check her site out. She makes the most amazing bake goods, and I aspire to be half as creative as she is with them!

So last night, I made Pad Thai for this first time for Rick and I.  I was a little surprised that I hadn't made it for us before, but it is a lot of work...especially in the chopping of cilantro leaves department.  It's worth the effort, though.  We really enjoyed it.

The first time that I ever tried Thai food was here in Charleston at Basil, and the first dish that I tried was Pad Thai.  Not too long after that, I went searching the internet for a Pad Thai recipe.  I came across this one, and I made it for the first time in August 2003 (according to the date at the bottom of the page in my old internet recipe notebook).  I was really apprehensive since it had ketchup and Worcestershire as ingredients, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually did taste similar to Pad Thai from Basil!

Here's what I did.

Pad Thai

Ingredients

• 1 (6 oz) package rice noodles
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce (sambal oelek)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb thinly sliced chicken breast
• 1/2 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined (21-25 count)
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup bean sprouts
  
• 4 green onions
  
• 1 cup chopped cilantro leaves
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped roasted peanuts (unsalted)

Directions

Place noodles in large bowl and cover with boiling water for about 10 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

Mix together fish sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire, chili-garlic sauce and sugar in a medium size bowl and set aside.

Cut chicken into 1 inch pieces.  Cut shrimp into thirds.

Heat peanut oil in large frying pan or wok.  Add garlic and chicken to the wok and cook until the meat starts to turn white.  Add shrimp and continue to cook until they start to turn pink.  Add sauce and stir for 3 minutes.  Add the beaten eggs and stir constantly for 1 minute.

Add drained noodles and stir to coat the noodles.  Stir in bean sprouts, onions and 1/2 cup cilantro.

Place on a plate and top with cilantro and chopped peanuts.  Serve with lime wedges (squeeze lime juice on the Pad Thai prior to eating).

Enjoy!

Thai Night!

About a month ago, Rick brought over a Thai cookbook called Greatest Ever Thai, and I've been wanting to do something out of it ever since.  Rick came over earlier this evening, and we were talking about what to make for dinner. He was flipping through the latest Cooking Light and Food + Wine, but nothing seemed appealing.  I mentioned doing something out that cookbook as an appetizer and then making Pad Thai.  Apparently, I had never made Pad Thai for us before, and I was looking forward to it. I will post that recipe tomorrow.

The appetizer that we picked out was for shrimp wrapped in won ton skins.  It sounded similar to one of my favorite appetizers Basil, a Thai restaurant in downtown Charleston.  Basil is another one of those must-go-to places here.  The food is excellent, and the prices aren't too bad for a downtown restaurant.  We decided tonight that it has been too long since we went, but luckily, we had tonight's dinner to hit the spot.  I've never worked with won ton skins before, and while my shrimp rolls didn't look as good as the ones in the cookbook, they turned out great! Rick was on frying duty, and he opted not to deep fry them but he flipped them after about a minute or so.  I made some other changes from the original recipe (omitted red curry paste and subbed garlic-chili sauce for 1 small fresh red Thai chili). 

Here's what we did.

Jumbo Shrimp Rolls with Sweet Soy Sauce

Ingredients
Dip
2 tablespoons of Garlic-Chili Sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
4 tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce


Shrimp Rolls
2 tablespoons of cilantro leaves
2 cloves of garlic, minced
16 won ton skins
1 egg white, lightly beaten
16 jumbo shrimp, shelled with tails left intact
Corn oil for frying


Directions
To make the dip, mix the ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside.

For the shrimp rolls, brush the won ton skins with egg white and place a few cilantro leaves and a little bit of garlic in the center of the won ton skin. Place shrimp on top.  Fold the won ton skin over the shrimp and leave the tail exposed.  Roll the shrimp in the won ton.  Repeat with the remaining shrimp.

Heat oil for frying in a large, heavy bottom pan to 350-375F.  Fry the shrimp in small batched until golden brown (around 1-2 minutes).  Drain on paper towels and serve with the dip.

Enjoy! 

Lobster Ravioli in a Seafood Sauce

Don't let the name fool you.  This meal is a super easy, super quick week night meal.  There are a couple of "cheats," though:  packaged ravioli and tomato sauce out of a jar.  Sometimes, I make it as a cream sauce and add 1/3 cup half and half, but I was so excited that I got to use mushrooms that I forgot to add it!  Obviously with the inclusion of mushrooms in the sauce, Rick wasn't here. He's not feeling well so it was just me and the kitties (not that I shared with them).  You can serve 4 if you pair it with a salad.  I divided it into thirds so that I can have leftovers for lunch tomorrow and the next day.

Here's what I did!

Lobster Ravioli

Ingredients
1 package of Lobster Ravioli
1/2 jar tomato sauce of your choice
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 oz sliced mushrooms
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
1/2 cup white wine 
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
Crushed red pepper
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper


Directions
In a sauce pan, heat tomato sauce, basil, and white wine.  Season shrimp wit salt and pepper in a small bowl.
 
Heat 1-2  tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a pan.  Add mushrooms and saute until soften.  Add onions and saute until the start to soften.  Add shrimp and saute until they are pink on both sides. Add tomato sauce to pan and heat until it starts to bubble a little bit.

Heat 2-3 quarts of water and bring to a boil (start this as oil is heating).  Add ravioli and cook for around 4 minutes.  Drain and place 1/2 on a plate.  Top with sauce and serve.


Enjoy!

Lazy Saturday meal

Yesterday was the perfect day for a lazy day.  I was taking a "rest day" from my NCLEX studying.  For breakfast, we started out with waffles made with the waffle iron that I got for Christmas.  With a little help from Aunt Jemima, we had delicious waffles!  We learned, though, that next time, we'll share one instead of making one for each of us because they were huge!!  

Rick and I spent most of the cold, rainy day on the couch watching the Travel Channel.  Their programming was an afternoon of Food Paradise.  With each episode, we talked about making whatever the subject was for dinner. First, it was hot dogs and then steaks and then hamburgers, and finally, we watched an episode on bar food.  We contemplated making nachos (or heading up to Blues to get some of theirs), and then the show (Bar Food Paradise) did wings.  We were sold!  We haven't made wings in quite some time and minus the breading, that is Rick's area of expertise as I've never been a good fryer.  We decided to do hot wings with Moore's Sauce and another batch with Parmesan and garlic. In addition to the wings, we came up with the idea to do some buffalo shrimp with a half pound of frozen shrimp that I had in the freezer. Much to our delight, everything turned out wonderfully!!!  Here's what we did...

Rick's Wings

Ingredients

chicken wings

flour

Milk

Moore's Buffalo Wing Sauce

Vegetable Oil

For Parmesan wings

Additional Ingredients

Grated Parmesan Cheese (from the container)

Garlic powder

flour

 

Directions

Place the chicken wings in a large bowl and cover them with milk.  Let them soak for 20 minutes.  Place half the wings in a large Ziplock bag and add flour.  Shake the wings to coat them.

In a small bowel, mix 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese.  Add garlic powder to the mixture and stir.  Add the other half of the wings and the flour mix to another large Ziplock bag and shake to coat them.

Heat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium high heat.  Once the oil has heated, add the regular wings first.  Cook them for 10-12 minutes.  The wings can either be covered with the oil, or they can be turned half way through to make sure that each side is a golden brown.  Remove the wings from the oil and place them on a large plate that is covered with 3 paper towels.

Next, add the Parmesan wings to the oil and cook them for 10-12 minutes also.  Remove them from the oil and place them on a separate large plate that is covered with 3 paper towels.

After they have cooled, take the regular wings and place them in another large Ziplock bag.  Add Moore's Wing Sauce to the bag (the more you add, the hotter they will be).  Toss the wings to coat.

Buffalo Shrimp

Ingredients

1/2 pound shirmp (peeled and deveined)

milk

flour

Moore's Buffalo Wing Sauce

Directions

Place the shrimp in a small bowl and cover them with milk.  Let them soak for 20 minutes (we had the wings and shrimp soaking at the same time).

Remove the shrimp from the milk and place them in a medium sized tupperware container.  Add flour.  Cover the tupperware and shake to coat the shrimp.  Add the shrimp to heated vegetable oil and cook for 5 minutes.  (We did them after the wings to prevent the chicken from tasting like shrimp, but in the future, we may cook them in a separate cast iron skillet)  Remove the shrimp from the oil and place them on a large plate that is covered with 3 paper towels.

After the shrimp have cooled, place them into a medium sized Ziplock bag.  Add Moore's Wing Sauce to the bag (the more you add, the hotter they will be).  Toss the shrimp to coat.  

Enjoy!!!

Taco Tuesday Night Part Two

One of my favorite Christmas presents that I received this year is the Southern Living Annual Cookbook that my mom gave me.  I had requested it after seeing quite a few recipes that I liked on myrecipes.com from the magazine.  Back in the 90s, my mom had given me two of these cookbooks, but she had stopped doing it since she also gets them every year.  As soon as I opened the present, I began flipping through it.  I came across a taco recipe that looked like something that Rick and I would enjoy.  It was for Tempura Shrimp Tacos.  I was also excited about it because it would also be a nice break from the leftovers that I've been eating since I returned from NC.  Like other Southern Living recipes, it can be found on here on myrecipes.com.  It was originally published in the September 2009 issue.  

I had never played with Tempura batter before, but it sure was messy!  I accidentally followed the directions on the box instead of the recipe so I used the whole box instead of just a cup.  I upped the amount of fajita seasoning.  We still thought that the end product was rather bland.  The Mexi-Cole Slaw was pretty good, but in Rick's opinion, nothing can top the Asian slaw. I don't know that we'll be having it again because while it wasn't bad, there are so many other recipes that we like better!


Tempura Shrimp Tacos
Ingredients
1 pound unpeeled, large raw shrimp (31/35 count)
1 cup tempura batter mix (I used McCormick's)
3/4 cup cold light beer
2 teaspoons fajita seasoning mix (I used 1 1/2 tablespoons of Old El Paso)

Vegetable oil
12 (6-inch) fajita-size flour tortillas, warmed
Mexi-Coleslaw Mix (see below for recipe)

Directions
Peel shrimp; devein, if desired.

Whisk together tempura batter mix, beer, and fajita seasoning in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes.

Pour oil to depth of 2 inches into a Dutch oven; heat to 325°. Dip shrimp in tempura batter, shaking off excess. Fry shrimp, in batches, 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until golden; drain on a wire rack over paper towels.

Serve in warm tortillas with Mexi-Coleslaw Mix and desired toppings (We used cilantro, salsa, and sour cream)



Mexi-Coleslaw Mix
Ingredients
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon fajita seasoning (I used a tablespoon)

1/2 (16-oz.) package shredded coleslaw mix
Salt to taste

Directions
Stir together cilantro, mayonnaise, lime juice, and fajita seasoning in a large bowl; add coleslaw mix, stirring to coat. Season with salt to taste. Cover and chill 30 minutes to 24 hours.

My do-it-yourself answer to the Japanese Steakhouse experience

Okay, so in all honesty, you aren't going to see my flinging shrimp at Rick to catch while he's sitting at the little bar in my condo as I cook, but I do like to make my version of the type of meal that you'll find at one of those hibachi-cook-it-in-your-face kinda places.  I'm a huge fan of them, and actually, my mom and I went to Yamatos while she was in town last weekend for my graduation.  Since Rick wasn't able to go, I thought I'd do the next best thing for him and fix it for him at home.  No, I don't have a hibachi grill, but a nice, big ole pan will work pretty well in my opinion.  This meal is another one that makes Rick's favorites list.


There are probably about a thousand ways to make fried rice, but personally, I go for simple and easy.  The only thing to keep in mind when making it is to use leftover rice or rice that has had a little while to cool (think a couple of hours here).  You can add whatever your heart desires to it...onions, carrots, peas, eggs.  In this version, I don't add anything.  Same thing goes for the veggies.  I usually do a sweet onion and a zucchini, but I've also been known to add mushrooms.  Since Rick doesn't like them, I don't include them that often anymore.  I wasn't in the mood for broccoli so I didn't include it.  Again, go with whatever strikes your fancy!


The one thing that makes this experience perfect is shrimp sauce.  You know what I'm talking about...that delicious pink sauce that they always serve at Japanese restaurants.  I do have a recipe for it, but a couple of years ago, I stumbled across a bottle of it near the seafood at Food Lion.  Imagine my delight and surprise to find it!


Two more things before I post the recipe.... First, I'd like to apologize for not having a picture of our meal, but it was scarfed down rather quickly last night. Also, I am happy to report that my blog has been include at petitchef.com!  Nothing makes me happier than having cooking site find me and ask me to list my blog on it!  I don't know if you've ever checked out the website, but it's really cool!  They've all kinds of different recipes and great pictures! Definitely check it out!  I love checking out different cooking blogs and all of the fantastic recipes I can find for inspiration.  Being new to the cooking blog world, I love venturing out from my old standard epicurious.com.  


Here's the recipe for your dining enjoyment!


Do-It-Yourself Japanese

For the day before (or a couple of hours before)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice


Directions
Cook rice per instructions and store in the refrigerator overnight (or for a couple of hours to cool down).


For the day of:
Ingredients
Pre-cooked rice
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, seasoned with salt and pepper

1 or 2 NY Strip Steaks, cut into 1-2 inch pieces, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 zucchini, quartered and cut into two inch pieces

1 sweet onion chopped
Toasted sesame seeds

Peanut oil
Sesame oil

Directions
In a large pan or wok (wok is better when you have a large amount of rice), heat a mixture of 1 tablespoon peanut oil and 1 tablespoon sesame oil over medium high heat.  Add rice to the pan and season with sesame seeds.  Fry for a few minutes (around 5) and use a spoon to break up the rice.  Add soy sauce and continue to cook.


In a separate pan, add 1/2 tablespoon peanut oil and 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil and heat over medium heat.  Add zucchini and onion, season with sesame seeds, and cook until they are tender.  Add soy sauce and cook for an additional minute.  Remove from the pan, place in a medium bowl, and cover to keep warm. Add steak to the pan and cook to desired doneness.  Add shrimp to the pan and season with sesame seeds.  Cook until the shrimp are pink.  Add the shrimp and steak to the vegetable mixture and mix. 


Place fried rice on a plate and top with shrimp mixture.  Serve with shrimp sauce.


Enjoy!

Crab and Shrimp Cakes!!!!

Even though it turned out to be a not-so-great night for UNC basketball last night, Rick and I did have a wonderful dinner. As tempting as it is to expound on how poorly my Heels played, I will concede that they are young and confine all my complaining to messageboards.  

On Thursday, we had snow crab legs, but because we didn't eat them all, I decided to make one of Rick's favorite recipes:  Crab and Shrimp Cakes!  The recipe is from epicurious.com and called Asian-Style Crab and Shrimp Cakes.  Interestingly enough, for an Asian recipe, it calls for using French bread crumbs when using panko is so much better.  This recipe is another one that is perfect for two!  I paired the crab cakes with the cole slaw that I posted a couple of months ago.  I love this meal because not only is it easy, but it is lightening fast!  You can bake them in the oven or fry them in peanut oil.  Last night, I opted for frying.  I've also been known to add green onions if I have them handy.


I served the cakes with a horseradish sauce that I made Thursday night to go with the crab legs.  I was hoping to replicate the crab sauce that Harris Teeter sells (which they have been out of for WAY too long). Usually, I serve the crab and shrimp cakes with a wasabi sauce.  I am going to include that recipe because I like it better than the horseradish sauce!


Here's the recipe that I use:

Asian Style Crab and Shrimp Cakes

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  
• 2 teaspoons fish sauce (nam pla) or soy sauce
• 1 cup crab meat (or 6 oz canned crab meat)
  
• 4 oz chopped shrimp (peeled and deveined)
  
• 1 1/2 cups panko
• 1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil

Directions

Mix first 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Add crabmeat, shrimp and 3/4 cup panko and mix well. Season with pepper. Place remaining panko to a  plate. Drop 1/4 of crab mixture into panko and turn to coat. Shape into 2 1/2-inch-diameter cake. Repeat coating and shaping with remaining crab mixture and panko to 4 cakes.

Heat peanut oil in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add cakes and sauté until crisp, about 5 minutes per side. 

Another option instead of frying is to bake them in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes and flipping half way through.


Wasabi Dipping Sauce
1 cup light mayo
2 tablespoons wasabi paste (water and wasabi paste mixed together)

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 small pinch of salt


Mix ingredients together and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.

Another Katie Classic: Spicy Shrimp Pasta

This recipe is one of the first ones that came into my cooking repertoire. The first time that I ever made it was back in 1998. I found it in the Southern Living 1997 Annual Recipes Cookbook, and it is super easy which was perfect for me back then. I've made a couple of changes from the original recipe, but I still love it to this day. I've made it for quite a few people and shared it with several of them. I also like it because it provides two nice size servings. I hope that you enjoy it, too!


Spicy Shrimp Pasta
Ingredients
8 oz of linguine
3/4 pound peeled, deveined shrimp
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup green onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup cooking wine with lemon
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (sometimes, I sub the Parmesan-Romano blend)
2 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper
5 teaspoons dried parsley

Directions
Cook linguine per box directions in water that has been salted and seasoned with garlic powder. Drain, return to pot, and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet and add green onions and garlic. Saute until tender. Add Cajun seasoning and stir for one minute

Stir in shrimp and whipping cream. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring often. Stir in wine and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add sauce, Parmesan cheese, and red pepper to the pot with linguine and heat over low heat, stirring gently. Stir in parsley and serve immediately.

Would it really be a Low Country blog without Shrimp and Grits?

Before I moved to the Charleston area, I had never tried shrimp and grits.  I always thought that it sounded like a pretty cool dish since I pretty much like anything involving shrimp and I am a fan of grits.  Grits are definitely a Southern thing, and it's really hard, if not impossible, to try to explain what exactly grits are to someone born and raised outside of the South as I learned when my cousin had her bachelorette party in Charleston this summer.  I joined them for dinner one night at Magnolia's, and several of the girls were from up north.  It was amusing trying to explain grits to them when they saw them on the menu.  Magnolia's has awesome shrimp and grits, by the way, and even though I contemplating ordering something else, I couldn't resist and had to order them!  I knew I would regret it otherwise.

I am really lucky to have access to such wonderful local shrimp.  The shrimping industry is a huge part of life in the Low Country, but unfortunately, the downturn in the economy has really hurt the shrimpers.  I try my best to buy local whenever possible.  The picture is on that I took of shrimp boats on Shem Creek here in Mount Pleasant a couple of years ago.

Since first trying shrimp and grits, I've had them at I don't even know how many places around town.  Sometimes, they were awesome, and sometimes, they weren't.  You can get them with brown gravy or more of a tomato-y sauce with the grits.  Over the years, I've also tried out quite a few recipes in search of one that I would be proud to call my own.  The one complaint that I do have with making them is that to make a to die for dish, you've got to use heavy cream with the grits.  Not half and half, not low fat or even whole milk...straight up, bad for ya, hip-expanding heavy cream.  Trust me when I say that it is definitely worth it.  And no, instant grits will NOT do!!!!  You've got to use the stone ground variety.

Shrimp and Grits

For the Grits:

Ingredients
1 cup stone ground grits
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
6 tablespoons butter
1 garlic clove minced
3/4  cup whipping cream

Directions
Bring chicken broth, whipping cream, butter and garlic to a boil in a heavy saucepan.  Gradually whisk in grits and return to a boil.  Continue to whisk constantly.  Reduce heat to low.  Simmer uncovered until grits thicken, whisking often, for around 15 minutes.


For the shrimp:
Ingredients
2 pounds of large, uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/3 cup shallots, chopped
1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced.
1/2 cup white wine
1 can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons fresh parlsey
2 tablespoons fresh chives
Creole seasoning
4 ounces of prosciutto, cut into thin strips
1-2 tablespoons Extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Season shrimp with Creole seasoning and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a heavy, large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onions and green pepper and saute for 3 minutes.  Add garlic and shallots and saute for another 2 minutes.  Add shrimp and saute for 2 minutes.  Remove shrimp from the skillet.  Add wine and boil until reduced to glaze (around 5 minutes).  Add diced tomatoes (juices included), parsley, chives and prosciutto and simmer for 2 minute.  Return shrimp to the skillet and simmer for another 2 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper if desired.

Add grits into bowels, and top each serving with shrimp mixture.  It should serve 4-6.

Enjoy!

Lovely fun with leftovers

Okay, so my motivation to study for my exam on Thursday may have hit an all-time low because here I am blogging about what I did with some of the leftovers from my Greek Shrimp Pasta meal instead of studying like a good little girl.  Since Rick didn't come over last night, I was left with way more seafood goodness than I can handle.  Yep, I had pasta leftovers for lunch and snacked on the tzatziki with some veggies during the day, and I'll probably have some more pasta tomorrow at my clinical.

Faced with the need to do something fast since I should be studying (instead of blogging) and not looking forward to having the pasta for the second time today, I had an excellent idea pop into my mind....making pita pizzas with the shrimp mixture!  As usual, last night I made more pasta than shrimp mixture so I opted to store them separately which came in handy when I made this super-easy study night meal.  So here's what I did...


Ingredients
1 pita
Feta cheese
Six cheese blend
Cheddar cheese

Shrimp mixture from last night (or if you'd like to make your own, take 4 peeled, deveined shrimp, a little bit of chopped onion, diced tomatoes, and artichoke hearts; season with basil, oregano, and parsley; and saute in a little bit of extra virgin olive oil)


Directions
Preheat oven to 350F.


Place pita on pizza pan.  Add shrimp mixture to pita and top with the cheeses.  Bake in oven until cheese is melted (10-15 minutes).  Enjoy!!!!


Okay, I'm off to go study some more!  Keep your fingers crossed for me!  Hopefully, I'll be back to making meals with Rick this weekend! We have an excellent swordfish dish in mind....

Greek Style Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp

A friend of mine from high school also has a food blog, and today, she had a posted a recipe for Greek Shrimp Scampi.  Before I even read the recipe, just seeing the words "Greek" and "shrimp" made me think of one of my favorite recipes from epicurious.com called Greek-Style Pasta with Shrimp.  Prior to my moving to SC, I lived in the Triangle and worked part time at this Greek restaurant in Durham called Spartacus. It was my first restaurant job, and I loved working there!  It is a family-owned business, and they have wonderful food!  When I first moved, I missed it a lot.  For all of the wonderful cuisine around here, Mount Pleasant is seriously lacking in the Greek area.  I have to go all the way to West Ashley to find any that is decent!  Anyway, I stumbled across the epicurious.com recipe about a year or so after I moved here, and it really hit the spot.  The recipe is quick and easy, and since I use canned, diced tomatoes, I usually have everything that I need in my pantry (well, and freezer if you include the shrimp)!  Now, if I could just figure out how to make amazing tzatziki sauce like Spartacus has, I'd be all set!  Hmmm, I feel an experiment coming on...

Here is my adaptation.  It is excellent served with pita bread brushed with olive oil and Italian seasoning, wrapped in aluminum foil, and heated in the oven at 250 while making the sauce.



Greek-Style Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp


Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can artichoke hearts, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
4 tablespoons crab stock (white wine can be subbed)
Feta cheese

8 oz cooked Angel Hair Pasta
Salt and pepper to taste



Directions
Cook angel hair pasta according to directions on box seasoned with garlic powder and salt (if desired).  Set aside.



Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add garlic and onion and saute for 30 seconds.  Add artichokes, tomatoes (and juice), crab stock, lemon, basil, oregano, and parsley. Saute for 5 minutes or until thickened a little bit. Add shrimp and saute until shrimp is cooked. Salt and pepper to taste.


Divide pasta into individual servings.  Top with sauce and feta cheese and serve.


Enjoy!!

Penne with Shrimp and Herbed Cream Sauce

Tonight is the first night this week that Rick and I have been able to spend together. Even though our daytime commitments have us a little stressed out, I'm so glad that we got to spend some quality time together tonight. With NY Strips on sale at various supermarkets, I was thinking "grill out!!!" but Rick wasn't that hungry so I opted to do a shrimp pasta dish. I searched foodnetwork.com for a recipe, and I came across this one. We both agree that it wasn't a stand out, but it was definitely a good one so I thought that I would share it here. The changes that I made was to up the red pepper flakes to 1/2 teaspoon, added two shallots, subbed low fat milk (made a roux with butter and flour) for heavy cream, a can of diced tomatoes (drained), and crab stock for clam juice.

Here is the original recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 pound penne pasta
  
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled, and deveined
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus extra for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus extra for seasoning
• 1 (15-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 cup white wine
• 1/3 cup clam juice
  
• 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Cook, stirring frequently until the shrimp turn pink and is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the shrimp and set aside.

Add the tomatoes, 1/4 cup basil, 1/4 cup parsley, and the red pepper flakes. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine, clam juice, and heavy cream. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, the cooked shrimp, the cooked pasta, and the remaining herbs. Toss together until all ingredients are coated. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve immediately.

A Katie Classic: Brazilian Shrimp Stew!

Yes, it was back in my single days that I first made this recipe, and I was all alone. It was a shame that I didn't have Rick with me to be one of the first to try it. I probably ate it for a week, but I loved it! When Rick and I first started dating, I'm sure it was among the first that I made for him. I wanted to impress him, and I promise it is smooth and silky when it hits your mouth. He says that it's not his favorite meal that I make, but it's definitely in my top 5 ever. I love it when Rick and I do all the cutting together, but sometimes, I'll do the prep work myself before he comes over so that we can get started sooner.

I've shared it with many people and made it for several friends and my family so it's only appropriate to post it here. I rearrange the order of the original recipe because it sometimes takes longer to do all the prep work and you don't want the shrimp to "cook" in the lemon juice.

Here's a link to the original recipe from epicurious.com, and here's my version.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb large shrimp in shell (21 to 25 per lb), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (14- to 15-oz) can petite diced tomatoes including juice
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
5 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 can well-stirred canned lite coconut milk

Accompaniment: cooked white rice


Directions
Cook onion and bell pepper in olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Add cayenne, 1 tablespoon cilantro, and remaining teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Toss shrimp with black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt, garlic, and lemon juice and marinate, covered and chilled, 15 minutes. (you want to do this here so that the shrimp doesn't "cook" in the lemon juice)

Add tomatoes and simmer briskly, stirring, until mixture is very thick, about 15 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk and bring to a boil, then add shrimp mixture and cook, stirring, until shrimp are just cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Serve over rice.

When I plate this, I usually take a 1/4 or a 1/2 measuring cup, scoop rice into, place it in the center of the plate, and then put it the stew around it. Garnish with cilantro on top of the rice.