Shrimp Tacos

So it’s Lent and that means no meat on Fridays. I’m noticing that some people panic because they feel limited and wind up resorting to pizza. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely a pizza fan and I find it on my dinner menu just about every other week, especially during football season. But the point I’m getting at is that there are so many other options for meatless Fridays.

* Broiled Salmon with boiled potatoes and green beans

* Grilled scallops with a roasted red pepper sauce on a bed of whole wheat angel hair pasta tossed with garlic and parmesan
* Get creative with grilled cheese. Try fresh mozzarella and tomato with pesto (or balsamic) on ciabatta bread.
* Breakfast for dinner! Pancakes or waffles. Omelets with peppers, onions and cheese. Oatmeal casserole. French Toast. Eggs benedict.
* Baked macaroni and cheese with a side of broccoli (I like to mix the broccoli in.)
* Go British and make a baked version of Fish & Chips… mmmmm with some sticky toffee pudding for dessert. Note to self: find a recipe for that.

This past Friday I made Shrimp tacos.

You'll Need:
Frozen Shrimp
Fish taco seasoning
Juice of 1 lime, 2 teaspoons reserved
olive oil
ranch dressing (I used the jar kind that they keep in the refrigerated section)
avocado
cumin (about 1/4 tsp)
cayenne or chipotle pepper powder (about 1/2 tsp)
broccoli slaw

First, wash, peel and devein the shrimp. Toss with fish taco seasoning and lime juice.

 
Heat a frying pan and add olive oil. “Hot pan, cold oil, food won’t stick.” Add shrimp and cook until just firm. I like my shrimp overcooked and kind of charred. According to every chef/cook on the Food Network this is incorrect, to that I say… I don’t care, I like it this way.

While the shrimp are cooking we make the sauce. In a food processor combine the fruit of 1 avocado, ranch dressing, lime juice. Add Cumin and Cayenne pepper, and salt and pepper to taste.

 

{Here’s how to cut an avocado: Cut lengthwise all around the avocado. Twist the 2 sides until they come apart. Take your knife and gently whack the pit. Twist the knife to free the pit and discard. Score with a knife and then, using a spoon, scoop around the fruit to disconnect it from the shell.}

Then warm some tortillas. Add a bed of broccoli slaw. Add the shrimp, sprinkle some shredded white cheddar cheese (if you want... I didn't add cheese to mine) and drizzle with the avocado sauce. Voila! Shrimp tacos. You could also make this into a salad, just chop everything up (tortilla included if you’re not watching your carbs) and throw it on top of a bowl of romaine. The “sauce” is a little too thick as a dressing for my liking so I’d dilute it with a little water.

When Life Hands You Lemons... Make a Bundt Cake!

Hey y'all! I made another bundt cake for no reason at all. It turned out awesome so I felt like it was my civic duty to share the recipe. If you like a super moist cake this is definitely for you.

Lemon Blueberry Bundt

 

2/3 cups butter, softened (10 Tablespoons)
2 cups white sugar

2 lemon, juiced (about 6 Tablespoons)

4 eggs, room temperature

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup milk (or buttermilk + 1/2 teaspoon baking soda)

1 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons lemon zest
2 cups blueberries

Icing
2-3 Tablespoons water
1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

1/8 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease (and flour if you so choose) a bundt pan. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Mix in the lemon juice. Add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, being careful not to overmix. Use buttermilk if you want a super moist cake... some might say this makes the cake too moist but I didn't mind it. Fold in the lemon zest and blueberries. Pour into the prepared  bunt pan.

Bake for about 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

For the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, water and extracts. Drizzle over the completely cooled cake. I noticed that it looked like there was more glaze pooling around the bottom of the cake than there was actually on it. Next time I might try putting the cake on a wire cooling rack ontop of a cookie sheet, drizzle, and then collect the drippings and drizzle again..... or using less water in my glaze.

Buttermilk Pancakes

So as promised, here is my recipe for buttermilk pancakes along with some tricks and tips.

 

Ingredients

2 cups Flour
4 Tablespoons Sugar
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoons Salt
1 and 1/2 cups Buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, melted
1 whole Egg
• Oil, For Cooking Pancakes
 
Preparation

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl.

 

In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, milk, melted butter, and egg together.

 

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, pour the buttermilk mixture into the well, and gently whisk together until just incorporated with a few lumps remaining (don’t overmix).

 

If the batter is too thick (for some reason my was this time, evident in the picture above) add a little milk. Also, be sure not to add too much milk or they’ll be too hard to flip.

Heat your skillet over low-medium heat. Brush the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of oil. If you’re using a good non-stick pan Pam works fine.  Another tip that I find works really well is using an ice cream scoop to drop your batter onto the skillet. This way all of your pancakes will be about the same size and perfectly round. Cook pancakes until bubbles form and golden brown on both sides. What I like about this recipe is that as long as your flame isn’t too high, it’s not easy to burn these guys.

Here’s another tip. Put the pancakes in a covered dish like a pyrex or ceramic one so that they stay warm until you’re finished cooking. This way everyone can sit at the table and eat together.

 

Another great thing about these is if you have a lot leftover you can freeze them and heat up a few before work or school. I usually bring them to work frozen and heat them up in the microwave when I get there. Add a little nutella and it might just be the closest thing to Heaven there is.

 

 

The King's Cake Cupcake

Happy Pancake Day y’all! It’s also Mardi Gras so I'm torn between sharing a recipe for King Cake Cupcakes or the perfect buttermilk pancake. I forgot to take pictures the last time I made pancakes so King Cake Cupcakes it is!
 
There are 3 parts to this concoction. The cake. The filling. And the frosting. Best start at the beginning then.

Ingredients
Cake
1 and 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup, 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

Filling

1/2 cup melted butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 cup pecans

Frosting

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, cold
5-6 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  
Line 2 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners.
In a small bowl mix together the filling ingredients with a fork or small whisk.
In a small bowl, combine the flours and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add the dry ingredients in 3 parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not over beat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended.
Using an ice cream scoop, spoon the batter into the cupcake liners. Using a cookie scoop, spoon the brown sugar mixture onto each cupcake well. (If you want you can had half of the batter, then the filling, then another half of the batter but I took the easy route.)
Bake in middle of oven until tops turn golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out just clean, about 18 minutes. I like to rotate the pans after 10 minutes just so they bake evenly.
Cool the cupcakes in tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting.

In a stand mixer, beat butter until white and fluffy. Add vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add half of the sugar one cup at a time. Add cream cheese. Add remaining sugar. Beat 10-15 minutes until light and fluffy. If the frosting is too soft add more sugar. If the frosting is too soft AND too sweet refrigerate it for a bit, it’s possible that your kitchen is too warm or too humid.

Sprinkle with Purple, Green and Yellow sugar sprinkles (as you can see below, I was out of purple and yellow) and enjoy!

Mindy Stewartspoon

There are 3 women that I look up to and strive to be an amalgam of.

Reese Witherspoon

 

Mindy Kaling

 

and Martha Stewart

Let's just focus on Martha for this post. Now a few years ago I was watching Martha's Daytime show and she was telling everyone how she takes a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar everyday. She just poured it onto a spoon and drank it! I had a mean girls moment...

If Martha does something, I'm going to do it too because it's Martha Freaking Stewart. So I poured it on a spoon, brought it to my lips ...and I think I almost died! Apple cider vinegar is disgusting. It has this insanely strong odor. I just couldn't do it. Fast forward about 4 years to now.

I've started eating grapefruit with my breakfast and lunch. Half before breakfast, half before lunch. It's got tons of vitamin C, Lycopene (it's an antioxidant so it fights oxygen free radicals which can damage cells), Limonoids (they inhibit tumor formation! One word: detox). It lowers cholesterol, prevents kidney stones (which is good if you eat lots of spinach because it's high in oxalates which could form stones) and protects against colon cancer (my gram's had colon cancer). In summation, it's an awesome fruit ....and it's just such a pretty color.

Let me try to get to the point here. I found this on Pinterest. It's a drink that's is supposed to detox and promote weight loss.

1 cup grapefruit juice

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

Drink that before every meal. So I'm going to try to do this. I had some before breakfast except I used 1 teaspoon of vinegar and 2 teaspoons of honey. I need to ease into it so I won't be too traumatized to do it again. I poured it over an ice filled glass and let it get freezing cold first and it actually wasn't that bad... as long as I didn't breathe through my nose. I'm going to keep doing this and report my results.

Livestrong Calorie Tracker

Ok so I just got the Livestrong Calorie Tracker and it's the greatest thing ever.
Honestly it's exactly like Weight Watchers except EASIER! You don't have to worry about points, just calories. You answer a few questions, and it calculates your target net calories for the day.

 

Then, all you have to do its record all your calories in, record how many calories burnt from working out and enter your weight. Of course you'll still need to make healthy choices. 300 calories of bacon isn't the same as 300 calories of salad but this app definitely helps keep me on track.

There's also community posts that are sometimes helpful... I don't use them.

There's even a place to track your daily water intake.

For those who have not heard this, apparently the amount of water you're supposed to drink depends on your weight. Here's what you do...
Take your weight, divide it by 2. That's how many ounces. Then divide that by 8. That's how many cups. Example...

I got this from Five Below for $4 or $5. This way I always have water at my desk at work and I have no excuse not to meet my goal.

If You Liked It Then You Should Have Put A Monogram On It

Have you ever noticed how a certain smell can remind you of a point in your childhood? I've realized now that my public elementary school always had this aroma of egg salad sandwiches and paste. My catholic school on the other hand smelled distinctly of egg salad sandwiches and guilt.

I just bought myself a lunch bag for work. $4.99 at Homegoods. So naturally I'd like to get it monogrammed but surprisingly I have no idea how to get this done. Everything I've had monogrammed was purchased that way. So, I did some research on where to get an already owned item monogrammed.

1. Your dry cleaner or tailor might have this service. Mine does, however their choices of thread color are a bit limited.

2. The mall. A lot of malls have a little kiosk or store even that can personalize gifts. At Woodbridge Center Mall there's a store called Embroidery Place.

3. If all else fails, go to yellowpages.com and search embroidery.