Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Source: The Food You Crave

Shrimp has to be one of my all-time favorite meats to cook. First of all, because it's delicious, and secondly, because I'm terrible at putting things in the fridge to properly defrost. With shrimp, all you have to do is throw the shrimp in a strainer and run some water on it for 5 minutes. Yay!

I love feta, but the dill in this recipe intrigued me. I've only used dill for fish recipes. I thought it added such a great flavor of freshness to the dish. If you love shrimp, you'll love this recipe!

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, diced (1 1/2 cups)

2 cloves garlic, minced

Two 14.5-ounce cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices

1/4 cup finely minced fresh flat leaf parsley

1 tablespoon finely minced dill

1 1/4 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 3 ounces)

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Heat the oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until the tomato juices thicken.

3. Remove from heat. Stir in the parsley, dill, and shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle feta over the top. Bake in the oven until the shrimp are cooked through and the cheese melts, about 12 minutes.

Garlic Fries

Source: The Food You Crave

Please ignore the crappy photo above. I was starving as I was taking the picture. Those fries don't look all that great, but trust me in that they ARE!!! I served these with the chicken fingers and couldn't get enough. I see myself making these frequently as a snack. If you love fries, these are a delicious and easy alternative!

The only word of caution is to keep an eye on them when they're cooking. I attempted a batch of these last week, and maybe I sliced them too thin, but most of them burned after 20 minutes in the oven. The recipe recommends 35, so just check every so often until they're done.

Garlic Fries

3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons canola oil
3 large baking potatoes
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

2. Heat the garlic and oil together in a small saucepan over medium heat for 2 minutes. Strain the garlic from the oil with a small mesh strainer. Set both garlic and oil aside.

3. Cut the potatoes in 1/4-inch-thick matchsticks. In a large bowl, combine the oil, potatoes, and salt. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray and spread the potatoes on it in a single layer. Bake until golden and crisp, about 35 minutes.

3. Remove the potatoes from the baking sheet with a metal spatula. In a serving bowl, toss them with the parsley, reserved garlic, and salt to taste. Serve immediately.

Crispy Chicken Fingers

Source: The Food You Crave

I hate overly-fried chicken fingers. Like when there's a visible layer of grease in between the chicken and the breading, or the breading is thicker than the chicken. I've all but given up ordering chicken fingers because it's a little overly picky to say, "Can you describe the breading? Maybe you have a plate of chicken fingers you're about to deliver you can show me?"

This is a very healthy way to make chicken fingers, and it's also very easy! I don't typically have buttermilk around, so here's a little trick: measure a tablespoon of white vinegar into a measuring glass, and then add enough milk to bring it up to one cup. Let sit and you have buttermilk! It won't be quite as thick, especially if you drink skim like we do, but it'll do in a pinch.

This is a great weeknight recipe! You probably already have everything on-hand.

Crispy Chicken Fingers

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breats halves, cut across into 1/2 inch thick slices

1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk

Cooking spray

4 cups whole-grain corn cereal such as Corn Chex or corn flakes

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pinch of freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Combine the chicken and buttermilk in a shallow dish, turning the chicken to coat it with the buttermilk. Cover and chill for 15 minutes. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.

3. Put the cereal in a sealable plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin. Transfer the crumbs to a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. Dip each piece of chicken in the cereal to fully coat and arrange on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Leave the chicken on the baking sheets to cool slightly. The pieces will become crispier.

If you'd like homemade honey mustard sauce, simply mix 1/3 cup Dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons of mayonnaise and 2 tablespoons of honey together. Enjoy!

Linguine with Shrimp and Vegetables

Source: The Food You Crave

I bought this book a few weeks back as part of my "healthy eating" initiative. I just started randomly flipping through it and this caught my eye. It's kind of a spring/summer dish, but really, I looked through the ingredients and picked it when I saw I only had one item to buy from the grocery store. I don't go by "the lazy housewife" for nothing.

Simply, this was amazing. I ate this until my stomach hurt. I licked the serving spoon before I put it in the dishwasher. This was SO GOOD, and asparagus and tomatoes aren't even in season! I think the key is all the fresh ingredients. Fresh parsley and real grated Parmesan are a MUST.

As always, I make way too many noodles. In this case, I mixed in what I thought was a reasonable amount, and put the rest in a Ziplock bag to serve with tomorrow's spaghetti. All the pasta dishes I make now are with whole-grain noodles. I really can't tell the difference, and since I tend to gorge myself on carbs, I feel a little better knowing they're good for me.

Now if I could only make myself like whole-grain bread. Blech.

Linguine with Shrimp and Vegetables

Ingredients:

3/4 box (12 ounces) linguine

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 bunch (about 1 pound) asparagus, woody bottoms removed and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cook the linguine according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the shrimp and cook until they turn pink and the asparagus is tender but firm, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the shrimp mixture from the pan and set aside.

3. Combine the lemon juice, wine, and reserved pasta water in the skillet over medium-high heat. Let simmer until the liquid is reduced by about half. Return the shrimp and asparagus to the pan and stir in the parsley. Add the drained linguine, tossing to combine. Add the tomatoes and toss. Sprinkle with cheese, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Black-Bean Enchilada Casserole

Source: Cooking Light

I kept hearing about this recipe, so I finally caved in and made it. It was very tasty and easy! I was a little scared chopping up the jalapeno pepper that it would be too spicy, but I found it to be just enough spice for us. Instead of red enchilada sauce, I used medium-spiced green verdes enchilada sauce. It's essential that corn tortillas are used - flour tortillas will get soggy. This was quick, healthy, and I love that we have some leftovers, too!

Black-Bean Enchilada Casserole

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese, divided

1 cup cooked brown basmati rice or long-grain rice
1 cup fat-free sour cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
1 (19-ounce) can red enchilada sauce
Cooking spray
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine 1/2 cup cheese, rice, and the next 7 ingredients (rice through jalapeño) in a large bowl. Spread 1/4 cup enchilada sauce in bottom of an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Heat remaining enchilada sauce in a skillet for 2 minutes or until warm, and remove from heat. Dredge both sides of 6 tortillas in warm enchilada sauce, and arrange tortillas, overlapping, over sauce in baking dish. Top with 1 3/4 cups bean mixture. Dredge both sides of remaining tortillas in warm enchilada sauce, and arrange tortillas, overlapping, over bean mixture. Top with the remaining bean mixture, remaining enchilada sauce, and 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until bubbly.

Lighten Up (Gruyere, Arugula and Prosciutto-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Carmelized Shallot Sauce)

One of my goals this year has been to eat healthier. Now, I've never met a recipe with a stick of butter or a cup of heavy cream that didn't make me go weak in the knees. But it's pretty easy to have delicious food when you're only cooking with fatty ingredients. So I'm branching out this year. I am now in possession of the Cooking Light Complete Cookbook and The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger. I'm enjoying going through these books, particularly the Ellie Krieger one. She has a very healthy approach to eating, as well as some very tasty looking recipes. Expect to see quite a few here in the future!

This recipe, from the previously mentioned Cooking Light cookbook, caught my eye. Maybe it's because it's quite possibly the longest recipe name I've ever encountered. Maybe it's because I have an undying love for Gruyere cheese. Whatever the case might be, this was my first recipe from my new cookbook!

The recipe suggested stuffing the chicken in advance. I did the morning I made this for dinner, and it worked out perfectly. It breaks up the recipe and makes the rest of the recipe that much easier.

Now for the verdict: I was blown away by how amazing this was, and how low in fat, too! The combination of gruyere, arugula and prosciutto was delicious, and the sauce added that little something extra. We both devoured this! I can't wait to make it again!

I bought an entire bag of arugula, so I used the rest by tossing the extra with diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, and a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add some fresh-grated Parmesan cheese and homemade croutons and you have a gourmet meal!

I don't have a large nonstick pan, so I just used my stainless steel All Clad. I think it turned out a little tastier because I was able to scrape up the brown bits from the chicken when I added the wine into the pan. Yum! I would put this in my top 5 chicken recipes!

Gruyere, Arulua, and Prosciutto-Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Carmelized Shallot Sauce

Source: Cooking Light Complete Cookbook

Prep: 30 minutes

Cook: 45 minutes

Chicken:

6 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

6 (1/2 ounce) slices prosciutto

6 (1/2 ounce) slices Gruyere cheese

1 1/2 cups trimmed arugula

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon olive oil

Carmelized Shallot Sauce:

1 cup thinly sliced shallots

2 teaspoons tomato paste

2 cups dry white wine

2 1/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 teaspoons water

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. To prepare chicken, place each breast half between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Discard plastic wrap. Top each half with 1 slice prosciutto, 1 slice cheese, and 1/4 cup arugula, leave a 1/4-inch border around edges. Fold in half, pinching edges together to seal, sprinkle with salt and pepper. (Chicken can be prepared up to a day ahead, and refrigerated).

3. Dredge chicken in flour, shaking off excess. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, cook 5 minutes on each side. Place chicken in shallow baking pan, bake at 350 for 5 minutes or until done. Turn off oven and leave in until sauce is ready.

4. To prepare sauce, add shallots to skillet and saute 4 minutes over medium-high heat or until browned. Add tomato paste, cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine, bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until reduced to 1 cup, about 6 minutes. Add broth, bring to a boil. Cook until reduced by half, about 8 minutes.

5. Combine water and cornstarch in a small bowl, stir with a fork or whisk until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to sauce and bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove chicken breasts from oven and plate them; top with at least 1/4 cup sauce. Enjoy!