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22
Feb
2011
 Sweet and Spicy Grilled Shrimp



I was in the mood to cook something delicious yesterday because Mr Triathlete was coming back from being out of town for a while. We all know what it’s like cooking for one. I don’t go to much trouble to make just myself anything fancy because no one else can appreciate it.

Anyway, I found this sweet and spicy “Mexican” grilled shrimp recipe on Southern Living. I modified it a little because I couldn’t find tamarind paste, and I was making a smaller portion.

Sweet and Spicy Grilled Shrimp
Makes 2 Servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. Shrimp, peeled and de-veined, tails on or off
  • about 10 skewers if you are using a grill; if you are using a grill pan skewers are optional
  • 1/4 C. packed brown sugar
  • 5 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced
  • 1 Tbsp. adobo sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. water
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 2 Tbsp. prune or date puree
  • 2 tsp. Honey
  • 1 tsp. olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Directions:

1. To make the sauce, add the last 9 ingredients to a small saucepan. Heat over low heat until the brown sugar is dissolved and the sauce reduced slightly.

2. Heat grill pan over medium heat. Add prepared shrimp on to grill pan and brush with sauce. Turn the shrimp over halfway through (about 4 minutes on each side). As soon as the shrimp become a little pink and curl up a little, they are done.

Making these shrimp made me realize I need an actual grill. The pan started to smoke quite a bit towards the end of cooking because the sauce was getting on the pan. Pretty soon my small apartment began to fill up with a sweet smoky smell. One of these days…

Anyway, we had the shrimp with kale (cooked with some onions and 1 leftover chicken sausage link) and a glass of wine. It has been so nice out lately, so the shrimp made me feel like spring was here!

14
Feb
2011
 Happy Valentine’s Day



Valentine’s Day is not one of my favorite Holidays although it is nice and sweet. Any excuse to celebrate something is a happy time.

So, I woke up this morning to a knock on the door. Apparently someone sent me flowers, but I am still not exactly sure who. I am almost positive it was my Mom because she asked for my address a few days ago. But, the card was from some random family that I don’t know and the package did have my name on it. Oh well. They are pretty flowers!

My Mom aka the psycho Holiday baker was at it again for Valentine’s Day. Baking up a storm. Poor thing ended up spilling a few pounds of sugar all over the floor. Sucks.

Here efforts weren’t wasted because she made excellent sugar cookies.

She made some pretty purple frosting cookies too. And she made light and fluffy oatmeal cookies with frosting. Who knew oatmeal cookies could be light and airy!? I am sure she just used extra butter to get this result…

Anyway, I am not sure about my Valentine’s Day dinner plans, but I think Mr Triathlete and I will make a tasty dinner!

Here are some last minute healthy dinner/dessert ideas:

12
Jan
2011
 Snowcation Baking



Here in Atlanta we got a small ice/snow storm that coated our roads and made it impossible to drive, go to work, and go to school for 3 full days. It is now Wednesday, and I am trying to get to work. But, let’s face it–the patients I see are not going to show up anyway because the roads are still tricky!

We didn’t even get that much snow. The problem is that Georgia doesn’t salt/sand/plow the roads so, ice caked on and everyone got stuck inside. It was even hard to get in exercise. I ended up jumping rope inside the apartment for 30 minutes.


Exhibit A: Tow truck with chains on the wheels didn’t make it up the hill for about 30 minutes.

I was feeling cabin fever, and still am. So, that’s when I decided to begin a baking frenzy. But, I had no eggs. Can’t go to the store (although I could’ve walked a few miles!). Surely I could find a recipe that didn’t call for eggs. And I did.

Snowcation Coconut Oat Cookies(Egg Free!)
Recipe adapted from EgglessCooking.com
Makes about 20 small-medium cookies

Ingredients:

  • 1 Cup Oats
  • 1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1/2 Cup Nuts, chopped (almonds or walnuts)
  • 1/2 Cup shredded coconut
  • 1/4 Cup sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 Tbsp. Cinnamon
  • 1/2 Cup Dried fruit (I used raisins and craisins)
  • 1/4 Cup Canola oil
  • 2 Tbsp. Molasses
  • 1/3 Cup Milk

Directions:

1. Preheat 350F. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray.

2. Mix the wet ingredients. Mix the dry ingredients. Combine wet and dry ingredients.

3. Roll into 2 inch balls, and flatten slightly onto baking sheet.

4. Bake 22 minutes or until edges are golden.

The cookies came out more cake-like on the inside. I think they get the chewier texture from the coconut. They are just sweet enough, and taste like a “healthier” cookie. They seem more like a breakfast or snack cookie. Perfect with a glass of milk, coffee, or tea.

11
Jan
2011
 Roasted Broccoli



Yesterday, while snowed in here in Georgia, I discovered the best way to cook broccoli. It’s not watery, or too soft. Roasting it makes the broccoli crispy and perfectly crunchy. Parts of the floret become burnt looking, but they taste crispy and delicious.

I used Alton Brown’s roasted broccoli recipe as inspiration.

1. Preheat oven 425F.

2. Toss 3 cups of fresh broccoli florets with 2 Tbsp. olive oil, 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh garlic, and salt and pepper.

3. Pour broccoli mixture onto an ungreased baking sheet, and bake about 10-15 minutes or until parts of the broccoli brown.

4. Grate parmesan or romano cheese on top of hot broccoli.

Voila! Delicious and nutritious.

There were only a few pieces left!

15
Dec
2010
 10 Days ’til Christmas



Now seems like a good time to start a Healthify the Holidays Christmas Countdown.

I went to OK Cafe the other day with my sister on a day when it looked like the inside of a snow globe (minus snow accumulation on the ground). I ordered vegetable soup, and it was so delicious and warm that it inspired me to make this recipe.

We will start with get-you-through-the-cold-days, vegetable soup.

This is a true vegetable soup. I tried to use all fresh ingredients. This helps make the flavor and texture delicious!

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
  • 1, 16 oz. can white beans, drained and rinsed.
  • 16 oz. reduced sodium tomato soup
  • 4 Cups reduced sodium chicken or vegetable broth
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 1 large zucchini, chopped
  • 2 yellow squash, chopped
  • 1, 16 oz. can no salt added diced tomatoes
  • Italian seasonings: dried or fresh parsley, basil, salt and pepper.
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 large carrots, sliced
  • 3 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1 large russet potato, diced
  • 1 medium eggplant, diced and let sit in salt for 10 mins to draw out bitterness
  • 1 1/2 cups corn (Fresh, cut off the cob is best. If not, frozen is ok)
  • Dash of Worcestershire sauce, and 3 Tbsp. tomato paste are the secret for added flavor

Directions:

Throw all prepared vegetables into large pot. Add 1 Cup water if you need more liquid. Bring to a boil, then simmer/heat on low for 3 hours.

This soup will last you all week. It’s cheap to make, super healthy way to get your vegetables, a great vegetarian option (can be made vegan by omitting Worcestershire and using vegetable broth), and lower calorie compared to other soups/meals. By making your own soup you are cutting down on sodium. Instead of eating 700 mg of sodium per cup, homemade soup can practically cut that in half!

Do you have a favorite soup recipe?

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