Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

This is a pasta that I think is totally wonderful.  It has lots of parsley, garlic, and lemon.  It's deliciously fresh and satisfying .  It's best as written, but if you're watching your calories, you can use part of the butter, omitting the olive oil , and add 1/2 to 3/4 cup pasta water.  Try it first in it's original form then branch out as you wish.

  
Linguine with Shrimp Scampi adapted from Ina Garten

Ingredients:

1 pound linguine                                                                                                          
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 pounds large shrimp-peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 cups fresh parsley-finely chopped
Grated zest of 1 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
pinch red pepper flakes
salt and black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large of water, add 1 tablespoons of salt and bring to a boil.  Add linguine and cook for 7-10 minutes, or according to package directions.

2. Meanwhile, in another large, heavy-bottomed pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic.  Saute for 1 minute.  Add the shrimp, 1 tablespoon salt,  red pepper and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and saute until the shrimp have just turned pink, about 5 minutes, stirring often.  Remove from the heat, add parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice and red pepper flakes.  Toss to combine.

3. When pasta is done, drain the cooked linguine and then put it back in the pot.  Immediately add the shrimp and sauce and sauce, toss well, check seasoning and serve.

 

Can you believe the size of these home grown lemons!?!  The lil baby is from the market.

Meatballs, Meatballs, Meatballs !!!

There are few meals I love more than Spaghetti and Meatballs.  You know what I'm talking about.  Good Italian pasta ,cooked al dente, bathed in a wonderful gravy and topped of with moist, flavorful, beefy meatballs.  Totally a slice of heaven!  Simple, soul satisfying food.   For some reason, I've had a hard time finding a great version of this at a restaurant.  Maybe they aren't the current chic thing for restaurants to be serving, I don't know.  When I tried this recipe for meatballs, I feel instantly, head over heels in love.  These babies were just what I was looking for.  I served them with Sunday Gravy and  the whole family was smitten.  Not only does the flavor totally rock, they are NOT fried.  I love this for  two obvious reasons.  One, there's not a whole lot of splattered, greasy mess to clean up,  and two,  there's not a lot of extra, and unnecessary,  fat added to them.  I hope you give these gems a try.  Let me know what you think!

Meatballs: adapted from Cooks Country


Ingredients:

My Sunday Gravy here ( my gravy recipe is on my lasagna post. ) or sauce of your choice

1 pound Italian pasta-cook while meatballs are finishing in the sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 onion-finely chopped
6 cloves garlic-minced
1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
pinch red pepper flakes
4 slices hearty white sandwich bread-torn into small pieces
3/4 cup milk
1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage-casing remove
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs-lightly beaten
4 cloves garlic- minced
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 pounds ground beef- 80/20

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 475 degrees and adjust oven racks to upper-middle  position.

2. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Cook onions until very soft, 10-15 minutes.  Add garlic, oregano, and pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, add milk and bread and allow to sit for 10 minutes.  Mash.  Add onion mixture and combine.  Add remaining ingredients except beef and knead to combine.  Add beef and knead until ingredients are well combined.

4.  Form mixture into 2 1/2 inch meatballs ( you should have approximately 16 meatballs ), place on rimmed baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes.  Transfer meatballs to pot of sauce and simmer for 30 minutes on very low heat so that you do not have to stir pot.  Serve over cooked pasta!

Blueberry Muffins

I have been making lots of blueberry muffins lately.  I've just been craving them.  I've also tried many recipes for them.  This recipe is from Cook's Illustrated and so far it's my favorite.  The recipe actually has you make your own blueberry jam to add to the muffins.  I think when I make these again, and I will make them again SOON, I just might use jarred blueberry jam.  Since fresh blueberries are so expensive, this just makes more sense to me.  These muffins are really moist and tender and they have an awesome crumb topping.  They are totally delicious.  I hope you give them a try!

Blueberry Muffins from Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients:                                              

Streusel Topping
3	tablespoons sugar
3	tablespoons dark brown sugar
	Pinch salt
1/2	cup plus 3 tablespoons flour
5	tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and warm
Muffins
2	cups fresh blueberries, picked over
11/8	cups sugar
21/2	cups flour
21/2	teaspoons baking powder
1	teaspoon salt
2	large eggs
4	tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly (1/2 stick)
1/4	cup vegetable oil
1	cup buttermilk
11/2	teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. 1. FOR THE TOPPING: Stir together sugar, brown sugar, salt, and flour in small bowl until combined. Drizzle with warm butter and toss with fork until evenly moistened and mixture forms large chunks with some pea-sized pieces throughout. Set aside.
2. 2. FOR THE MUFFINS: Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Spray standard muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Bring 1 cup blueberries and 1 teaspoon sugar to simmer in small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, mashing berries with spoon several times and stirring frequently, until berries have broken down and mixture is thickened and reduced to ¼ cup, about 6 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
3. 3. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl. Whisk remaining 11/8 cups sugar and eggs together in medium bowl until thick and homogeneous, about 45 seconds. Slowly whisk in butter and oil until combined. Whisk in buttermilk and vanilla until combined. Using rubber spatula, fold egg mixture and remaining cup blueberries into flour mixture until just moistened. (Batter will be very lumpy with few spots of dry flour; do not over mix.)
4. 4. Following photos below, use ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups (batter should completely fill cups and mound slightly). Spoon teaspoon of cooked berry mixture into center of each mound of batter. Using chopstick or skewer, gently swirl berry filling into batter using figure-eight motion. Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over muffins.
5. 5. Bake until muffin tops are golden and just firm, 17 to 19 minutes, rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool 5 minutes before serving.

Sweet Chili Cashews

Here is an Emeril recipe I really like.  It's the perfect little nibble to serve with cocktails.  I, personally, love these with margaritas.  They have a Mexican or Southwest accent because of the chili powders used.  As this is written, it isn't very spicy.  If you'd like it to be more spicy just increase the cayenne.  Enjoy!


Sweet Chili Cashews: adapted from Emeril

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon ancho chili
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups Cashews

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix spices and reserve.
3. Heat nuts in a dry skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until begin to toast, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
4. Add the butter, sugar, water and spices to the hot skillet and cook, stirring, until a glaze forms, about 1 minute. Return the nuts to the skillet and toss to combine with the glaze. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, or until the nuts are glazed and golden brown.
5. Remove from the heat and transfer to a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil,   Place in a preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until coating drys a bit and isn't so sticky.
6. Separate clusters with a fork. Let rest until cooled and the sugar has hardened, about 10 minutes. Store in an airtight container.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

 These cookies are  like the girl scout oatmeal peanut butter sandwich cookies only better.  How can that be, you ask?  I don't know, but somehow, they just are.  My daughter found this recipe on Allrecipes on their top 20 list for cookies and I tell it's on that list for darn good reason.   These cookies are amazing.  The filling is super creamy and peanut buttery delicious and the two outer cookies are yummy oatmeal cookies with a great chewy texture.  If you prefer a crisper cookie just add a little extra time on the baking time.  You've got to give these a try.  Super YUM!!!

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Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies: allrecipes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup quick cooking oats
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 2 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, 1/2 cup peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add egg and beat well.
2. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir. Add oatmeal and stir.
3. Drop by teaspoons onto greased baking sheet, and press each mound down with a fork to form 1/4 inch thick cookies. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes, or until cookies are a light brown.
4. To Make Filling: Cream 3 tablespoons butter or margarine with the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, and the cream. Spread filling onto half of the cooled cookies, then top with the other half to form sandwiches.

Southwest Coleslaw

I love coleslaw. I generally make an old fashioned buttermilk coleslaw.  You know, the kind that grandma used to make.  When I saw this recipe, I though,' Wow!'  that looks delicious. I saw it on a blog called  Debbi Does Dinner.   I love southwestern flavors and coleslaw so this was something I just couldn't pass up. I put my own spin on it and renamed it to fit my new adaption.   I really enjoyed this version.  Coleslaw's a funny thing.  When you first mix it, you think, this is going to be totally dry.  I need more dressing.  But low, and behold, the cabbage and dressing do their magic, as they sit a bit, and turn into coleslaw and you end up having plenty of dressing.  The original recipe was a definitely on the wet side.  I like my coleslaw to be coated with a more creamy, less watery dressing so I made my version a lot thicker.  This is definitely a salad that will be making many repeat visits at my home over the summer.

Southwest Coleslaw  adapted from Debbie Does Dinner

10 ounce bag shredded angel hair coleslaw mix
3 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon lime peel-grated
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1/2 cup light sour cream
2 tablespoon honey 
3/4 teaspoon Ancho chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cumin seeds (these are strong so start small!)
4 or 5 green onions, chopped
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
 

Directions:
1.Make the dressing by combining the lime juice, mayo, sour cream, honey, salt, chipotle pepper and adobo sauce. Taste and add spice as desired. 
2. Mix all remaining ingredients with dressing.  Allow to sit for a couple of hours in fridge.  Toss to mix and serve.

The Kimarita !

 I love, love, love, margaritas.  They are, imho, the perfect cocktail.  They have a little sweet and sour thing going on and a lovely salty thing going on and best of all, they've got Tequila.  They are, of course delicious with Mexican food, but I for one do not do not discriminate against other food ethnicities while enjoying them.  With all they have going for them, I have no problem having them with all food types.  Now don't get me wrong, I don't drink them all that often (anymore!  age stinks sometimes!).  Allz I'm saying is they are mighty good.  Now, in my time, I've enjoyed many different versions of margies.  I've had them in many parts of our beautiful country and also in Mexico.  I've made them using homemade sweet and sour mix, using agave, and sometimes only fresh lime juice as a mixer.  I've tried lots of premium tequilas.   When I want a quick, always delicious, easily made recipe, this is my go to margie.  This recipe has a long and rather colorful history.  My darling little friend Kim makes these and she is famous or infamous, depending on your perspective, for them.  Her recipe is outrageously strong but I'm going to give it to you like I got it.  I fervently encourage you to cut back on the tequila especially if this is a new recipe for you.  Remember, these can be a little tricky and might have a delayed reaction as they work into your system.  Always use the commonsense approach to drinking.  One cocktail, two glasses of water....even if you've cut back on the tequila!  Now you're all ready for Cinco de Mayo!

Kimaritas

In a large pitcher mix the following;

1 part tequila-about 1/3 of the pitcher ( Kim uses Jose Cuervo Gold )
1 part margarita mix -about 1/3 of the pitcher ( Kim recommends Trader Joes margarita mix )
   part Cointreau
1/2 cup orange juice

1. Place pitcher in freezer for 8 hours or overnight.
2. Cut 4 limes in 6ths and squeeze into pitcher
3. Serve over lots of ice
4. Pour a wee bit of Grand Marnier on top as a float.  This is optional and makes for a sweeter margarita.