Shrimp Enchiladas

These were yummy!

Shrimp Enchiladas
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 lb shrimp, shelled and chopped
Kosher salt
Pepper

Cream Sauce
4 T. butter
4 T. flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 small can diced green chilis
1 tsp cumin
Kosher salt

8 medium flour tortillas
1 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
Freshly chopped cilantro for garnish
Pico de gallo

Preheat oven to 400.  In a large skillet, over medium heat, heat the olive oil and cook the onion and pepper and jalapeno. When softened, add the garlic and cook another minute.  It should take 7- 10 minutes.  Add the shrimp and cook until the shrimp is pink- about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over med. heat.  Add the flour and cook for a couple of minutes.  Add the sour cream and milk and cook until thickened.  Add the green chilis, cumin and season well with salt and pepper.  Stir into a nice sauce.
Assemble the enchiladas by spreading a thin layer of the sauce into a prepared 9 x 13 pan.  Spoon about 1/3 cup shrimp mixture into each of the 8 tortillas.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Put a spoonful of sauce in then roll up and place in pan seam-side down.  Repeat with all tortillas.  Spread the sauce over enchiladas then top with remaining cheese.  Bake until the cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly.  It will take about 30 minutes.  Garnish with cilantro and serve with Pico de Gallo.

Garlic Shrimp Pasta

Kristen made this recipe for me when I visited her in Wisconsin.  It is delicious, easy, and low calorie!
Skinny Garlic Shrimp Pasta
8 oz angel hair pasta
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1 1/2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 lb. fresh medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
3/4 cup chicken broth
Salt and pepper
3 T. chopped fresh parsley
2 T. butter

Cook pasta in plenty of salty as the sea water.  Drain;  Return to pan and stir in spinach, tomatoes and 2 tsp. of the oil.  Cover to keep warm.

While pasta is cooking, heat remaining oil in skillet.  Add onion and cook and stir until soft.  Add shrimp, garlic, and pepper flakes.  Cook and stir for 2 minutes.  Stir in chicken broth and add salt and pepper.  Cook until shrimp are pink- about two minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in parsley and butter.  Stir until butter is melted.  Add shrimp mixture to pasta mixture.  Toss and serve.

Original Source:  Betty Crocker

Pantry Pick of the Month: Marinated Artichoke Hearts/Lime Shrimp Scampi with Marinated Artichoke Hearts over Angel Hair Pasta

On impulse, I purchased two LARGE jars of marinated artichoke hearts at Costco.  What am I going to do with these?  They are my pantry pick this month.  I looked at several pasta recipes that included artichoke hearts, but in the end, just made up my own.  It turned out SO good.  Here are some of the star ingredients:

Lime Shrimp Scampi with Marinated Artichoke Hearts
1 lb. angel hair pasta
1/2 bag frozen shrimp
1/2- 3/4 cup or so marinated artichoke hearts
3-4 Tablespoons Garlic Butter
Juice of 2 or 3 limes  (more or less to taste)
Salt
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes 1/4 tsp.- blow your head off a lot
Two big handfuls grated Parmesan cheese

You may have detected that I am so guessing on amounts.  I just made it up as I went along.
In boiling, salted water, cook the pasta.  While it's cooking, make the sauce:
Start with a large sided skillet or Le Cruset' pan.  Put in a big hunk of the garlic butter in a large sided skillet or Le Creuset pan.  Squeeze the lime juice right in the pan.  Add the shrimp, artichoke hearts, a few Tablespoons of the marinade from the artichokes, red pepper flakes, and a ladel full of the pasta cooking water.  Cook until the shrimp turn pink. Add the drained pasta right into the skillet and mix together.  Add the parmesan cheese and salt if needed.  Serve while hot.

PS  The garlic butter makes delicious garlic bread!

Easy and Delicious Oven Shrimp Scampi

I made this for New Year's.  It was very easy and so delicious.  Serve with rice.
1/2 cup butter
About 20 large, uncooked, tail on frozen or fresh shrimp
1 package Italian Dressing mix
Red pepper flakes, ( to taste, opt.)
2-3 cloves garlic minced or mashed
1 lemon, sliced

Preheat the oven to 350.  Put the butter in a 13 x 9 pan and put it in the oven while it's preheating until melted.  Remove the pan and mix the garlic  and pepper flakes into the butter.  Put the lemon slices on the butter, then lay the shrimp  on the lemon.  Sprinkle the dressing mix over all.  Bake for about 15 minutes until the shrimp are pink.  So yummy!

Thai Coconut Curry Over Rice

I love the Coconut Curry at a Thai Restaurant in town.  My husband is not a big fan, so my friend Shawna and I make regular visits to Benja Thai's and always order the same thing.  I've been looking for a recipe so I can make it at home.  I've found several online and tried this one.  I've altered it, using ingredients you can buy in a regular supermarket and to try to make it taste like Benja's.  This is what I have come up with.  These are the unusual ingredients you'll need: 

Better Than Bouillon Fish Base
I love Better Than Bouillon because, well because it IS indeed better than bouillon.  My Dad was a great cook  and introduced me to this product.  I regularly use the chicken and beef.  The recipe called for fish sauce, which I couldn't find.  I substituted this and it worked great.

This will be found in the Oriental section of your supermarket: Red Curry Paste.

Here's the recipe.  I've given it for shrimp, but you can substitute chicken or beef.  Just substitute the corresponding better than bouillon flavor.
Thai Coconut Curry Shrimp  

olive oil for frying

1 bunch green onions,  chopped (separate the greens from the whites as you chop)

1 1/2 T. red curry paste (more or less according to taste)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. shrimp (Though the recipe called for fresh, uncooked, peeled and deveined shrimp,  I just bought jumbo frozen, cooked shrimp at Costco- thawed.  It worked great.)  or substitute 1 lb. chicken or beef, chopped)

1 can coconut milk (6 oz. or more)

2 tsp. Better Than Bouillon Fish Base

1/8 -1/4 cup sugar (more or less to taste)

Red Pepper Flakes ( at Benja's they let you choose your "hot" level. Use just a pinch for level 1 and on up.  Again to taste)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Salt to taste (you may not need any)

In a large skillet, heat the oil on med. high heat.  Add the white part of the onions and the red curry paste.  Saute for about a minute.  Add the garlic and shrimp and cook for another 2-3 minutes (until chicken or beef is cooked if you're substituting).  When meat is cooked, add the coconut milk, sugar, and the fish base and stir well.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes.  Taste and correct the seasonings, adding more salt, sugar, and/or pepper flakes( remember the red pepper flakes get hotter as they marinate) if desired.   Remove from heat and add the green part of the onions and the cilantro.  Serve over rice.  This is low calorie and delicious!

Baked Coconut Shrimp with Dipping Sauce

I'll never forget the first time I tasted Coconut Shrimp.  My sisters and I went out to dinner at a Thai Restaurant and ordered some.  I thought it was the best thing I'd ever tasted.  That was probably ten years ago.  Since then, I've been looking for a recipe.  I found this one and adapted it.  It is easy and delicious and healthier than the fried version. 

Coconut Shrimp

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sweetened coconut flakes
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt

pinch of Crushed pepper flakes (or you can put a little Tabasco sauce in the egg)

About 18-20 jumbo shrimp, uncooked (thawed)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Dipping Sauce:
1/4 cup jam, any flavor
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preheat the oven to 400˚F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, foil, or a silicone baking sheet.

Lightly beat the eggs in a medium bowl; set aside.  Mix the coconut, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a shallow dish.  Dip the shrimp in theegg and then coat with the coconut/ flour mixture.  Place on the baking sheet.  Once all the shrimp are coated and on the baking sheet,  drizzle with the melted butter.   Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the shrimp are pink.   Halfway through the baking time, turn the shrimp over.  

Sauce:  Mix the jam and mustard together and store in fridge for a few minutes (or longer) to marry the flavors.  

Peachy Shrimp Tacos

My confession: I was standing in line, waiting to check out at the grocery store, perusing the magazines on the rack, when "Taste of Home" caught my eye. I love "Taste of Home" magazine. This was a special issue of "Taste of Home Grand Prize Winners" The best recipes from 106 contests. I looked at some of the recipes and pictures, and on impulse, stuck it in my cart.

After really looking at it when I got home, I went back and bought three more copies and sent them to my daughters. I'm sure you'll be seeing many recipes from this book from us. It's a winner and full of beautiful pictures and delicious recipes. The first one I tried was this one. I had the few needed ingredients (except the cabbage- I had to go buy that) and it looked yummy . . .and it was. These tacos took just a few minutes to make, and they were really tasty.

Peachy Shrimp Tacos

1 cup salsa

1 cup frozen peaches, thawed and diced (I really think canned or fresh would work, too)

1 pound shrimp (the recipe called for cooked, but I had a bag of uncooked in the freezer. They worked just great)

1 T. (or more) minced fresh cilantro (I just headed out to the garden and snipped some!)

1 1/2 cups shredded Chinese or napa Cabbage (I had never used this. It was really yummy. I'm sure regular cabbage would work- but this is darker and softer. I shredded it in the food processor)

6 corn tortillas (or flour tortillas or I had some hard tostada shells, so that's what I used. Taco shells would be great, too.)

In a large skillet, put in a small amount of oil and cook the shrimp (if they are uncooked) I added a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes to the shrimp as I cooked it. When the shrimp are pink, Add the salsa and peaches and heat through. Add the cilantro and mix well. Put some of the chopped cabbage (about 1/4 cup) down the middle of the tortilla. Top with the shrimp mixture.