Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Roasted Red Pepper and Herb Pasta with Shrimp

Posted in , by blkris | Edit
I had leftover shrimp from my Coconut Shrimp dinner the night before, so I made this recipe.  It was good, but HOT!  I will make it again, but probably reduce the crushed red pepper even more.  If you want your kids to eat this, I would ditch the crushed red pepper altogether.

From Cooking Light magazine

2 Red bell peppers
8 oz uncooked fettuccine
2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbs unsalted butter
1 C finely chopped onion
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1/2 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
1/4 C fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
2 Tbs chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme (I used dried thyme)
1/2 tsp chopped fresh sage (I used dried sage)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbs shaved fresh Parmesan cheese

-Preheat broiler.
- Cut Bell peppers in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes.  Place pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet; flatten with hand.  Broil 15 min. or until blackened. (I got nervous seeing my peppers get black, but don't worry!  The burnt part is just on the skin.  Make sure you let it all get black and burt or else the skin won't peel as easily)  Place in a paper bag; fold to close tightly.  Let stand 20 min.  Peel and chop; set aside.
-Cook fettuccine according to the package directions, omitting salt and oil; drain well.  Set aside; keep warm.
-Heat 2 Tbs olive oil and butter (I only used olive oil) in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add chopped onion and garlic to pan, and cook for 4 min. or until the onion is tender, stirring frequently.  Add shrimp to the pan (I even added some cooked chicken), and cook for 2 min.  Add bell peppers and 1/4 C lemon juice to the pan, and cook for 4 min. or until the shrimp are done and half of the liquid has evaporated.  Add chopped parsley and the next 5 ingredients (through 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper) to the shrimp mixture.  Remove pan from heat.
-Combine cooked fettuccine and 1 tsp olive oil in a large bowl; toss well.  Add shrimp mixture, tossing gently to coat.  Top each serving with cheese.

Coconut shrimp with Fiery Mango sauce

Posted in , by blkris | Edit
I "heart" shrimp.  So if it is on sale, a really good sale, or for a special occasion, I get it.  I found this recipe for coconut shrimp in Cooking Light magazine and it turned out great!  Although, I will make sure that I have the shrimp all coated with everything before I start cooking instead of doing it while I go.  Yeah, I know.... duh!  But, when you are juggling two kids, and nursing a baby, you do what you can, right?  The sweet coconut is great with the salty taste of the shrimp and breadcrumbs.  YUM!  My kids didn't eat these, so I just cooked them for my hubby and I and did probably about 3/4 pound of shrimp, paired with green beans and orzo with parmesean and basil.  Delicious!

From Cooking Light magazine Jan/Feb 2010

28 jumbo shrimp (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 C flaked sweetened coconut
1/2 C panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/3 C cornstarch
3 egg whites, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
8 tsp oil, divided
Cooking spray

-Peel and devein shrimp, leaving tails intact, discard shells (or you can save time and get the already cooked and peeled shrimp from the butcher's counter in your store!)
-Place coconut in a food processor; pulse 6 times or until finely chopped.  Add panko; pulse to combine. Place coconut mixture in a shallow dish.  Place cornstarch in a shallow dish.  Sprinkle shrimp evenly with 1/2 tsp salt.  Working with 1 shrimp at a time, dredge shrimp in cornstarch, shaking off excess.  Dip in egg whites; dredge in coconut mixture.
-Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add 2 tsp oil to pan; swirl to coat.  Add 7 shrimp to pan; coat tops of shrimp with cooking spray.  Cook shrimp 2 1/2 min. on each side or until done.  Repeat procedure 3 times with remaining oil and shrimp.
4 servings

They also had a Fiery Mango Sauce with this, that I actually didn't make.  Didn't have the ingredients for it or the time, and I thought the shrimp was good plain.  But in case you want it, here is the recipe!

1 tsp oil
2/3 C finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (12 oz) can mango nectar
1/4 Scotch bonnet pepper, unseeded
1 1/2 Tbs fresh lime juice
1/8 tsp salt

Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add 1 tsp oil to pan; swirl to coat.  Add onion, ginger, and garlic; saute 3 min., stirring frequently.  Add nectar and pepper; bring to a boil.  Cook 10 min or until reduced to 3/4 C.  Remove from heat; let stand 10 min.  Place mixture in a blender; process until smooth.  Stir in juice and 1/8 tsp. salt.  Cool.

Coconut milk pancakes

Posted in , by blkris | Edit
Ever realize that you don't have any milk left to make pancakes??  Well, if you have coconut milk on hand (which I always do just in case I want to make sticky coconut chicken), you can now make pancakes!  Cooking light has a recipe for them that is really good.  You may be thinking that they will taste too much like coconut, but really, you can't even taste it!  The original recipe calls for light coconut milk, but regular works too.  The light milk is thiner and so it  makes the pancakes lighter and fluffier.  This is how I like my pancakes.  My hubby, on the other hand, likes them thick and dense, which you can get if you use regular coconut milk.  Either way, they are good!  For 4 people, I would double or even 2 1/2 the batch.  1 batch is definitely not enough if you are pancake lovers!

From Cooking Light magazine Sept. 2010

Combine:
1 C All purpose flour (As always, I use half wheat, half white flour)
1 Tbs sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Whisk together:
1 C light coconut milk
1 1/2 Tbs oil
1 egg

Combine with dry ingredients.
Cook as usual for pancakes.