Beef Stir Fry with Broccoli and Asparagus

I was looking to make an Asian inspired beef and broccoli dish and this recipe immediately caught my eye because of the additional vegetables on the ingredients list. The original recipe called for snap peas and edamame as well however I decided the basic broccoli with the not so basic asparagus would hit the spot. I also doubled the beef; eight ounces just wasn’t going to cut it for us. I’m glad I did this because the two pounds of veggies would have way overshadowed the beef.

This dinner was quite tasty. A little bit of spice, but not too, much plus a full plate of greens. I enjoy finding other ways to have beef besides the typical steak or roast. This is definitely a great go to recipe to replace the ‘Chinese takeout’ version with MUCH healthier and satisfying alternative.

Adapted from Ellie Krieger

Ingredients
1/4 cup mirin or semisweet white wine, like Riesling
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 tsp canola oil
1 lb beef top sirloin steak, sliced 1/4 inch thick
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large bunch broccoli (approx 1 pound), trimmed and cut into small florets
1 bunch asparagus (approx 1 pound), trimmed and sliced on diagonal into 2-inch pieces
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water
1 tsp sesame oil

Directions
1. Combine mirin or white wine, orange juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, red pepper flakes and water in a small bowl.

2. In a large wok or very large (14-inch) sauté pan, heat 1/2 teaspoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook, stirring, until just browned, about 2 minutes. Transfer the beef to a plate and keep warm.

3. Heat the remaining teaspoon of oil over medium heat and cook garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broccoli and asparagus, raise heat to medium-high, and cook for 3 minutes until vegetables are slightly softened.

4. Add the mirin-soy mixture and cook, stirring, until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.

5. Add the beef and dissolved cornstarch and stir to incorporate. Cook until mixture thickens slightly and beef is heated through, an additional 2 minutes. Drizzle with sesame oil and serve over rice.

The Facts
6 Servings
*Rice NOT Included

Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf

To quote my husband “It’s not like anything I’ve ever had before.” Yes, this is quite different; however that’s not a bad thing. Bryan enjoyed the meal (despite the fact it took twice as long to cook as I planned). I’ve never particularly liked meat loaf so although I wasn’t the biggest fan of this dish, I did like the taste of it.

With my awesome food processor, this dish came together quite quickly. I finely chopped all the veggies, then used 4 chicken breasts (~1.25 lbs) and thoroughly processed them into ground chicken. I substituted gorgonzola cheese crumbles for blue cheese crumbles.

As far as cooking time, you’re honestly going to have to keep an eye on it and check the temperature. The original recipe called for a 9” x 5” x 3” loaf pan. Mine was 8.5” x 4.5” x 3”. The slightly smaller loaf pan combine with an extra 1/4 lb of chicken and sweet potatoes sharing the oven resulted in a drastically longer cook time. I honestly have no idea how long I the dish was in the over because I kept consistently adding five minutes to the timer. Learn from my mistake!

Adapted from Lobster and Fishsticks

Ingredients
Olive oil spray
2/3 cup old fashioned oats
1/2 cup fat free milk
1/3 cup buffalo wing sauce
1 -1.25 lb extra-lean ground chicken breast
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet onion
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup crumbled reduced fat gorgonzola cheese

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly mist a 9” x 5” x 3” nonstick loaf pan with olive oil spray.

2. Combine oats and milk in a medium size mixing bowl. Mix well. Let stand for 3 minutes or until oats are softened.

3. Stir in wing sauce until well mixed. Add chicken, celery, carrots, onion, egg whites, and salt. With fork, mix ingredients well. Add gorgonzola cheese and gently mix.

4. Transfer mixture to pan and spread so that top is flat. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. ***(Depending on how much chicken you use as well as your pan size, cooking time coucld vary greatly. Ensure meat reaches proper temperature before serving.)

5. Cut into 8 slices. *2 slices per serving.*

The Facts
4 Servings

Menu Plans 03-29-10

Monday - Buffalo Chicken Meatloaf, Baked Sweet Potato, Salad
Tuesday - Stir Fry Beef with Broccoli and Asparagus, Brown Rice
Wednesday - Chicken Gorgonzola with Sun Dried Tomatoes, Asparagus and Mushrooms over Pasta

Thursday we're heading to Texas to visit my brother in law until Sunday. We're looking forward to a weekend of good eats at some local Fort Worth restaurants. :)

Roasted Salsa

This is officially my FAVORITE salsa recipe! It definitely had some spice to it so if you’re a little weary of it being too hot, I’d reduce the amount of peppers or chipotle chilies. Bryan and I LOVED the smoky flavor the canned chilies brought to the dip. It tasted good warm right after I made it, however the flavor was even better the next day cold. Yum. This will definitely be made again in this house.

Ingredients
Olive oil spray
4 Roma tomatoes, halved
1 can stewed tomatoes, drained
1 yellow onion, cut into eighths
1 jalapeño, seeded and quartered
1/2 poblano pepper, seeded and cut into strips
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
2-3 canned chipotle chilies in adobo, chopped
2 tbsp lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 tbsp cumin
1/4 tsp coriander

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 500°.

2. In a rectangular baking pan lined with foil, combine, tomatoes, onion, jalapeño, poblano pepper, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Spray veggies with olive oil and mix to coat.

3. Bake for approximately 30-40 minutes, checking every 10 minutes to stir veggies. The onions will begin to burn a little at the edges, and the tomatoes will start to get a little blackened as well.

4. Pull the veggies out of the oven and let them cool a little bit. In a food processor or a blender, add the cooked veggies, chipotle chilies, lime juice, cilantro, cumin, coriander and sugar. Blend until your desired consistency. I like mine pretty smooth.

5. You can serve warm or cool. I refrigerated over night and enjoyed the flavors even more the next day.

Salsa Verde Sour Cream Enchiladas

Mmmm, enchiladas. When I typically think of enchiladas, I think of ooey gooey cheesy goodness. This is probably why I have not had them in a while. The copious amount of cheese in a traditional enchilada just doesn’t really fit in my eating plan. Not to mention it would probably make my stomach hurt for a full day after.

My enchilada outlook changed with I saw this recipe. I took a look at the ingredients and saw a huge opportunity for some lightened up enchiladas. I used fat free sour cream, whole grain tortillas, and omitted the cheese on my portion. I found the sauce to be creamy enough to not need the cheese. At my husband’s request, I added a little bit of reduced fat cheese to his portion.

I also halved the sauce recipe from the original and make 6 enchiladas versus 12. I couldn’t find Serrano peppers so I used additional jalapeño and a bit of a poblano pepper. We topped the enchiladas with lettuce, black olives and sour cream accompanied with some homemade baked tortilla chips and my new favorite homemade salsa. Delicious!

Adapted from The Novice Chef

Ingredients
3 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (mine were approx 1.25 lbs)
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1/6 poblano pepper, seeded, minced
2 jalapeños, seeded, minced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 cup fat free sour cream
8 oz salsa verde **
3/4 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
6 eight grain tortillas, small fajita size
1/2 cup shredded Monterrey Jack (optional)
1/4 medium onion, diced (optional)
**The original recipe calls for Ortega Medium Salsa Verde, however I had a cup of leftover salsa verde I made for this recipe that I used instead.

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350.

2. In medium sauce pan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Sauté jalapeños until soft and then add the garlic, cooking for 1 minute. Stir in the flour and let cook 1-2 minutes.

3. Whisk in the chicken broth until smooth and let cook until bubbly.

4. Stir in the sour cream, tomatillo sauce, cumin, cayenne, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cilantro until the sauce is smooth. Remove from heat.

5. Spray/grease an 8x8 baking dish. Add 1/2 cup of sauce to the bottom of the pan.

6. Add chicken, cheese (if desired), and chopped onion (If desired) to the center of each tortilla. Add 2 tablespoons sauce and roll, placing seam-side down in the
dish.

7. Pour remaining sauce over the enchiladas, top with leftover cheese (if desired), and bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until top is brown and bubbling.

The Facts
6 Servings
**Without cheese

Vietnamese Beef-Noodle Soup

This was my third attempts at Vietnamese soup, and probably my most successful. The beef has a LOT more flavor than the chicken. This recipe called for bok choy which I had never tried before. I liked having some green veggies mixed in the soup.

I was a little skeptical about the beef being cooked solely by the hot soup broth. I made sure the liquid was at a boil before I ladled it into my bowls. Well, I was impressed. It cooked the beef immediately to medium-well. We prefer our beef more on the rare side, so if I make this again, I’ll let the broth cool for a minute or two before adding it to the bowls.

I omitted the fresh herbs and served our portions with generous servings of garlic chili paste and hoisin sauce. We LOVE the extra spicy flavor this combo adds.

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients
1 (12-ounce) sirloin steak
6 oz uncooked rice sticks noodles
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced yellow onion
3 whole cloves
2 cardamom pods
2 garlic cloves, halved
1 (3-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger, thinly sliced
1 star anise
5 3/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
3 cups water
1 tbl less-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp fish sauce
4 cups bok choy leaves
1 small jalapeño, thinly sliced into rings
4 lime wedges
Bean sprouts, fresh basil, fresh mint if desired

Directions
1. Freeze beef for 10 minutes; cut across grain into 1/8-inch-thick slices.

2. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain.

3. Place onion and next 5 ingredients (through star anise) in a large saucepan; cook over medium-high heat 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add broth and 2 cups water; bring to a boil.

4. Strain broth mixture though a fine sieve over a bowl; discard solids. Return broth to pan.

5. Add soy sauce, sugar, and fish sauce; bring to a boil. Add bok choy; simmer 4 minutes or until bok choy wilts.

6. Arrange noodles into each of 4 large bowls. Divide raw beef and pepper slices evenly among bowls. Ladle about 1 2/3 cups hot soup over each serving (broth will cook beef).

7. Top each serving with bean sprouts, basil, and mint as desired. Serve with lime wedges.

The Facts
4 Servings

Menu Plans 03-22-10

Monday - Vietnamese Beef-Noodle Soup with Asian Greens, Salad
Tuesday - Szechuan Shrimp, Brown Rice, Broccoli
Wednesday - Salsa Verde Sour Cream Enchiladas, Baked Chips, Salsa
Thursday - Trivia @ Smokey Bones
Friday - Out for a Birthday Party

Mango Shrimp Kebabs

I try to include shrimp on the menu once a week. I like that they are super fast to cook and are a good low calorie protein source alternative to chicken. At the grocery store last week, I randomly picked up a few mangos. As soon as I saw this recipe in my latest edition of Cooking Light, I knew it would be a perfect fit for ingredients I already had on hand.

Have you ever cut a mango? It’s a lot more difficult than I thought. It has a large, thin pit in the middle that makes the process difficult. I found this step-by-step tutorial quite helpful.

You might notice my sweet skewers. I like them because they are flexible and hold a ton more than traditional skewers. They make marinating and grilling much easier.

I altered the original recipe by marinating the shrimp in teriyaki sauce. I liked the flavor this added. Next time I plan to marinate the veggies in the sauce as well, and possibly baste the skewers during grilling.

Adapted from Cooking Light April 2010

Ingredients
1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Teriyaki marinade
1-2 large bell peppers (I used green)
1 mango, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 lime, cut into wedges

Directions
1. Remove tails from shrimp if desired and place in marinade for at least 30 minutes.

2. Prepare grill to medium-high heat.

3. Thread shrimp, bell pepper pieces, mango cubes and onion pieces alternately onto skewers.

4. Place skewers on a frill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill 2 minutes on each side or until shrimp are done.

5. Squeeze juice from lime wedges over kebabs. Add additional teriyaki if desired.

The Facts
4 servings

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope everyone has their green on today!

Tonight we're hosting a pot luck dinner party at our house.

Main Eats...
CrockPot Corned Beef and Cabbage (Me and Bryan)
Irish Mac N Cheese (Justin and Barbara)
Irish Potatoes (Amber)
Irish Soda Bread (Adam)

and for Dessert...
Irish Bread Pudding (Sara)
Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes (Me! Pictured Above)

don't forget the drinks...
Plenty of Guinness, Bailey's and Jameson = Irish Car Bombs!

We'll see how getting up early for work on Thursday goes...

Hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday! :) I know we will.

Chicken Tequila Burgers

I just bought this food processor from Costco. (Cuisinart Custom Pro 11-cup Stainless Steel Food Processor). In one word: AMAZING. I seriously love this thing. I’m not sure how I lived without a food processor before this (my baby 2 cup one doesn’t count!). I really can’t wait to use it again. I bet that slicing blade does wonders on some potatoes.

As soon as I saw this recipe, I bookmarked it. The burgers just looked so delicious, I had to try them. However, I didn’t have the wondrous food processor yet. Sure, I could have substituted ground turkey, or bought ground chicken at the store (SOO over priced!) but making my own looked way more fun. So that was the final push for my latest purchase. 100% worth it!

These burgers were incredibly flavorful (and easy!). I served them with some sautéed onions and lettuce on whole wheat buns with baked sweet potato fries on the side. Delicious and healthy, what more could you want? I recommend you try these ASAP. I made the mix the night before so at dinner time, all I had to do was form the patties and broil.

Adapted from Annie’s Eats

Ingredients
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
3 chicken breasts (mine were 1 lb. 5 oz.)
4 tbsp. cilantro
Zest of 1/2 a lime
1 oz. tequila
Dash of soy sauce
Kosher salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs

Directions
1. Preheat the broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and brush lightly with olive oil.

2. Combine the garlic, jalapeno, chicken breasts, cilantro and lime zest in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse several times until the chicken is uniformly ground.

3. Mix in the tequila, soy sauce, salt and pepper to taste, and panko. Pulses a few more times until the ingredients are well blended.

4. Form the mixture into 6 patties and place them on the prepared baking sheet.

5. Broil the burgers for about 12-15 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking to brown both sides. Check for doneness before serving.

The Facts
6 Servings

Corn Tortilla Chips

Bryan and I decided to have a homemade taco night last week. We thought it would be fun to bake our own chips as well. I originally planned to use flour tortillas, however after browsing recipes I decided to try corn tortillas so I could attempt some hard taco shells as well. I was very pleased with the results and was able to accomplish the crunchiness a true chip deserves. I simply seasoned mine with salt, but I bet some light cumin or chili powder would be delicious as well. To make the taco shell, I ‘threaded’ a tortilla on one of the wire racks with the ends pointing down. The tortilla naturally folded downward as it cooked, giving us a nice crispy U shaped shell. Just be careful not to burn yourself during the threading process! I read a ton of recipes for chips and just kind of went from memory when I actually made them.

Ingredients
White corn tortillas, cut into quarters
Salt
Seasoning, if desired
Cooking spray

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Spray a jelly roll pan with cooking spray and spread cut tortillas in a single layer.

3. Spray tortillas with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and seasoning (if desired) to taste.

4. Bake for approximately 10-15 minutes. Remove chips from oven when JUST beginning to brown.

5. Allow chips to cool and crisp up for an additional 5 minutes before serving.

Menu Plans 03-15-10

Monday - Chicken Tequila Burgers, Sweet Potato Fries, Salad
Tuesday - Mango Shrimp Kebabs, Cilantro Lime Rice, Grilled Brussels Sprouts
Wednesday - Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage, Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes
Thursday - Possibly Trivia?
Friday - Wedding

Fire Roasted Tomato Salsa

This was a good salsa to make if you want a homemade salsa but without all the prep time. By using a can of fire roasted tomatoes and a few additional ingredients, this is done in no time. I liked the consistency of the salsa and it had a nice medium flavor. It wasn’t too hot, just a little bit of kick. The downfall to using canned tomatoes was that the dip lacked the fresh taste of homemade salsa.

Adapted from One Particular Kitchen

Ingredients
2 fresh jalapeños
3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice, preferably fire roasted
1/4 cup (loosely packed) chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbl fresh lime juice
Salt

Directions
1. Heat an ungreased skillet over medium heat and roast the peppers and garlic, turning often until they’re splotchy and brown and soft — this takes about 10 minutes for the peppers, and 15 minutes for the garlic

2. Cool until you can handle them, then roughly chop the pepperss, discarding caps, and drop into food processor

3. Peel the garlic and scoop the softened cloves into a food processor; pulse until very finely chopped

4. Add the tomatoes with their juice to the food processor then pulse until puree is coarse.

5. Pour into serving dish and stir in cilantro and lime juice, and salt to taste — about 1/2-3/4 teaspoon

6. Refrigerate overnight, then serve and enjoy!

Chicken with Mango and Ginger

This was a quick, easy and super delicious dinner! I prepped all the ingredients the night before, so after our workout, I only needed to assemble and bake. The mango and jalapeño offered a delightful combination of sweet and spicy. The parchment packets kept all the juices inside making the chicken very moist and tender. I definitely plan on making this meal again.

Adapted from Everyday Food Magazine

Ingredients
1 large mango, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/4 inch wedges
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts pounded to 1/2 inch thickness (about 1 3/4 pounds)
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 jalapeño, thinly sliced and seeds removed
salt and pepper
4 tsp olive oil
lime wedges, for serving

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400.

2. Place mango wedges in center of four 18 inch long pieces of parchment. Top with chicken, ginger, cilantro and jalapeño.

3. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle each with 1 tsp olive oil.

4. Fold parchment into a twist shape. (See picture below.)

5. Place packets on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until packets are puffed up and chicken is cooked through, 25-30 minutes. Serve with lime wedges.

The Facts
4 Servings

100% Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

For my first attempt at cooking with yeast, I made simple pizza dough similar to this one. However, as a yeast rookie, I did not quite fully understand the value of ‘warm water.’ When I added the yeast to the hot almost boiling water I did not get the described foamy solution. Mistake #1. I figured maybe I didn’t know what I was looking for and moved on to the next step. Ha, Mistake #2. I made my dough and left it to rise. Well obviously it didn’t rise, but I figured, hey I’ve come this far…I’m going to use it. Major Mistake #3. Needless to say, although it was edible, it was NOT very good. (I actually attempted some rolls on Thanksgiving following Mistakes 1-3 AGAIN believe it or not.)

This time around, I checked my water temperature (104 = good to go!) and actually saw this so called foamy solution. AND the dough actually rose! Woohoo! Mission accomplished: I successfully made a dough involving yeast!

Now that I have this perfect piece of pizza dough, I went on to make my pizza using my brand new ceramic pizza stone. This is where it gets interesting. I put the stone in the pre heating over as instructed and assembled my pizza on a separate tray. Well, I should have though that one through a little bit more because transferring the pizza from tray to stone was next to impossible. It was quite the comedy to watch both my husband and I attempting this. We managed to somehow get the pizza onto the stone, but it was not pretty. In stretched in some spots and bunched up in others. It turned into this lumpy piece of dough with a whole bunch of toppings on it (and the bottom of my oven!). The result was half a pizza thin crisp style and half deep dish style. Sigh, I’ll get this right eventually! Lesson learned.

As for the actual dough, I liked it. I thought the honey added a nice sweetness. Bryan wasn’t too enthused about the 100% whole wheat, so next time I might substitute some all purpose flour. Or maybe I’ll just cook it correctly, that might help too. ;)

Adapted from How Sweet It Is

Ingredients
1 packet dry active yeast
3/4 cup warm water (100 – 110 degrees F)
2 cups 100% whole wheat flour
2 tbl honey
2 tbl olive oil + more to rub on bowl
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

Directions
1. Mix yeast and warm water and let sit until foamy.

2. In a separate bowl, mix flour, seasoning and salt together.

3. Once yeast is foamy, add in olive oil and honey and stir.

4. Mix into flour and knead to create dough. You may need to add a bit more flour if dough is too sticky.

5. Place in an olive oil-rubbed bowl and cover. Let rise for 2-3 hours.

6. Preheat oven and pizza stone to 425 for 10-20 minutes.

7. Roll dough to desired shape and thickness. Add toppings of your preference.

8. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and cheese is completely melted.

The Facts
(Dough Only)

6 Servings
**I used SparkRecipes.com to create a full customized nutrition report. I plan on using this for all future recipes**

Menu Plans 03-08-10

Sunday - 100% Whole Wheat Pizza with various toppings, Salad
Monday - Chicken with Mango and Ginger, Roasted Asparagus
Tuesday - Filet Mignon, Brown Rice, Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Wednesday - Chicken Tacos (Tijuana Flats Recreation), Baked Tortilla Chips with Fire Roasted Salsa
Thursday - Trivia @ Smokey Bones
Friday - Mussels and Shrimp with Pasta, Salad

Roasted Artichokes

Have you ever been to Houston’s? Bryan and I used to go all the time for some great prime rib and and a bottle of wine. If they had it on special for the night, we would start with grilled artichokes as an appetizer. Delicious! Well, this week I noticed artichokes were on sale at Publix so I decided to try and recreate the Houston’s dish. After browsing the internet for recipes, I figured it would probably be A LOT easier to roast them instead of grilling them; however the effect was quite similar. These were super tasty, and a fun way to serve a new vegetable at home. I made a quick Cajun dip with sour cream, horseradish, kosher salt and Cajun seasoning, all too taste. It complemented the artichoke PERFECTLY!

Freshly cut artichoke.

Adapted from Novel Eats

Ingredients
2 artichokes, whole and raw
1 lemon
4 garlic cloves, skins removed
olive oil
salt

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Clean artichokes, then cut the end of the stalk off and trim the tips of each leaf.

3. Put the artichoke on its side and cut away about the first 1/2 inch of top of the artichoke.

4. Place the artichoke flower side down on the cutting board, stem up. Cut through the stem to the top of the artichoke.

5. Cut a lemon in half, and then spread the lemon on all the cut and exposed areas of the artichokes.

6. In the bottom of a baking pan lined with foil, pour approximately 2 – 4 tablespoons of olive oil and sprinkle with salt.

7. Take your artichokes cut side down and spread them around in the bottom of the pan so that they are fully covered with oil and some of the salt.

8. Press a fresh garlic clove near the heart of each artichoke half, and then add a large slice of lemon on top of the garlic.

9. Put the artichokes face down in the pan with the garlic and lemon kept under each, then add about 1/4 – 1/2 cup water to the pan. Cover the pan well with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for about an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes.

10. Once done, be careful of steam when removing foil cover.

11. Scoop out the furry choke and serve immediately.

Garlic Lemon Shrimp with Orzo and Broccoli

I’ve had this recipe bookmarked for forever in my Google reader, but never had the orzo to make it. I finally had some leftover from parmesan orzo so I knew it was time to cook this dish. It came together pretty quickly and made for an easy week night meal. I altered the original recipe slightly. I reduced the cheese from 1/3 to 1/4 cup, however next time I will probably stick with the 1/3 cup. We could taste the cheese, but it could have definitely used just a little bit more! Also, my husband suggested adding some red pepper flakes or cayenne for a little more flavor. Overall, I enjoyed this dish. I like the creaminess that orzo pasta creates. I saw a whole wheat version at Publix that I am interested in trying as well, however it’s a bit more expensive.
Adapted from Kelly Cooks

Ingredients
1 cup orzo
1 broccoli crown, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 lemon, juiced and zested
1/2 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper, to taste
1.5 tsp butter
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2-3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 oz. parmesan cheese, grated

Directions
1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, add the orzo and cook until al dente (about 8-10 minutes).

2. During the last 2-3 minutes of cooking, add broccoli to the pasta water. Drain orzo and broccoli and set aside.

3. In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, and add onions. Cook until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes, then add garlic and cook for an additional minute.

4. Add lemon juice, zest, and wine/broth to sauté pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmering for 2-3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. Stir in the butter, and continue stirring until melted.

6. Add the shrimp to the sauté pan, and cook until pink and cooked through.

7. Add the orzo and broccoli, parsley, and cheese to the shrimp and toss gently to combine. Serve immediately.

The Facts
4 Servings
Calories 358.3
Total Fat 4.5 g
Fiber 4.5 g
WW Points 7