Aunt Eileen’s Shrimp Curry

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

It’s time for another quick weeknight recipe! For dinner tonight Matt and I made this creamy shrimp curry over white rice. It came together so quickly that I had time to photograph it, eat it AND blog it all in the same night. Not a bad way to start the week!

The key element of this dish is the rich curry sauce that develops out of a surprisingly short and simple list of ingredients. Feel free to sub in cooked chicken for the shrimp or other veggies for the green pepper. Green beans, red pepper, broccoli… pretty much any vegetable is guaranteed to be delicious once it’s doused in this sauce. 😀

Make a bed of white rice…

…and top with curry!

Aunt Eileen’s Shrimp Curry

Recipe from Matt’s late Aunt Eileen, who would make variations of this dish for family dinners.

You will need…
4 tablespoons Butter
Small Yellow Onion, chopped
Green Pepper, chopped
3-4 cloves Garlic, minced
1 pint Light or Fat Free Sour Cream
4 teaspoons Curry Powder
3/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Chili Powder
2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
1/2 teaspoon Minced Ginger (jarred or fresh)
1 lb. uncooked Shrimp, peeled and deveined
Hot Cooked White Rice (about 12 oz. uncooked)

Directions:
Melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the onion and pepper and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the sour cream, curry powder, salt, chili powder, lemon juice and ginger.

Bring the sauce to a low simmer and add the shrimp. If you prefer a thinner sauce, stir 1/4-1/2 cup water into the sauce at this point. Allow the shrimp to cook in the sauce for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the sauce from heat as soon as shrimp turn pink and opaque. (Be careful not to overcook the shrimp!)

Serve the curried shrimp over hot white rice. Enjoy!

27May2015

Grilled Paella with Chicken, Shrimp and Sausage

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

What’s better than serving a one-pot meal to dinner guests? Serving a grilled one-pot meal that’s made entirely outside while your guests relax and drink craft beer on the patio! That’s pretty much how Matt and I spent the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend when we hosted my mom’s birthday dinner. We made grilled Paella with chicken, shrimp and sausage and it was definitely a hit. My mom actually asked for seconds (or maybe that was thirds?) during dinner… that NEVER happens!! 🙂

This paella looks really fancy, but in reality it’s not too complicated. The entire dish is assembled in a shallow paella pan (like these on Amazon) which is placed directly on a grill, giving you the combination of direct and indirect heat that you would otherwise need both a stovetop and oven to achieve. You do need a few special ingredients like saffron, smoked paprika and Spanish (dry) chorizo, but once you have those on hand the other elements of the dish are very easy to find and prep.

Here are a few pictures from the first time we made Paella a few weeks ago. For Sunday’s family dinner, we increased the recipe by half and it easily served 6 hungry guests.

Sear the chicken thighs and chorizo, then cook the tomato and aromatics over direct heat.

Stir the rice into the tomato mixture to toast it before adding saffron and broth.

Add back in the browned chorizo sausage…

…and “nestle” the chicken thighs into the rice, being careful not to stir the rice mixture.

To finish the dish, top with shrimp, peas, and peppers and cook until the shrimp are just opaque.

Chicken, Shrimp and Sausage Paella (serves 4; from Williams Sonoma Grill Master)

You will need…
1/4 teaspoon Saffron Threads
4 Bone-In, Skin-On Chicken Thighs
Salt and Pepper
4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
7-10 oz. Spanish Chorizo Sausage, sliced (we used Goya Chorizo)
3 Tomatoes, finely chopped
1 Yellow Onion, finely chopped
4-5 cloves Garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Fresh Thyme, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
1 cup uncooked short-grain Paella Rice, such as Calasparra
4 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
7 oz. jarred Roasted Red Peppers, drained and cut into strips
1/2 cup Frozen Peas
1 lb. 21-25 ct Shrimp, peeled and deveined
Fresh Parsley, chopped, for garnish
4-6 Lemon Wedges, for garnish

Directions:
Place the saffron threads in a small bowl with 2 ounces of hot water and set aside. Liberally salt and pepper both sides of the chicken thighs. Preheat a 15-inch Paella pan on the grill over high heat, then add the oil and place the chicken thighs in the pan skin-side down. Sear the thighs, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a platter and add the sliced chorizo to the pan. Saute the chorizo until it starts to brown, about 2-3 minutes, then transfer the chorizo to the platter with the chicken.

Add the tomatoes, onion, garlic, thyme and paprika to the pan and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add in the rice and stir for 2-3 minutes until slightly toasted. Add the saffron thread mixture and 2 cups of chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, close the grill, and cook for 10 minutes.

Open the grill and add the reserved chicken thighs and chorizo back in into the rice mixture. Important: do not stir the rice! Use tongs to nestle the chicken thighs into the rice. Add an additional 1 cup of chicken broth, then close the grill again and cook for another 20 minutes.

Open the grill and again, resist the urge to stir! Distribute the shrimp, peas and red peppers over the top of the rice mixture and pour in approximately 1/2 to 1 cup more chicken broth (go with more if the rice looks dry). Close the grill and cook for another 5-7 minutes or just until the shrimp are cooked through.

Remove the paella pan from the grill and garnish with parsley. Arrange the lemon wedges over the dish and serve directly from the pan. Enjoy!!

4Mar2014

Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Happy Mardi Gras! I was not raised observing Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, or any of the other Lent traditions, but I’m certainly happy to use a holiday as an excuse to try a new recipe!

I’ve been a huge fan of hearty one pot meals this winter so last weekend when we realized that Mardi Gras was just a few days away we decided that a flavorful Jambalaya would be the perfect recipe for Sunday night. We consulted our trusty Cook’s Illustrated The New Best Recipe cook book and decided to make their version of a creole-style Jambalaya with shredded chicken thighs, andouille sausage, shrimp, tomatoes and rice. The recipe came together fairly quickly (compared to some of our stews, at least!) and the resulting dish featured an impressive range of flavors from the smoky andouille and clam-juiced shrimp to the fresh parsley, and slow-cooked chicken. Yum!

Chicken and Shrimp Jambalaya (from The New Best Recipe; serves 5-6)

You will need…
1 Yellow Onion, quartered
1 Celery Rib, cut into 2-3 inch pieces
1 Red Bell Pepper, quartered
5 Garlic Cloves, peeled
2 teaspoons Vegetable Oil
4 Bone-In, Skin-On Chicken Thighs
8 oz. Andouille Sausage, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4″ pieces (buy a good brand of Andouille if possible; it should give this dish a lot of flavor!)
1 1/2 cups Long Grain White Rice (uncooked)
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Fresh Thyme, minced (we used dried Thyme)
1/4 teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
1 – 14.5 oz. can Diced Tomatoes, drained with 1/4 cup of juice reserved
8 oz. Clam Juice
1 1/2 cups Chicken Broth
2 Bay Leaves
1 lb. Shrimp, peeled and deveined (we used frozen 30 ct. shrimp and thawed them beforehand)
2 tablespoons minced fresh Parsley

Directions:
Begin by transferring the onion, celery, red pepper and garlic into a food processor. Pulse the vegetables briefly to finely chop them without pureeing them. We have a miniature food processor so Matt did this in 4 steps (one per vegetable) and then combined all of the chopped veggies together on a plate.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Use tongs to place the chicken thighs in the oil, skin-side down, and cook, undisturbed, for 5 minutes or until golden brown. (Watch out, there’s a lot of splattering!) Use the tongs to flip the thighs over and continue to cook for another 3 minutes, then transfer the thighs to a plate. Reduce the heat to medium, add the chopped andouille, and brown for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. (This step smells amazing, in my opinion.) Transfer the browned andouille to a paper towel-lined plate.

Reduce the heat further to medium low, then add in the chopped vegetables. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot and stir the veggies until softened, about 4 minutes. Add in the rice, salt, thyme, and cayenne and stir well for about a minute to coat the rice in the chicken fat. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato juice, clam juice, chicken broth, bay leaves and andouille. Remove the skin from the chicken thighs then use your tongs to place the chicken, skinned-side down, on top of the rice mixture. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes stir the mixture once and flip the chicken thighs over, then cover and simmer for another 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

Place the shrimp on top of the rice mixture then cover and cook for 5 minutes until the shrimp are pink and cooked through. (Be careful not to overcook the shrimp.) When the shrimp are fully cooked remove the pot from heat and discard the bay leaves. As soon as the chicken thighs are cool enough to work with, shred the meat into thin strands with your fingers. Gently stir the shredded chicken and minced parsley into the stew and serve immediately.

Do you have a favorite Mardi Gras-inspired dish or tradition?
Please tell me about it in the comments section!

18Feb2014

Easy Shrimp Scampi with Linguine

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Every once in a while a recipe comes along that is so delicious and so easy to make that I know that I must blog about it the moment the meal is done. Recipes that made it onto this blog the night of their consumption include my Mexican Pizza, Trader Joe’s style Eggplant Parm, and our Las Vegas-inspired Guacamole-Chiptole Burgers… I just couldn’t wait until the next day to share them! Well, after tonight’s dinner a new recipe is joining that elite list: Ina Garten’s 25-minute Shrimp Scampi with Linguine. Doesn’t it look fantastic??

The concept is simple: Sauté garlic in melted butter and stir in a pound of shrimp until just cooked through. Then mix in freshly squeezed lemon juice, lemon zest, and fresh chopped parsley. Toss with a generous portion of linguine, serve with crusty garlic bread and Voila! the perfect simple-yet-sophisticated weeknight meal is born.

The Food Network advertises this Shrimp Scampi as the perfect “Make-It-Together” meal for Valentine’s Day, but it’s totally possible to throw it together on any old weeknight like we did. Oh, and you’ll even have time to blog about it afterwards if you want! 🙂

Shrimp Scampi with Linguine (from the Food Network’s Ina Garten; serves 3)

You will need…
Olive Oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
1 pound Linguine
3 tablespoons Butter
4-5 cloves Garlic, minced
1 lb. Shrimp (we used ‘large’ shrimp, about 31/lb.), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
1/3 cup chopped Parsley
Zest from 1/2 large Lemon
1/4 cup Lemon Juice (approx. 1/2 large Lemon)
1/2 Lemon, sliced into 1/8″ half-rounds
1/4 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Crusty Garlic Bread Crisps, Optional (drizzle olive oil on garlic bread slices and broil for 5 minutes)

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil then add in about a tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of the salt and the linguine. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Meanwhile, melt the butter and 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat. Add the minced garlic and saute for one minute or until the smallest garlic bits are just starting to brown. Add the shrimp, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and black pepper and saute for about 5 minutes until the shrimp have just turned pink. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the parsley, zest, lemon juice, lemon slices and crushed red pepper.

Drain the cooked pasta, then return to the pasta pot and gently stir in the shrimp mixture. (I’d recommend using a spatula to scoop every last bit of flavorful garlic and parsley out of the shrimp pan!). We served our shrimp scampi with crusty, crispy garlic bread. Enjoy!

6Jun2013

Grilled Shrimp Salad with Mediterranean Lemon Dressing

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

Matt and I are getting married in 2 days! All of our wedding prep is pretty much done and now we’re just relaxing and waiting for the weekend to get here. (Oh, and also checking the weather about a million times a day… Tropical Storm Andrea better hurry up and get out of here in time for our outdoor ceremony on Saturday afternoon!) 🙂

We’ve been going out to eat a lot lately but we did make one planned meal this week using a new cookbook that my mom got us as a wedding present. The book is entitled Salad for Dinner so, as you might guess, our meal was a nice and hearty entree salad! This was a fresh, summery meal that was perfect for the warm weather we had earlier this week. Doesn’t it look yummy?

Grilled Shrimp Salad with Mediterranean Lemon Dressing (from Salad for Dinner)

For the Mediterranean Lemon Dressing…
1 tablespoon Tahini (ground sesame seed paste)
2 cloves Garlic, pressed through a garlic press
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 cup freshly squeezed Lemon Juice
1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

For the salad…
1 lb. large Shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1-2 cloves Garlic, pressed through a garlic press
8 oz. Mini Bell Peppers
8 cups Baby Spinach
1 pint Cherry Tomatoes, sliced in half
2-3 Persian Cucumbers, sliced into 1/4″ rounds
1/4 – 1/2 Red Onion, very thinly sliced
Feta Cheese, crumbled
Fresh Oregano Leaves
Lemon Wedges
Pita Bread Crisps*

Directions:
Combine all of the dressing ingredients in a jar. Close the lid and shake vigorously to combine. (You could also use a bowl and whisk the ingredients together if you don’t feel like shaking.) Refrigerate the dressing until you are ready to use it.

Mix together the shrimp, garlic and olive oil in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. After the shrimp has marinaded, remove from the fridge and stir in the mini bell peppers. Grill the shrimp and bell peppers over medium-high heat. When the shrimp turn pink (3-5 minutes), remove them from the grill and set aside. Continue cooking the bell peppers until they are soft and blackened in spots.

In a large salad bowl, combine the spinach, tomatoes, cucumbers and onion. Dress with the Mediterranean Dressing and mix well. (I used about half of what the recipe made.) Toss in the warm shrimp and bell peppers. Serve the salad in shallow bowls with pita crisps and garnish with feta, oregano, and lemon.

*To make pita bread crisps, slice pita bread into 1 – 1 1/2″ strips. Place on a cookie sheet, brush lightly with olive oil and season with salt. Bake in a preheated 425°F oven for approx. 10 minutes, turning once, until golden brown.

30Dec2012

Shrimp with Penne in Herbed Cream Sauce

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

For some reason our families make nearly identical holiday meals, usually featuring a juicy filet roast, twice-baked potatoes and green beans. Matt and I love this dinner (and in fact got to enjoy it twice this month – once at my mom’s and again with Matt’s family!) but when it came time for us to host Christmas Eve dinner at our house we decided to do something completely different.

After an online search we settled on Shrimp and Penne in Herbed Cream Sauce and it was perfect! The shrimp were tender and the combination of white wine, garlic, parsley and basil made the whole kitchen smell wonderful. The pasta was nicely coated in a light cream sauce and the red pepper flakes provided just the right amount of heat. To streamline the cooking process I prepped the herbs, tomatoes and cheese ahead of time so assembling this dish was actually pretty easy once our guests arrived.

In addition to the shrimp and penne we served fresh bruschetta, a tossed salad with Matt’s mom’s balsamic vinaigrette, and wedges of rosemary-studded Italian bread with butter. We finished off the meal with a tray of Christmas cookies, chocolate-dipped coconut sticks, and white chocolate holiday bark. Yum!

Shrimp with Penne in Herbed Cream Sauce (from Giada De Laurentiis)
serves 4-5; we doubled this to serve 7 and had enough leftovers for dinner a few days later

You will need…
1 pound Penne Pasta
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 pound medium Shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 cloves Garlic, pressed through a garlic press
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Pepper
1 – 15 oz. can Whole Tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
1/2 cup Basil Leaves, chopped
1/2 cup Flat-Leaf Parsley, chopped
1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
1 cup White Wine (we used a Chardonnay)
1/3 cup Clam Juice
3/4 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2 cup Parmesan, freshly grated

Directions:
Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water then drain and set aside. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper. Cook the shrimp for about 3 minutes until they are pink and cooked through. Remove the shrimp with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the tomatoes, 1/4 cup basil, 1/4 cup parsley and the red pepper flakes to the skillet. Cook for 2 minutes while stirring constantly, then add the wine, clam juice and cream. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 7-8 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add about half of the Parmesan along with the shrimp, pasta and remaining basil and parsley. Mix well until the pasta is coated and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer the pasta to a serving dish and top with the remaining freshly grated Parmesan. Serve with a wedge of Italian bread and a glass of white wine.

2Mar2012

Tequila Shrimp

Posted in Recipes by Annie T

We’ve had an unusually warm Winter this year. Usually January and February are characterized by nightly (and sometimes daily) below-freezing temps, salt-brined roads, and melting snow piles in parking lots. This year, it has hardly dipped below freezing at night and we’ve gotten a grand total of around 2 inches of snow. It’s not all bad though because the warm temperatures mean that we can use our grill to make yummy meals like Tequila shrimp! This recipe is from our Weber Book of Grilling with a few additions from me.

Tequila Shrimp

You will need…
1/3 cup Tequila
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Lime Juice
3-4 cloves of Minced Garlic
1 fined chopped Jalapeño Pepper
2 tablespoons chopped Cilantro
1 teaspoon ground Coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground Black Pepper
1 pound Shrimp, peeled and deveined

Directions:
Place the first 8 ingredients (Tequila through Black Pepper) in a large resealable bag and ‘mix’ by squeezing/shaking the bag gently. Add the shrimp to the bag and coat them with the marinade. Put the bag in the fridge for approx. 30 minutes.

Preheat your grill and grill pan (we have a large wok-shaped skillet with small holes it in but a flat grill ‘tray’ works well too). Remove the shrimp from the fridge and slide them out of the bag onto the hot grill pan. Grill over direct heat for 3-5 minutes until they turn nice and pink. Serve warm!