Shrimp Scampi Linguine

Summer is slipping away. It makes me sad. In Florida we get to still wear flip-flops and go to the beach year round but the laid back, no schedule days are over. Sigh.

Every time I eat shrimp I think of one of our trips to Rocky Point Mexico where my niece Alisha (who is my age) ate some shrimp without knowing she was allergic and her whole face swelled up. We couldn't even see her eyes. We all couldn't stop laughing at her rapidly inflating face when in reality we probably should've been more concerned. She eventually deflated and all was well.

This recipe was sent to me by Meagan Leger who is from my husband's hometown. This is a quick dish that has a great effort/taste ratio and comes from the Barefoot Contessa. It has a light lemon and garlic taste with the addition of parsley which I love. Meagan doubled the sauce but I had enough without doubling it. I adjusted the salt a tiny bit because Ina likes her dishes a little saltier than I do.

Shrimp Scampi Linguine

Vegetable oil

1 tablespoon kosher salt plus 1 teaspoon

3/4 pound linguine

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 1/2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic (4 cloves)
1 pound large shrimp (about 16 shrimp), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/2 lemon, zest grated
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/4 lemon, thinly sliced in half-rounds
1/8 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

Drizzle some oil in a large pot of boiling salted water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the linguine, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or according to the directions on the package.

Meanwhile, in another large, heavy-bottomed pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute. Be careful, the garlic burns easily! Add the shrimp, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the pepper and saute until the shrimp have just turned pink, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from the heat, add the parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon slices, and red pepper flakes. *I served up my kids first and then tossed in the red pepper flakes since it does add a lot of heat. Toss to combine.

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

Serve with garlic bread.

Source: from Meagan Leger and adapted from the Barefoot Contessa

Easy Homemade Bread Braids: Peanut Butter and Jelly Braid and a Taco Braid

Raise your hand if you're scared of baking with yeast.

Yup. Me too. I've come home one too many times from church to see my rolls that were supposed to be rising looking sad and flat. It could have something to do with the freezing temperature in my house or maybe the water I added to my yeast was too cold...or too hot? Really, there are a lot of ways to screw up.

So there's an easy idiot proof way of ensuring that you have perfect dough that can be made in under 5 minutes and with shipping cost less than a $1. This company is called Fast Easy Bread and they have two key ingredients: super fast Instant Yeast and liquid soy lecithin and they send you a kit that makes 40 batches of homemade bread dough. Seriously I made a bread braid and cinnamon rolls in about an hour from start to finish. A lot of you readers have told me you work long days and this bread dough you can make after work because it's just that fast. Don't worry, you can make these recipes below with regular store bought dough you just won't have have the luxury of that homemade dough taste if you use store bought.

First, this peanut butter braid is perfect for back to school. My kids started school this week and I sent a slice of this in their school lunches. The rest mysteriously disappeared :)

I couldn't wait for it to cool down to cut into it.

Bread braids have always been intimidating to me (this was my first one) but see even my 5 year old son could do it with a little guidance.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Braid

(recipe below)

Here's another option and can be made in less than in an hour...a Taco Braid. It has a cream cheese and salsa sauce, with taco meat, black beans, and cheese. My family gobbled this up.

Taco Braid

Homemade Bread Braids
by FastEasyBread

1 batch of FastEastBread Bread Dough (recipe below)
*If you don't have the FastEasyBread kit yet you can use store-bought dough or your own recipe.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Braid Filling
Peanut butter
Favorite flavor jelly

1. Spray counter and hands with cooking spray and knead for a few seconds to form smooth ball.
2.  Roll dough into a 15-in. x 12-in. rectangle. Place on a greased cookie sheet. It's very important to place the dough on the cookie sheet before you fill it because once you fill it, it will be too heavy to move onto the cookie sheet. Spread peanut butter and jelly down the center third of the rectangle.
3. On each long side, cut 1 inch wide strips about 2-1/2-inches into center. Starting at one end, fold alternating strips at an angle across filling.
4. Pinch ends to seal and tuck under. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.
5. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.
6. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack or cutting board with 2 spatulas.

Taco Braid Filling
4 oz of Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup Salsa
1/2 lb ground turkey, beef or chicken seasoned and cooked with a Taco seasoning mix (I used 1 lb of ground turkey)
1 can (15oz) of black beans (drained)
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
olive oil
garlic salt

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray counter and hands with cooking spray and knead for a few seconds to form smooth ball.
2. Roll dough into a 15-in. x 12-in. rectangle. Place on a greased cookie sheet. It's very important to place the dough on the cookie sheet before you fill it because once you fill it, it will be too heavy to move onto the cookie sheet. Mix salsa and cream cheese in a small bowl. Spread cream cheese mixture lengthwise down center third of rectangle, salsa, then seasoned meat and black beans. Sprinkle with cheese.
3. On each long side, cut 1 inch wide strips about 2-1/2-inches into center. Starting at one end, fold alternating strips at an angle across filling.
4. Pinch ends to seal and tuck under. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.
5. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack or cutting board with 2 spatulas.

FastEasyBread Dough Recipe
2 and 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour (you can buy this in bulk at Costco or find it at your grocery store by the regular flour)
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp SAF-instant premium yeast
1 tsp Easy Squeezy Soy Liquid Lecithin
1 cup hot/warm water

Instructions:
1.Mix Dry ingredients. (yeast is a dry ingredient)
2.Make 1 dimple in dry ingredients and squeeze the lecithin into the bottom of the dimple about the size of a quarter.
3.Add water slowly, add 3/4 cups and then the remaining 1/4 cup. Mix for 1 minute and check consistency. The dough mixer should be sticky and pull itself off bowl.
4.Mix/knead in mixer on medium setting for 5 minutes or knead for 5 minutes by hand.

I even made my favorite Cinnabon Rolls using this dough instead in under an hour. How dangerous is that?

Four Layer Yummy

I would much rather be underestimated than overestimated. It's all about expectations. If you walk into Chuck-A-Rama for dinner your expectations are low. You might have a great meal...or you might have a hair baked into your roll. Yes, I'm still traumatized.

This dessert is definitely initially underestimated. When you think pecan shortbread with a cream cheese layer, then a pudding layer, then whipped cream...hmmm...sounds okay, nothing spectacular. But then every time I have had this I take a little square for myself and when I go back to get more...NOTHING LEFT! I seriously could eat the whole pan. The crust is the best part.

I made this in Arizona last time I was down and was taking pictures and my sister said, "Good luck making that look appetizing." Thanks. Not that it doesn't look appealing but it's very creamy and doesn't hold it's shape especially outside in 115 degree weather. My sister-in-law even made a low calorie version last time we were together using sugar-free pudding and low-fat whipped cream and it still tasted great. It's versatile too. Try it with banana or even pistachio pudding.

Four Layer Yummy

Printable Recipe

1st Layer:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup pecans, chopped finely

1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, pecans, and butter and press evenly into a 9X13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool completely.

2nd Layer:

1 (8 oz) block of cream cheese, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

1/2 of an 8 oz container of Cool Whip (thawed) or use 1/2 a batch of homemade whipped cream

Mix cream cheese and powdered sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Fold in whipped cream. Spread over pecan shortbread crust and store in the fridge while you make the next layer.

3rd Layer:

1 large box (5.9 oz) instant chocolate pudding (you can substitute banana, pistachio, coconut, or butterscotch)

Make pudding according to package directions. Pour over cream cheese layer.

4th Layer:

Spread remaining half of Cool Whip or fresh whipped cream over the pudding layer. Garnish with chocolate shavings if desired. Store in fridge.

Source: Audrey Frahm

Are you melting? No-Bake Cookies

These cookies can probably be traced back to Eve. My mom made these growing up and I always made them in college. There are many versions but this is actually my old roommate Lisa's recipe. John made me promise years ago that I would only make these once a year since he can't help himself from eating the whole batch. I'm always surprised when I find people who have never heard of them. If you've never heard of them, you are the LAST person to not have this recipe. No worries. Now you do!

In this last HOT month of summer I've had a lot of requests for No-Bake recipes so I added a label on the left for all of the recipes that don't require you to turn your house into an oven. But between you and me, I'm not against using my oven even in these melting hot temperatures. My husband keeps our house at Arctic cold temperatures so the only way I can get a little warmth in my bones without blatantly turning up the thermostat is to turn on the oven. Shhh...it's a secret.

No-Bake Cookies
 
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup milk
3 Tablespoons cocoa
3 cups quick cooking oats
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
 
Bring butter, sugar, milk, and cocoa to a boil for one minute. To make sure cookies set up properly wait until mixture comes to a complete FULL boil and then start the timer for one minute. Remove from heat.
 
Add peanut butter, vanilla, and oats. Stir well and drop spoonfuls onto waxed paper or parchment paper. Let them set up and cool.
 
Makes 18 cookies.

Source: Lisa Poulsen

Healthy Three-Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta Bake

I usually laugh inside when pasta dishes are advertised as "Healthy". Sure it may be healthy, but since pasta is high in calories you can have about 10 noodles before you're over your limit. So I was surprised when this healthy pasta dish was 460 per serving which isn't bad at all considering you get to eat 1/4 of the dish pictured below. That's a lot! I've made this a couple of times for my family and every time I do my husband asks suspiciously, "This is healthy?"

The best healthy dishes are the ones where you aren't reminded how healthy it is every time you take a flavorless bite.

I know it may seem like I'm bipolar when it comes to eating healthy. I try really hard most of the time...and crash and burn miserably the other half. I wonder how many times I can use the word healthy in this post.

And NO I do not want to know how many calories I ate in the last post...

 

Three Cheese Chicken Penne Pasta Bake

1-1/2 cups multi-grain penne pasta, uncooked
1 pkg. (9 oz.) fresh spinach leaves
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 jar (14-1/2 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained
2 oz. (1/4 of 8-oz. pkg.) Neufchatel cheese, cubed
1 cup shredded 2% milk mozzarella cheese, divided
2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Heat oven to 375ºF.


Cook pasta as directed on package, omitting salt and adding spinach to the boiling water the last minute.

Cook and stir chicken and basil in large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium-high heat 3 min. Stir in spaghetti sauce, garlic, and tomatoes; bring to boil. Simmer on low heat 3 min. or until chicken is done. Stir in Neufchatel.

Drain pasta mixture; return to pan. Stir in chicken mixture and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Spoon into 2-qt. casserole or 8-inch square baking dish.

Bake 20 min.; top with remaining cheeses. Bake 3 min. or until mozzarella is melted.

460 calories per serving; Makes 4 servings.

Source: adapted slightly from Kraft

Brownies For a Crowd...

But I've never been that good at sharing...

I had good intentions. Last week I had just completed my 15 mile long run for my marathon training and was feeling good (If good means hardly able to walk up my stairs).We had a church BBQ and I thought Brownies For a Crowd would be perfect. So I made them...and then we didn't end up going because my husband had a work function pop up. So Brownies For a Crowd turned out to be Brownies For One. I had a little help from my husband and kids but I did quite a bit of the damage. That's right, not a single brownie made it out of my house.

Not.  A.  One.

I was expecting more of a chewy brownie so at first I couldn't decide if I liked them. These are a fudgy brownie that you frost while warm so the frosting turns into more of a glaze. Then I kept eating them and eating them and I decided these fudgy-no-calorie-left-behind brownies were for me. It takes work to earn the name The Girl Who Ate Everything. They were even better the next day after the frosting had sunk in even more.

Overeaters anonymous I think you just welcomed your newest member.

Brownies for a Crowd

8 eggs
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups of butter, melted 
1 1/2 cups Hershey’s cocoa
4 cups sugar
4 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups flour

Beat eggs with a mixer in a large bowl. Then add sugar, salt, vanilla and beat for 1 minute.

Add melted butter and blend. In another bowl, mix flour and cocoa with a whisk until well blended.

Add flour mixture to egg mixture and mix until well combined.

Spread onto a greased jelly roll pan (12 x 17) and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. You could probably half this recipe and bake it in a 9X13 pan. Cool for 15 minutes and spread with frosting.

Frosting
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup cocoa
milk

Blend powdered sugar, butter, and cocoa along with enough milk to make the frosting a spreadable consistency. You do not want to add more than 1/2 cup of milk or your frosting will be too wet. You want a thick frosting that's barely spreadable. Spread over the brownies after they had cooled for 15 minutes. Keep spreading as the frosting melts making it even on the brownies. Allow brownies to continue to cool. Makes 30 good sized brownies.

Source: RealMomKitchen

Cowboy Caviar and the giveaway winner

 The giveaway winner is: amber b "the cookies look great"

Congrats.

As I carted my kids around to Costco and Walmart today, I thought to myself how did my mom do this with 10 kids? Ask yourself what's worse than a Costco trip with three kids? A Costco trip with three kids in the POURING rain! We were all drenched from head to toe.

They say when you have kids it makes you learn patience but I think I've only digressed. My mom is the perfect model of patience. Believe it or not with ten kids she rarely raised her voice. The handful of times I can remember her losing her patience was after trips to the grocery store. Picture my mom, with a gaggle of kids, pushing 2-3 grocery carts full of food. We would always try to guess the damage at the register only to be hundreds of dollars off. When you're 5 years old everything only costs a quarter...maybe four quarters if it's really expensive.

I'm not sure at what point we pushed her over the edge but by the time we pulled in our driveway we were told to get out and take the groceries inside while my mom drove off in the car for a moment to herself to regroup. Surely she earned some credits to curse like a sailor but she didn't.

I definitely earned at least some PG rated swearing credits today. I guess I'm learning to flex my patience muscle because I didn't use 'em.

Here's a yummy dip that is always the first thing to be eaten when taken to BBQs. I could eat this alone for lunch. My mother-in-law Sheri got this recipe from someone from church and has made this a couple of times and I finally got the recipe. Most of the ingredients were approximate in her recipe so I added the measurements of what I added just so you know around what to add.

Cowboy Caviar

from Sheri Denney

1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can shoepeg corn, drained and rinsed

4-5 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and diced

2-3 diced avocados, ripe but still firm

4 green onions, sliced thin (I used 1/2 purple onion diced finely because that's all I had)

around 1/2  to 3/4 cup Zesty Italian dressing

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped finely

1-2 limes

ground pepper and salt to taste

Drain and rinse the black eyed peas, black beans, and corn. Add to a large bowl. Dice the tomatoes, making sure the seeds and insides are removed. You want to do this to make sure that there isn't too much liquid in the dip. Add the diced tomatoes and cilantro to the bowl. Slice the green onions finely (or purple onion) and add to the bowl. Dice the avocado and squeeze a little of the lime juice over the avocados so they don't brown as quickly. Squeeze the rest of the lime juice into the bowl. Add the Italian dressing and stir to coat all the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Chill in the refrigerator until cold and flavors have marinated together. This is best served the same day as prepared. Serve with tortilla chips.

5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies and a Giveaway

The nice people over at the CSN Stores were kind enough to offer you all a $70 giveaway (does not include shipping costs) to any of their sites. Seriously they have everything from stuff for your dining room, kitchen, or baby. I found a ton of kitchen gadgets that I would love to buy. Can I enter my own giveaway? Just leave a comment on this post before tomorrow, August 10th at noon EST, to enter the $70 giveaway at any of the 200+ CSN Stores!

We were invited last minute to a friend's house for dinner and I didn't want to show up empty handed so I literally threw these together in under 5 minutes. These are practically like drinking a protein shake since they contain peanut butter but don't have any flour or butter in them :)

I'm big on texture...these were perfectly chewy and melted in my mouth. I love quick treats like this that you can throw together especially during the summer when we always seem to have spontaneous BBQs and my kitchen isn't always stocked. Enjoy your "protein shakes".

5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp baking soda
½ cup milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix all ingredients except chocolate chips. When blended, mix in the chocolate chips. Using your fingers, form 1 1/2 inch balls (dough will be very wet and sticky) and place onto an un-greased parchment lined cookie sheet. You don't want to make them too big because they do spread. Bake for 9 minutes. Let the cookies sit on the cookies sheet for about 30 seconds to 1 minute before letting cool on a wire rack. Makes around a dozen small cookies.

Source: Leslie Sarna

Pizza Rolls

I'm in full kid mode over here. My husband is in training camp, which means he eats with the team, not with us. So I'm cooking for three little boys who are more impressed by hot dogs than something fancy like chicken Marsala.

These pizza rolls fit the bill perfectly. Remember those stuffed pizza rolls I made...while those are still good...these take even less work. Score for me.

That leaves me more time to make sure my one year old son "Hungry Hungry Wes" doesn't eat all the Hungry Hungry Hippo marbles.

Not like that's happened or anything.

Ahem.

You can use whatever toppings that float your boat. I've tried pepperjack instead of mozzarella which is so good.

Pizza Rolls

Pizza Dough (I bought fresh dough from the bakery or make her dough here)

1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons basil
1 cup sliced pepperoni, chopped
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (or pepperjack)
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Divide pizza dough in half. Roll each half into a rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick and 12 inches long. Just think about the size of a piece of paper. Sprinkle each half with equal amounts of garlic salt, basil, cheeses and pepperoni. Starting at a short end, roll dough up tightly to form a log. Slice into 1-inch pieces. Place rolls on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes or until browned on top. Serve with warm marinara sauce for dipping.

Her recipe for dough makes enough dough for 2 pizzas. So if you just have one batch of dough half the recipe toppings. Makes 12 pizza rolls.

Source:  Let's Dish

Strawberry Colada Cupcakes

My husband has been asking me to come up with a Strawberry Colada cupcake. So after experimenting a ton in the kitchen coming up with different cupcake and frosting combinations, I finally came up with this version that we liked the best. Did I mention I'm training for a marathon in October? Thank goodness because all that taste testing can't be good for my girlish figure. I love the moistness that the coconut milk adds to the cupcake and the fresh strawberry flavor really comes through. Enjoy!

Strawberry Colada Cupcakes

by The Girl Who Ate Everything

Printable Recipe

Cupcakes:

2 cups sifted cake flour (see cake flour substitute below)
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup coconut milk
1 ½ cups fresh strawberries, hulled
¼ cup crushed pineapple, drained
1 ½ teaspoons coconut extract
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/3 cups white sugar
1 large whole egg
2 large egg whites

Frosting:
½ cup fresh strawberries, hulled
1 cup unsalted butter, slightly cold
3 ½ cups powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coconut extract
Pinch of salt

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2. Place 1 pint (2 cups) of strawberries in a food processor and process until pureed into liquid (1 ½ cups for the cupcakes and ½ cup for the frosting later).

For the Cupcakes:
1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, add 2/3 cup of strawberry puree, coconut milk, crushed pineapple, vanilla extract and coconut extract. Stir until combined.

3. In another bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and egg whites slowly until incorporated. Add half of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Add the strawberry mixture slowly. Add the remaining dry mixture and mix until just combined.

4. Pour into cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way full.

5. Bake cupcakes for 20-22 minutes in the oven or until centers spring back when touched.

For the frosting:
1. Beat butter and salt until light and fluffy.

2. Add powdered sugar slowly until combined.

3. Add coconut extract, vanilla extract, and 3 Tablespoons of pureed strawberries. Mix until just blended. Do not overmix or you will get too much air in your frosting.

4. Frost cooled cupcakes.

Garnish with fresh strawberries, chunks of fresh pineapple, and toasted coconut.

Decorating Tip: An easy way to pipe frosting without using fancy decorating tips is to fill a ziplock bag with some of the frosting and cut off one of the corners on the bottom of the bag to about the size of a nickel. Begin piping your frosting.

Cake Flour Substitute: If you don’t have cake flour for this recipe you can do the following substitute. Add 4 Tablespoons of cornstarch in a large measuring cup and then fill with flour until the measuring cup reaches 2 cups.

Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares

Does anyone else feel like summer is slipping away? I had a dinner the other night and I was in charge of dessert and didn't have many ingredients on hand but happened to have everything for these. That's why I love the Pioneer Woman because she uses everyday ingredients...nothing too fancy schmancy. These bars were awesome. They almost tasted like key lime bars. You probably could substitute lime juice if you wanted. I served these with strawberries and fresh whipped cream but that's just because I like to complicate things. These are great just all by themselves...just ask my babysitter. I noticed when we returned home about 3 were gone from the plate of extras I had stuck in the fridge.

Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares

from the Pioneer Woman

1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, slightly softened

1 cup brown sugar (lightly packed)

1 cup oats

1 can (14 ounce) sweetened condensed milk

½ cups lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix butter and brown sugar until well combined.

Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder.

Add oats and flour to butter/sugar mixture and mix to combine.

Press half of oat crumb mixture into the bottom of an 8 x 11 inch pan. You can use a 9 x 13 pan; it will just be thinner.

Mix together condensed milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Spread onto the bottom layer of the crumb mixture. The other half of the crumb mixture mix and knead together with clean hands so that the butter that you added earlier gets incorporated then crumble on top of lemon layer but don’t press.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Allow pan to sit on counter for 30 minutes after baking. Cut into squares and refrigerate for a couple of hours or until cool.

Serve cool. Makes around one dozen.