Shrimp Two Ways, Two Days Part II

Leftover cooked shrimp in my experience either ends up as a salad, in a salad or on a soup. There is no secret to this as shrimp can easily be overcooked and become tough like leather (how many Top Chef episodes have you seen when the judges decry overcooked shellfish??) BUT, that being said, I saw no issue with WARMING the shrimp and using in a recipe, so with beautiful ingredients on hand: fresh cilantro, limes, a farm grown red pepper, onion, garlic, cayenne and cumin, a new dish was born...shrimp fajitas

The shrimp already had some nice flavor from the previous nights marinade and grill, but for this dish I wanted to amplify the spice, so I made a quick rub of chopped cilantro, about a teaspoon each of cumin and cayenne and some lemon juice, and redressed the shrimp:

In a saute pan, I added a little olive oil and sauteed the peppers and onion that I sliced into strips. Right when the veggies were just about to brown and were still crisp, I added a quick squeeze of lime, the garlic and the shrimp.

The shrimp were only in the pan long enough to marry the flavors and warm them. Then it was time to dress them on some corn tortillas. I tried two different toppings: one of just goat cheese and a little more cilantro and one more traditional of sharp cheddar and sour cream:

The extra cumin and cayenne really amplified the spice which had quite a little bite but was by no means uncomfortable. I think I have convinced my husband that shrimp is indeed fabulous!

Shrimp Two Ways, Two Days - Part I

Not only does summer bring my love of the grill, but it brings my love of seafood too! I have had some shrimp in the freezer I have been aching to cook it and there are some new recipes I have been wanting to try..and experiment with! Might I add that a certain husband of mine is who I have made it a project to get him to love shrimp like I do, so extra pressure to make success!

So I started by looking for a tasty, easy and relatively light marinade because my first shrimp recipe idea was for shrimp skewers. Then I found a recipe for marinated grilled shrimp on AllRecipes.com . A super easy marinade of garlic, olive oil, tomato sauce, red wine vinegar, basil, salt and cayenne pepper. They marinated in the fridge for about 45 minutes and then onto skewers they went. Frankly this was much easier than peeling those full two pounds!

My husband got to grill them (which frankly was another part of my shrimp plan. If he smelled them cooking how could he resist?) and when they came in, they were a beautiful sight!

I was so focused on those shrimp I skimped a little on the side, opting for a frozen veggie blend of wild rice with spinach and tomatoes. It made for a lovely plate though!

This recipe earned the husband and future company over dish seal of approval! Stay tuned for part II when I show you what happened to the leftover shrimp! Yes these were incredibly delicious but two pounds of shrimp is a little much for two people!

Party Time! Hot dog anyone?

I love entertaining. My husband may say it stresses me out with the cleaning, and shopping and cooking, but I love having people over, sharing food (and adult beverages) and just enjoying a great day. This year, instead of a Memorial Day party, we had a NOT Memorial Day Party and still had BBQ and grilled hot dogs with all the fixings.

I love hot dogs...a new article on Yahoo actually talks about the best and worst ones for you...but for me it's about the toppings. Any of you who witnessed in person or on TV my unique opportunity to serve Coach Marty Schottenheimer an impromptu hot dog, know I am all about topping it in unique ways (for those of you who didn't see it, I made a bacon wrapped hot dog topped with blue cheese cole slaw...delicious.) Last year for hubby's 40th we did a Hot Dog bar (idea courtesy of my friend Ingrid) and anything you could put on a dog we did.

I also love themes, and it just so happened we had leftover luau decorations I had recently discovered in our garage (from my little guys FIRST birthday! He's almost 5 y'all) and so as you can see form the tiki's, we went for it.

Enter my dear friend Ingrid, the master baker who upon being informed of the luau theme brought THIS to my party:

If I didn't love her I would loathe her due to my jealousy over her baking awesomeness. If you want to know how she made it, check out her blog at http://cookingforbetty.blogspot.com/ Might I add it was even more delicious than it was cool to look at!

Now if you'll excuse me, it's 85 degrees outside and I am in the mood for a hot dog!

Friday Night Bites: Labor Day Weekend Recipes

Labor Day weekend is upon us! And many of us will probably be grilling:

Check out these links with recipes and grilling ideas for your Labor Day holiday weekend!

Paula Deen Great Grilling Recipes

All Recipes Best BBQ Recipes

Cooking light Backyard Smoker Recipes

We are having a BBQ and attending another so I'll have lots to share on the other side of the holiday! Enjoy your weekend!

Groundhog Said Early Spring-Go Grill!

In all honesty, my household considers itself to be an all-year grilling home. If it's not raining or snowing or polar bear cold, we try to grill outside. To offset the times the outside isn't available, we have an indoor grill. There is just something about grilling the food that adds to a dish like a chicken Caesar salad or a pork tenderloin. Frankly, sometimes I just get bummed out at winter and plan for something to get grilled outside!

Grilling is also great for entertaining and not just the typical hamburgers and hot-dogs! I happen to love kebabs for a crowd. Relatively easy to prepare, elegant when done and easy to pair with sides like potato wedges, pasta salad, rice...you name it, kebabs are a great choice!

These kebabs are chicken and steak with onions, green and orange peppers. I have done pork and pineapple, I've added tomatoes (cooked on their own skewer since the cooking time is so short) and I've done shrimp. You can make your own marinade or use on of the many easy bottled kinds. Our house is a big Lawry's fan, especially the sesame ginger flavor that made the chicken so delicious! The steps are simple and the butcher can even do the real hard work for you if you ask him to cut the sirloin for you into large cubes. Our local Harris Teeter sells "kebab" meat even that we use in a pinch but ordering it ahead of time is recommended. Once your desired meat is in large, uniform chunks, marinate it in a large zippered bag, reserving some marinade for grilling. If using a bottled marinade, an hour in the fridge is usually plenty. Homemade marinades may take a little longer.After marinated, skewer the meat and veggies of your choice alternating them on the skewer. For grilling, the trick my husband says is to get a good sear and then low and slow.

So this weekend whether it's for the game or to get you thinking about Spring, put together some kebabs! Share your combinations too!