Spicy Grilled Shrimp

     Since my chopping hand has been on the fritz, Hubby has been making most of our meals. I'm down with that, especially since he's a really good cook and has become quite proficient with his newest obsession  preferred method of cooking. 

     He has made these shrimp several times, and they disappear as soon as they come off the grill. They're great for an appetizer, but they'd also be fabulous on a summer salad or with pasta. They have the perfect amount of heat for me just the way they are, but if you're a fan of hot and spicy you may want to "kick it up" with a little extra cayenne!

     I hope to share more of Hubby's grilling adventures with you soon! My cast comes off in three weeks, but I'm sure my hand will need at least a little more time to recover. I know when I've got it good. :)
 

Spicy Grilled Shrimp
Mark Bittman, from Fish, The Complete Guide to Buying and Cooking

Ingredients
2 lbs. large shrimp (raw), peeled and de-veined, rinsed and dried
1 large clove garlic
1 Tablespoon coarse salt (I use only about a teaspoon and it's plenty for us)
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. paprika
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 tsp. lemon juice

Instructions
Finely mince garlic and mix with salt. Use the flat blade of your knife  or a mortar and pestle to make a paste with the garlic and salt. Mix in cayenne, paprika, olive oil and lemon juice. Combine with shrimp until  the shrimp is evenly covered with the spice mixture.
Grill or broil shrimp (hot fire) 2-3 minutes per side, or until done. Serve immediately or at room temperature, with lemon wedges if desired.

Easy Cherry-Almond Coffee Cake

     Okay Spring...any time now. Today we woke up to a dusting of snow that eventually changed over to a biting cold rain. Not the kind of weather that makes you think of daffodils and bunnies, is it? I was tempted to just pull the covers back up over my head and go back to sleep 'til I heard the birdies singing and felt some warm sunshine peeking through my window.

     I might have been tempted out of bed with this Cherry-Almond Coffee Cake, but unfortunately it was long gone. I made it a couple of weeks ago, and boy do I wish I had a slice now. The good thing about it is it's super quick and easy to put together, and it looks and tastes like you spent hours. Tart little bursts of cherry preserves in each bite of creamy almond filling will give you a sunny outlook even if the weather won't cooperate.

     The original recipe from Pillsbury used apricot preserves, which I'm sure would be equally delicious. I had cherry jam in my refrigerator love cherries with almond so that's what I went with. Why not make both and see which one you like best? 

Easy Cherry-Almond Coffee Cake

Very slightly adapted from this Pillsbury recipe

Ingredients:

Coffee Cake

1 pkg. (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup (4 oz.) almond paste, crumbled

1 can (8 oz.) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

1/3 cup cherry preserves

Topping

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 teaspoons milk

1 Tablespoon sliced almonds

Directions

• Heat oven to 375F. Grease cookie sheet or line with parchment. With a mixer on low speed, beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Beat in crumbled almond paste until well mixed.
• Unroll dough onto cookie sheet or parchment. Press into a 13x7inch rectangle, pressing perforations to seal. 
• Spoon the cream cheese mixture lengthwise down the center 1/3 of the rectangle. Evenly spread the preserves on top of the cream cheese mixture.
• On each long side of the dough, make cuts 1 inch apart to the edge of the filling. Fold opposite strips of dough over the filling, and cross the strips in the center to resemble a braid. Seal ends.
• Bake 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely on a cooling rack.
• Mix powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Drizzle over cooled braid and sprinkle with almonds.
• ***You can assemble this up to 2 hours ahead of time. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Uncover and bake as directed in the recipe.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

     Soup weather is here! I don't know about you, but I think soup is the perfect supper. A big pot of soup simmering on the stove makes the house smell good, and holds promises of  a warm bowl of comfort on a chilly evening. Put on your warm wooly socks and snuggle up with a steaming bowl of goodness that'll warm you up from the inside out!

     This potato soup, from Cooking Light magazine, is a lightened version of the decadent loaded baked potato soup so popular in restaurants. Creamy texture? Check. Chunks of tender potato? Check. Melty cheese? Check. Crunchy bacon? Check. The only thing this isn't loaded with is calories. Pair it up with  a nice salad and you've got yourself a hearty, satisfying meal. It's surprisingly quick and easy to make, and if you hide some you're lucky, you'll have enough left over for tomorrow's lunch. :)

Loaded Baked Potato Soup
recipe from Cooking Light magazine, Nov. 2012

Ingredients:
4 (6oz.) red potatoes
2 tsp. olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion (I love onion in potato soup, so I used more)
1 1/4 cups (fat free, lower sodium) chicken broth
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups low-fat milk, divided
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1/2 tsp. salt (or season to taste if salt intake is not an issue for you)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper (I love pepper, so I used more)
Garnishes: cooked and crumbled bacon, cheddar cheese, thinly sliced green onions or chives

Instructions:

• Pierce potatoes with a fork. Microwave at High for 13 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Cut in half; cool slightly.
• While potatoes are cooking, heat a large saucepan over med-high heat. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Add onion and saute, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent. Add broth to pan.
• Combine flour and 1/2 cup of the milk in a small bowl, stirring until smooth. Add flour mixture to the pan with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of milk.
• Bring soup to boil, stirring frequently. Cook 1 minute.
• Remove soup from heat. Stir in sour cream, salt and pepper.
• Discard potato skins if desired. Coarsely mash potatoes into soup. 
• Top soup with grated cheese, crumbled bacon and onions or chives.
• Makes 4 servings

Irish Cream Chocolate Chip Parfaits and a Handmade Keepsake Ornament

Oh yes, I did. 

     Those really are Irish Cream dipped chocolate chip cookies nestled snugly between luscious layers of whipped cream. And they're sitting in my refrigerator getting more delicious by the minute. As they mellow, the Irish Cream soaked cookies become almost cake-like, and each spoonful is a bite of creamy goodness studded with crunchy chocolate chips suspended in silky whipped cream.

     Surprisingly enough, the best cookies for this recipe are the crunchy store-bought ones. (Chips Ahoy, if you can get them.) I've included a link in the recipe for a non-alcoholic Irish Cream if you prefer not to go the alcoholic route, but I'm also thinking that any sweet milky coffee-type drink (like a bottled frappuccino) would work.

     My friend Felicia introduced me to this wonderfully quick and easy make-ahead dessert. (Can you believe there are only three ingredients?) She makes hers in a 9x12 dish, but I thought it would also be cute in individual serving jars. But isn't most anything cuter in a Weck jar?

     Speaking of cute, here's what has been keeping my attention these last few weeks. Yep, grandson has moved back to VA and we've been having lots of family fun together. (Yay!) Here's a little project that we did together that makes a great keepsake ornament. (Grandmas love these things!) This is one of my favorite ornaments, and I've been making these with my students for years.

This idea came from Little Giraffes, and they have a link to a printable tag here. Instructions: Paint child's palm and fingers white. Have them wrap their hand and fingers around a ball shaped ornament to transfer their handprint. Decorate with paint markers, and don't forget to put your child's name and date! Include a tag with this poem:

These aren't just five snowmen, 

As anyone can see.

I made them with my hand 

Which is a part of me.

And now each year when you trim the tree

You'll look back and recall,

Christmas of 2011

When my hand was just this small!

I'll be back soon with more holiday goodies- my baking partner is back and we plan to get into lots of cookie trouble together!

Irish Cream Chocolate Chip Parfait Recipe
recipe from Felicia
Ingredients
1 pkg. Chocolate Chip cookies, crunchy ones- not soft (Chips Ahoy work beautifully.)
Whipped cream (made from a pint of heavy cream) or 1 tub Whipped topping
Irish Cream liqueur or non-alcoholic Irish Cream (I'm thinking that even a bottled frappuccino would work here.)

• Pour about 1/2 cup of Irish Cream into a bowl. (More if you need it) Dip cookies one at a time into the Irish Cream. I usually let them stay in a few seconds and then turn them over to make sure they're completely covered. Don't leave them in long enough to get soggy- they'll fall apart.
• For a 9x12 baking dish: Start with a layer of dipped cookies and then top with a layer of whipped cream. Repeat the layers and finish with a sprinkling of crushed cookies.  
• For parfait glasses or canning jars: Alternate layers of dipped cookies and whipped cream. End up with whipped cream as the top layer and then sprinkle with some crumbled cookies. 
• Cover and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours (can be done a day ahead) before serving so the cookies have a chance to absorb the liqueur and soften.

Chocolate Cake...in a mug in a minute!

Do you ever feel like you need just a little something sweet? Maybe something gooey and chocolate? You look in the refrigerator, you look in the cupboards, but nothing looks appealing? It doesn't have to be a lot...just enough to quell that craving for a little treat. But you don't want to wait forever for it and mess up your whole kitchen making it. If you ever have that feeling, then you're gonna love this!

My friend Rita sent me a recipe for a lovely little cake you mix up and cook in a mug. Yep, a mug. You can also eat it out of the same mug, therefore keeping the number of dirty dishes to a minimum. (At my house this is very important.) And it cooks in the microwave. For only one minute! And after eating your chocolaty mug full of goodness, you have no leftovers to tempt you later. What a concept!. In its naked state the little cake is chocolaty good. If you want to walk on the wild side, top it with a little chocolate syrup and whipped cream. With a cherry on top. Because you want to.


Chocolate Cake in a Mug- recipe from Rita
(printable recipe)
Spray microwave safe coffee mug with non-stick spray.
(I just oiled mine with a couple of drops of light flavored olive oil.)
Add into the mug the following:
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons oil
2 tablespoons CAKE flour
Stir with a fork until smooth and no lumps.
Microwave on HIGH for 60 seconds!! (I have a mini-microwave that's really low power so I added 20 seconds.)
You can eat it right out of the mug or turn it out onto a plate. (But why dirty another dish?)
Enjoy it by itself or with chocolate syrup or whipped cream.