Super Quick Fix - Shrimp Over Polenta

Hey ya'll! Sorry I'm a day late with my weekly post but had to get a few things in order to close out the semester and prepare for my adventure over Memorial Day weekend (tell you all about it next time).

So when I say this is a quick fix, I mean seriously quick. And easy! It's basically a quick version of shrimp and grits (swapping the grits for polenta)

Ingredients

1lb - 1.5lbs of peeled and deveined uncooked medium sized shrimp (I like to take the tails off before cooking)
1 roll/tube of polenta (if you prefer to make the slow cooked kind follow the package directions).
1 can of low-sodium tomatoes cooked in olive oil and garlic (if you can't find this, you can also dice and sautée two tomatoes in olive oil and garlic with just a little sea salt for 2-3 minutes)

Directions

Wash and prepare your shrimp. Set aside.

Place your tomatoes in a skillet (if using a can) and heat for roughly 1 minute. If you are preparing fresh tomatoes make sure you are using a skillet large enough to add your shrimp directly to it.

Cut half of your polenta into 1/2" slices. In another skillet heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Place your slices of polenta in this heated pan, and brown the polenta for 5 minutes on each side.

When your polenta is just about done, add your shrimp to your tomatoes on medium heat. Shrimp cooks very quickly so it will only take a minute or two. You want to make sure the shrimp is no longer translucent. Stir and mix well. Once all your shrimp is cooked turn off the heat to that skillet.

Plate your food by putting the polenta on the plate first and then the tomatoes and shrimp on top.

And you're done! And you didn't have wait for brunch at an overpriced restaurant to get your shrimp and grits fix. You should have enough shrimp and tomatoes for a second serving. That's when you can cut and prepare the other half of the polenta.

Alright lovelies! I gotta run! See you next week!

Salud!

Monday's Meal - Fish Packets

I absolutely love fish packets! I admittedly didn't enjoy cooking fish other than salmon prior to discovering this method. It is such a simple technique and you can experiment with different spices. What I have included below is my favorite recipe. The fish comes out very tender and full of flavor. You can also cook this on the grill.

2 - 4 rainbow trout fillets, halibut, sole, or your favorite fish
Slices our favorite/preferred small potato such as red or fingerling (3 - 4 sliced potatoes)
1 red pepper cut into strips (4 -5 strips per piece of fish) optional
1 medium shallot, petite diced (roughly 1 teaspoon per piece of fish)
1 tablespoon olive oil or ghee (per piece of fish)
1 teaspoon minced garlic (per piece of fish)
1 teaspoon ground black pepper (per piece of fish)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Rinse fish, and pat dry.

Rub fillets with olive oil (ghee), and season with minced garlic, salt, and black pepper. Tear a piece of foil for each piece of fish, about twice the size of the piece of fish. Place each fillet on top of the potatoes, shallots, and red peppers. Carefully seal all edges of each piece of foil to form enclosed packets. Place packets on foil lined baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the size of fish. Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.

Since I don't have a microwave I reheat the fish in the oven. It also heats up well in the microwave.

Let me know how it turns out!

Salud!

Jerk (or Curry) Veggies!

Guess who's back?!?!  I missed ya'll!!! I really did!!!

Where have I been? Where did I go? What happened?? Life happened :)
That's the past and we're now moving forward!

And I never stopped cooking ;)

So, I have set a new goal for myself, to blog on Mondays! Which works because I normally cook on Sundays and/or Mondays. And now that the Blogger app is working again (yea that was an issue) I can carve out the time for myself. There will be a new post every Monday!!!!!

Here we go!

Per several Facebook requests, here is my jerk(curry) veggie recipe. I put curry in parentheses because you can make the same recipe with either and it turns out yummy.
   

Ingredients
1 medium onion
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 1/2 tbsp ginger, minced (can also use the ginger in the tube, add another 1/2 tbsp)
1 tsp coriander
3 tbsp jerk seasoning (you can use curry instead)
4 thyme sprigs
1 can chopped tomatoes (look for low-sodium)
3 tbsp honey
2 low-sodium vegetable stock cubes, crumbled (I have used one before and it turned out well)
4 medium sized sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 red pepper, roughly chopped

Before you dive in, let's chat a little about the sweet potatoes. You can take one of three approaches:

1. Roast them in the oven so that they get tender. - If you want a precise way to handle things then I recommend this version. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Peel and cut up the sweet potatoes into cubes. Toss the cubed sweet potatoes with coconut oil. Line a baking sheet with foil and spread the sweet potatoes out evenly. Roast sweet potatoes in the preheated oven, turning occasionally, until the vegetables are soft and golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Now your sweet potatoes are ready!

2. Boil them whole, let them cool, peel, and then cube them. This is the method I use. - Fill the pot about half full (you will need just enough water to cover the sweet potatoes). Bring to a boil. Add sweet potatoes. Cover the pan and cook sweet potatoes for 10 to 12 minutes or until just tender on the outside but resistant in the center when pierced with a knife. You do not want to cook them all the way through as if you are making a pie because they will get mushy when you peel and cut them. I don't recommend you peel and cube them, and then boil them because they will get soft very quickly.

3. Cook them as the other ingredients cook. - You can peel and cube the sweet potatoes and add them after you saute the diced onion. The catch is, you will have to wait for them to cook to your preference. So choose your method wisely.

Directions:

In a dutch oven or medium sized pot, heat the coconut oil. Add the roughly chopped onion, ginger, coriander, and jerk (or curry) seasoning. Mix these ingredients together well. Stir in the thyme, chopped tomatoes, honey and stock cubes with 600ml water and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 mins. Stir in the beans, peppers and some seasoning, and simmer for another 5 mins. Lastly add the cooked sweet potatoes. 

If you choose to cook the sweet potatoes using method 3 noted above (after you add the chopped onion, ginger, coriander, and jerk (or curry) seasoning) - Stir in the thyme, chopped tomatoes, honey and stock cubes with 600ml water and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 mins, then drop in the sweet potatoes and simmer for 10 mins more. Stir in the beans, peppers and some seasoning, and simmer for another 5 mins until the potatoes are almost tender. 

Sorry if this seems a little complicated but I wanted to give you the big picture. And some options on how you prepare things. I have added a little more honey to taste. And this dish pairs WELL with fish and chicken. It's become one of my favorite dishes :)

Okay, let me know if you make it and how it turns out!!

And look out for another post on Monday May 16th!!!!!

Salud!!!