Grilled Shrimp Panzanella Salad

I love Panzanella with the passion!!! Any kind, but now this one is my fave!!!

Grilled Shrimp Panzanella Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sherry vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 (1 inch thick) sliced day old country style bread
8 oz red cherry tomatoes, halved
8 oz yellow teardrop tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup pitted kalamata olives, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to medium-high heat.

Whisk together first 5 ingredients in a small bowl.

Toss shrimp with 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Grill shrimp, covered with grill lid, 2 minutes on each side or until pink. Grill bread slices 1 minute on each side or until toasted.

Cut bread into 1 inch cubes. Combine bread, shrimp, tomatoes, olives and basil in a large bowl; add remaining vinaigrette, and toss well. Season with salt and pepper. Can be refrigerated up to 2 hours before serving. Makes 4 servings.

Final Photo taken by Me :)

Tuna Melt Appetizer

This was one of the most yummy appetizers I have ever had! Another great for "National Memory Day"

Tuna Melt Appetizer

Ingredients:

1 (10 oz) package frozen spinach, drained
2 (6 oz) cans white tuna in water, drained, flaked
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Directions:

Drain spinach well with several paper towels. In bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. Spoon into buttered pie plate and bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle remaining cheese over top. Bake another 5 minutes. Serve with crackers.

Final photo taken by Me :)

Tuna-Chip Casserole

So, we decided to do a "National Day" this past Wednesday. It was "National Memory Day" I did some research on some on the items that helped with memory and tuna was one of the main ones. That night, we decided on 2 different tuna dishes. This was our main dish :)

Tuna-Chip Casserole

Ingredients:

2 cups crushed potato chips
2 (6 oz) cans tuna fish, drained
2 (10 oz) cans cream of mushroom soup

Directions:

Place 1 layer of curshed potato chips in greased casserole dish and top with layer of tuna. Repeat layers and pour mushroom soup over tuna. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes.

Final photo by Me :)

Menu Plan Monday 3/26/12-4/1/12

It is "Menu Plan Monday" With sports going on every day of the week, it hard sometimes to sit down all together as a family, but we are going to try our darndest!!

Monday: Freezer Fend

Tuesday: Rigatoni and Garlic Bread

Wednesday: Fried Onion Ring Hot Dogs (New Recipe)

Thursday: Fend for yourselves

Friday: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Tomato Soup

Saturday: Potluck Pantry

Sunday: Loaded Steak (New Recipe)

Dessert: Mrs. Truman's Coconut Balls

Be sure to check back for recipes along with final photos!

Homemade Shamrock Shakes

The kids are McDonald Shamrock Shake nuts!!! So, what better dessert for our St. Patty's Day dinner?

Homemade Shamrock Shakes!

Ingredients:

3 cups vanilla ice cream
1 3/4 cups (1%) low fat milk
1 cup ice cubes
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
10-12 drops liquid green food coloring (optional)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a blender; puree until smooth. Top with whipped cream and a cherry :) Makes 3 servings.

Final photo taken by Me :)

Alternate recipe:

3 cups mint chocolate chip ice cream
1 3/4 cups (1%) low fat milk
1 cup ice cubes
3 drops liquid green food coloring

Apple and Smoked Salmon Salad

This was such a refreshing salad for our St. Patrick's Day dinner :)

Weight Watchers friends, all the info you need is at the bottom of the page :)

Apple and Smoked Salmon Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 English cucumber, cut into 1/4" thick slices
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tbs. shopped fresh dill
2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
4 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cracked pepper
7 cups baby arugula, about 5 oz.
2 apples, cored, thinly sliced
8 slices smoked salmon, 8 oz.

Directions:

Using 1 1/2" shamrock shaped cutter, cut cucumber slices into shamrocks; reserve. In large bowl, whisk oil with dill, mustard, juice, sugar, salt, pepper and 1 tsp water.

Just before serving, add arugula, apples and cucumbers; toss gently to coat with dressing. Divide among individual serving plates. Roll each salmon slice into rose shape; place on on each salad.

Final Photo taken by Me :)

Servings: 8
Fat: 8g
Carbs: 9g
Fiber: 2g
Protein: 6g

Only worth 3 pts for a serving!

Beer-Braised Cabbage

This is the 2nd recipe selected from Woman's World magazine for our St. Patrick's Day dinner.

Weight Watchers friends, info you need is listed at the bottom!

Beer-Braised Cabbage

Ingredients:

3 lb cabbage, cut into wedges
1 large red onion, sliced 1/4" thick
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup stout beer
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 Tbs. packed light brown sugar
6 slices bacon, cooked, cut in 1" pieces

Directions:

Arrange racks in center and lower thirds of oven. Preheat oven to 350F. In deep roasting pan, combine cabbage, onion, celery seeds, salt and pepper.

Combine beer, butter and brown sugar; drizzle over cabbage. Cover tightly with foil. Bake on lower rack 1 1/2 hours or until cabbage is tender. (if you are cooking corned beef as well, it will cook on center rack) Using slotted spoon, transfer to serving dish. Sprinkle with bacon.

Final photo taken by Me :)

Servings: 8
Fat: 9g
Carbs: 12g
Fiber: 4g
Protein: 4g

Comes out to 4 pts per serving!

Sweet-and-Spicy Glazed Corned Beef

I was glancing through Woman's World magazine and came across the center spread for this awesome St. Patrick's Day dinner. I chose 3 dishes and had one yummy dinner! This is what we chose as our meat dish.

Weight Watchers friends, I have included the fat, carbs, fiber and protein below :)

Sweet-and-Spicy Glazed Corn Beef

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. peppercorns
1 Tbs. mustard seeds
4 bay leaves, crushed
1 cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
2 tsp. whole cloves
1/2 tsp. hot pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/8 tsp. ground allspice
4 lb corned beef brisket
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup sweet chili sauce, such as Frank's.
4 tsp. horseradish, drained

Directions:

Arrange racks in center and lower thirds of oven. Preheat oven to 350F. Combine first 9 ingredients in plastic food storage bag; crush using rolling pin. Empty bag into large Dutch oven. Add corned beef (discard spice packet from package if included) and garlic; pour in enough water to cover meat. Cover with lid.

Bake on center rack 3 hours, turning halfway through. Line jellyroll pan with foil. Remove beef from oven; transfer to jellyroll pan, discarding cooking liquid. Increase oven to 450F. Combine honey, chili sauce and horseradish; brush beef with half of glaze. Roast 15 minutes, brushing with remaining glaze halfway through. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing.

Final photo taken by Me :)

Servings: 8
Fat: 25g
Carb: 14g
Fiber: 0g
Protein: 24g

Menu Plan Monday! Week of 3/19/12-3/25/12

It is "Menu Plan Monday!" Here is what we plan to eat this week :)

Monday: Soup and Sandwiches (Zumba night)

Tuesday: Freezer Fend (Soccer/Baseball night)

Wednesday: National Memory Day!! We will be having recipes with memory boosting food; rosemary, tea, beets, apples, red onion, grapes, broccoli, tuna, honey...be sure to check back for recipes using these items :)

Thursday: Fend for Yourself (Soccer/Baseball night, Zumba)

Friday: Grilled Shrimp Panzanella (New Recipe)

Saturday: Breakfast for Dinner! Pancakes and Sausage

Sunday: Mad About Meatloaf (New Recipe)

Dessert: Honey Wafer Cookies (New Recipe) Will be making these on Wed (National Memory Day) since there is honey in the recipe.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

I wanted to keep everything green for St. Patty's Day weekend and was tickled when I came across these yummy cookies on Pinterest.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
2 3/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Green Food Coloring 8-10 drops
2 cups broken up Andes Creme de Menthe Candies or use the Baking Chips of the same name

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F. Add butter and sugar to stand mixer. Cream until light and fluffy. Add eggs, scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again. Add vanilla and mix until light and fluffy again.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to mixer and mix on low until combined. Add enough green food coloring to get the right color. Different brands will take different amounts, but 8-10 drops is about what it will take (the color of the dough should be a little darker than you want the cookie color to be.) Add mint chips and mix until incorporated.

Drop cookie dough by the tablespoon onto parchment paper on a baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes at 375F. Let cool.

Final photo taken by Me :)

Shamrock Pops

For St. Patrick's Day this year, I went elsewhere for ideas; Pinterest, Woman's World Magazine, etc... This fun idea came from Pinterest :) http://thedecoratedcookie.com/2010/03/at-the-last-minute-st-patricks-day-marshmallows/

I decided to make what looks like a plant out of mine :)

Shamrock Pops

To make your own at home, place a large marshmallow on a bamboo skewer, submerge it quickly in a cup of water and dip in sprinkles to coat. I also used an icing tube to draw stripes and shamrocks on some :)

Place a ring of craft foam into a tall green bucket. Fill with ivy or clover fake greenery. Poke pops down into foam. Add some spare pieces of ivy. I also hung a St. Patty's Day tin sign on the front. Turned out great!!!

Final photo taken by Me :)