Whole Wheat Pasta with Shrimp, Lemon, Parsley & Red Pepper Flakes

Sometimes simple recipes with just a few ingredients can be some of the yummiest and most flavorful! In fact this recipe is a staple in our household because of those simple facts. Most of the ingredients are pretty standard and are staples in our household which makes it a snap to put together in as little time as it takes my pasta to cook to al dente!

Now that's my kind of recipe...quick, delicious and easy! This recipe has just a few ingredients but when combined together are packed with flavor and will leave a lasting impact on your taste buds! Be sure to make extra; your family will be begging for more and as the flavors sit and continue to meld together they only get better! 

Whole Wheat Pasta with Shrimp, Lemon, Parsley & Red Pepper Flakes

Ingredients:

1 box whole wheat pasta

6 tablespoons olive oil

6 tablespoons butter

6 small to medium cloves garlic

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 pounds shrimp, more or less according to your preferences

2 lemons

1/2 cup parsley plus more for garnish

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Prepare pasta according to package directions, being sure to cook al dente. While pasta is cooking, melt butter and oil in skillet. Once oils are hot, add garlic and let cook for about 1 minute. Add red pepper flakes, stir, then add shrimp and cooked until just pink. Turn heat off and add the zest of one lemon, the juice of two, and parsley. Stir to combine and check for needed salt and pepper. Add cooked and drained pasta to your skillet, toss before plating and garnish with more parsley.

Pesto Shrimp Bruschetta

When summer rolls around I try my hardest to utilize all of the freshest and ripest ingredients that the season has to offer while they are available. And two of my favorite ingredients to use are basil and tomatoes. There is nothing like a fresh and vine ripe tomato in the summer. In fact once our farmers market starts up I have a tomato salad every single day for lunch. Yes, every single day, thats no exaggeration. In fact our counters are currently lined with tomatoes ready to be eaten. You'd think by the looks and smell of things in my kitchen that we run a fruit stand right out of our house. My goal by eating tomatoes every single day is to eat so many during the summer months that I will be sick of them by the time the season is over and wont miss them. The problem is that I never get sick of them and the season still comes and goes leaving me wanting and waiting for more. 

Until I can figure out how to harness the goodness of sweet ripe tomatoes all year long I will have to settle for gorging on them for a few months every year. My latest and greatest recipe using two of my favorite summer ingredients is my pesto shrimp bruschetta. I made it for dinner last night and as my husband took his last bite he said "You know what I hate about this bruschetta?" (I braced myself for a possible harsh critique) He continued "The thing I hate about this bruschetta is that there is never enough!" And that summed it up perfectly, because as soon as I had finished my last bite I knew exactly what he was talking about. My plate was empty and yet I was looking around as if someone was going to bring me another plate of this delicious shrimp bruschetta. Sadly a waiter did not magically appear with another serving, but I'll give you one guess what we are having again tonight for dinner?!

Pesto Shrimp Bruschetta

Ingredients:

Shrimp-

shrimp (I used 3 shrimp per bread slice)

zest of 1/2 of a lemon

2 garlic cloves, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Bruschetta-

1 baguette of bread

olive oil

salt

1 large tomato

1 large garlic clove, chopped

1/2 cup fresh chopped basil

pesto, fresh or store bought

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Slice your bread, drizzle with olive oil and lightly salt each side, then place onto a baking sheet. Cook for between 10-15 minutes until golden brown on bottom side, then turn over to cook on opposite side for an additional 10-15 minutes until golden brown. 

While bread is cooking you can start to prepare your shrimp and tomato mixture for your bruschetta. Place 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a pan over medium high heat. Add your 2 chopped garlic cloves and sauté for about 1 minute. Add your shrimp and lemon zest and cook until shrimp are just pink and done. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Dice your tomato and  place into a small bowl with your chopped garlic clove. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt to taste. Stir ingredients and let sit to marinate while you continue to prepare your bruschetta.

Once your bread is done, spread a thin layer of pesto on top of each slice, then place a nice helping of the tomato mixture over pesto and top with your cooked shrimp and sprinkle with freshly chopped basil. Enjoy, I know you will!

Baked Crab Cakes with Garlic, Chili Creme Fraiche Dipping Sauce

Yes folks, I've got crabs...crab cakes that is! Every New Years my family has a crab feast and we gorge and gorge and gorge ourselves on the freshest most delicious crab that we can find. My father orders way more crab than should be legal and we lightly crack each leg and body open before putting the pieces in a "to die for" sauce that my mother concocts to simmer before serving. I don't think more than two words are ever spoken during that meal, more of a symphony of noises like hmmm, ohhhhh, and ahhhh.

This year our crab feast left us with a few stragglers for leftovers and I decided to put them to good use and make a delicious baked crab cake recipe with a creamy garlic, chili creme fraiche dipping sauce that is good enough to eat by the spoonful! These cakes are best made with real crab meat that you can find at any fish counter in almost any grocery store, and Costco actually sells some really great chunk crab meat that would be perfect for this recipe as well. I promise you wont miss frying up these cakes in a pan; they come out of the oven with the greatest crispy crust that locks in all of the juicy smooth flavors waiting on the inside.

Baked Crab Cakes with Garlic, Chili Creme 

Fraiche Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:

Baked Crab Cakes-

1 egg, beaten

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon Worcestershire

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

1/2 tsp Old Bay seasoning

1/4 capers, drained

1 scallion, finely chopped

1 pound lump crab meant

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup panko bread crumbs

Butter

Garlic, Chili Creme Fraiche Dipping Sauce-

1/2 cup Creme Fraiche

1/2-1 tsp garlic chili hot sauce (can be found in the Asian isle of your grocery store)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. In a bowl mix together the egg, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, Old Bay seasoning and hot sauce. Stir in the scallion and capers. Gently fold in the crab mat, 1/4 cup of panko crumbs and salt and pepper to taste. Place the remaining panko bread crumbs in a shallow dish. Divide the crab mixture into about 8 mounds. Round out each mound and place in panko bread crumbs to fully coat. 

Transfer to your prepared baking sheet and flatten the crab cake slightly. 

Continue until all of your crab cakes are coated and on the baking sheet. Place a very very thin pad of butter on top of each crab cake and place in the oven to bake for 10 minutes. Gently flip each crab cake over and bake an additional 8-10 minutes longer until golden and crispy.

For your dipping sauce simply combine your creme fraiche and chili sauce and taste for heat content and if you desire adding any salt.

Shrimp Panzanella Salad

So basically I could eat this salad twice a week for the rest of my life. Summer, winter, rain, shine, doesn't matter, it always tastes good and is ALWAYS a crowd pleaser. In fact I am not even sure what I ever ate before I started making it! 

Two ingredients that you never want to scrimp on in my opinion when making this salad, and your going to make this salad, is the ginormous homemade croutons and the basil. A must and a must! And a tasty addition this time is my little friend the shrimp. D.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s.

Shrimp Panzanella Salad

Ingredients:

Salad:

Shrimp

2 cups grape tomatoes

1 large cucumber

1/4 red onion

1 bunch of basil

Large homemade croutons

Balsamic Dressing:

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

2 cloves garlic smashed

1-1 1/2 Tbl sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Dressing:

For the salad dressing combine all of the ingredients and stir well to combine. Set aside to let smashed garlic infuse into the oil and vinegar.

Salad:

The real star of this salad is the homemade over-sized croutons. I have made croutons from homemade bread and store bought and have loved both. For this salad I usually buy a garlic bread baguette. The roasted garlic in the bread is a great addition to this salad. I slice the bread into 1-1 1/2 inch slices then continue to cut it into cubes. I place the cubed bread on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and toss to combine. I salt the bread fairly well at this point. Stick the bread in the oven for 15 minutes then remove and turn every bread cube over onto another side to brown for an additional 15 minutes. Keep an eye on them after you turn them since everyone's oven heats differently and I would hate for you to burn your yummy croutons.

After your croutons have been baked you can start preparing your veggies. Cut your cherry tomatoes in half, slice your cucumber in quarters, thinly slice a halved onion and give your basil a ruff chop. Throw all of those ingredients into a bowl and set aside. Next prepare your shrimp however you like whether it be grilled, pan seared, baked etc. Once cooked add to your bowl of veggies. In my opinion I like to add the croutons at the very last second before I am going to dress and serve my salad because I want to postpone the croutons from absorbing any moisture from the vegetables or dressing for as long as possible. Once you are ready to serve your salad combine your croutons with the shrimp and vegetables and add your pre-made salad dressing.