Shrimp Salad Sandwich

July 20, 2015

Loyal readers, you know me by now. I am a simple girl just trying to get by.

New readers, oh, hello! Thanks for joining my party. I am a new mommy, wife and full-time business professional. Basically, I am just like your wife, your sister, your friend, heck, I am like a lot of woman out there who seem to stack on more and more responsibilities as the years go by, forgetting that our days are not getting longer. Well, in essence they are but we still are dealing with 24 hours, people. Quit adding to your plate!

I am part of a club, a club of really tired Momma’s! The RTM Club. There, I stake claim to the name. So, what I deal with is real life issues such as stress and demand and hungry bellies. See, I can deal with the stress and demand and actually try my very best to remedy a solution but damn you, hungry bellies, you never go away.

So, back to the RTM Club, we like to find ways to eliminate processes without sacrificing quality. Am I right, RTM’s?

This here is a recipe that does just that. I whipped this up while unloading groceries, feeding a baby some sweet potatoes and packing a bag for a little evening pool dip. See? You will love me and this recipe!

Shrimp Salad Sandwich:
Serves 2

1 Lb of Shrimp (I get mine steamed and seasoned at the market to save time!)
2 Stalks of Celery – Finely Diced
1/4 Cup of Mayo
Lemon Juice to taste
Old Bay to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 Cup of Lettuce
2 Croissants

As mentioned above, if you can get your market to steam and season your shrimp for you, do it, as it will save you so much time in the kitchen! Peel and chop the shrimp and set aside. Dice two celery stalks and add to bowl. Add 1/4 of a cup of Mayo and then continue to add more Mayo by the spoon if this does not fit your desired consistency and flavor. HERE is where you store the mixture in the refrigerator so you can feed and change your baby and head to the pool. Not down with that? Skip ahead. Add the juice of about a half a lemon and stir. Season the mixture with Old Bay, salt and pepper. To assemble sandwich add a layer of mayo to one side of a croissant, add a spoonful of mixture, a handful of lettuce and the croissant half.

Serve alongside an ear of corn and savor the flavors of sweet summertime!

Seriously, this dish is so easy, I even had time to make a simple strawberry shortcake for dessert. Four ingredients: Strawberries, Honey (for sweetening and to pull the juices), Sara Lee Pound Cake and Cool Whip.

I am not a Saint, nor mother or wife of the year, but I swear my husband wanted to know what alien possessed his wife’s body to make such a dinner from start to finish. Raise your forks, RTM’s, this one is for you. Enjoy!

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Easy Eggplant Parmesan

April 1, 2015

The past few weeks have been so incredibly busy with work. Major events and projects have collided together creating late nights, early mornings, skipped meals and crash and burn evenings. Dramatic, much? I know.

My dear husband has had to really take charge, as my parenting and household upkeep has been needless to say, slacking. After receiving a frantic call from my husband that consisted of a one way street conversation of – “Get home!” I was slightly nervous as I turned the front door handle and stepped into a quiet house. As I peeked into the nursery I saw my husband rocking a wide-eyed baby as he mouthed “be quiet.” I ninja-tip-toed out of the room and over so many baby items scattered across the floor. The house looked like we were robbed. As if a robber knew that somewhere under the building dust some serious loot resided and combed every inch of our home throwing bottles, diapers and baby clothing in complete madness.

I walked into the Master Bedroom and saw all of Baby Lo’s Diaper Bag belongings out and about throughout the room. Blankets, a formula dispenser, diapers, baby clothes, more diapers, even the Infant Tylenol and Vitamin D Drops which were neatly stored in their boxes and tucked away in a pocket of the diaper bag were out of their boxes and laying scattered across the bed (I am completely organized in the wrong places in life these days).

“Umm… what happened here tonight?” I asked. I think my husband had a twitch in his eye as he stated, “Onesie. I just needed a onesie.”

“And you thought maybe you would find it inside the Tylenol box?”

We still are laughing about that one. Needless to say, he warned me to buy more onesies, like boxes and boxes, but he has also been super helpful and amazing with taking care of Baby Lo, our home and even me.

So, in an effort to gain some normalcy back into our lives, I decided a home cooked meal is just what we needed.

EASY EGGPLANT PARMESAN:
Serves 4

1 – Eggplant
2 – Eggs
1 Cup of Breadcrumbs (Italian Flavored)
1 1/2 Cups of Shredded Parmesan
3 tsps of Dried Basil
1 – Jar of Prego Traditional Pasta Sauce
2 Cups of Shredded Mozzarella
Pepper to taste
Fresh Basil to garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Peel the skin of an eggplant and cut 1/3 of an inch pieces, so you have various circle size bites (basically, do not cut lengthwise). Beat two eggs in a bowl. In a separate bowl or plate mix 1 cup of breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese and 1 tsp of dried basil. Dip the eggplant in the egg, coat evenly, and then dip into breadcrumb mixture, again, coat evenly. Place eggplant on baking sheet. I end up using two sheets. Bake for 10 minutes, flip and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.

I use a 9×13 baking dish since this recipe serves four. Coat the bottom with pasta sauce. Place a layer of eggplant and add a spoonful of sauce. Add 1 cup of Mozzarella, 1/2 cup of Parmesan, 1 tsp of dried basil and pepper to taste. Repeat the layering with eggplant, the remaining sauce and cheeses and season with 1 tsp of dried basil and pepper.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the top is golden and gooey, like this!

Garnish with fresh basil and serve alongside salad and bread! Delicious and easy!

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Sausage And Pesto Pizza

March 18, 2015

One item that is typically always in my refrigerator is a pizza crust. Now the toppings, well that is another story, but a pizza crust, yes, you will find. Pizza is an easy solution to weeknight dinner predicaments. Since, we are creatures of habit in my household, we typically lean towards pepperoni and cheese or a version of a supreme depending on what vegetables are available. My personal favorite is our buffalo chicken which is a recipe we have perfected, but every now and then we get creative. In my opinion when you mix creativity with simplicity in the kitchen, well boys and girls, you have culinary success!

This recipe was adapted from another Blog, Food n’ Focus. I stumbled upon the post on Pinterest and after I made some adjustments based on the ingredients I had on hand, I decided to share with you.

SAUSAGE AND PESTO PIZZA:

1 Tbsp of Olive Oil
1 Pre-made Store Bought Pizza Dough
4 Sweet Italian Sausage Links
1/2 Cup of Pesto
1 Cup of Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1/2 Cup of Shredded Parmesan Cheese
1 Jar of Artichokes
Handful of Parmigiano-Reggiano Shavings
1 Package of Pre-Cooked Chicken

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Remove casing from the Sweet Italian Sausage Links and crumble the sausage. Cook the sausage in 1 Tbsp of Oil in a skillet on medium high. Once cooked through, remove and drain.

Start by spreading 1/2 a cup of Pesto over the Pizza Dough. Then layer on 1 cup of the Shredded Mozzarella Cheese and 1/2 cup of Shredded Parmesan Cheese. Add the Artichokes and the Pre-Cooked Sausage to the top of the Pizza. Sprinkle the top with a handful of Parmigiano-Reggiano Shavings. Place the Pizza directly on the top oven rack and place a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any food. Cook for about 10-15 minutes.

Remove and sprinkle with fresh basil.

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Easy Weeknight Buffalo Chicken Pizza

October 7, 2014

Let’s face it… if you are anything like me, then you are hungry when you get home from work, yet there is no Chef waiting for you. I always tell my husband that if we ever won the lottery the first thing I would do would be hire a Chef. I know… you are probably thinking, “Your Blog is about cooking and your recipes?” I know! I know! I mean I do enjoy to cook, but I am also pretty tired after a long day and sometimes I wish dinner awaited me, ready to just eat when I walked through the door.

But so far, no lottery winner here and dinner must be made. So, if I can find a quick and easy weeknight recipe that is also delicious… I am sold forever. That is the case with my Buffalo Chicken Pizza.

I mean look at it. Isn’t it just delicious looking?

Well, it is! Such an easy recipe and in my opinion better than any Buffalo Chicken Pizza I have eaten out at a Restaurant.

BUFFALO CHICKEN PIZZA:

1 Pre-made Store Bought Pizza Dough
1 Cup of Franks Hot Sauce
1/3 Stick of Butter
1/2 Cup of Blue Cheese Dressing – I use Marzetti Chunky Blue Cheese
1 Package of Pre-Cooked Chicken
1 1/2 Cups of Mozzarella Cheese
Handful of Crumble Blue Cheese

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Start by spreading 1/2 a cup of Blue Cheese Dressing over the Pizza Dough. Then layer on 1 cup of the Mozzarella Cheese. In a microwave safe bowl, melt 1/3 stick of Butter. Add 1 cup of Franks Hot Sauce to the Butter and stir. Add the Pre-Cooked Chicken to the Butter and Hot Sauce and allow it to soak up the sauce for about a minute or two. Then using a fork, add the Chicken to the top of the Pizza, which was layered with Mozzarella Cheese. Be sure to spread evenly. Once the Chicken is added, using your fork, sprinkle or splatter some of the Butter and Hot Sauce mixture onto the Pizza. Please do not dump left over sauce. This will make for a soggy pizza. Add the remaining 1/2 a cup of Mozzarella Cheese to the top of the Chicken. This helps in making everything stick. Sprinkle a handful of Crumbled Blue Cheese to top. Place the Pizza directly on the top oven rack and place a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any food. Cook for about 15 minutes.