quick

Easy Shrimp Tostadas

It’s been over a week since I logged into this bad boy. I didn’t really have an agenda for this week’s menu and as you know if you have been following along for awhile, I tend to come and go from my blog from time to time. There are 3 recipes that I have been dying to share so I want to take the time to get back at it. Sometimes, life just gets in the way. There has been a ton going on at work, some great things actually, that have required my undivided-extra-time-in-the-office-outside-of-work attention. Possibly more on that to come at a later date.

Anyways enough of that mumbo jumbo and onto this post because it does not disappoint! I get a lot of food magazines and I never will stop getting the actual magazine. I have gotten one on my Nook before, but I love tearing the magazine articles out and stashing them in my “to make” binder. This binder has been around for quite some time so if you have lived with me before you’ve probably seen it. I use these clippings as blog inspiration and that’s where this post comes into play.

The binder is expanding each week and so I been making a good effort to try out all the recipes I saved. If you follow me on Instagram you probably saw my post a few weeks ago of the picture of the shrimp tostadas. My binder is organized (somewhat) according to genre. There are about 6-8 shrimp tostada recipes so I learned from those clippings to produce this one. The main recipe is based off of a Cooking Light original.

No time for dinner? No problem. This is yet another Dinner In Twenty recipe. It actually can be prepared in less time than that if you make your toppings ahead of time too. If you saw my post on Paige’s blog last week, you read that I like to try to incorporate Mexican into my weekly dinner routine. We love the spicy, bold flavors of Mexican cuisine and they typically are quick to prepare.

One of my favorite components of this recipe is the Spicy Black Bean Salsa I posted on A Dose of Paige. You will have to visit her website to get that portion, trust me it’s definitely not one you want to leave out! The link is below. I hope you enjoy this yummy and Not So Doughie recipe!

easy shrimp tostadas

Recipe by: Sara
Prep Time: 15 minutes ||| Cook TIme: 4-5 minutes ||| Servings: 4 ||| Difficulty: Low

Ingredients
8-10 (6 inch) corn tortillas
1 lb medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 avocado, diced
1 Roma tomato, small dice
1/2 cup plain, low-fat Greek yogurt
1 lime, juiced
1/4 tsp Chipotle Chili Powder
Chipotle Black Bean Salsa
4 oz queso fresca
chopped cilantro

Directions:
1. On a baking sheet, toss the shrimp with the cumin, oregano, cayenne, salt and pepper. Spread evenly and bake at 350 degrees for 4-5 minutes or until pink.
2. In a bowl, combine the avocado, tomato, Greek yogurt, and lime juice. Season with salt, pepper and chipotle seasoning.
3. Lay out your corn tortilla and layer with the bean salsa, shrimp, avocado spread, cheese and chopped cilantro.
4. Serve with a dash of hot sauce if preferred.

Enjoy!

Beef Enchilada Stuffed Peppers {Dinner in 20}

06.30.14 13,168 Comments

{low-carb Mexican}

Working full time + an hour commute to & from work + squeezing in a work out makes dinner time a little challenging during the week. Dinnertime at our house is no earlier than 7:30pm so senior citizens wouldn’t be too pleased. However, it works for us and cooking is my favorite!

So many people ask me, why do you take the time to make such elaborate dinners at night. In all seriousness, my dinners are not elaborate at all. They typically are 30 minutes or less or made ahead of time. Not to mention, it is my outlet, my passion and I love the satisfaction in pleasing Bryan & Chase when he’s with us.

Added bonus: lunch the next day for me. I typically make recipes for four servings. Chase usually eats “half a serving” and Bryan will eat about 1.5 servings. The remaining two go to me for dinner & lunch. Bryan is always out and about during the day and he has some weird fear of certain leftovers.

Stuffed peppers are a frequent character on my dinner menu. They also keep nicely for lunch the following day. I have made original stuffed peppers, southwestern stuffed peppers, and peppers stuffed with quinoa. Last week, I was going to make enchiladas, but I have been trying real hard to eliminate carbs from our dinners. I decided to ditch the tortillas and stuff the insides of the enchiladas into a pepper. Clever, huh?

I wasn’t going to blog this recipe, but I want to show my readers that dinnertime can be delicious yet quick. So these pictures don’t really do the meal justice. I served them with corn muffins {59 cent box} and a salad. Dinner was ready and on the table at 7:45 and my family was able to set aside our busy schedules and spend time together. Take the time to research some quick & easy dinners that your family can enjoy together. Here are some by me:

Pad Thai Pork Tenderloin

Speedy Shrimp Scampi

Tilapia with Cilantro Pesto

In the meantime, I will be compiling a list of other Dinner in 20 meals to share on the blog!

beef enchilada stuffed peppers

Recipe by: Sara
Prep Time: 5 minutes ||| Cook TIme: 15 minutes ||| Servings: 4 ||| Difficulty: Low

Ingredients
3-4 green peppers, cut in half length-wise
1 lb lean ground beef
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (15oz) can of red enchilada sauce [I used Old El Paso]
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
6 Tbsp sharp cheddar cheese
salt & pepper

Directions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Once boiling, add the peppers and submerge and boil for about 3 minutes. Remove and place in a casserole dish.
3. In a medium pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute about 4-5 minutes.
4. Add garlic and saute 1 minute. Remove onion and garlic from pan and set aside.
5. Add meat and brown until still a bit pink.
6. Add enchilada sauce and spices.
7. Stir in cilantro.
8. Spoon the meat mixture into the pepper shells and top with 1 Tbsp per pepper.
9. Bake in oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly golden.
10. Serve with hot sauce and sides.

Enjoy!

Spaghetti with Kale Pesto

06.17.14 25 Comments

Hi everyone! Happy Tuesday 🙂 My blogger friend, Becca at Two Places at Once contacted me to do a guest post on her blog while she is off getting married. If you’ve been a frequent reader, you will remember that we did a swap back in February. Blueberry Scones on this blog & Steamed Mussels on hers. Of course, I didn’t pass up the opportunity to appear on her blog.

I love pesto, but my basil plant is not yet producing enough leaves so I put a spin on it & tried kale! It was super delicious so head over to Two Places at Once to see my post & the recipe!

Orange & Garlic Shrimp Saute

01.09.14 29 Comments

{gourmet weeknight}

I love cooking shrimp on weeknights because it only takes about 5 minutes. This is a quick & delicious meal that will satisfy you & impress. I was grabbing a salad for lunch at Whole Foods and saw large, beautiful shrimp on sale. I didn’t even plan to make dinner that evening, but I couldn’t pass by these yummy shrimp. I grabbed a box of 5 minute couscous to make along with the shrimp.

When I got home, I raided the fridge and cupboard to see what was on hand. I had a whole bag of navel oranges that were about to go bad so I was decided to make an orange sauce to coat the shrimp.

I started preparation right away and dinner was ready about 10 minutes later. First, I squeezed the oranges into a measuring cup & zested the fruit.

The shrimp was added to a saute pan and turned pink & yummy in less than 5 minutes.

I added the orange juice mixture to the same pan (quick clean up) and boiled it. Once the butter was added, the sauce took on a beautiful sheen & the aroma was to die for.

The shrimp was tossed back into the sauce and voila. Dinner was complete.

I strongly suggest this recipe! Bryan and I really enjoyed it. The heartiness of the couscous sticks to your ribs, leaving you feeling satisfied. The sauce has a creaminess to it without any cream which sticks nicely to the shrimp. I personally love the pairing or citrus and garlic. I can’t wait to make this again!

You can click here for the recipe!

TGBTL Week #2 ::: Go-To Meals

12.20.13 36 Comments

This week’s prompt for The Girl Between the Lines is :::::::

Your go-to meal… show me that favorite recipe!

A post about food! Hooray! Sounds pretty much right up my alley, yes?

I find this question very hard for me because I don’t particularly have a meal that I make each week or a (say) pasta salad I bring to all get togethers. Since I am a foodie blog, I tend to make all sorts of different dishes. However, I have some recipes that definitely can be considered my go-tos.

So here’s my first one!
Ingredients:
2 slices of bread
Peanut Butter
Jelly

Okay only kidding, but seriously who doesn’t love a delicious, perfectly even spread of peanut butter & jelly??

Anyways, my main go-to on whatever nights when I am trying to be healthy is a kale salad. I take this to lunch at least once a week. As long as I have kale & lemon I am good to go. Whatever veggies I find in the fridge or cheese are added to the salad. It keeps me full for a long time & is packed with so much nutrition.

Check out my raw kale salad recipe by clicking {{HERE}}

Today was a pot luck at work so I just wanted something light for dinner. What did I make? You got it! A kale salad (sort of). At the store the other day, I came across “Black Kale”. I was intrigued & decided to give it a whirl. This time I wanted to saute the kale in some olive oil and garlic for a warm kale salad. I paired it with some carrots for added color & some ripe pears, blue cheese, and walnuts. It was very tasty & quite simple to make, but if we are being honest here, I would not saute the kale. I guess I just prefer it raw. I didn’t taste a difference in the black kale vs. curly green. Maybe, I am not the kale connoisseur I thought I was.

Warm Kale Salad with Pears, Blue Cheese, & Walnuts

Ingredients:
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp water
2 large handfuls of kale
1/2 carrot, chopped
1 Tbsp blue cheese
1/2 pear, sliced
1 Tbsp chopped walnuts
salt and pepper

Directions
1. Add olive oil to small saute pan and heat over medium.
2. Add garlic and saute about 1 minute.
3. Add kale and coat with oil and garlic. Cook over medium until slightly wilted.
4. Add carrot pieces and cook an additional 2 minutes (I like my carrots still crunchy)
5. Place on plate and top with pear slices, blue cheese and walnuts. Season with salt and pepper.

**If you are going for the raw version, drizzle the olive oil over the kale and squeeze 1/2 lemon.

So there you have it my friends, my The Girl Between the Line week 2. I have several other go-to meals that will make their presence on the blog sometime soon 🙂

Enjoy.