Poached Shrimp on Succotash

This is a great summer dinner idea.  Light, healthy and easily made without getting too hot in your kitchen!  It's a lot more flavorful than I thought it would be, and I think you'll really enjoy it.

You'll need 1 cup cooked corn kernels, 2 medium zucchini diced in medium pieces and 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces.

1 pound of large shrimp peed, around 35 shrimp.

In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium high.  Add green beans and cook until bright green.  Add corn and zucchini, saute until crisp.  

Poach shrimp in a medium pot filled with 6 cups of water, old bay seasoning, and lemon.

 Bring to a boil add add shrimp, simmer until opaque throughout, around 2-3 minutes.  Drain, discard lemon and transfer shrimp to a bowl.

Transfer veggies to a platter.

Top with shrimp mixture and season with salt and pepper and serve warm.  This dish was so tasty, and it was great as leftovers too.  Nothing beats a light tasty shrimp dinner in the summertime!

Packed Shrimp on Succotash

Serves 4

Adapted from Everyday Food

1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

1 lemon, halved

1 pound large shrimp, peeled

2 tablespoons champagne or white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 cup olive oil, divided

1/2 pound green beans trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

2 cups corn kernels

2 medium zucchini, diced medium

salt and pepper

In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium high.  

Add green beants and cook until bright green. 

Add corn and zucchini, saute until crisp. 

Poach shrimp in a medium pot filled with 6 cups of water, old bay seasoning, and lemon.

Bring to a boil add add shrimp, simmer until opaque throughout, around 2-3 minutes.  
Drain, discard lemon and transfer shrimp to a bowl.
Transfer veggies to a platter.
Top with shrimp mixture and season with salt and pepper and serve warm.

Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes w/ Cinnamon Buttercream

I've made a couple desserts lately that incorporate vegetables and I must say I've been pleasantly surprise with the outcome.  People are a little hesitant to try them out, but as soon as they try them I have gotten only rave reviews.  I like unique desserts that incorporate different ingredients, and hope you'll give it a try too!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line pans with cupcake liners and spray with non-stick spray.  I cut this recipe in half and it made 15 cupcakes, and used 2 zucchinis which equaled around 1 1/2 cups of grated zucchini.

Combine sugar, apple sauce and oil.

On low speed, add eggs one at a time until combined.  

Then add vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.  I sifted everything together to make sure there weren't any lumps.

Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, beating until combined.

Add grated zucchini and mix until well incorporated.  The batter will be kind of thin.

Fill cupcake liners around 3/4 of the way full, and bake for 18 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, make the frosting.  Beat together cream cheese and room temperature butter together.

Add remaining ingredients.  I started out with one tablespoon of milk and added to get the correct consistency.

Pipe buttercream onto cooled cupcakes.  Because of the thin consistency of the batter, the cupcakes are very moist and taste great.  They taste more chocolaty (yup, it's a word) and you really can't taste the zucchini.  Did I mention how awesome the buttercream is?!  I think it would be good on pretty much any cupcake or cake, but try it out for yourself.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Zucchini Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream
Yields ~26 cupcakes


Cupcakes:
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup applesauce
3/4 cup oil
4 eggs
1 12 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/3 cup flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 cups grated zucchini


Buttercream:
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1-3 tablespoons milk


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 
Line pans with cupcake liners, and spray with non-stick spray.
Combine sugar, apple sauce, and oil.
On low speed, add eggs one at a time.
Then add vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Sift to get any lumps out.
Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine well.
Add grated zucchini and mix until combined.
Fill cupcake liners 3/4 of the way full, and bake for around 18 minutes.
To make buttercream: beat cream cheese and butter together.
Add remaining ingredients and adjust milk as needed to reach desired consistency.
Pipe onto to cooled cupcakes and eat up! 

Feta & Zucchini Pasta Salad

Although I like mayo, I don't like mayo-ish, creamy pasta salad.  I lean more toward the pasta salad with olive oil, and that's exactly what this is.  This was meant for my camping trip that I posted about yesterday, but I forgot it in the fridge.  Although it wasn't enjoyed in the great outdoors with a burger, it was still very tasty and refreshing!

A great way to make this even healthier is to use whole wheat pasta, I used whole wheat organic bow ties and they worked awesome.  Cook the pasta until done, drain and set aside until completely cool. 

Add olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.  Toss into the pasta to combine well.

Add the tomatoes.  I sliced grape tomatoes in half so they were more bite size.

Add zucchini, I actually used yellow squash because it's what I had in the house.  I cooked it over the stove in olive oil, let it cool then cut it up and put it into the pasta.

Then comes the best part: feta cheese.  Add more of any of the ingredients if you like, I added extra feta, pepper, lemon juice and some parsley.  Toss well to combine.

Cover in plastic wrap for at least a couple hours, as it's best when it's been chilled.  I kept it in a Tupperware for up to a week and it was still great!  This is the perfect side for a summer party or BBQ. 

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

Feta & Zucchini Pasta Salad

Serves as a side for at least 14 people

12 oz bow tie pasta

2 tablespoons olive oil *possibly a little more

1 lemon

salt

black pepper

2 whole zucchini, cooked and cut into small wedges

10 oz grape tomatoes, cut in half

1/3 cup fresh parsley

6 oz crumbled feta cheese, cut into cubes

Cook pasta until done; drain, rinse and set aside until completely cool.

Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.

Toss to combine.

Add zucchini, tomatoes, feta, parsley and combine well.

Add more of any of the ingredients to your taste.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours before serving.