Shrimp Noodle Soup (Spicy Shrimp Noodle Bowl, Cooking Light Magazine)

Brand new recipe here. Tried it for the first time tonight. And we were all in heaven! I can't believe how easy and quick it was. Even our oldest, who's only 8, had a second and third bowl of it. This is definitely going to be a new family favorite. It is considered spicy, but only as much as you use of the red chili flakes or chili sauce. Yes, it's another steal from Cooking Light magazine. They never disappoint. While it's not exactly the most inexpensive dish, (with the shrimp coming to about 8 bucks a pound, on sale) we all concurred that there was more than enough shrimp, and it could easily be made with ½ pound shrimp instead and still be plenty to go around. Of course, the gluten-free part of me loved that it wasn't a recipe specifically made to be GF, but was since it's made with traditional Asian rice noodles.

What you need: Don't be alarmed with all my little "notes" in italics. It really is fast and easy; I'm just wordy.


1 pound tail-on peeled and deveined medium shrimp (but like I said, could easily get away with half that.) It didn't specify raw or cooked. I went with the cooked.
1½ C. water
1 C. lower-sodium chicken broth, read labels for gluten-free
1 (8 oz.) bottle of clam juice ("CLAM JUICE??" you say? I admit, I'd never heard of, used, let alone PURCHASED such a thing. But apparently it is a must in these sort of dishes, and I am a believer now. This soup is amazing. I found the jar of this stuff in the aisle with the canned tuna. Up on a top shelf. It was cheap. $1.85)
2 (¼-inch-thick) slices of peeled ginger (ginger root is found in the produce aisle near the garlic, usually, I think.)
1 tsp. olive oil
¾ C. red bell pepper, thinly sliced 
¼ C. yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced (I used a press)
1/2 C. sugar snap peas (I couldn't find any bags of frozen sugar snap peas only; they seemed to only carry them in a "stir-fry" mix of them with carrots, onion, and mushrooms. I thought that sounded just wonderful for this soup, so I used that. It didn't disappoint to use those added veggies. YUM! So it was about a cup of total veggies.)
2 tsp. chili garlic sauce or ½ tsp. crushed red pepper (Warning! If you or those you are serving might be sensitive to heat/spice, I would HIGHLY recommend using half this amount. I used 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, and I admit, the broth still had quite a kick. I'm not sure I would have liked it as much with any more heat.)
¼ tsp. salt
3 ounces uncooked rice sticks (aka, Asian rice noodles, again, easy to find and cheap, found on the bottom shelf in the Asian food aisle.)
2 T. fresh cilantro leaves
Lime wedges, not pictured with ingredients, but we did use.


How you make it:


Remove shrimp tails; set shrimp aside. Combine shrimp tails, water, broth, clam juice, and ginger in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Strain broth mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. 


Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper, yellow onion, and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Add reserved broth; bring to a simmer. Add shrimp, peas, chili garlic sauce (or crushed red pepper), salt, and noodles; cook 5 minutes or until noodles are done. 


Top each serving with cilantro and serve with lime wedges. Makes 4 servings.


Served with a green salad. The recipe noted a cucumber/radish salad recipe to go with this, which sounded awesome. I couldn't find a link, but I'll put it below. I like radishes, but seem to never have them or think to buy them. Guess that should go in our new garden this year...


Cucumber Salad: 
Combine 4 tsp. rice vinegar, 2 tsp. dark sesame oil, ¼ tsp. black pepper, and 1/8 tsp. salt in a medium bowl. Add 2 C. thinly sliced cucumber, ½ C. thinly sliced radishes, and 3 T. thinly sliced green onions; toss well to combine. 4 servings.

Grocery List for Last Week's Menu

1 new recipe and 3 repeats (we had a leftover night, a waffle night, and a date night for the other 3)

Shopping List for Menu:

Flippin' Omelets

Fajita Night!

Loaded Potato Soup

Roasted Chicken

eggs, 5-8

turkey or chicken legs (or any other pieces like thighs or breasts)

boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 2

cooked ham

3 bacon slices or bacon bits

potatoes, 6-12

lime

green pepper

onion, 2

tomato (optional for fajitas)

green onions

poultry seasoning

cumin

chili powder

garlic salt

oil

salt

pepper

olive oil

low sodium chicken broth

3 T. flour (GF all-purpose or rice flour for gluten-free)

milk

sour cream, reduced-fat

shredded cheddar cheese

tortillas, corn or flour. (corn of course, for gluten-free)

taco sauce and/or sour cream, (optional for fajitas)

Loaded Potato Soup

Now that I look at this again, I'm thinking, this might be my best "food photography" attempt yet!

I was reminded of a potato soup recipe I had from Cooking Light magazine, that I wanted to try because it was olive oil-based instead of butter. I wasn't sure how you make a creamy soup without producing the traditional base of a butter and flour roux. But you can. It's easy. And lower cal. And deliciously satisfying. Kids loved it. Without the "weird green things" of course. I would never try and "torture" them with such flavor enhanced goodness...

This shows doubled ingredients. Recipe as written below serves 4. We needed extra.

What you need:
4 red or any kind of potatoes
2 tsp. olive oil
1/2 C. onions, chopped
1 ¼ C. low sodium chicken broth
3 T. flour (GF all-purpose or rice flour for gluten-free)
2 C. milk*, divided (recipe calls for 1%, which I used)
1/4 C. sour cream, reduced-fat
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 bacon slices, halved (I had bacon bits that I used instead)
1/3 C. shredded cheddar cheese
4 tsp. green onions, sliced thinly
*you can use rice milk or unsweetened almond/coconut milk as well.

How you make it:


If you don't use leftover baked potatoes: Wash and scrub potatoes. Pierce potatoes with a fork. Microwave on high 13 minutes or until tender. Cut in half; cool slightly.


While potatoes cook, heat oil in a saucepan or large stock pot over medium high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes. Add broth. Combine flour and 1/2 C. milk. Add to pan with 1 ½ C. milk. Bring to boil, stirring often. Cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream, salt and pepper.


If you aren't using pre-cooked bacon bits: Arrange bacon on a paper towel on a microwave safe plate. Cover with a paper towel; microwave on high for 4 min. Crumble bacon. 


Discard potato skins. (I like some skins in the soup, so I kept half of them on.)
Coarsely mash potatoes into soup. Top with cheese, green onions, and bacon. 
4 servings at about 1 ¼ C. each.


Served with a green salad. And some crusty french bread would be wonderful too. But this woman wasn't that ambitious to bake up some gluten-free bread of her own this time. Truth be told, the starchiness of the potatoes was enough for me. 

Grocery List for Last Week's Menu

There were only 3 new recipe posts this past week, so the menu has 2 repeats.

Shopping List for Menu:

Tin Foil Dinners

Signature Salad #1

Baked Chicken Parmesan

Broccoli Tomato Fettucine

Easy Stir-Fry Chicken

1/4 pound ground beef per person, (or individual frozen hamburger patties, 1 per person)

3-4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast

canned chicken breast, for salad, if don't want to cook fresh chicken.

1-2 links Italian sausage, casing removed (or up to half a pound bulk sausage)

broccoli, enough for 3 C.

onion, 2

potatoes, 4

green beans, enough for 2 C.

cauliflower, 1 bunch

romaine lettuce

grape tomatoes

mushrooms, 6-8

yellow bell pepper

green bell pepper

avocado

garlic

green onions

carrots

Garlic salt

Seasoned salt

Chili powder

Pepper

basil

oregano

Olive oil

cornstarch

soy sauce (again, La Choy brand is gluten-free)

lemon juice

canola oil

Lighthouse Organic Caesar dressing, or any dressing you prefer, homemade dressing recipe here

Aluminum foil

canned or frozen/fresh corn

diced tomatoes, 16 oz. can

tomato paste, 6 oz. can 

black beans

marinara sauce, optional for baked parm chicken

tortilla chips

seasoned bread crumbs, 1/3 C (For gluten-free, I just toasted two pieces of Trader Joe's Brown Rice bread, and pulsed to crumb in the food processor.)

8 oz. uncooked fettucine, or desired pasta. (Here used brown rice penne, for gluten-free)

rice

eggs, 2

shredded mexican blend cheese

shredded parmesan cheese, 1/4 C

shredded mozzarella cheese, 1/2 C., optional for baked parm chicken

Broccoli Tomato Fettuccine

We had a guest for dinner, so I completely forgot to take a picture until clean-up when the leftovers were already cozy in their storage container...

I remember making this for the first time, 11 or 12 years ago as a newlywed, thinking I was serving my new Mr. Wonderful (I wonder if he cares that that is his moniker on this here blog) something really fancy and he'd be impressed with his young bride! HA! I SO don't think of this as fancy at this point. It's a quick go-to regular that makes the whole dinner table happy; kids and adults alike. In fact, our guest tonight was one of the kids' friends, and I worried because you never know about the palettes of young guests---if your cooking will be too weird for them...but it was a hit!


You could make this without the italian sausage for a more vegetarian dish and add other things like mushrooms, etc, and if you're really not doing a ton of carbs or grains, you could serve it over spaghetti squash instead of noodles. I've heard that's really yummy.

What you need:

1-2 links (or up to half a pound if bulk sausage) Italian sausage, casing removed if links
1 small onion, chopped small
1 (16 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 cups frozen broccoli florets, thawed or fresh broccoli, chopped
8 oz. uncooked fettuccine, or desired pasta. (Here used brown rice penne, for gluten-free)

How you make it:
In medium saucepan, sauté (brown) the italian sausage breaking up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. When browned, add chopped onion and cook until onion is tender. Drain excess fat. (Hint: mine's not usually drowning in fat, so I don't really drain it. And it tastes better, probably.)
Add tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, spices, and broccoli. Stir until smooth and thin to desired thickness with hot water. (Approx. 1/3 to 1/2 cup)
Cook fettuccine according to package directions. Drain. Top with tomato/broccoli sauce and add any sort of italian cheese like fresh romano or parmesan on top as well.

Makes 4 servings. So double this, for sure, for a larger group! Or freeze extra for use for a later, busy night when cooking just isn't in the cards; 'cause we all know that circumstance arises all too often some weeks.

Baked Chicken Parmesan

Not long ago; last month, to be exact, I posted my basic parm chicken recipe. Every once in a while I like to do it a little different by baking it instead of pan-frying. It seems lighter and it is easier to make since you just throw it in the oven instead of monitoring it over the stove. 
So, here's a mostly-the-same, but slightly-altered way to make a golden, encrusted, 8X13 pan of baked chicken parmesan. 

What you need:


1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1-2 eggs, beaten. You could probably get away with using just 1
1/4 C. shredded parmesan cheese
1 T. olive oil
1/3 C. seasoned bread crumbs (For gluten-free, I just toasted two pieces of Trader Joe's Brown Rice bread, and pulsed to crumb in the food processor. Add some fresh basil sprigs or 1/4 tsp. dried basil for added seasoning)


1/2 C. shredded mozzarella cheese and 1 C. marinara sauce for topping, optional


How you make it:


Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray baking pan/dish with non-stick spray or lightly grease. 


Pat dry and pound chicken till flat/thinner or slice in half to make cutlets (place chicken on cutting board. Place hand on top of chicken. With a sharp, large knife, slice through middle with your knife parallel to the cutting board)


Dip chicken in eggs, then parmesan. Lay chicken in prepared baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes till chicken is nearly done. Sprinkle on the bread crumbs (I like the homemade kind as mentioned above, so it's got big chunks of breading.) Drizzle the whole thing with olive oil. Continue baking for another 10 minutes or so till golden and crusty. Yum-O. :)


You can sprinkle on some mozzarella cheese at the very end and let melt, and serve with marinara sauce on the side. Or, some people like to toss the sauce with some noodles and serve the chicken over that. We opted out of the noodle thing this time. Just had a green salad on the side. 


On a side note, our 4-year-old, said while gobbling his cut-up chicken pieces, "These are yummy chicken nuggets!" Love it. At least I know what these "nuggets" were made out of...

Tin Foil Dinners and Frugal Living NW

First off, what fun to have been the featured menu on Menu Plan Monday this week on the Frugal Living NW website! That was so exciting to see all the activity on my little blog from seemingly out of nowhere! I welcome any new readers who may have found me via that post. It's fun to reach new people. Feel free to comment or ask questions on any recipe or topic!


Now, for dinner this week, there have been/will be a couple of repeats that I will just include at the end of the week in the menu/shopping list with the link to the original post. No sense in reposting it or anything. This is the first time I've even approached repeats since starting this blog back in January! So, 3 months straight of dinners without a repeat is pretty darn amazing, I think! 

The old tried and true tin foil dinners are what's on the table this time. NOT just for camping! Did ya know that? There's a couple of easy additions to making dinner in a tin foil packet that give it an extra "oomph" of yumminess and enhance flavors. Without them, it can be a little bland and you end up having to smear ketchup all over the finished product. Of which, I am not a fan. Ketchup smells. Or stinks, rather, in my humble opinion. So, what are those easy additions?? Well, you gotta read on, of course!

What you need: These are for our family of 2 adults and 3 small children. Adjust to your numbers. 

Whoops, again. Cauliflower and seasoning salt, not pictured. But whatev....it's hard to remember everything when you've got a 10-month-old throwing all the tupperware at you from the bottom drawer, a 4-year-old shooting you from across the room with foam darts, and an 8-year-old reciting spelling words looking for approval...

1/4 pound ground beef per person, (or individual frozen hamburger patties, 1 per person)
1 onion, sliced
(Any old veggies you like. Today was as follows):
4 potatoes, peeled and sliced or diced
frozen green beans, 1/3 C. per person
cauliflower, sliced
Garlic salt
Seasoned salt
Olive oil
Pepper
Aluminum foil


How you make it:


Preheat oven to 425°F. 


Place large piece of aluminum foil on the counter and put your piece of meat in the center. Still frozen is fine. Sprinkle with pepper and garlic salt. 


Place onion pieces on top of meat. Then add in any other remaining veggies you have prepared. Sprinkle the whole heap with seasoned salt and pepper. Then drizzle on some olive oil. 


The garlic salt, pepper, seasoned salt, if used, and olive oil are the little additions I was talking about. They may not seem important, but they really help infuse all the flavors and make it awesome. 


Now, fold over the right side, then crease closed the top and bottom sides to make a sort of packet almost. Then bring the left side over the whole thing and seal down as best as you can. You will probably want to do another whole wrapping with a another piece of foil for an extra layer to seal in the steam and heat and juices. 
I like to make 3 packets for our crew. One for each adult and one for the kids that they share. But you can do one per person or whatever. It's fun because people can get involved and customize it to whatever combos of veggies they want. Carrots are good in there, but we were out. Also, broccoli, green onions, bell peppers, zucchini or squash too. The possibilities are endless and flexible.


Place the packets on a large baking tray or pan and put in oven for about 30 minutes, depending on how stuffed they are.  Just peel one open and pierce the veggies to see how soft. And try and cut through the meat to see if it's cooked through as well, with no pink. 
There you have it. You could serve it with bread or rolls and some fruit. We just had some extra watermelon lying around that we munched on while we waited for dinner to cook. And that was that! Enjoy 'em! No campfire or tent-putting-up required! Oh, and the best part---no pots and pans to clean, of course!!

Grocery List



Shopping List for:

Cream of Broccoli Soup

Kids' Favorite Maple Syrup Salmon

Chicken Enchilada Chili

Robin's Signature Salad and Basic Vinaigrette Dressing

Chicken Adobo

Bag of frozen chicken leg drumsticks or fresh, 8-10 drumsticks

1 1/2 pounds chicken, any kind

1-2 pounds salmon fillets

1 piece of ginger root, or ground ginger

Bay leaves

Salt

Johnny's Seasoning salt (optional)

Pepper

Chili powder

Cumin

Garlic bulb

Fresh or dried chives

onions, 2

Red or green leaf lettuce

Carrot, 1

Celery

Lime, 1

Lemon, 1

Broccoli, enough for 2 C. chopped

Vegetable stock or bouillon, to make 4 C.

Soy sauce (La Choy or other wheat-free brand if avoiding gluten)

Vinegar

Canola oil

Red wine vinegar

Maple syrup

Dried cranberries

Pine nuts, toasted or almond slices

Croutons (optional, or omit for gluten-free)

Flour, (rice flour or other GF flour if avoiding gluten)

Can of enchilada sauce (check labels for gluten-free ingredients)

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes, seasoned or not of your choice

1 (15 oz) can of pinto beans (or bagged, dry beans)

1 (15 oz) can of great northern or white beans (or bagged, dry beans)

Corn tortilla chips (optional for serving on top of chili)

Cheese (optional, whatever kind you prefer for topping chili)

Butter

Milk, 1 pint

Half and half, 1 pint

Chicken Adobo

*updated 4/27/11* Took a re-take since original post's shot was borderline awful. Still could be better, but I'm still trying to figure out food photography. :)

We're going back a decade ago with this one, when a co-worker from the Philippines brought this in for a potlock. I was hooked, got the recipe, and was making it for Mr. Wonderful the next day. The interesting thing to me was his reaction/comment to the aroma created in the kitchen that first time. He came in, with a curious eye, asking why it smelled JUST like Hong Kong. (Where he was a missionary before we got married.) Now, that's not the Philippines, I know. But apparently, the Filipino population is quite large there and this dish was a staple. Or at least, the flavor combos were common, I don't know. But he was intrigued, having been instantly transported back to that time and place with just the smells of dinner-prep. 

It's always been a great one to share with company or just family dinner with our 3 crazy silly boys, who gobble it up every time. (Don't you love it when you know you're serving something that won't get any complaints thrown in your ever-underappreciated direction??)

Holla! I got those drumsticks for a dollar a pound! Thanks to my 4 year old for pointing out the coupon. He goes, "Did I help you spend LESS money? Can I have the dollars you saved?" Oh, ever the opportunist....

What you need:

3 T. oil

8-10 chicken legs (or a bag of frozen ones, no need to defrost)

2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 small piece of ginger, peeled and grated (or 1/4 tsp. ground ginger.) I LOVE using the fresh grated ginger. The flavor is so much more intense, but the stuff in a jar works fine in a pinch.

1 onion, sliced

1/4 C. soy sauce (La Choy or other wheat-free kind if avoiding gluten)

1/4 C. vinegar (the original recipe said "vinegar to taste")

1/2 C. water

3 bay leaves

Heat oil in large skillet. Sauté ginger, garlic and onion together. Add chicken. Season with pepper. Continue sautéing till chicken is browned. Add in the soy sauce, vinegar, water and bay leaves.

Simmer till chicken is cooked through. But really, you can leave it on a very low simmer for even longer if needed, or transfer to a crock pot/slow cooker. It gets even better, the longer it goes. But you can serve it anytime after the chicken is cooked through. 

Best over rice. The juices are so scrumptious soaked in with the rice. 

Our side dish was some sweet peas.

I had to include a picture of this very used scrap of paper that my friend/co-worker scribbled the recipe on before giving it to me. I love the random spots of soy sauce, and for some reason, red ink from a stamp.

It's actually on the back of a "cash ticket" we used back in my bank teller days. I'm sure I won't transfer it to a real recipe card or anything. I like the nostalgia. It's been that way for 10 years, no need to change it now. 

Robin's Signature Salad and Basic Vinaigrette Dressing

 The Mom Who LOVES to Cook served this to Yours Truly, (The Mom Who Doesn't Love to Cook) every night for dinner growing up. So, I'm pretty sure I took it for granted as the best basic salad dressing. And it couldn't be any cheaper to make. 

 Not to mention, Mr. Wonderful loves it so much, I wouldn't be surprised if he takes a swig when no one's looking...yes, that's right. He also loves the leftover juice from the pickle jar. Eww. What can I say, the man has a thing for vinegar, it seems. 
And the salad: I put "Robin's Signature Salad". And it's pretty much the truth. She uses pine nuts and croutons and I clearly have almonds here, and no croutons. But it's the closest I had on hand. The carrot is the important part, according to her. It's just the right sweet against the tang of the dressing. So, don't leave that out, for goodness sake! ;)

What you need: Salad


Red or green leaf lettuce
Carrot, peeled and grated
cranberries
pine nuts or almonds
croutons (optional)




How you make it:
Toss it all together.

What you need: Vinaigrette


1 C. oil
1/2 C. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced (or pressed) I prefer to press. A garlic press is a must! I use mine all the time. If you don't have one, I highly recommend getting one, pronto!


How you make it:


Put all the ingredients in a jar or other container with a lid. Shake well.


I've never done the math, but I'm quite certain it costs only pennies to make this vinaigrette. Sooooo, what's stoppin' you? Get to it!
It's also a great way to cook chicken for topping on salads or just eating it as is. Just baste the chicken with the dressing and grill or cook your preferred method.

Shout out to Jeanne-Marie, my Mémé, who originally taught this to my mother and served it every day as well. She'll need a nickname now too..."The Mom Who LIVED to Cook"..??

Chicken Enchilada Chili

Posting what's for dinner every day has really made me see patterns. And it looks like I use a Stephanie O'Dea recipe about once a week. Her crockpot creations are just so easy and always delish. This was the first one I tried when I first found her blog. And over time, have tweaked it slightly to suit our family. But really, not much is different. (I'll link her original version here.)

What you need:


1 1/2 pounds chicken. (Any cut, boneless or bones-in. Just fish out the bones/skin halfway through. I happened to have had some already cooked chicken that needed a purpose in life, so that's what I used this time.)
1 1/2 C. enchilada sauce (check labels carefully if gluten-free. I noticed that Rosarita is the only one that didn't have any sort of "modified food starch" or "modified corn starch". While those aren't a gluten issue, if made in the U.S., I don't find it appetizing to have something with the word "modified". That sounds very vague and unnatural. Ok, moving on...)
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes, seasoned or unseasoned variety of your choice
1 (15 oz.) can of pinto beans, undrained (or 1/2 C. dried beans, soaked overnight)
1 (15 oz.) can of great northern or white beans, undrained (or 1/2 C. dried beans, soaked overnight)
1 onion, diced
3/4 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin


How you make it:


Pour enchilada sauce and canned tomatoes into the bottom of your crock pot. Add beans, celery, onion, and spices. Stir to combine. Place chicken on top. (Since I used cooked chicken this time, I just stirred it all in.)
Cover and cook for 7-8 hours on low or until flavors have combined. If using dried beans, if may need longer to fully soften them. Since I was using canned beans and cooked chicken, it really was ready in about 2-3 hours. 
We ate it with Food Should Taste Good lime flavored tortilla chips and shredded cheese. Which made it really like chicken enchiladas. But WAAAAAAY easier. 
Oh, gotta mention, it's super delicioso as a salad the next day for lunch...top it on romaine lettuce, and some sliced avocado....oh yeah.