Citrus Shrimp with Pasta

A printable version of this recipe and lots more are at www.susanmallery.com/recipes.php!

My next book, BAREFOOT SEASON, will be out on March 27. Barefoot Season is the first book of my Blackberry Island series. On every island, seafood is a staple because it’s so readily available. Even on the mainland, shrimp is a great weeknight dinner. First of all, it’s delicious. And second, it goes from raw to cooked in five minutes. (From raw to over-cooked in six… oops!) This recipe takes about twice that long because of prep time… a little longer than that, when you factor in the time it takes to boil the water for the pasta. From start to finish, less than 20 minutes, and it’s impressive enough for company.

Next time, I’m going to make the sauce as a marinade for the shrimp, then cook the shrimp on skewers. I’m going to serve it as an appetizer, without all the carbs from the pasta. I bet it would be delicious cold in a salad, too. Maybe spinach with actual chunks of citrus. See, the shrimp was so delicious that I’m already thinking about making it again!

Recipe: Citrus Shrimp with Pasta

1 lb. shrimp, peeled and de-veined.

½ C olive oil
¼ C parmesan cheese
¼ C pine nuts + 2 T, divided
½ C fresh parsley, loosely packed
Juice of one orange
Juice of one lemon
Zest of half the orange
Zest of the lemon
1 dried red pepper, or ½ t red pepper flakes
½ t salt
¼ t black pepper
1 lb dried pasta (I used spaghetti)

Leave the shrimp in the refrigerator until just before you put it in the pan.

Cook the pasta according to package directions. While it’s cooking, combine the olive oil, cheese, ¼ C of pine nuts, and the parsley through pepper in a food processor. Pulse several times, until combined. Heat a large, deep sauté pan over medium heat. Add the citrus sauce. Once it’s simmering, add the shrimp and simmer until it’s no longer translucent, about five minutes.

Drain the noodles. Toss with shrimp, sauce, and remaining pine nuts.

Slow Cooker Mexican Lasagna

Remember, you can get a printable version of this and my other recipes at www.susanmallery.com/recipes.php!

Slow cooker recipes are terrific on cold winter days. As the food cooks, the scent drifts through the house, and you feel like you’re being productive even long after the work is done. When evening rolls around, it feels like magic to go into the kitchen to a fully cooked meal. Putting a meal in the slow cooker is like giving a gift to the “you” of later that day.

I was in the mood for pasta, but I wanted to put my own twist on it, so I decided to try to create a recipe for Slow Cooker Mexican Lasagna. My husband was skeptical. He lives by a very specific set of rules and, as he put it, “Lasagna is Italian!”

Yes, okay… but I still made it, and it was so good that he was speaking Spanish by the end of the meal.

Recipe: Slow Cooker Mexican Lasagna

2 T olive oil
1 lb ground turkey
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 package of taco seasoning mix
2 15-oz cans of tomato sauce
1 15-oz can of pinto beans, drained and rinsed
16 oz low fat cottage cheese
8 oz bag of shredded Mexican cheese blend, divided
1 C fresh spinach, chopped
9-10 whole grain lasagna noodles

Brown the turkey in oil, then add the onions through beans. Stir well and set aside. Combine the cottage cheese with half of the Mexican cheese and all of the spinach.

Layer in the slow cooker like this:

One-fourth of the meat mixture
One-third of the noodles, broken up to cover the meat
One-third of the cheese
One-fourth of the meat mixture
One-third of the noodles, broken up to cover the meat
One-third of the cheese
One-fourth of the meat mixture
One-third of the noodles, broken up to cover the meat
One-third of the cheese
The rest of the meat mixture.

Cook on low for about 5-6 hours, until the noodles are soft. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top, cover, and allow to melt.

If desired, serve with sour cream, chopped green onions, and chopped cilantro.

Corn and Blueberry Pasta Salad

I’m a brave person. I wouldn’t say I’m fearless, but I don’t let fear prevent me from taking crazy leaps of faith. Like the time I turned down a well paying job with a solid future in accounting in order to try my hand at writing romance novels.

My latest act of daring could be considered even more foolhardy: I modified a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens.

Gasp!

Let me preface this by saying that I love BHG. The magazine always has great decorating ideas, inspiring garden features, and recipes I love. The recipes are sophisticated but simple.

The other day, I was flipping through the June issue and spotted a recipe for Corn and Blueberry Salad and I stopped in my tracks. Corn and blueberries? Together? It was so pretty, I had to try it.

I followed the recipe exactly, and it was delightful. This salad is gorgeous and would be a wonderful addition to any potluck. But I live in a house with two people, and this was a lot of salad for just two people.

So after we had eaten about half of it, I took a leap of faith and modified the recipe to come up with Corn and Blueberry Pasta Salad. No recipe is sacred. And with apologies to the editors and writers at BHG, I have to tell you, this is even more delicious than the original. It was a great grab-and-go lunch meal for me for a couple of days, which was timely since I was deep into writing one of next year’s Fool’s Gold romances at the time. (I’m working on Montana’s story.)

Note: This recipe is from scratch. Alternatively, you could start out with Corn and Blueberry Salad from BHG and then add the remaining ingredients after you eat about half.

Corn and Blueberry Pasta Salad

3 ears sweet corn
½ C fresh blueberries
½ C cucumber, sliced
½ C carrots, diced
½ C sugar snap peas, chopped
¼ C red onion, diced
¼ C red bell pepper, diced
½ C cheddar cheese, in ¼-inch chunks
2 T chopped fresh cilantro
½ jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
4 C cooked whole wheat pasta

Dressing:
1 C mayonnaise
1 T lime juice
1 T olive oil
2 t honey
¼ t ground cumin

Boil the corn for 5-7 minutes, then drain and rinse with cool water. Wait until the corn is cool enough that it won’t melt the cheese when you mix the ingredients. Cut the kernels from the cobs and place in a large bowl with the next 9 ingredients.

Whisk together the dressing ingredients and add to the pasta mixture. Fold in the dressing gently so you don’t pop the blueberries. Refrigerate overnight if you can resist it that long. Try to give it at least a couple of hours for the flavors to meld.