Creole Shrimp and cheesy Grits

Tags

cheddar, cream cheese, dinner, grits, quick dinner, shrimp

I remember the first time I tried grits. It was a waffle house in Atlanta 8 years ago. Back then, I thought those were some legit grits. They were delicious covered with a thick slice of American cheese but since that first love affair with grits, I have come to love the grits I make myself. I have discovered a whole new love for grits with cream cheese and cheddar.

So while stockpiling my freezer with several pounds of shrimp, I thought shrimp and grits would be a nice change of pace instead of the regular stir fries I normally do with shrimp.

I found this recipe on MyRecipes.com for Quick Shrimp and grits, submitted by a reader.

• cooking spray
• 2 cups green bell peppers, chopped (1 large green bell pepper)
• 1 (14 1/2 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with garlic and olive oil Fire roasted tomatoes
• 4 slices cooked bacon, crisped and crumbled
• 1/2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
• 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used medium shrimp)
• 1 2/3 cups fat-free milk half and half
• 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cups uncooked quick-cooking grits
• 1 tablespoons light butter
• 3/4 cups light cream cheese
• (plus some shredded sharp cheddar cheese for garnishing grits) – optional

Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chopped pepper; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, crumbled bacon, and Creole seasoning; cook 5 minutes. Add shrimp, and cook 2-3 minutes or until shrimp are done.

Combine half and half and broth in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in grits; return to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer; uncovered, 5 minutes or until thickened. Stir in butter and cream cheese until melted.  Add cheddar cheese. Serve shrimp mixture over grits.

We had intended for there to be lots of leftovers. But there weren’t. Granted, grits are very filling, we could not get enough of the creole shrimp. The spicy shrimp and sauce combined with the creamy semi sweet, semi sharp grits was addicting. It made a fantastic and simple dinner to assemble and an even better lunch the following day.

You can imagine the jealousy when we took out a hearty bowlful of shrimp and grits for lunch, right?

Note to self: get more shrimp.

Spinach, Feta, and White Bean Quesadilla

Tags

brunch, feta cheese, light dinner, light lunch, quesadilla, quick dinner, spinach, vegetarian

Before I really knew what I was getting myself into with regards the cooking for my new boy, I was menu planning with great excitement. BR is a regular dinner guest and I am more eager to get home and cook. I really get a kick out of trying new things and making bellies happy. A challenge I have is making things that are healthy for me and still hearty enough for the likes of BR. BR is a guys’ guy. When he sits down to a meal, he doesn’t care what’s on the plate as long as there is meat. It never fails that whenever I ask him what he feels like for dinner, he replies “meat”.

I found this recipe for a spinach and feta quesadilla on the weight watchers website.  It looked simple enough to make with ingredients that I usually have on hand anyway. The only modification I made was adding shredded rotisserie chicken to BR’s quesadilla to bulk it up for him.

Ingredients:
2 sprays of cooking spray
1 bunch of scallions
1 clove of garlic, minced
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
¼ cup fat free feta cheese, crumbled
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp fat free half and half
4 ounces reduced fat cream cheese
½ cup part skim mozzarella, shredded
¼ cup cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
¼ tsp black pepper
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
4 medium flour tortillas

(ADD 1-2 Chicken Breasts, shredded to the mix to bulk up the protein…or for the eaters in your life that MUST have MEAT)

Directions:
Coat a 10 inch skillet coated with cooing spray and heat over medium high. Add scallions and garlic. Sauté for 1 minute. Stir in spinach. Cook through until spinach is hot , about 3 minutes.
Add feta cheese, parmesan, half and half, cream cheese, mozzarella, beans, pepper and lemon juice. Stir until well combined.

Spread ½ cup of the spinach spread onto the bottom half of the flour tortilla. Fold to create a half circle and crisp up on a pan that was sprayed with cookin spray.

Toast the tortilla on each side (about 4 minutes).

Remove from heat and serve immediately with sour cream and salsa.

Quesadillas are simple enough to make and can be quite versatile. These quesadillas should be enjoyed fresh. They lose a lot of the crispness after they sit for a while or even after refrigeration. But if you must have leftovers, heat them in the toaster oven and top with a fried egg for a healthy brunch!