Mesquite Shrimp Salad

I have been blessed for almost the entire month of August to have Scott come home every day for lunch. It's been so great to have an extra 45 minutes every day just to hang out with him. But it also means I need to figure out an additional meal every day! This is a salad that would be wonderful for lunch (though, we did actually have it for dinner last week).

The inspiration for this salad is a salad that my best friend, Megan, used to eat every time we went to Logan's Roadhouse in Huntsville. It is no longer on the menu there, so I really just thought about what a Texas rancher would eat on his shrimp salad if he ever were to eat a salad. Therefore, this may be the most manly salad ever. Scott agrees. But, it's healthy, too! :) Enjoy!

Mesquite Shrimp Salad
makes 2 salads

• 1/2 lbs shrimp (deheaded, deveined, deshelled, de-everythinged)
• 2 tsp McCormick's mesquite seasoning (you could probably find an off brand, but this is the best grocery store brand of mesquite! )
• 2 bowls full of Lettuce chopped, probably about 2-3 cups (I used a combination of Boston, red leaf, and something really curly I got at the Farmer's Market)
• 10 grape tomatoes
• 1/2 red onion chopped
• two large pinches of julienned carrots
• 4 Tbsps shredded colby jack cheese
• 4 slices bacon (turkey, if you want to REALLY sneak it past your cowboy!) crispy and chopped
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 2-3 bread & butter pickles (if you're not on the diet! they're too sugary otherwise)
  
• 2 Tbsp chipotle ranch dressing (recipe follows)

1. Pre-heat a medium sized skillet to medium high heat (6/10) with a good spritz of cooking spray.
2. Add shrimp to pan, and immediately add mesquite seasoning. Go ahead and add more than the recipe says if the shrimp don't look covered enough. You want them well seasoned.
3. Cook shrimp 3-5 minutes, until shrimp are curled and pink and completely opaque.

Assembly:
1. Layer half of lettuce, onions, carrots, cheese, tomatoes, bacon, avocado and pickles in a bowl. Do the same with the other bowl.
2. drizzle with chipotle ranch (or any other dressing of your choice) dressing.
3. Top each bowl with half of sauteed shrimp.

** You could also skewer and grill the shrimp, which is most likely the way Logan's Roadhouse cooked their shrimp. However, sauteeing in my bacon grease was much more appealing to me... plus, I don't have an outdoor grill.

Chipotle Ranch Dressing-- home-mixed... not home made

• 4 Tbsp ranch dressing, depending on how much dressing you want on each salad (my favorite is the Bolthouse yogurt ranch... amazing ranch taste, lower in calories, fat and sugar... for the times you just need something creamy!)
• about 1/4 of a tsp of the adobe sauce that comes in the can with chipotle peppers.
  

1. Mix the two ingredients in a separate bowl.

Voila.

Carb options
I served this with some toaster cakes (the flat corn cakes that Thomas, the english muffin company, makes) for Scott. It would be wonderful with corn muffins, regular corn bread, or johnny cake.

Hello again! It's time for shrimp vindaloo!

wow, it's been a long time! Thanks for hanging in there with me this summer. I had an amazing time living in New York City for June and July and I finally feel like I'm settled back in at home, and I've started cooking again! Tonight I'm actually roasting a chicken (my easy go to dinner when I'm lost) but today I'm going to share with you my husband's favorite thing I make. In fact, the first time I ever cooked for him, this was the dinner we had!

It's a delicious Indian dish that does not use curry. So if you want to try some more ethnic flavors, but don't particularly like curries, here's your ticket! I devoured mine on a bed of fresh spinach and I do not regret losing the rice! For those who don't cook seafood often, remember that shrimp will cook completely in only about 3-4 minutes! As soon as they are curled up and pink, they're done. It's really easy to leave them for just 30 seconds more and they end up being chewy and tough.

Welcome back, and enjoy!

Shrimp vindaloo

• 2 tsp minced ginger (use this amount in step 1)
  
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/4-1/2 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne) depending on the heat level you want
• 1/5 tsp cinnamon (trust me!)
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves (again, trust me!)
• 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger (yes, ginger is in the list twice. This instance is for step 2)
  
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 2 Tbsp golden raisins
• 1 pound shrimp, deveined, and without shells (you can leave the tail cause it looks cute)

1. Combine first 9 ingredients (ginger through cloves) in a small bowl. Add vinegar to form paste.
2. heat oil in large skillet at medium high heat (about a 6 on a scale of 1-10). Stir in 2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger and all garlic for 20 seconds.
3. Add spice paste to skillet, stir constantly for 30 seconds.
4. stir in brother and raisins.
5. simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.
6 Add shrimp and cook for 3-4 minutes, just until shrimp is curled and looks pink.

Carb options
As with any good Indian food, jasmine/basmati rice and naan are delicious for soaking up sauces. A crisp, sweet white wine like a riesling or Gewürztraminer pairs perfectly with the Indian spiciness.