Seafood

I’m hooked on the Lean Cuisine microwavable meals.  My daughters are at the age where they’re running in and out just about all day long, so I like to keep things on hand for them to grab a meal whenever they need it.  (Okay, I’ll be honest, I actually heat the meals up for them - my girls are nothing if not spoiled.) 

I also keep them on hand for myself.  I work from home, so I have the luxury of taking my lunch break whenever I want to (generally, whenever I Love Lucy comes on TV Land).  One of my favorites, in fact the one I enjoyed today, is the Santa Fe-Style Rice & Beans. I like to eat it with either a heated soft tortilla or some tortilla chips on the side.  My middle daughter, Brittany, who happens to be a vegetarian, loves this one too.  My youngest daughter, Stephany’s favorite is the Spaghetti & Meatball’s meal and my oldest, Emily, is just like her mom… we love them all so much, it’s just too close to call.

Emily, Stephany, and I love seafood as much as we love any food, so we’re TOTALLY excited about the new Lean Cuisine line of Seafood Delights.  Each has 350 or less calories and will be available in July.

The newbies are: Parmesan Crusted Fish, Shrimp Alfredo, Tortilla Crusted Fish and Szechuan Style Stir Fry with Shrimp. 

Shrimp?  Sign me all kinds of up!

The Lean Cuisine meals are perfectly healthy alternatives to fast food lunches.  They’re surprisingly filling, too.  While we only eat them for lunch, they could just as easily be used at supper.  Served with a little bread and a bowl of salad or cole slaw, they’d be delicous and satisfying.  And best of all, they’re healthy!

Food Tv.com (a.k.a. Food Network.com) has a delicious section filled with the most amazing Memorial Day recipes you could hope for.  But don’t take my foodaholic word for it, see for yourself.   Be warned, though, if you’re on a tight grocery budget (Aren’t we all these days?), you’ll be extremely tempted to throw the budget out the door.  I honestly want to make about 20 different recipes right now!

My printer’s trying to catch its breath and my own budget’s scratching its head, wondering if it ever really had a chance.  To answer its question, “No.  Not really.”

Some of the recipes you’ll want to seek out first:

Corn, Avocado, and Tomato Salad

Coconut Lime Pudding Cake

Grilled Bread

Summer Pudding

Blackberry Lemonade

Blueberry Lemonade

Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Grilled Mushroom Vinaigrette

Zesty Grilled Tilapia

Crab Cake Burgers

Mini Chipotle Burgers with Fire-Roasted Garlic Ketchup (!!!!!)

Mini Chipotle Burgers with Fire-Roasted Garlic Ketchup.  I just had to fixate on it a little longer.

Food Network.com has put up a delicious section on Barbecuing and Smoking.  There are videos, tips, and recipes that’ll flip your grill’s lid.  My husband actually needs to buy a new grill.  Last summer, the weather here in Kentucky was fierce - tornadoes, thunderstorms with bite, hail, etc.  Even though we had a nice cover over our large grill, Mother Nature just knocked it off when she knocked the grill off the patio.  Oh the brutality!

Below are just a few of the ridiculously yummy recipes in the section:

Slow Cooked Apple Smoked Barbecue Pork

Barbecued Texas-Style Beef Brisket

Sixteen Spice Smoked Chicken

Hold it just a southern minute.  Sixteen Spice Smoked Chicken?!?!    It appears that the husband needs to get four more things in addition to the grill:

1. A smoker
2. A chicken
3. 16 Spices
4. Busy!

Click HERE to see the entire BBQ Section - you don’t want to miss this.

Today’s Food Network Line-up is Summerlicious. All the girls are cooking foods that go as well with summertime as a glass of iced lemonade. Paula’s Lime Shrimp Lettuce Wraps, The Barefoot Contessa’s Guacamole Salad, and Rachael’s Devilish Chili-Cheese Dogs will all get a turn in our kitchen and/or grill.

As a Coconut fanatic, I’m also excited about Alton’s Good Eats Tonight: “Coconut Cake Revival.” He’s set to make a Coconut Cake with 7-Minute Frosting , Coconut Milk and Cream, and Coconut Extract.

Paula’s Home Cooking: “Summertime Favorites” - Lime Shrimp Lettuce Wraps,
Strawberry Shortcake,
Almond Broccoli Salad,
Watermelon Punch

Everyday Italian: “Giada’s Summer Entertaining” - Focaccia Lobster Rolls,
Ice Caffe Latte,
Pecorino Crackers,
Avocado and Papaya Salad

Barefoot Contessa: “Girls That Grill” - Blue Cheese Burgers,
Chocolate and Vanilla Sundaes,
East Hampton Clam Chowder,
Guacamole Salad

Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee: “Summer Show” - Sweet and Spicy Slaw,
21 Burger,
Tapioca Cake,
Blu-tini

30 Minute Meals: “Grilled to Perfection” - Flank Steak Pinwheels,
Toasted Hazelnut and Shredded Carrot Salad

30 Minute Meals: “Endless Summer” - Oil and Vinegar Slaw,
Devilish Chili-Cheese Dogs,
Summer-ish Succotash Salad

8 ounces linguine
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bunch fresh broccoli - trimmed and separated into florets
1/2 cup chicken broth
8 ounces cooked, peeled, and deveined shrmip
1 red bell pepper - seeded and thinly sliced into skinny strips, between 1 and 2 inches long
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook pasta, according to the directions on the package, until al dente (tender, but still firm). Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat until hot. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Add broccoli and broth. Cover and reduce heat to low.

Simmer 8 - 10 minutes or until broccoli is tender-crisp. Add the shrimp, pepper, and parsley, stir occasionally until heated through.

Add pasta to broccoli mixture and toss until lightly coated. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Served with toasted French Bread, this is a deliciously light….and healthy….summer meal. Add a little freshley shredded parmesan and it’s thisclose to Heaven!

Have you caught any of the great grilling shows on the Food Network? There have been some amazing recipes, techniques, and tips. From Bobby Flay to Paula Deen, from Tyler Florence to Emeril, and From Rachael Ray to Alton Brown - they’re masters of the grill as much as the kitchen.

One of the recipes on today’s shows (Paua’s Home Cooking) that caught my eye…or tongue, I guess…is for Lime Chicken and Shrimp Kabobs. How amazing does that sound? I see it in my near future. Rachael Ray, on one of her 30 Minute Meals is also making something that sounds like a winner: Roasted Asparagus Tips. YUM-O, indeed!

Robin Miller - a lesser-known Food TV personality, but as good as any of the super stars - is making several intriguing things on her afternoon show: One is a Quick Fix Avocado Salad and the other is Chai Tea Smoothies. I have an appointment with each.

Not to be out done by the ladies, Bobby Flay (on the Food Network BBQ special tonight) will feature delicious-sounding Green Chile Cheeseburgers. The Green Chile sauce on these guys sounds to die for. (Eat, THEN die for them.)

When I was working on the Food TV scroller (to the right), I noticed a few featured recipes on today that’ll soon be featured in my own kitchen. The beautiful, refreshing-looking drink above is the Pomegranate Breakfast Soda that Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) will fix on an episode titled, “Bed and Breakfast.” (Click the link for the recipe - it sounds amazing.)

Other recipes from the show are:

• Breakfast Bread Pudding
• Garlic and Herb Tomatoes
• Maple-Roasted Bacon
• Parmesan Black Pepper Crackers

On an episode titled, “Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut,” Alton Brown will make a Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi that I WILL try out before the week’s out. We’ve been trying to eat as much fish lately as possible - so I’ve been trying out different varieties of fish as well as different cooking techniques.

Yesterday I steamed a Haddock as well as a few Flounders - and they were absolutely delicious. I’d never steamed fish before, because I didn’t have much faith in the flavor. Plus I thought they’d fall apart. I was very pleasantly surprised - and my family ate them as fast as they do fried fish. I was worried about the kids - but they went back for seconds and thirds….always a good sign!

I only used a little salt and some Lemon Pepper for seasoning, because I didn’t want the fish to have to compete with anything. I served it alongside some brown rice that I added crushed almonds to and some great hushpuppies. Brown rice has a unique flavor that, in my own opinion, benefits from the addition of almonds. Left to itself….well, I’m not that in love with the flavor! But, add some almonds and it’s perfectly amazing.

$40 a Day will be on pretty late tonight, but it’s worth staying up for. It’s the Cape Cod episode with the highlight being delicious-looking Stuffed French Toast. I have to try this one out. When I make Stuffed French Toast, I use softened cream cheese, whereas this recipe uses ricotta. I’m anxious to see how that tastes. It alongside the Pomegranate Breakfast Soda….and coffee, let’s not even pretend it isn’t the star of the show….sound like a little bit of heaven to me.

1 lb Crabmeat
1 lb. Cooked and Peeled Shrimp
1/2 to 2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine crabmeat, shrimp and sauce (Recipe below.). Pour into casserole dish and to with grated cheese. Bake about 30 minutes or until bubbly.

SAUCE:
2 Cups Milk
1/2 Cup Cheez Whiz
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Grated Cheddar Cheese
Dash of Black Pepper

Mix 1-1/2 cups milk with cheese, Cheese Whiz, salt and pepper in heavy saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat until cheese melts and mixture boils. Mix 1/4 cup flour with 1/2 cup milk until smooth. Stir into cheese mixture until thickened. Simmer for 20 minutes.

I’m going to “Joi” with this recipe in a few days - I want to see if it’s just as good with Imitation Crabmeat, and I want to test out different cheeses. Don’t get me wrong, it’s amazing as is, I personally just prefer white cheeses. Even if it’s just White Cheddar, I want to see how it plays out.

You can take this recipe to a new, exotic level by serving a homemade Mexican Salsa Salad alongside the dish - or right on top of the casserole, itself. SImpy chop (finely) a great onion, the best looking tomato you can find, and some cilantro (coarsely). Combine and you’re in business.