Chipotle Alfredo with Shrimp

Here's a delicious recipe I found at Kraft Foods. It is so delicous and easy to make. Leftovers were especially good, too. Tastes way better than it looks, it's not bland at all like the picture.

I cut the recipe in half. Follow the link above if you want to serve eight. My version below serves four.

CHIPOTLE ALFREDO WITH SHRIMP

3 tablespoon butter, divided
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 ounces cream cheese, cubed
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon chipotle in adobo puree (see tip in this post)
8 ounces linguine or fettuccine, cooked and drained

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add shrimp; cook and stir 3 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Remove shrimp from skillet; cover to keep warm. Reduce heat to low.

Add cheeses, milk, remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the chipotle peppers to skillet; cook 5 min. or until cream cheese is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring constantly with wire whisk. Gently stir in shrimp.

Toss with the hot pasta.

Another Good Salad Combination

This has become one of my favorite 'big salad' combinations for lunch.

Lettuce
Cucumber
Sweet onion
Garbanzo beans
Feta cheese
Pickled Beets
White Balsamic Vinaigrette

Don't turn your nose up at pickled beets if you haven't tried them. They are so good, I just love them.

Chicken with Sun-dried Tomatoes

This was a quick and easy recipe from Campbell's Kitchen. Just follow that link to the recipe, I'm too lazy to type right now.

I used fresh basil from my garden which made this so delicious. The red wine vinegar seems to add a 'gourmet' taste to the cream of mushroom. You knew it had 'cream of something' didn't you? It's a Campbell's recipe after all.

Happy 50th Anniversary to my Parents!

That's another carrot cake like I made a few weeks ago.



Decorated it with gold sprinkles. I made my own stencil for the 50. Then, placed a small paper plate over it to get the nice circle of sprinkles around the edge.



Miniature chocolates wrapped in custom wrappers that I made myself.

A New Career is in Sight!

It's official, I am on my way to a new career! I have been accepted to the Radiologic Technology program at Gwinnett Technical College. I have been in school for a year taking pre-requisite classes, but now, the real fun begins. For the next two years, I will be in class and doing clinicals about 40 hours a week. It will certainly be an adjustment to be doing something full-time again, I have had a lot of free time on my hands.

Regarding that post a few days ago about Plan B - I was actually looking for a Plan B because I was initially rejected from the Rad Tech program. I visited the head of the program to discuss how I might improve my chances for next year. They use an elaborate point system to determine who is accepted (they only accept 34 students out of about 160 applicants). In reviewing my score, it turns out they missed giving me 1 point that I should have received. Since I had missed getting in by only 1/3 of a point, the 1 additional point put me over the top of the cut-off score. So...... the head of the program is a man of much integrity.... the problem was quickly corrected and I'm in! Thank goodness, I went in for that discussion!

Pizzas!

I just love these thin whole wheat pizza crusts by Mama Mary's. They come out so crispy and because they are so thin, you can really enjoy the toppings and not feel bad about eating so much bread. And I'm enjoying making up new combinations of toppings.

First up - Zucchini Feta Pizza

Basil pesto (instead of tomato sauce)
Sauteed zucchini and onion slices
Crumbled Feta cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Greek seasoning on top (Cavender's)

First photo - before the mozzarella


Just out of the oven.




Second pizza of the day - Hawaiian Pizza (like Domino's makes it)

Tomato sauce (Hunt's basil, oregano, garlic flavor)
Pineapple tidbits
Diced ham
Bacon pieces (like Hormel)
Roasted red peppers (from a jar)
Mozzarella

First photo - before the cheese


Hot and crispy out of the oven.

Pizzas from the past:

Mexican Pizza

BBQ Chicken Pizza and Smoked Sausage Pizza

Veggie Pizza

Cranberry Turkey Salad

Another salad experiment... This turned out to be a really nice combination for a big, filling lunch salad.

Lettuce, cucumber, onion, chopped turkey lunchmeat, dried cranberries, crumbled feta and a lite rasberry vinaigrette dressing (Kraft). Super delicious!

Plan B

Fish Tacos and Tomato Avocado Salad

I originally posted this back in February, but it's one of our favorites, so here it is again with a little tomato avocado salad on the side. Follow the link to the recipe.



Salad consists of tomato slices, avocado and a little cilantro sprinkled on top. I topped mine with a little salsa ranch dressing, but the chipotle ranch made for the tacos is good, too.

Chipotle Orange Shrimp

A yummy recipe from the people at KraftFoods. Only 6 ingredients!! Less than 30 minutes to complete!

Strawberry Salad

I'm trying to make my lunches a little more interesting and healthy at the same time.


This salad included iceberg lettuce, sliced cucumbers, sliced sweet onion, sliced strawberries, crumbled feta cheese and cracked black pepper. It was topped with a lite creamy balsamic vinaigrette (Private Selection brand from Kroger).

Delicious!

University of Georgia...

Named #1 Party School!

So proud to be an alumni!

Weight Watchers

I'm trying to do Weight Watchers again and lose some weight..... again... some of the same weight that I lost a year and a half ago.

I know WW works, I just have to get in the right mindset.

I already lost two pounds last week!

An Excellent Fruit Salad

Isn't that pretty?



My favorite fruit salad combination... Fresh strawberries, fresh kiwi, canned pineapple tidbits and canned mandarin oranges.

I like the canned fruit, not only for convenience, but because you can count on it to be sweet. It will offset any tartness you may have with the fresh fruits.

I like to pour a little poppyseed dressing on it, too. I use Marzetti Citrus Poppyseed dressing.

The Best Carrot Cake Ever

Eddie had a birthday a couple of weeks ago... I suggested we deviate from his usual birthday cake choice. I made a carrot cake this time, a great Southern Living recipe from several years ago.

BEST CARROT CAKE

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 large eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated carrot
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (3 1/2-ounce) can flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Buttermilk Glaze
Cream Cheese Frosting

Line 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with wax paper; lightly grease and flour wax paper. Set pans aside.
Stir together first 4 ingredients. Set aside.
Beat eggs and next 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add flour mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Fold in carrot and next 3 ingredients. Pour batter into prepared cake pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Drizzle Buttermilk Glaze evenly over layers; cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.

Yield: 1 (9-inch) cake

 
Buttermilk Glaze:

1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Boil, stirring often, 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

3/4 cup butter, softened
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add confectioner’s sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth.