Shrimp Pasta with Broccoli and Zucchini... and a boy!

Got a text... from my boy!!! He wants to pop in for dinner!!! Happy Gremlin Mom!! So, for those of you who are exhausted... chasing after a mess of kids, while working, and taking care of a household... this might seem crazy (and I get it, that's my life too)... but when your kids grow into "man-boys" with all of their "college", and "work", and "livin'-on-their-own"... a call like this makes your heart explode!! So, I'm not sure I even have enough food in my house... on a Friday to cook dinner... but, IT'S ON!!! The boy's comin' for some din... let's see what I got. Knowing my favorite thing in the whole world is having my boys pop in for dinner, I always have certain things on hand, and a 1 pound bag of frozen shrimp is one of them! So tonight, we'll have shrimp pasta with what ever veggies I have!! It's easy, quick, and high in protein! So tonight, I thawed a bag of frozen shrimp in cold water (changing the water a couple of times). This takes about 30-40 minutes. While the shrimp thaws, I started my sauce! Another thing I always have on hand are canned tomatoes, St. Marzano are the best, but you can use whatever you have. And if you tend to buy tomato sauce, instead of tomatoes, use that! Now, I don't want to freak you out, but I started with some garlic. OK, so...maybe more than a few cloves... I sorta added about 7 cloves of chopped garlic and 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes to a pan with some olive oil. Sounds like a lot, but we like a lot of flavor. For some people, 2-3 cloves of garlic and a pinch of red pepper flakes may due. We're kinda like flavor Vikings...flavor warriors, of sorts, a little over the top... and that's the way we like it. So, drop the garlic and red pepper flakes in the pan, and let it bloom over medium low heat for about a minute. You do not want to burn the garlic, just let it get warm and cozy in all that tasty olive oil and red pepper. Next, I dropped my tomatoes into the pan with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper and half a teaspoon of sugar. Mix it all together and smash the tomatoes with the back of your spoon. Let the tomatoes cook in that garlicky-peppery hot tub of flavor(about 30-40 minutes on low heat). While the shrimp thaws, you can get the veggies ready. Tonight, I actually had fresh broccoli and zucchini... on a Friday... SCORE!! So, we washed and chopped our veggies. As the sauce continues to cook, shell the shrimp and dry it with paper towels and add to a bowl. To flavor-up the shrimp, I added about 2 teaspoons of olive oil, salt and pepper, 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning, and... yup... another 2 cloves of chopped garlic. Mix together and park that marinating shrimp on the counter for about 30 minutes to develop the flavor! After the shrimp soaks in all that garlicky flavor, add it to the sauce that you've been cooking. Turn the heat up from low t medium and cook just until the shrimp is pink and the edges curl a bit. Don't overcook or the shrimp will be tough. This will only take a few minutes. Cook your pasta according to the package directions. We used plain old thin spaghetti, and it was perfect! I added my veggies to the pasta while it cooked for the last minute of cooking. This way you get them slightly cooked, but still crisp, fresh and full of nutrition. Strain the pasta and the veggies and add to the sauce and shrimp. Toss together to coat the pasta and combine all the ingredients! Your house officially smells like an Italian trattoria, and you're about to have a "come to Jesus" moment with a bowl full of garlicky shrimp pasta!!! So, here's dinner Joe's way... a big bowl of shrimp pasta full of healthy veggies and topped with some grated cheese! Full of flavor and super hearty and very lean! One happy Gremlin Mom with both... a big-grown man-boy, and middle school boy... in the house... for dinner tonight!! I'll take it!

Rib Eye Steak... and Perfect Baked Potatoes!

So, We don't have steak often, but when we do, we have a good cut!! So, tonight's treat is rib-eye steaks with simple baked potato and zucchini! Now, a delicious steak dinner is actually super simple and fast and easy! I started by washing and baking my potatoes in a 375 degree oven! No secret, but a great baked potato has a crispy skin, and a creamy, delicious center... so set your oven to 375 degrees. Wash and dry your potatoes, and poke the skin with a knife so the steam can escape... and pop them right on the rack of the oven, and let them go for about 40-45 minutes! When you press them with your finger, they will feel soft. But tonight's about steak! So, I rubbed my rib eye steaks with olive oil, then seasoned with my favorite... Montreal Steak Seasoning! So easy and so good! Now, here's where my friend Sherri encouraged my little blog! I will have to cook these steaks in a medium high heat pan on the top of a stove.... which KILLS ME, because my grill is a fatality of our New England winter!! Dang!! Ugh!! So, thank you Sherri... And, I cooked these amazing Flintstone sized steaks on my stove for about 4 minutes, on each side, for medium rare! We needed a vegetable too, so I chopped up some zucchini and popped it in the oven with the potatoes for about 10 minutes. I just drizzled a little olive oil on them, with some salt and pepper, and it was so easy!! The only hard part of tonight's dinner is, letting the steak rest after it cooks. This will make your steak juicy, tender and delicious, whether it's rare or medium rare. Dinner Stevie's way.... super satisfying and so tasty. One "meat and potatoes" delicious simple super great dinner!

Double Chocolate Banana Muffins AND Bread!!

Who wants chocolate for dinner? MEEEEE!! While clearly a serious departure from my usual slant toward healthy, protein packed and lean... the only thing I can say about this is, it's LOADED with bananas and seriously chocolatey! When is bananas and chocolate EVER a bad thing? It was another night that I found myself with an abundance of over ripe, brown bananas, so, I had to think fast... and this is what I came up with! Double chocolate banana bread, and muffins, thanks to all these bananas! I'll take it! The only tricky ingredient that was not usually in my pantry was cocoa, so I substituted this Starbuck's brand of "Hot Cocoa". I don't know if it's gonna work, but the ingredient on the label was mostly cocoa (and it's been in my cabinet forever... so, time to experiment)... AND, it was unsweetened, so I trusted my instincts. So there we have all the players in tonight's chocolate banana experiment: 3 bananas, half cup butter, 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, 1 cup flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 cup cocoa, and about 1 cup of chocolate chips. You may have noticed, I DOUBLED the ingredients, because I plan on spreading a lot of chocolate banana LOVE to everyone I see tomorrow. If you follow the amounts given, you'll have about 12 muffins, or one large loaf of bread. I doubled, so I had both! Starting with the bananas, I peeled and mashed with my old school potato masher. Then, I melted the butter in the microwave and whisked it into the bananas. Then, I added the egg, brown sugar, and vanilla and whisked that in as well. After mixing all the wet ingredients, I measured out all the dry ingredients and then poured into a sifter (I used a plain old strainer as my sifter). I just want to make sure to break up any chunks of cocoa. I usually skip this sifting step, but tonight, I followed the rules (for a change... good girl, Gremlin Mom!!). After adding the wet to the dry ingredients, I mixed just to combine, then I added the chocolate chips and gave it another gentle mix, just to combine! Like I said, I doubled this recipe, so I made 1 loaf... and 1 batch (dozen) of muffins! I sprayed my loaf pan with nonstick spray and poured in half the batter. Then, I lined my muffin pan, and spooned the rest into all those little muffin cups! Now, that would be fine... but, I sprinkled the tops of my muffins and bread with a little kosher sea salt (optional). I baked these muffins for 20 minutes then checked with a toothpick (insert, pull out, if clean, then they are done). After 20 minutes, I popped back in for 5 more, and they were perfect. The bread will take 55-65 minutes. You can leave yours plain, or... top them with some crazy, creamy peanut butter frosting, more chocolate, or even fresh whipped cream!!! Whatever you choose, you will LOVE these! So, go make some banana chocolate LOVE... for someone special, and they will LOVE you back, I guarantee!!!

Roasted Garlicky Chicken Thighs with Zucchini and Couscous!

When is roasted garlic EVER a bad thing.... and when you start a "one dish wonder" with roasted garlic and chicken, you KNOW your in for a treat! This classic comfort food chicken dish starts with roasted garlic, and this is how easy it is! Chop off the little pointy tip off of the whole garlic clove, drizzle with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and pop it into a foil "pocket! Close up that pocket of garlicky goodness, and pop it in a 375 degree oven. Now, time for some chicken and couscous! I seasoned my bone-in chicken thighs with salt, pepper, garlic powder and thyme, and browned on both sides. This took about 5 minutes on each side, and by no means will fully cook the chicken, but seals in all that super chickeny flavor and moist juicy goodness! After browning the chicken, pull it out and drain the fat. I used a good old fashioned paper towel to soak up the fat and that was it! Leave all the brown bits in the pan, that's all FLAVOR! Using that same pan (as in "one dish wonder") add your chopped zucchini and get them browned up and started, about 3 minutes is all it takes. Meanwhile, partially cook your couscous for about 4 minutes, and drain. After you get some color on that zucchini, deglaze the pan with about a cup of white wine. Any white wine will due, the only rule is... if you wouldn't drink it, then don't cook with it. I just added my "house" pino grigio, and it was fine! Now, scrape all those brown bits off the bottom of the pan. The wine will loosen it all up and add flavor. Then, pop your partially cooked couscous in the pan with the zucchini and cook for about a minute or two, to combine... you know... get the party STARTED!! Add another 2 cups of chicken stock to the pan before adding the chicken thighs back in. This will give us moist, tender, tasty, garlicky chicken, and we will LOVE IT!! Last, pop your browned up chicken thighs in the pan! Nestle them right in, snuggling them into the couscous and sauce, and zucchini! Now, put on the lid (or top with foil) and pop it all into your 375 degree oven with your roasted garlic! Let it cook covered for 20 minutes. I put a cookie sheet under the pan in case I have any spill-over. Now, don't forget about that roasting garlic... it's about to join this chicken party soon, and we will be so happy we invited her!!! After 20-25 minutes, pull both your chicken and your roasting garlic out of the oven. The garlic will be beautifully roasted and smell buttery, and garlicky, and delicious. When cool enough to handle, simply squeeze ALL (yup all of 'em) those cloves of garlic into the chicken and couscous. I used a fork to help, but if the garlic is cool, they will pop right out when you squeeze them. Mix that garlicky goodness with all that couscous and chicken and juices! Now, pop back into the oven, uncovered, for another 10 minutes! Now what this needs, is absolutely nothing, just a fork and a plate... but if you want to send it over the top, add a little toasted pine nuts! Just a sprinkle, and you have some serious Sunday chicken dinner comfort food, fit for a kid!! Dinner Stevie's way... Sunday chicken dinner with all the comforty goodness of roasted garlic and creamy couscous and zucchini! Soooo good!