Yummy Crab Mac & Cheese

We were watching some show on Food Network and happened to see someone make lobster mac & cheese. Since we LOVE mac & cheese, we decided to make our own version using crab meat. This was amazing and I ate the leftovers every night until it was gone!

Adapted from here
Ingredients:

3 tomatoes cut into thin slices

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons thyme

salt & pepper

5 slices white sandwich bread, chopped into small pieces

2 tablespoons butter

1 lb elbow macaroni

2 cups chicken stock

5 tablespoons flour

Pinch of nutmeg

2 cups skim milk

8 ounces shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese

4 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese

8 ounces finely chopped crabmeat

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Spread tomatoes in a single layer on a 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle tomatoes with oil, thyme, salt and pepper.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter with remaining tablespoon oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add bread and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and let cool.

Whisk 1/2 cup chicken stock into the flour in a medium bowl.

Melt remaining tablespoon of butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt, milk, flour and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, whisking often. Reduce to a simmer. Cook 8 minutes and be sure to mix often.

Add cheeses; cook, stirring, until melted. Pour into a large bowl and mix with cooked macaroni and crabmeat. Pour mixture over tomato slices in baking pan.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling.

Amazing! Seconds please!

Tropical Coconut Shrimp & Mango Rice

On a whim, we decided to make a fun tropical dinner on a Saturday night. It was really fun to make and the dinner was surprisingly good! It kind of reminded me of our honeymoon in Maui and the luau dinner we went to.

Baked Coconut Shrimp
Adapted from here

Ingredients:
• non-stick cooking spray
• 1 pounds defrosted shrimp
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper
• dash of salt
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 2 egg whites
• 3/4 cup coconut

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

In a bowl, mix cornstarch, peppers & salt.

In a small microwave safe bowl, warm honey for 30-45 seconds. Add lime juice to honey and stir. Slowly add in egg whites and continue to stir.

Place shredded coconut in a thin layer on a pie plate or flat dish.

Take each shrimp, dip into cornstarch mixture, then in egg white mixture and finally roll in the coconut.

Place on the baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes or until coconut is lightly toasted.

Mango Rice
Adapted from here

Ingredients:
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• rice
• 1 (14-ounce) can coconut milk
• 2/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 large ripe mango, peeled and cubed

In a large pot, heat oil.

Add rice and mix with the oil.

Pour in coconut milk, water, and salt and bring to a boil.

Stir in the mango and cilantro.

Cover, reduce heat to very low, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed.

Remove the rice from the heat and fluff with a fork. Add brown sugar to rice and mix well.

Cover the pot and let rice steam for about 5 minutes before serving.

Definitely a keeper dinner! Yum!

Delicious Caprese Scallops

This is a great, healthy recipe that we tried last week. The flavor was great and we loved it!

Adapted from Savoring Time in the Kitchen
Ingredients:
• 1 tomato
• 6 basil leaves
• 1 red onion, sliced
• salt & pepper
• 3 T olive oil
• 1/2 lb scallops
• 1/2 of a lemon

Slice tomatoes and basil leaves. Pour into a large bowl.

Heat 1 T olive oil in a large pan. Season red onion with salt and pepper and pour into pan. Cook for 7 to 10 minutes.

Let cool and pour into bowl with tomato and basil.

Drizzle 1 T olive oil into the bowl.

Season scallops with salt, pepper and 1 T olive oil. Place in pan and cook for 5-7 minutes.

Arrange in large bowl over vegetables.

Squeeze the juice from half a lemon over the scallops and vegetables.

Aren't the colors gorgeous?

Yummy : )

Savory Fish Tacos with Tomato Salsa

Fish tacos sounded PERFECT last weekend and I've always wanted to try them. Hubby is a huge Bobby Flay fan, so I found one of his recipes that I adapted. I'll warn you that this recipe is a little time-consuming, but the end result is worth it!

Ingredients:
Tacos:
• 1 pound mahi mahi
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 tablespoons chili powder
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 jalopeno chopped (optional - I didn't use any)
• 8 flour tortillas

Garnish:
• Shredded white cabbage
• Hot sauce
• Sour cream
• Thinly sliced red onion
• Thinly sliced green onion
• Chopped cilantro leaves
• Tomato Salsa, recipe follows

Preheat grill to medium-high heat (we used the George Forman). Place fish in a medium size dish. Mix together the oil, lime juice, chili powder, jalapeno, and cilantro and pour over the fish. Let marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

Remove the fish from the marinade and place onto a hot grill, flesh side down. Grill the fish for 4 minutes on the first side and then flip for 30 seconds and remove. Let rest for 5 minutes then flake the fish with a fork.

Divide the fish among the tortillas and garnish with any or all of the garnishes.

Tomato Salsa

Ingredients:
• salt & pepper
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 small red onion, coarsely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 3 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, sliced (optional if you want a spicy salsa)
• 1 T oregano
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Heat oil in medium saucepan. Add onions and garlic and cook until soft. Add tomatoes and jalapeno and cook until tomatoes are soft, about 15 to 20 minutes. Puree the mixture in a blender until smooth and cook for an additional 10 to 15 minutes. Add the oregano and cilantro and season with salt and pepper.

SO good and we'll definitely be making this again!
Enjoy!

Easy, Lowfat Tuna Panini

I've had a tuna obsession lately so I've been busy looking for fun recipes. I combined a few different tuna sandwich recipes to create this one.

Ingredients:
• 1 can of chunk light tuna, drained
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 teaspoon capers
• 4 tablespoons red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons kalamata olives
• 2 tablespoons marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
• 1 boiled egg, chopped
• pepper (to taste)
• sliced bread

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl

Mix well.

Ok, so there's 2 ways to make your panini: the EASY WAY and the REAL WAY.

The EASY WAY: Toast your bread and spread a thin layer of butter on it while it's still warm.

The REAL WAY: Heat 1 teaspoon of canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Put slices of bread in the pan. Then take another smaller skillet and place it on top of the bread to push it down. Use some extra cans of food to weigh down the skillet. Cook the bread until it's golden on one side (about 1-2 minutes). Flip the bread and cook the other side.

Either way you prepare your bread is yummy, IMO. Just depends how much time you have.

Scoop some tuna salad on your warm bread and top with cheese.

Enjoy!

Healthy Mediterranean Tuna Salad

All of a sudden, I'm obsessed with tuna. I just discovered how yummy tuna melts can be and I feel like I've been missing out on delicious food for 27 years! So this is my first of many tuna recipes I plan to try...

Mediterranean Tuna Salad

Ingredients
12 oz. tuna in a can
3 tablespoons chopped red onion
1 teaspoon capers
1/4 cup chopped kalamata olives
2 teaspoons chopped parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
splash of lemon juice
1 boiled egg, chopped
salt & pepper to taste

Drain tuna and pour into a large bowl

Add all the ingredients and mix

Serve cold as a salad or as a sandwich on bread

SO simple and really good!

Un-fried Catfish

Oprah's Un-Fried Catfish

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients
Light vegetable oil cooking spray
1/4 c Cornmeal
1 ts Dried thyme
1 ts Dried basil
1/2 ts Garlic powder
1/2 ts Lemon pepper
4 ts Blackening seasoning
4 4 ounce catfish fillets
1/2 ts Paprika

Instructions


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Spray the vegetable oil over the baking
sheet 3 times to coat.
Put the cornmeal, thyme, and basil on a large plate and mix well.
Sprinkle 1/8 teaspoon of the garlic powder, 1/8 teaspoon of the lemon
pepper, and 1 teaspoon of the blackening seasoning on each of the catfish
fillets.
Coat the fillets thoroughly with the cornmeal mixture and transfer them to
the prepared baking sheet. Dust each fillet with 1/8 teaspoon of the
paprika. Coat the catfish lightly with the cooking spray.
Place the baking sheet on the bottom shelf of the oven. Bake for 20
minutes.
Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for about 5 minutes more,
until the crust is golden and the fish flakes easily.

Garnish, if you wish, with sprigs of parsley tucked under the catfish
fillets, or with lemon wedges. Cut the pointed ends off the lemon before
cutting if into wedges, exposing more of the delicate fruit.

Per serving: 5.2 grams fat, 171 calories.
Source: In The Kitchen With Rosie Cookbook DOTTIE, in Irvine, CA 7-26-94

Per serving (excluding unknown items): 187 Calories; 5g Fat (23% calories
from fat); 27g Protein; 8g Carbohydrate; 92mg Cholesterol; 112mg Sodium