Shrimp with Orzo and Pesto

I didn't take a picture of the ingredients because this was took 3 ingredients to make.

Ingredients:
Shrimp (about half a pound per person, or 10 shrimp a person)
1/2 cup pesto
1 package of orzo

Directions:
Cook orzo like you would any other pasta. In 2 bowls, separate the pasta, pesto, and shrimp in half. Enjoy! (Simple as that!)

Ingredients to my pesto:
2 cups fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup walnuts

Directions:
Toast walnuts on each side for about 5 minutes on medium heat. Place the walnuts, garlic, lemon juice, basil, Parmesan, salt, and pepper in a food processor. Pulse to combine. Slowly add olive oil and combine.

Spinach and Ginger Lentil Soup

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, minced
2 tablespoons garlic
1/2 cup minced celery
1/2 cup minced carrots
1/2 lb lentils
1 can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/2 package frozen spinach, thawed
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons coriander
1 tablespoon Spanish paprika
2 tablespoons ginger
4 quarts vegetable stock

Directions:
Mince onions, celery and carrots. (I used a food processor to make my life easier.) In a large pot, set heat to medium and add olive oil, onions, and garlic. Sweat the onions (they will become translucent.) Add celery and carrots; cooking for 5 minutes. Add can of diced tomatoes, spinach and vegetable stock. Stir to combine and add spices. Bring to a boil by placing on high heat and add the lentils. Stir and put on simmering heat for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender.

Green Bean Coleslaw

My boyfriend and I threw a thanksgiving themed tailgate last weekend for the UMD football game. This was one of the sides. It's really just coleslaw with green beans; nothing special, but still good.

Ingredients:
1 package of coleslaw veggies
1 package of steam in a bag green beans
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:
Steam green beans according to the package. Set aside and let cool for 5 minutes. In a large bowl add vinegar, mayonnaise, sugar, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Add in the green beans. (They will be a bit warm, allowing them to soak up the dressing. Add coleslaw. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to chill for an hour. (The longer it's in there, the more the flavor comes out.)

Candied Nuts

Sugary nuts with a holiday taste. Yummy!

Ingredients:
2 cups of nuts (I used walnuts)
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 shakes of nutmeg
1 can of evaporated milk
1 egg

Directions:Heat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl empty one can of evaporated milk and a beaten egg. Stir to combine. In another bowl add everything but the nuts. Stir to combine. Place 1 cup of nuts into the egg and milk mixture. Stir to coat. Take a large spoon with holes and scoop out the nuts and allow he wet mixture to drain off. Place into the sugar mixture and coat. With the spoon with holes, take the nuts out of the sugar, shaking off the extra sugar and place onto a baking sheet coated with non-stick cooking spray. Repeat with the other cup of nuts. Place the nus into the oven for 20 minutes. (The mixture will look watery but it's not.) Take out of the oven, stir, trying to turn the nuts, and place back in the oven for another 20 minutes. Take out of the oven and stir, once again, trying to break up the nuts. Allow to cool. (DO NOT TRY TO EAT! Sugar loves heat and gets extremely hot.)

Cornmeal Crusted Flounder

This is a great recipe. I double dipped the fish so it got a great, thick crust; reminiscent of fried fish. The corn meal adds a crunch and is much healthier to the alternative of deep frying for a crispy crunch. Very simple, very fast and very yummy.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup of corn meal
2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1/4 cup of eggbeaters (or 1 egg plus 2 tablespoons of milk whisked together)
2 flounder fillets (I found some in the freezer and thawed them out)
1 tablespoon olive oil for cooking

Directions:
Put a skillet on the stove, setting heat to medium-high. In a shallow bowl add cornmeal, Cajun spice, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. In another shallow bowl add eggs, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Place one fillet at a time into the cornmeal, flipping to coat both sides, then into the egg, flipping to coat both sides and then back into the cornmeal, flipping to coat both sides. Add olive oil to the skillet and coat the surface. Add fish to the skillet. Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes on each side; only flipping once to allow a brown crust to form. 

Spicy Greenbeans and Mushrooms

This is a really good recipe for fall or winter. It's spicy, warm, rustic and simple!

Ingredients:
1 package of button mushrooms
1 package of greenbeans (or 1/2 lb to a pound)
1 teaspoon of garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions: Put a skillet on medium heat. Add olive oil and garlic. Wipe mushrooms with a wet napkin to remove the dirt. Cut the mushrooms in quarters. Add the mushrooms to the hot oil. Add salt and pepper. Allow the mushrooms to cook and become moist (About 5 minutes, turning every minute). Add green beans, lemon juice and red pepper flakes. Stir to coat and add a lid on the skillet. Allow to cook 10-15 minutes or until greenbeans are cooked and tender. Serves 5.

Acorn Squash Gnnochi in Brown Butter and Basil Sauce

This is the perfect fall/winter side dish! The gnocchi is fluffy and light and the squash makes it sweet. (I forgot to add the potatoes in the picture.) This is a bit of a hassle to make, however it is totally worth it. I recommend this for any thanksgiving dinner or fancy meal you want to impress someone with.

Acorn Squash Gnocchi
Ingredients:
4 russet potatoes
1 egg
2 1/2 cup flour (plus extra for rolling the dough)
1 acorn squash

Directions:
Set an oven to 350 degrees. Cut the acorn squash in half, placing on a baking sheet and spraying with non-stick spray. Roast the acorn squash for 45 minutes. While the squash is roasting, place a large pot of water on the stove and allow the water to boil. Salt the water and add the potatoes. Boil the potatoes for 45 minutes. (This works really well!) Allow the squash and potatoes to cool. Once cool, take a fork and scrape the insides of the squash out and place in a large mixing bowl. Do the same with the cooled potatoes. (The skins of the potatoes come off very easily due to the boiling process.) Add salt and pepper and mash the potato and squash mixture until smooth. Add one egg and the flour 1/2 cup at a time to incorporate everything nicely. Once it forms a dough consistency, flour a cooking surface. Take a hand full of dough and place on floured surface. Roll out the dough like you are 5 and it's play-doh and you are trying to make a snake. Make the dough about the same size as your thumb. Cut the dough into 1 inch pieces. Place on a LARGE plate and continue with the rest of the dough. (If you put it in a bowl the dough will stick to itself and you're just going to have another bowl of dough and wasted all that time making 1 inch thumb snakes.) Halfway through this dough rolling process, fill a large pot full of water and allow the water to boil. Place the about 15-20 gnocchi in to the boiling water at a time. Allow all of the gnocchi to float to the top before taking out with a spoon with holes to drain the water out. Place in serving bowl. Continue with the rest of the gnocchi until finished.

Brown Butter and Basil Sauce
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter
30 basil leaves chopped
2 tablespoons light brown sugar

Directions: In a large pot (you can use the same pot you used to boil the gnocchi in) set heat to simmering and place the stick of butter in the pot and allow to melt. Add sugar and stir to combine. Add basil. Add gnocchi, gently tossing the pasta. Place gnocchi back in the serving dish and enjoy!