Roasted Shrimp and Tomato Penne Pasta

 

It's amazing the kind of dishes you can throw together with a little creativity. I had not been to the grocery store in quite some time, but [thankfully] I had a few basic items around the house, and I almost always have shrimp in the freezer. It's always a good idea to keep pastas and canned tomatoes around. If you eat as much pasta as I do, constantly buying pasta sauce in jars can add up. I've learned that keeping a can of diced, whole, or stewed tomatoes in the pantry can be really helpful in a pinch. They are essentially a blank slate for an Italian sauce that you can take in several directions. Adding in Italian spices, cloves of garlic and a splash of red or white wine takes a .99 can of tomatoes to the next level. 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup penne pasta

handful of frozen (or fresh) shrimp, thawed

1 can of diced tomatoes in italian spices

1 large clove of garlic, minced

1 tsp italian spices or basil, oregano

salt & pepper

olive oil

white or red wine (optional)

what to do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Start a pot of water on the stove to boil - add salt, splash of olive oil

3. Prepare the shrimp on a baking sheet by spreading them out and drizzling them with olive oil, salt, pepper

4. Bake shrimp for 7-9 mins until pink and curled up

5. Once water boils, add in pasta, and cook according to box instructions

6. In the meantime, pour tomatoes into a saucepan and heat to simmering

7. Add in the minced garlic, italian spices, and a splash of red or white wine

8. Let the sauce reduce for a few minutes, and add in the shrimp once it's ready

9. Drain and rinse pasta, return to pan

10. Add sauce to pasta

11. Serve with shredded parmesan over the top

Cream Cheese and Walnut Cookie Bars

I was flipping through my mom's cook book, Still Life with Menu by Mollie Katzen, and came across this recipe. It sounded so peculiar that i had to try it out. The cookies were delicious, but had a drier consistency than i had anticipated. They are definitely not the melt-in-your-mouth kind of treat, but delightful just the same. They went nicely with a warm cup of Chai tea!

Recipe by Molly Katzen: Still Life with Menu

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup softened cream cheese
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup ground walnuts
1/2 tsp cinnamon

what to do:
1. In a mixer, cream together butter, sugar and cream cheese until light and fluffy
2. Add in the egg and continue mixing
3. Mix in the remaining ingredients
4. Measure a piece of aluminum foil to 10x13, and place dough in the middle
5. Wrap the dough with one side of foil, and roll dough over to the other side to create a log
6. Tuck sides in, and either refrigerate for a couple hours, or put in the freeze for 30-40 mins
7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
8. Slice the frozen dough into 1/8" slices and place on cookie sheet
9. Bake for 12-15 mins

I would like to try this recipe out again, but slicing the cookies thinner than i did in the picture, and also trying it out with a sweet flavored cream cheese like hazelnut.

White Chocolate and Dried Cranberry Cookies

 

Adapted from the classic Toll-house Chocolate Chip Recipe

Now, i know you can never really "get tired" of homemade chocolate chip cookies, but this winter when I went home for the holidays - I was on chocolate overload. This is a great alternative to chocolate chip cookies while using the same recipe. Maybe you'll feel less guilty eating 10 of these in one sitting because they have fruit in them? I did...

If you enjoy making cookies it's a good idea to make sure you always have the basic cookie-making ingredients on hand - flour, brown sugar, vanilla, etc. Mastering a basic cookie makes it easier (and more fun) to play around with the ingredients. Instead of dried cranberries you could use blueberries, apricots, peanut better chips, raisins - whatever you've got around the house. 

Ingredients: 

2 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 cup white chocolate chips

what to do:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2. Combine flour, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl

3. In a separate bowl cream together both sugars, vanilla, and butter

4. Beat in the eggs one by one until combined

5. Gradually add in the flour mixture to the wet mixture until combined

6. Add in the cranberries and white chocolate chips

7. Place spoonfuls of dough on a baking sheet

8. Bake for 8-10 mins

If you don't want to use all of the dough, you can always freeze the rest. Pull out a long sheet of plastic wrap, and place spoonfuls of the dough in the middle. Cover the dough with one side of the plastic wrap, and roll to the other side, so it forms a log. tuck in the outsides, and it's ready to store!