Healthy New Recipe. Greek Quinoa Salad with Grilled Shrimp

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Hey ya'll. Hope you're having a Fabulous week! Just one more day till the weekend. Woo-Hoo! :)

I just posted this over on my A Better Shan blog and thought I'd share it here for you too!

I have a new recipe for you today. I try to cook up food for the 2 weeks between paychecks on Sundays and I did some of that this past weekend. 3 new recipes. Yea Shan! As you may or may-not have heard last Sunday was day 11 of the longest and hottest Heat-Wave the DMV had ever had. Thankfully it stopped the next day but they are predicting high temps again this weekend. Any-whoo, I was kind of in the mood for a Greek Salad, but wanted something with a little more protein and lasting power. They had shrimp in nice little packs on sale at the grocery store and I got the yummiest idea for lunch. Instead of a regular salad or even a cold "pasta" salad, why not use Quinoa. It's good hot or cold, like pasta and so good in so many different recipes and I had a brand new package at home. So, why not combine the flavors of my Greek Salad with the extra protein of the quinoa for a new taste? I could hardly wait to get home and try it.

Greek Quinoa Salad with Grilled Shrimp
(Sorry, I just realized it's a little blurry. I was in a hurry to enjoy it!)

Here's what you need-
quinoa, shrimp, feta cheese, cucumbers, cherry/grape tomatoes, red-wine vinegar, Greek seasonings, chicken stock or base and anything else you normally enjoy in your Greek Salad. I'm not a big olive fan, love the oil not the olives, and am def. not an anchovie fan. No hairy little fishes in my salad, Thank You Very Much!

Ooops! I forgot the Greek Seaoning> :(

This is so easy and tasty, you're going to want to make some tonight.

1- Prepare your quinoa. I like this brand that I got at my local Giant, because it's pre-washed. Anything that makes my job easier and decreases my time in the kitchen (even though I love cooking) is great. I've been using Better than Bouillon instead of canned broth. It's concentrated, 1 tsp = an 8oz can of broth, and it takes up less space than all those cans, it tastes better than cubes and is more cost effective. I actually use 1/2 tsp /8oz and still get tremendous chicken flavor. Oh and it's 0 points. :)

2- While your quinoa is cooking go ahead and prepare your shrimp. Peel them, de-vein them if necessary and put them in a bowl.

Aren't these beautiful? All I had to do was shell them. The store had already de-veined them for me 

3- Remember to not throw away your shells. Put them in a plastic baggy and freeze them. You can use this to make stock later.

 4- Add just a skosh of olive oil and your Greek-seasoning to your bowl. You just want enough oil so that the seasonings stick. Mix until all the shrimp are coated with the seasonings. 

5- Grill those sweet little morsels up until they are pink and done. Not too long though because you don't want them to get dry. 

This made two servings

I used my George Foreman, cuz like I said it was a bajillion degrees outside, and look how scrumptious they look! All pink and yummy. I actually had them on skewers first but the lid didn't close all the way like that so I grilled them just on the plates like this and they turned out Fab!

6- While the shrimps are grilling, prepare the rest of your salad ingredients. I diced up some cucumber and sliced some little grape tomatoes. Your quinoa should be finished by now.

7- Once everything is cooked mix your veggies, shrimp and quinoa together and add just a splash of the red-wine vinegar (or more to taste). Top with your feta cheese and get ready for the taste explosion.

8- Enjoy your healthy meal. This meal is 8 W.W. Points Plus points and trust me worth every one. It's full of wholesome fresh food and the points come from the proteins, so eat up and enjoy! This meal is good served hot, but I think it's even better served with the quinoa cold.

Thanks so much for taking the time out of your day and stopping by today. I hope you'll give this recipe a try. If you do, I'd love to hear what you thought.

Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,
Shan

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Cool New Dessert

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Hey y'all. I know it's been a while, but I've been crazy busy. I wanted to share a dessert with you today that is fabulous for anytime but especially those hot summer days when you want something cool, and delicious without being overly sweet or heavy and this cake fits those requirements perfectly. I took this to a cookout yesterday and let me just tell you it was gone almost as soon as it was cut! :)


Strawberry Cream Cheese Filled Angel-Food Cake (Sounds pretty decadent and points heavy, huh? Nope!) This is a No-Bake, No-Added Sugar, Fat-Free Recipe. Woo-Hoo!!!! And it's Yummy too! ;)

Look at all of that ooey, yummy goodness

Here's what you're going to need-

1 Angel-Food Cake- you could make your own but it's so easy to just buy them pre-made then you don't even have to turn on the oven for this yummy treat
1 Large package of fresh strawberries
1 bar of Fat-Free Cream Cheese at room temperature
1 lemon


Here are your instructions-


1- Wash and hull and your strawberries-

It's ok if you want to snack on one or two of these little beauties

2- Slice off the top of your Angel-Food Cake and make a little tunnel all around the inside-

Don't throw out those bits of cake you're going to use them in the next step.

3- Cube up the cake you scooped out and put them in your food processor with half the strawberries and your room-temperature cream cheese cut into cubes. Blend until everything is well mixed.

4- Take that wonderful mixture and spoon it into the tunnel in your cake.

Oooh so yummy! Just lightly sweetened from the strawberries. :)

5- Put the top of the cake back on and put in the refrigerator to chill and let the cream cheese filling firm back up.

6- Take the other half of your strawberries and the juice of your lemon and puree them in your food processor/blender.

This is Amazing! Sweet with just a little tart from the lemon. Nectar, I tell you. Put this in a seal-able container and refrigerate. This is your topping. It sets off the sweetness of the cake and the richness of the filling perfectly.

7- Enjoy! I let my cake filling set for a few hours, Your time will differ depending on how cold your refrigerator is. Simply slice your cake and drizzle some of your Strawberry-Lemon goodness over your cake and get ready for the yumminess to hit your taste-buds.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Filled Angel Food Cake

Are you ready for the best part- Here's the points break-down-

If you cut it per the "serving-size" listed on the side of the cake this will yield 8 approximately 1" pieces. Each one inch piece is only 5 Points-Plus points. If you cut it into 1/2" pieces which is still enough to enjoy it's only 2.5 Points-Plus points. The picture above is a 1/2" piece.

As this is a refrigerator cake, it's perfect for hot days. The cool, creamy filling really hits the spot. Know what else hits the spot? Eating this and knowing you still have lots of points to use for other cook-out yummies.

I hope you'll give this a try. I'm sure you'll enjoy it! If you try it, I'd love to hear what you thought.

Adapted from Emeril

Thanks for stopping by today. I'm not posting as much as I'd like to be able to. I hope you'll subscribe by e-mail or reader so you don't miss anything. :) Till next time-

Remember- Life is often more about the storms than the peace they seek to overwhelm. It's not about Waiting for the storms to pass, but Learning to Dance in the rain.

Be Safe,

Shan

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