I asked Bev, from Bev Cooks over today to cook for you. If you don’t know Beverly yet, then you must get to know her. This girl makes me smile each and every day…she’s hysterical and can cook her butt off. I’ve been hanging out on her blog a lot the last few months and have enjoyed the heck out of it. Her cooking style is very similar to mine and I think you are going to really enjoy her Spicy Shrimp and Avocado Lettuce Cups. I can’t wait to make them myself…the photos alone are making me drool.

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When the fabulous Aggie came to me about being a guest poster on her blog, I: A) Immediately ran down the street singing “What a Feeling” at the top of my lungs. B) Shaved my legs because in my head, IT TOTALLY MATTERS FOR THIS. And C) Threw on a red sequin gown and stilettos so high, I could give you a separate weather report.

So I got a teensy bit excited. What?

Thank you, Aggie.

. . . . .

It’s the end of summer and we’re all desperately clinging to the last bits and pieces of the relaxing, sun-soaked days of the season. The pool has closed. Pencils are sharpened and the smell of notebook paper wafts through the hallways at school. Echoes of the high school marching band and football team make their way through our windows in the early hours of the morning. New sitcoms prepare to air and entertain us weekly throughout the chilly months. And best of all, comfort food will be flying through our mouth holes for approximately the next 6 months. This time of year RULES IT, YOU GUYS.

With that in mind, I decided to post a light, end-of-summer meal with a kick. And when I say, “with a kick,” I mean go ahead and set up the sprinkler system to blast your eyeballs every 5 seconds. No, I mean it.

I love this type of meal because anything shrimp makes me giddy, anything with spicy, fiery, blow-your-face-off heat makes me sing love songs, and anything in the form of a wrap makes me dance the cha-cha.

I do hope I haven’t frightened you.

Please, try it!

Spicy Shrimp and Avocado Lettuce Cups:

Here are the roasted peppers. You can’t see it with the human eye, but they are secretly plotting all kinds of sexy hotness for your taste buds.

The toasted cumin and coriander. Seriously, scents so beautiful you’ll forget your own name.

This is where it gets dangerous. And awesome. And you might need to open a window. Or stick your head in the freezer.

This is where it gets pretty. And even more awesome-er. You can pull your head out of the freezer now.

Toss the spicy, fiery hot-as-a-mama marinade with the shrimp for a few minutes.

Crisp lettuce cups. You just wanna pet them, don’t you?

Aaaand the finished dish. Go ahead, wave to your fans. They’ll understand if your face is melting off and your head is back in the freezer.

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Spicy Shrimp and Avocado Lettuce Cups and a visit from Bev Cooks

• Author: Bev Cooks
• Yield: serves 4
• Category: Fish
• Method: Oven/Stovetop

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Spicy Shrimp and Avocado Lettuce Cups – you will love EVERYTHING about these flavorful low carb, shrimp lettuce wraps.

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Ingredients

• 1 pound extra large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 heads butter lettuce, rinsed and leaves separated
•  4 jalapeno peppers
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbs. cumin seeds, toasted
• 1 Tbs. coriander seeds, toasted
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish
• 4 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 Tbs.
• 1 tsp coarse salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 lime

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the peppers with a little oil. Roast for 20 minutes, or until pretty charred on all sides.
3. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Give them a rough chop.
4. Using a mortar and pestle, crush the toasted cumin seeds and coriander until finely ground. Add the minced garlic, and toss in a pinch of salt. Grind away, until it becomes slightly pasty. Toss in the peppers and grind grind grind again. It become a firey paste that will blow your face off. Add the cilantro and olive oil and grind more. Seriously, so hot. So awesome.
5. Toss the marinade with the shrimp and let sit a few minutes.
6. Heat skillet over medium-high. Arrange the shrimp in a single layer and sear 2 minutes. Flip and sear 30 more seconds. Remove from pan and set aside.
7. Add a little more oil if needed and add the red bell pepper. Saute 2 minutes.
8. Stuff each lettuce cup with shrimp, red bell pepper and diced avocado. Spritz with lime and  get ready to cry. And I mean, from the heat. Seriously, have that sprinkler system ready and aimed.

Thank you so much, Aggie, for letting me blab my face off on your blog today!

The post {Guest Post} Spicy Shrimp and Avocado Lettuce Cups and a visit from Bev Cooks appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

I spotted a shrimp recipe on Pioneer Woman’s amazing site recently and couldn’t wait to make it. I love shrimp, and love anything spicy even more so this was exactly something I knew I had to make. Last night, I was ready to fire up the grill to cook up the shrimp when something like a monsoon came over us. Lightning, rain, thunder, wind…all of it, and very typical of summer in Florida…so needless to say, I wasn’t overly excited about standing in the porch watching delicate shrimp cook up on the grill. It was time to improvise…

I had a ton of veggies to use up in the fridge…and a brand new wok that I got for a steal at IKEA. So stir fry it will be.

In a bowl I mixed together some hot chili sauce, a little oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar and a couple splashes of fish sauce. Oh and I pressed about 4 or 5 cloves of garlic in there too. I chopped a ton of veggies…squash, zucchini, onion, red pepper and more garlic. Forget the grill…this stir fry was awesome!

Firecracker Shrimp Stirfry

Yield: 2- 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 TB hot chili sauce (I use Sriracha - adjust amount to your taste)
• 1 TB soy sauce
• 1 TB rice vinegar
• 1 TB oil
• couple of splashes fish sauce
• 4-5 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
• small pinch of salt, big pinch of pepper
• 1-2 zucchinis, chopped in quarters
• 1-2 yellow squash, chopped in quarters
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 red pepper, sliced in thin strips
• 2-3 garlic cloves, minced

Directions:

1. Combine chili sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, oil, fish sauce, garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl to make a sauce. Toss shrimp in sauce and coat completely.
2. Heat wok over medium-high heat. Add a couple tsp canola oil into wok and sear the shrimp. Once shrimp are just cooked, take out and set aside. Add chopped vegetables and garlic into wok. Cook over medium-high heat for about 5-8 minutes until veggies start to soften. Once veggies are slightly cooked, add back in shrimp and toss to combine, cook for 2-3 minutes more. Serve with cooked soba noodles. Season with more soy sauce, fish sauce or chili sauce to taste.

Follow AggiesKitchen on Instagram and show us what recipes you are making from the blog! Use the hashtag #aggieskitchen - I'd love to see what you are cooking up!

While I was in D.C. last weekend I visited the Julia Child exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. Now, I’m almost embarrassed to admit this, but I really don’t know much about Ms. Julia Child. I know of her…but have never watched her shows. With “Julie & Julia” out in the theaters today, the book and then finally after visiting this exhibit, I must say, I am intrigued. I may have to dig up some old shows of hers and settle in on the couch one afternoon and just watch…she seemed like such a lovely spirit. Enjoy a peek in her kitchen…apparently it’s all her stuff, donated by her and set up exactly how she wanted it.

PS…Want to join in on the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club fun? Check out Cooking Light’s Test Kitchen Blog featuring Aggie’s Kitchen and other great bloggers!

The post Firecracker Shrimp Stirfry …and a peek inside Julia’s Kitchen appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

I’m really trying to make it a habit to have more salads for dinner. So far, thanks to the last couple of recipes chosen for the Craving Ellie in my Belly group, I’ve been able to do that. For me the key to a salad is lots of flavor. I can’t feel like a rabbit when I’m eating salad.

This week’s CEimB recipe is Buffalo Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing and was chosen by AJM of You Eat Now. It was really a nice weeknight recipe, the chicken cooks up quickly under the broiler and the salad dressing was whipped up in no time. We are big fans of buffalo chicken in our house so this was a great way to get our “hot wing” fix in a much healthier way.

The recipe calls for simply tossing the uncooked chicken strips in your favorite hot sauce (Frank’s is the way to go!). I decided to add another layer of flavor to the chicken by marinating it with some olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and chili powders before adding the hot sauce. Also, since we like it really hot, I tossed the broiled chicken in more hot sauce before topping it on the salad. I wasn’t sure if it would be filling enough for my husband, but he seemed pretty satisfied and said it was great. Oh…and I thought the dressing was really yummy. I poured all the ingredients in a small mason jar and just gave it a few shakes…and voila, homemade blue cheese dressing.

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Buffalo Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing

• Author: Aggie's Kitchen
• Category: Chicken
• Method: Oven

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Ingredients

Buffalo Chicken Salad

• 2 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper hot sauce (or other hot sauce), plus more to taste
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 hearts Romaine, cut into 1-inch strips (about 8 cups)
• 4 celery stalks, thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, coarsely grated
• 2 scallions, green part only, sliced
• 1/2 cup Blue Cheese Dressing, recipe follows

Blue Cheese Dressing

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup lowfat buttermilk
• 1/4 cup plain fat-free yogurt (I used Greek yogurt to avoid the straining process)
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

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Instructions

Buffalo Chicken Salad

1. Preheat the broiler. Put the chicken between 2 sheets of waxed paper and pound with a mallet or hammer so the chicken is an even thickness of about 3/4-inch, then cut the chicken crosswise into 1/2-inch strips. In a large bowl, combine the hot sauce and the oil, add chicken and toss until the chicken is well coated. Arrange the chicken on a baking sheet and broil until it is cooked through, about 4 to 6 minutes, turning once.
2. In a large bowl combine the Romaine, celery, shredded carrots and scallions. Toss with the dressing. Divide the greens between 4 plates, top with the chicken. Serve with extra hot sauce.

Blue Cheese Dressing

1. Fold a full sheet of paper towel into quarters and put it into a small bowl. Spoon the yogurt onto the paper towel and place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to drain and thicken. In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk and thickened yogurt into the mayonnaise until smooth. Add the vinegar and sugar and continue to whisk until all the ingredients are well combined. Stir in the blue cheese and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

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Notes

Recipe from Ellie Krieger, The Food You Crave

 

The post Buffalo Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

 Obviously fried and breaded chicken isn’t something I should indulge in often, so of course I took on the challenge of making my own healthier version. If you are having a craving for some wings, but are trying to stay health conscious, these baked boneless chicken wings are for you!! My husband, who can’t get enough wings, loves when I make these.

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Hot and Garlic Baked Boneless Chicken Wings

• Author: Aggie's Kitchen
• Yield: 4-6 servings
• Category: Chicken
• Method: Oven

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Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs chicken breast, sliced into strips
• 2 cups panko breadcrumbs (Japanese breadcrumbs, I use whole wheat panko)
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• 2 cups Frank’s Hot Sauce
• butter, optional
• 2 tsp minced garlic (from jar)

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Instructions

1. Season chicken strips with salt and pepper, also drizzle a little olive oil over chicken and toss to coat. Pour panko in a large dish and season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Dip each chicken strip into dish, pressing chicken into panko to coat well.
2. Place your baking rack into a cookie sheet. Place breaded chicken strips onto baking rack. Spray breaded chicken strips with olive oil spray or non stick spray (this helps to give them that crispy texture).
3. Bake in 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, until golden brown and done.
4. In small saucepan, heat up hot sauce and garlic. If you want to tone down the heat of the sauce add butter. Start with 1 TB and go from there.
5. Using tongs, gently toss chicken strips with hot sauce and serve with celery, carrots and your favorite blue cheese dressing (mine is Naturally Fresh Lite).

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Notes

We like our buffalo sauce hot but if you need to tame down the heat, add a few tablespoons of melted butter to the hot sauce.

Inspired by Ale House Zingers.

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