Pesto Zucchini Lasagna

I now have a wonderful new mandolin, and I decided to make lasagna "properly" with long, flat zucchini noodles. I decided to do a no tomato version, and sub in pesto instead.

Pesto Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients:

2 zucchini, washed, ends chopped off

16 oz. ricotta cheese

6 oz. basil pesto

1 lb. ground beef (or pork)

8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

Directions:

Brown the ground beef. Mix ricotta, all but 2 Tbsp. pesto, and garlic. Using a mandolin, slice zucchini lengthwise about 1/4 in. thick. Spray the bottom of a baking dish. Lay in slices of zucchini neatly side by side. Spread 1/2 ricotta mixture over zucchini. Spread 1/2 of the ground beef over top. Sprinkle on enough mozzarella to cover beef. Layer again with zucchini, ricotta mixture, beef, and mozzarella. If you have leftover slices of zucchini, arrange them nicely on top and spread remaining pesto on slices. Optionally you can add any extra mozzarella on top. Bake at 350 F for 40 minutes or until cheese is golden brown. Serve with Italian or Caesar salad and sugar free shaved ice (or panna cotta) for dessert!

My Dad's Cream Cheese Pancakes

Cream Cheese Pancakes

This is my dad's favorite breakfast to make when he has time. It's a very simple recipe, you can modify it as you see fit.

Base recipe:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 eggs
1/4 c. golden ground flaxseed
1/4 tsp. baking powder
vanilla extract
2 packets splenda
2 Tbsp. flavored simple syrup (like vanilla or caramel)
1 tsp. cocoa (optional)

Topping Ideas:
-pats of butter
-sugar free syrup
-sugar free jelly/jam cooked with fresh/frozen fruit
-whipped cream
-melted sugar free chocolate

Caribbean Jerk Shrimp

For whatever reason, sugar and shrimp just go together. Honey, mango, brown sugar- they all make shrimp taste amazing. I had been craving a tropical tasting shrimp dish, and this recipe is what I threw together last night. Marinading the shrimp for at least 3 hours makes the flavor even richer.

Caribbean Jerk Shrimp

 

(photo is not mine)

In a bowl combine:

1 tsp. molasses

1/4 c. Jack Daniels Honey Whiskey (regular flavor works too)

2 Tbsp. McCormick Caribbean Jerk spice mix

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. paprika

4 packets Splenda

1 c. chicken broth (or 1 cup hot water with 1 bullion cube, dissolved)

Stir well.  Peel, devein, and take the tails off of 2 lbs. of cooked shrimp. Place shrimp in a gallon sized ziplock bag and pour in the marinade. Marinate for about 3 hours. 

Option 1:

Open the bag just slightly and pour the marinade into a pan large enough to hold your shrimp. Let the marinade by itself simmer until it reduces by 1/2. Add shrimp to pan and heat up. Serve immediately.

Option 2:

Remove shrimp from marinade and put on skewers. Grill until grill marks are visible. You can save the marinade and reduce it in a pot and serve it with the shrimp if you want.

A great serving idea is a salad with avocado, spicy creamy dressing (I like Habanero Ranch), small chunks of jicama, and red pepper and red onion slices.

Bonus Lime Ice Cream!

 Mix about 1 Tbsp. of your leftover lime juice with 1/2 tsp,. lime zest with 1/2 c. vanilla Carb Smart Ice Cream. Stir until completely combined. Devour!!!! It was divine!

Broccoli Cheese Tots

Alex made these and he did a great job. They were delicious. They're even better than tater tots in my opinion!

Recipe courtesy of Buzzfeed (I've made a few changes)

Ingredients:
12 ounces broccoli, cut into small florets
¼ cup scallions, thinly sliced
2 large garlic cloves, finely diced (~2 tsp. minced garlic)
⅔ cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 egg, beaten
⅔ cup bread crumbs almond flour
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.

Wash and finely chop the broccoli (or put it through a food processor). Put it in a bowl and microwave it for 2 minutes or so.

In a mixing bowl, add broccoli, scallions, garlic, cheddar, egg, and almond flour. Mix well and chill in the refrigerator for 15–20 minutes.
Spray a nonstick baking sheet with nonstick spray. Shape the mixture into tot shapes and spread them evenly on the sheet.
Bake for 8–9 minutes. Flip and then bake for an additional 8–9 minutes on the other side until golden brown.

Cilantro Lime Zoodles with Chorizo (+Limeade!)

Alex loved the Zoodles I made last week so I decided to make them again, but with a different twist. This is fabulously delicious and fresh tasting. Despite the cream sauce, it tastes light. The cream does balance the acidity and the spice well though. I used chorizo, which definitely has a bite to it. You can use a plainer sausage if you want, or you can throw in some cooked chicken (or shrimp).
For an appetizer, Alex made Broccoli Tots from a Buzzfeed recipe. I've posted that here. They were fabulous. I used the leftover lime juice and zest to make lime ice cream here. Some of the juice went into my glass to make fresh Limeade; that recipe is below the zoodles.

Before you start this recipe, we're gonna take care of these limes. You'll need 2 for the dessert, the dinner, and the drink. If you're just doing the dinner dish, you only need 1.
1. Wash them.
2. Zest them using a microplane. Set aside the zest.
3. Microwave them for 30 sec-1 min until soft and warm to the touch.
4. Roll them forcefully on a flat, clean surface. This breaks the little pockets of juice open inside.
5. Cut in half and squeeze out all the juice. Set juice aside in a non-metal bowl (they're acidic!).

Ingredients:
3 zucchini, washed and spiralized
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. heavy cream
6-8 chorizo sausages, precooked and cut into ~1/2 in. slices
3 tsp. lime juice (fresh tastes best)
1/4 c. scallion, washed and chopped
1/4 c. fresh cilantro, washed and chopped (for international readers, I'm talking about the leafy stuff)
2 tsp. lime zest
6 oz. garlic simmer sauce (Wegmans) (if you don't have this, add in 3/4 c. chicken broth and 2 tsp. minced garlic)
dash of onion powder
dash of cumin
black pepper to taste

Saute the chorizo in a bit of oil or butter until hot. Add cream cheese, cream, garlic simmer sauce, lime juice, lime zest, and spices. Cook on medium and stir until well combined. When it's warm enough it'll bubble a bit. Before you add your zoodles, cut them up a bit so they don't ball up together in the pan. Add the zoodles. Add in the cilantro and scallion. Mix well. When the zoodles are soft, turn off the heat and serve. Garnish with a bit of fresh cilantro if you want.

Limeade

~1 Tbsp. lime juice
2 packets Splenda (or favorite sweetener)
10-12 oz. ice water

Combine and stir until sweetener is dissolved. Enjoy!

Creamy Pesto Zucchini Pasta with Italian Sausage

In celebration of 1000 views, this is something I made tonight that I had to stop myself from going back and getting 2nd, 3rds, and maybe even 4ths... Alex loved it and so did my mom. Safe to say that it's a crowd pleaser. Thanks for the 1000 views, you all are great!

Creamy Pesto Zucchini Pasta with Italian Sausage

3 zucchini, washed, ends chopped off, and spiralized into spaghetti sized strands

3 oz. pouch or jar (drained) of sun dried tomatoes, chopped finely

8 oz. brick cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. heavy cream

~7 oz. basil pesto (I used Wegmans Italian Classics)

~6 Mild Italian sausages (or Hot if you like)

2 tsp. minced garlic

McCormick Italian Herb Seasoning Grinder (or similar) and garlic powder (optional)

bit of olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Lay down a baking sheet and lay a silicone mat or parchment paper on it. This will make the oil drips much easier to clean. Set a cookie/cooling rack on top. It's better to use a slightly too big baking sheet than have your rack hanging off. Make sure the cooling rack is only metal. The rack helps circulate air underneath the sausages so they get evenly done. Lay the sausages on the rack and using a basting brush, coat them in some oil. Twist the seasoning grater over each sausage and then lightly sprinkle with garlic powder. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until no longer pink inside.

In a large skillet, mix softened cream cheese, pesto, garlic, tomatoes, and heavy cream. Use a rubber spatula to incorporate the cream cheese into everything else the best you can. Add in the zucchini pasta and stir, coating the zoodles. If the sausage is still cooking, cover the skillet and let sit on low. The zoodles will shrink a bit and the sauce will get smoother and more...plentiful...something like that. When the sausage is done, slice it up and add to the zoodles. Mix to coat and serve.