Shrimp Scampi

This is a HUGE childhood memory for me and my sisters.  Our Mom would make Shrimp Scampi on very rare occasions and we would all look forward to it each time!  This recipe is so simple.  It's all made in a baking dish in the oven.  We have tried many different variations of this recipe but the classic original recipe has stood the test of time!  

Ingredients:

2 lb of raw large shrimp, shelled and deveined
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons Lemon Zest
3 Tablespoons Fresh Lemon juice
3 Tablespoons Fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 lb Butter (1 cup or 2 sticks)
1/2 teaspoon Salt

Cooked Pasta Aldente (any type you like)


Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Melt butter in 5x7 baking dish in the oven.  Add garlic and salt to melted butter in the baking dish.  Arrange shrimp in bottom of baking dish in a single layer and bake for 5 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Turn shrimp over and sprinkle with lemon zest and lemon juice.  Place back into oven for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Place cooked pasta on a large platter, arrange shrimp on top of pasta, pour remaining garlic butter over the top and sprinkle with chopped parsley.  Serve immediately!

Lemon Zucchini Muffins with Lemon Glaze

We just returned from spending the summer in sunny California!  What a nice extended vacation.  We stayed with my Aunt who has the most fabulous fruit trees in her backyard.  How nice to go out and pick a lemon, orange or apple anytime we wanted.  I use lemons ALL the time when I cook and bake so this was just super convenient.  Also since it was so nice and hot where we were and you pick the lemons fresh off the tree you get this warm very juicy piece of fruit to use which was so easy to extract juice from.  The kids made fresh lemonade a few times which they absolutely LOVED.  The recipe that I made, Lemon Zuchinni Bread was super delicious and light and refreshing.  The perfect summer treat.

Beautiful Lemon Tree

Ingredients:

1 c grated Zucchini
Zest of 1 lemon
2 TB lemon juice
1 c sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk (or scant 1/2 c of milk with 1 TB lemon juice mixed in)
2 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tap salt

Lemon icing
1 c powdered sugar
2 TB lemon juice
1 TB milk

Preparation:

For cake mix dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder) together and set aside

In large bowl beat eggs, add sugar and oil and mix until combined.  Next add buttermilk and lemon juice and lemon zest. Fold in grated Zuchinni.

Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until well combined.

Pour into prepared lined muffin tins to make muffins or a greased loaf pan to make a cake.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 min for muffins or 40-45 min for loaf pan.

For the icing combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk together.  Drizzle over warm cake.

Enjoy!

Lemon Cookies

I saw this recipe on Aunt Nubby's Kitchen when she linked it up to our Sharing Sundays theme YELLOW.  They looked so good that I had to take a look.  I really love anything lemon.  Then I saw how easy they were to make and I never saw a cookie that used Cool Whip as one of the ingredients.  I was too curious not to give them a try myself.  Unfortunately I didn't have all the right ingredients so I made some minor changes and they came out really great.  The biggest difference is that you are suppose to use powdered sugar to roll the dough in and I used granulated sugar.  The taste is still really good but I think the powdered sugar is so much prettier once they are baked.  The other major difference is that I didn't have a boxed Lemon Cake mix so I used a plain Yellow Cake mix and added extra fresh lemon and lemon zest.  I'm going to make them again soon following the recipe exactly and see the difference. If you would like to see the original recipe please click on the link above for Aunt Nubby's Kitchen and it will take you right to the recipe.

Ingredients:

1 box of yellow cake mix
1 egg
Zest from 2 lemons
Juice from 2 1/2 lemons
1 - 8oz tub of cool whip (I used light)
3/4 cup of granulated sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat baking liner.  In a large bowl add cake mix, lemon zest, lemon juice and egg and mix until combines well.  The mixture will be crumbly.  Then add whole tub of cool whip and mix to combine.  The batter will be very sticky.  Place bowl in refrigerate and chill batter for at least 1 hour.  Remove batter from refrigerator.  Put sugar in a small bowl and with a teaspoon drop a small amount of batter directly into sugar.  Spoon sugar on top of batter and then roll with your hand.  The sugar helps you to roll the dough into balls with out it sticking to your hands.  Place balls on lined baking sheet and bake for 17-20 minutes until cookies are light brown.  Let cool a little bit on sheet and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Lemon Ice Box Pie

 I found this recipe while browsing around some of my favorite food blogs.  This was posted on Brenda's Canadian Kitchen and it looked so good and sounded so simple that I just had to try it.  I absolutely love any kind of lemon dessert but this now may be one of my new favorites.  It's light and lemony and has just enough tartness to cut the sweetness.  It's the perfect summer dessert.  I used fat free cream cheese instead of regular and you could not tell at all.  I also left out the vanilla because I had just run out but I didn't miss it at all either.

Ingredients:

1 -8 oz  fat free cream cheese at room temperature

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon of lemon zest

1 graham cracker crust

Preparation:

Using a hand mixer beat together the softened cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice and lemon zest until smooth and creamy.  Pour mixture into a prepared graham cracker crust and refrigerate overnight.  Serve with whipped cream.

Linked to This Chick Cooks
Linked to Sweet Treats Thursday

Raspberry- Lemon Trifle

I am definitely on a trifle kick lately. It is fun to create different flavor combinations and make a delicious dessert that is a crowd pleaser. This one looks really pretty and the flavors of lemon curd and whipped cream remind me of lemon meringue pie (one of my favorite desserts). Trifles are great to make for a party since it serves a lot of people and does not require any actually baking. If you want you can certainly bake your own cake and make lemon curd from scratch but they make perfectly good pre-made ingredients that you can find in your local market. This particular trifle was made in a small trifle bowl. If you have a large bowl you will need to double your ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 Entemann's lemon pound cake, cubed
1- 1 1/2 cups of strawberry or raspberry preserves
1- 1 1/2 cups of lemon curd or lemon pie filling
2 pints of raspberries
1 tub of cool whip

Preparation:

Place a layer of cake cubes at the bottom of a trifle bowl. Spread strawberry jam over cake layer. Then a layer of raspberries. Next a layer of cool whip. Then more cake, lemon curd, raspberries and cool whip!!

Linked to This Chick Cooks
Linked to Made it on Monday
Linked to Melt in your Mouth Monday
Linked to Cast Party Wednesday
Linked to Sweet Treats Thursday
Linked to Foodie Friday
Linked to Sweets for Saturday

Lemon Chicken with Artichokes and Capers

Tonight's Dinner - 1/4/11


This is so delicious and easy to make.  It's one of my husbands favorite dishes (even though it's a newer dish I started to make)  If you don't like artichokes or capers just leave them out.  This recipe makes a big family portion (10-12) so just halve the ingredients to make a smaller amount. Serve over pasta or rice with roasted asparagus.  YUM!

Ingredients:

12 chicken cutlets (thin)
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Garlic powder to taste
All-purpose flour
4 tablespoons butter - divided use
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (also known as Italian parsley)
Lemon slices for garnish (optional)
1 can of artichoke hearts drained
1/4 cup of capers drained and rinsed

Preparation:

Season cutlets with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Dredge in flour, shaking off excess.
In large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter and oil over medium-high heat until hot. Cook cutlets on each side until golden brown, about 5 minutes or until the juices run clear. Remove from pan; keep warm.
Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in same skillet, add 2 tablespoons flour and cook for 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, stirring up any browned bits from the bottom of skillet. Heat to boiling and cook until thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and parsley. Season with additional salt and pepper, as desired.

Arrange chicken cutlets in a baking dish and add artichoke hearts, capers and lemon slices.  Pour lemon sauce over the top, cover and bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes until heated through.