Stuffed Peppers

Growing up in Arkansas stuffed bell peppers were a staple meal during the summer. I made a slightly healthier version since Grant is all P90X right now. They turned out amazing!

Stuffed Peppers:
Start by cutting the tops off of 3-4 bell, red, or assorted peppers and set the bottoms to the side. Dice the tops, excluding the stem, into bite sized pieces.

Dice 1/2 of an onion and saute' the pepper tops and onion in a Tablespoon of butter over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until soft. Add to skillet 1/2 lb of chicken sausage (ground beef, super yummy regular sausage, or whatever sounds good to you) Cook with onions and peppers until sausage (meat) is fully cooked.

Drain any excess grease from pan. (there will not be any if you use chicken or turkey sausage and you may need to add a little olive oil to help these lean meats cook) Reduce heat to low and add 1 can of diced tomatoes with juice.

Let all this simmer while you cook 1 cup of rice. Once rice is steamed and ready, add to tomato mixture and salt and pepper to taste. Fill the empty pepper bottoms with the mixture, spreading any extra into the bottom of the cassarole dish. Top with parmasean cheese or cheddar (more fattening but delicious!) and bake at 350* for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy :)

Garlic Lime Shrimp

I have been hooked on peel and eat shrimp that you bake in a spice packet called "Cajun King, BBQ shrimp mix" It takes only 15 minutes to make and they are swimming in spicy butter, which screams for me to dip bread in and eat the entire pan. Unfortunately, Grant has decided that he is doing the P90X Challenge and a 1/2 pound of butter in one meal is unacceptable. So using my favorite marinade, I tried a healthier version of this super easy recipe.

Garlic Lime Shrimp:
Thaw a 1-2 pound bag of frozen peel on shrimp (I like the jumbo EZ peel at HEB)
Line a baking dish with the thawed shrimp and sprinkle with a moderate amount of Kosher salt (I say moderate, because you will be peeling them and it takes a little more to get the job done)

Sauce/Marinade:
In a food processor combine the following:
Juice and zest of 2 limes (zest is the peel finely grated)

1 pod of garlic
1 bunch of cilantro
1T olive oil

Spread mixture over shrimp, mix around until they are all coated, then pop it in the oven at 400* for 10-15 minutes. Once the shrimp are curled and pink they are ready. Don't over cook. I thought they were amazing! No cocktail sauce needed, just plenty of napkins.

Homemade Lemonade

After a long afternoon of yard work this weekend, Ava and I decided to make lemonade. not the country time kind, but actual lemonade with real lemons!

Homemade Lemonade:
2 large lemons juiced (I use the basic juicer which looks like a cone over a bowl, you can squeeze them through a strainer if you don't have a juicer) Set aside
In a small saucepan over medium heat warm 4 cups of water with 1/2 cup of sugar, stir as it heats and as soon as the sugar dissolves remove from heat
Add your lemon juice, stir and pour over ice. yummm! I garnished ours with lemon wheels, however, strawberries, basil leaves, and mint are pretty garnishes that add different flavors.