Shrimp Scampi

I have a small victory to celebrate. Yesterday's metcon portion of the workout consisted of push-ups, ring rows, and ring dips. Ring dips have been something on my bucket list to accomplish unassisted since I started CrossFit. I've been using the same purple band to help me through the range of motion for at least two years. I arrived at the gym yesterday just before the class before mine started their workout and decided to go chat with the other athletes over by the rings while they set up for their WOD. I make attempts all the time to complete a strict ring dip, but to no avail. Well, yesterday, for the first time, it just happened! I couldn't believe it! I thought No way this will happen again! But sure enough, I tried again and I totally locked out and completed a second ring dip without any assistance! Three years of CrossFit and I can FINALLY do a ring dip. I did a couple more, just to be sure I wasn't dreaming, lol. Sadly though, when we got to the WOD, the push-ups put my ego in check and reminded me that being able to do them in isolation is one thing, but add in other movements and they become extra hard. Haha. So that purple band came out again to assist. But I still walked away yesterday with a great feeling. Hopefully when I walk back into the box today, I'll still be able to do them ;o)

Switching gears on you, let's talk food! Pasta is one of those things that I really want to miss because I ate it so often growing up. But in truth, I really don't. It sits so heavy and makes me feel like garbage just thinking about eating it. I can't even tell you the last time I had a big bowl of pasta! But there are some beautiful dishes that just wouldn't be the same without noodles. I really like using zucchini noodles because it keeps the dish very light and adds a bright color to it. Toss them in a lemon-butter sauce with some shrimp scampi and voila! you've recreated a popular Italian dish. 

Shrimp Scampi with Zucchini Noodles

Prep Time: 1 hour (inactive) 45 minutes 
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours
Serves: 2

Special Tools:
Spiralizer, or julienne slicer (which will take a little longer)
Colliander
Large bowl the colliander will sit in
Large saute pan

Ingredients: 
2 large zucchini
1 lb large wild caught shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed.
2 1/2 tbsp of ghee, divided
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 small lemon, juiced
1 tbsp of white cooking wine
1 tbsp of fresh parsley, chopped or 1 1/2 tsp of dried parsley
salt

Instructions:
1. Use the spiralizer to turn your zucchinis into noodles. If you don't have a spiral machine, you can use a julienne slicer to make your noodles. 
2. Place the noodles into a colliander and sprinkle with salt to draw out the moisture. Let it sit for about 30 minutes. Then rinse and pat dry the noodles as best you can with paper towels. 
3. Leaving the noodles in the colliander, place the colliander inside a large bowl (to collect the draining liquid) and place the bowl into the fridge for an hour. This allows you to have really dry noodles. Take them out and let them sit on the counter while you prep your garlic and lemon. 
4. Place a large saute pan over medium-high heat and allow the pan to get hot. Add 2 tbsp of ghee.
5. Toss in the garlic and move it around to let it become fragrant, about 30-45 seconds. 
6. Add the shrimp and half the lemon juice. Saute until the shrimp are cooked through and the liquid has nearly entirely evaporated, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove the shrimp from the pan.
7. Deglaze the pan with the white cooking wine and the rest of the lemon juice. 
8. Add the zucchini noodles and the remaining ghee. Toss well to coat and continue cooking until the noodles are heated through, about 3-5 minutes. 
9. Return the shrimp to the pan and season with parsley and salt, to taste. Toss well to combine. Serve immediately. 

Spicy Shrimp with Cauliflower Fried Rice and Steamed Broccoli

Yesterday was a very long day for me. I put in a full day at work, running around like crazy trying to get ready for summer, and then jetted off to CrossFit as soon as I could. I hadn't worked out since the Friday before because my husband and I took a trip to Atlanta to visit my father-in-law for his birthday. It was also our nephews birthday and his cousin's graduation celebration. Needless to say, we did our fair share of celebrating in the form of eating! I'm pretty sure a gained a couple of pounds this weekend and unfortunately, not from overindulging on paleo-friendly foods. Anyway, back to yesterday...my husband ended up needing me to cover his classes at the gym, so my usual 3 hour CrossFit training day turned into a 5 hour training day. I didn't get home until 8:45 pm last night. I gave my husband the task of making dinner and e-mailed him this recipe I wrote up yesterday. He made me laugh when he said, "Well, it's good to know your recipes are pretty easy to follow. If I can do it, then surely anyone else can, too!" Ha! So enjoy this guys. It's a nice light meal with a lot of flavor, exactly what I needed coming off such a glutenous weekend!

Spicy Shrimp with Cauliflower Fried Rice and Steamed Broccoli

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Serves: 3-4

Special Tools:

Food processor

Large bowl

Small bowl

2 large saute pans, one with a lid

Ingredients:

1 pound of uncooked shrimp (I used Trader Joe’s frozen Argentinean Red Shrimp)

1 large head of cauliflower

1 medium shallow

2 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp of fresh ginger, grated

1 egg

1 tbsp + 1 tsp of coconut oil, divided

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 tbsp of sesame oil

2 tbsp of ghee, divided

1 tbsp of coconut aminos

1 tsp of rice vinegar

1/2 tsp of fish sauce

1/2 tsp of toasted sesame oil

1/2 tsp of garlic powder

1/2 tsp of onion powder

1/2 tsp of paprika

1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp of salt

1/4 tsp of ground black pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes.

2-3 cups of broccoli

Instructions:

1. Take the shrimp out of the fridge and let them hang on the counter or in the sink until you’re ready for them.  

2. Chop the cauliflower, removing most of the stems. Use the food processor (use the regular blade) to pulse until they’re in rice-like pieces. You’ll need to do this in stages so the rice pieces don’t turn to mush. It usually takes me 3-4 times. Each time I take the “rice” out and put it into a bowl and then add a little more to the processor. It can get a little messy. 

3. Chop up the shallot, 2 cloves of garlic, and grate about 1 tbsp of fresh ginger. Set aside.

4. In the sauté pan with the lid, put about 1 tsp coconut oil into the pan on medium-high heat. Whisk the egg with a little salt and pepper. When the pan is hot, scramble the egg and then set it aside on a plate. 

 5. Add 1 tbsp of sesame oil  and 1 tbsp of ghee to the sauté pan again. Allow it to heat up and melt. Add the shallots, garlic, and ginger to the pan and cook for a few minutes until the shallot softens a little. Add the cauliflower rice to the pan and stir to combine. Cover and let it begin to cook down for about 10 minutes, stirring once or twice to prevent sticking. 

6. In a small bowl, whisk 1 tbsp of coconut aminos, 1 tsp of rice vinegar, 1/2 tsp of fish sauce, 1/2 tsp of toasted sesame oil. 

7. After 10 minutes, remove the lid, add the liquids and mix well again. Leave the lid off and allow the rice to cook until the liquids have more or less evaporated, stirring only to prevent sticking. Don’t over stir or it’ll become too mushy. It’s done when the rice bits are slightly browned and cooked through. Adjust the flavor with a little salt and fresh ground pepper as needed. Mix in the scrambled egg. 

8. While the rice is finishing up, take the new large sauté pan and put 1 tbsp of ghee and 1 tbsp of coconut oil to the pan. Allow that to heat up on medium-high heat. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 tsp of garlic powder, 1/2 tsp of onion powder, 1/2 tsp of paprika, 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of ground black pepper, and just a pinch of red pepper flakes. Mix that up and then put directly into the pan and swirl around for about 20-30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook on both sides until the shrimp is cooked through. Should be about 4-5 minutes on both sides. If the shrimp is too spicy for you, you can always splash in a little coconut aminos. 

9. While the shrimp is cooking, chop the broccoli. Add it to the big black steamer with just enough water to cover the bottom, a little salt, garlic powder, and fresh ground pepper and steam for 4-6 minutes, stirring half way. 

10. You can add the shrimp right to the rice and mix it up, or put it on top. Whatever you’d prefer. 

Spicy Beef and Shrimp Tacos

A couple of weekends ago I was craving tacos. I woke up Sunday morning and as I was planning out our meals for the week while laying in bed, I started thinking about things that I used to eat that would be considered "unhealthy" in my eyes today. Taco Bell rang out (ha! no pun intended) and suddenly I was in the mood for them. But I will probably never ever again go to that fast-food place to satisfy that "south of the border" craving. The idea of it just grosses me out. Besides, most of the time I feel like cooking my own food, because it saves us money and I know what I'm putting in my body. So then I started thinking OK, if I'm going to make my own, what would be on my ideal taco. Two things immediately popped into my head, bacon guacamole and mango salsa! Those are probably two of my favorite condiments. Then I was kind enough to ask my husband his opinion about the protein. Would he like chicken and shrimp or beef and shrimp? I knew his answer before I even asked, but I just wanted to check. He's funny about chicken. He never really goes out of his way to request it unless he knows its going to be super flavorful, like my Moroccan chicken; so beef and shrimp it would be. I decided to be paleo bad and found some low-carb wheat tortilla soft shells from Trader Joe's that had only a gram or two of sugar, but you could keep it strict paleo and use lettuce cups for the shells or make your own. Lettuce wraps are typically my go-to shell for things like this and burger buns. However, like I said, I was craving real tacos (and I was too lazy to make my own shells on this particular day!). 

*To keep this 21 Day Sugar Detox approved, leave out the mango!

Spicy Beef and Shrimp Tacos

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Serves: 3-4 

Special Tools:
Large saute pan
Cutting board
Chopping knife
2 medium bowls

Ingredients:
1 lb. of grass-fed beef
1/2 pound of large shrimp, peeled, deveined, and tails removed
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 medium green pepper, diced
1 tsp of ghee
My Tasty Guacamole (with bacon)
My Mango Avocado Salsa (though you can leave out the avocado since you're making guacamole)
2 cups of spinach leaves
1 + 1/2 tbsp of cumin, divided
1 + 1/2 tbsp of chili powder, divided
1 tsp + 1/2 tsp of garlic powder, divided
1 tsp + 1/2 tsp of onion powder, divided
1/2 tsp + 1/4 tsp of kosher sea salt, divided
1/2 tsp + 1/4 tsp paprika, divided
1/4 tsp + 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, divided
1 pack of Trader Joe's low-carb wheat tortilla soft shells (or you could make your own like Danielle Walker's amazing Coconut Flour Tortillas recipe to keep this totally paleo)


Instructions:
1. Heat the saute pan over medium heat and add the bacon for the guacamole, until crispy. Then drain the strips on a paper towel and set aside. 
2. Leave the rendered fat from the bacon in the pan and add the ground beef.  
3. Once it begins to brown slightly, add the larger portion of each of the seasonings (the smaller portions will be to season the shrimp), and the diced onion and pepper. 
4. While the beef is cooking, make the guacamole and salsa. 
5. When the beef is cooked through, use a slotted spoon to remove the beef from the pan and set aside, leaving behind the juices from the bacon and beef. 
6. Add the ghee and let it melt. 
7. Add the shrimp and the smaller portions of the seasonings. Saute on each side for about 3 minutes. 
8. Then add the beef back in with the shrimp and stir. 
9. Set your tortilla shells on a plate and spoon some of the beef and shrimp, then add the spinach, a spoonful of bacon guacamole and a heaping scoop of the mango salsa (I won't lie, I piled that sh*t on!).