Pesto Shrimp Salad Stuffed Avocados
Ingredients:
Pesto:
3 packed cups of baby spinach
3-6 garlic cloves
3 TSP olive oil
Small handful walnuts
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and chop until
desired consistency. Depending on your preference, the
pesto can be chunky or as smooth as you like it.
Cook, peel, and clean 12 large shrimp. Set aside until
completely cool, leaving the shrimp in the freezer for a few
minutes if necessary. Once shrimp are cool, chop shrimp into
small chunks.
In a large bowl, toss the chopped shrimp and pesto until
completely coated. Then add 3 TBSP of 0% Greek yogurt.
Toss the shrimp, pesto, and yogurt until well combined.
To serve, cut an avocado in half, remove the pit, and fill the
center/cover the top with the shrimp salad. Sprinkle with
chopped walnuts and freshly ground black pepper.
For more information, check out Meghan’s site at www.traveleatlove.com.
Eating nuts doesn’t have to be strictly for snacks as you run out
the door. In fact, nuts can be a vital part of your main dinner
course. Nuts are ideal as breading for meats and fish because
they pack a protein punch. Michelle Kim-Lee, author of the
popular Boston website Fun and Fearless in Beantown (www.
funandfearlessinbeantown.blogspot.com) has generously offered
to share her popular recipe for Spicy Peanut Encrusted Chicken
Tenders with us.
Spicy Peanut Encrusted Chicken Tenders
Ingredients:
1.5 to 2 pounds of chicken tenders
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
1.5 cups of unsalted, shelled peanuts
Garlic powder (to taste)
Crushed red pepper flakes (to taste)
1 to 1.5 cup of spicy or flavored mustard
White rice wine vinegar (1-2 tablespoons)
Vegetable oil (1-2 tablespoons)
Cooking spray
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking sheet.
Trim fat off of chicken tenders and pat dry.
Combine peanuts, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes,
and garlic powder in food processor. Pulse until finely
chopped to bread crumb texture. Place peanut mixture in
shallow baking dish.
Add white rice wine vinegar and vegetable oil to mustard
by the tablespoon until the mustard reaches an egg-like
consistency for dredging.
Coat the chicken tenders in the mustard mixture and then
dredge in peanut mixture.
Place breaded chicken tenders on a sprayed baking sheet .
Bake the chicken for about ten minutes and then turn the
chicken tenders over to bake for an additional ten minutes (total baking time: twenty minutes).
For more information, check out Michelle’s site at www.
funandfearlessinbeantown.blogspot.com.
When we think of nuts, we don’t often consider that peanut
butter is a nut product. However, general store brands of peanut
butter are packed with trans fats and sugar, often stealing away
their nutritional value. And while almond and cashew butter
are healthier alternatives, they tend to cost around $10 per jar.
With the help of Tina from popular lifestyle blog Carrots n’Cake
(www.carrotsncake.com), here’s a healthy and reasonably priced
method for making your own nut butter.
“I find that a lot of nut butters, besides peanut butter, are
typically pretty expensive, so I save money by making my own
“hippy” butter at home,” she tells her readers. “I use peanut
butter as the base, but then add various other nuts and seeds to
increase its nutritional profile and make it a little more fun.”
Tina’s “Hippy” Butter
Start with a jar of peanut butter as well as your choice of nuts
and/or seeds. You can pretty much use whatever is in the pantry.
This week, I had a bag of walnuts, the remnants of a bag of sliced
almonds, golden flaxseeds, and chia seeds.
Add your nuts, seeds, and a big scoop of peanut butter to a food
processor. I don’t measure anything, but the key is to find a
peanut butter that is a little oily on top when you first open the
jar. The peanut butter and oil help to smooth out and blend with
the nuts and seeds to make it a nice, course nut butter.
Then grind/blend until you get your desired nut butter
consistency. I typically end up adding another scoop of peanut
butter to get it just right.
Store in an old jar and enjoy your “hippy” butter!
For more information, visit Tina’s site at www.carrotsncake.com.
When it comes to snacking on nuts, the best method of portion
control is to use your hands. A handful is really the maximum
amount of nuts you should consume in one sitting, due to their
relatively high levels of fats and calories. Don’t get me wrong;
nuts are nutritional powerhouses with potential to lower
cholesterol and stave of cardiovascular disease. However they do
possess rather high quantities of fat. While they may be healthy
fats, too much of a good thing isn’t a great idea. Think of nuts
as a smarter substitute for unhealthy proteins, like red meat. So
don’t relegate your nuts to the back shelf of the kitchen cabinet
with the leftover jar of peanut butter. There’s a whole lot of
potential in those tiny things; it just sometimes some creativity to
bring it out.
Next Categories: Fitness
