Honey Lime Shrimp

I come from a long line of shrimp lovers.  My grandpa loves to tell the story of one of the first times they met my mom.  If you know my mamma, you know she's not usually a big eater.  On this first meeting of what would be her future in-laws, they went to an all you can eat seafood restaurant where she apparently made the most of the never-ending shrimp.  The entire table got their money's worth for sure.  Plate...after plate...after plate.  :)

This week, I decided to try a Honey Lime Shrimp recipe, which was perfectly sweet and tangy.

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lime juice
Zest from 1/2 a large lime
1.5 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 pinch black pepper

1/2 pound shrimp (you could do up to one pound)

Directions

Combine first 8 ingredients in a medium bowl.  Add shrimp to marinade and marinate 30 to 60 minutes.

Transfer shrimp to a medium frying pan.  Pour half marinade into pan and simmer on medium a few minutes on each side, or until shrimp turn pink.

Remove shrimp from pan.  Continue simmering remaining marinade for 5-8 minutes for a tasty drizzle.

I served ours with green beans and Garlic & Herb Mashed Cauliflower.  Delicious!

Does this have you in the mood for shrimp?  Check out my Mushroom and Shrimp Pasta in a butter garlic sauce.

Sweet and Spicy Roasted Chickpeas

Husband is a huge hummus fan.  When we first got a Costco membership, I quickly realized we were making up for the membership fee in the money we were saving on hummus alone.  He's a huuuuuge fan.  Since hummus is such a big hit with him, I decided to give roasted chickpeas a try this week.

Since I'm not normally a huge fan of spicy things (I'm a huge wimp), I decided to make two kinds of roasted chickpeas - one set spicy, one set sweet.  Besides being a fantastic snack (they're low in fat and high in fiber), these are awesome because of how easy they are to make.  It's just a mix, stir, and roast recipe, and could easily be thrown in the oven after dinner comes out.

Ingredients

Spicy Chickpeas

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon cumin

1/2 tablespoon paprika

1/2 tablespoon hot Mexican-style chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

Large, 1 pound 13 ounce, can chickpeas (garbanzo beans) 

Sweet Roasted Chickpeas

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 teaspoons honey

Large, 1 pound 13 ounce, can chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

Directions

Strain and rinse chickpeas, then transfer to a large bowl.  Pour wet ingredients (olive oil and/or honey, depending on which you're making) over chickpeas and gently toss lightly.

Mix spices in a small dish to combine.  

Spice mix for "Spicy Chickpeas"

Cinnamon/Sugar Mix for the "Sweet Chickpeas"

Sprinkle dry ingredients over chickpeas and gently toss until they're evenly covered.

Spicy Chickpeas

Sweet Chickpeas

Cover cookie sheet (with sides) with foil, then spread chickpeas evenly.  Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes, or until crispy and golden.  Toss chickpeas halfway through so they don't stick.

Enjoy!

Mass Innovation Nights - Foodie Edition

Wednesday I went to my first Mass Innovation Night here in Boston.  Mass Innovation Nights aim to give exposure to innovative Bostonians' new ventures and help connect these brands, marketers, job seekers, and the media (or just curious people) to create awareness and buzz about cool new things going on in the Bay State.  Each month's event has a theme, and to my great excitement, February was "Foodie".  Obviously I went.  :)

This month, the meet-up was held at the Microsoft New England Research & Development Center (or N.E.R.D Center) on Memorial Drive.

Sorry about the reflection - the view was pretty enough I decided to include it anyway.

Here's a little rundown of some of my favorite finds for the night.

Off the Cob Sweet Corn Tortilla Chips - These chips are made with sweet corn (instead of dry field corn like a lot of brands out there) and seasoned with sea salt and a trace of lime, so they're sweeter than most.  I really liked the chips, but liked the story behind them even more.  Cameron, the founder, told me he got his start in college when he won Babson College's Entrepreneurial competition, a $20,000 prize.  From there, he did a Kickstarter campaign and added another $15,000 to his business.  Here's a recent article on Boston.com about the start up, and a link to where you can buy them online!

Chocolate Therapy - I was excited about checking out this table.  Ever since the truffle making class Ann and I took, I've been interested in different chocolates.  This Framingham-based store uses therapeutic ingredients in most of their truffles - cold pressed olive oil, cayenne, honey, and ginger to name a few.  They were FANTASTIC.  I especially enjoyed "Liquid Caramel" - milk chocolate with a liquid caramel center.  If you don't live in the Boston area, you can check out the online store on their website.

BodyPhysica.com - Ok...truth time...I knew these guys before the Innovation Night, but that doesn't change the fact that they're awesome!  Lisa is a veteran fitness expert and has owned a Pilates studio in Brookline for 15 years.  Last year, she released her first two fitness DVD's - Modern Pilates with Lisa Johnson and Body Physica INTENSE.  Both feature Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced modifications  so there's something for you no matter your level.  Buy her DVD's!

Image from their Facebook page

NoshOnIt - As a foodie and a blogger, I was so excited to hear about NoshOnIt.  This is a curated content network that sends a daily email featuring recipes from up-and-coming bloggers and chefs.  Each day of the week has a theme - Meatless Mondays, Healthy Tuesdays, Sweet Tooth Fridays, etc.  Sign up for whichever themes interest you and enjoy the creative and beautiful dishes the arrive in your inbox each week.  Sign up for their emails here!




BudiBar - Budi Bars were the surprise of the night.  These things were seriously delicious.  The founder developed these superfood packed treats while studying Psychology and Mind/Body at Harvard.  These have "high antioxidant levels, mind balancing Omega-3 fatty acids, mind focusing amino acids, and natural ingredients that time release energy without causing sugar spikes".  Take that 5 Hour Energy!  I sampled the Macadamia with 72% Dark Chocolate and was blown away.  Currently, they're sold in local Whole Foods or you can buy'em online.

Ivyees Jamacian Honey is a new gourmet honey company.  They are currently based outside of Boston, but farms their own bees in Jamacia.  This is not your everyday, comes in a bear-bottle honey guys.  I sampled three of their four flavors and brought home two little sample jars of their "Hibiscus & Sorrel" and "Logwood" honeys.  I can't wait to use them!  You can buy some for yourself at their website.


The other companies in attendance were Bixby Bars, Boston Teawrights, Delectable Desires, KEO Homemade Ice Cream, and Unreal Candy Unjunked.  I couldn't try most of these products because I'm allergic to soy, but did enjoy watching everyone else "ooh" and "aah" as they sampled the products.

Hope you enjoyed seeing some of these new companies as much as I did!  What are some of your favorite new finds?