• 2/3 cup bottled clam juice, or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic, divided
• 3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 pound raw shrimp, (21-25 per pound), peeled and deveined (see Ingredient note)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, or parsley
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Lemon wedges

PREPARATION

1. Combine clam juice (or broth), cornstarch and half the garlic in a small bowl; whisk until smooth. Set aside.
2. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining garlic and crushed red pepper to taste; cook, stirring, until fragrant but not browned, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Saute until the shrimp are pink, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
3. Add the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to the pan. Add broccoli and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add water, cover and cook until the broccoli is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the shrimp.
4. Add the reserved clam juice mixture to the pan and cook, stirring, over medium-high heat, until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in basil (or parsley) and season with lemon juice and pepper. Add the shrimp and broccoli; heat through. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges.

• 1 pound zucchini,shredded
• 2 cups shredded cooked potato, (see Note)
• 2 medium shallots, minced, divided
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 cups fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs, (see Tip)
• 1/2 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 cup low-fat plain yogurt
• 1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and shredded
• 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 450° F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Toss zucchini, potato, 3 tablespoons shallot and egg in a large bowl. Add breadcrumbs, feta, 1 tablespoon dill, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; toss to combine. Form the mixture into 12 patties.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 6 patties, cover and cook until crispy and browned on one side, 2 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer the latkes to the prepared pan, browned-side down. Repeat with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and patties.
4. Transfer the latkes to the oven and bake until firm and heated through, 10 to 12 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, prepare tzatziki: Combine yogurt, cucumber, vinegar, the remaining minced shallot, 1 tablespoon dill and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a small bowl. Serve the latkes with the tzatziki on the side.

TIPS & NOTES

• Note: Shredded cooked potatoes can be found in the refrigerated produce section or dairy section of most supermarkets.
• Tip: To make fresh breadcrumbs: Trim crusts from firm sandwich bread. Tear bread into pieces and process in a food processor into coarse crumbs. One slice makes about 1/3 cup crumbs.

Aunt Janny-June's Red Potato Salad

This recipe is from Aunt Janet!  It's one of the best potato salads I've ever tasted.  It combines the creaminess of real mayo with decadent blue cheese.  It's all finished off with the fresh crunchiness of yellow onions, scallions, and celery.

Ingredients 
2.5 lb of red potatoes, cut into 2 inch cubes (leave the skins on)
1 c real mayonnaise
1/2 - 1 c of crumbled blue cheese (start low and add and more, tasting as you add)
2 T sherry vinegar
1/2 c yellow onion, diced
1/2 -1 c diced celery
1 bunch of scallions, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Boil the potatoes until soft.  Mash slightly and add the sherry vinegar.  Set aside until completely cooled.  

Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.  

Remember that you must never let mayo sit for too long out of the refrigerator because it can cause food poisoning caused by staph aureus.  

Sweet Corn with Basil

Inspired by the delicious meal I had at the Leaping Lizard Cafe!  This is so good, you'll never serve corn any different way :-)


Ingredients
4 ears of corn, shucked
15 basil leaves, minced
2 T butter
salt to taste

Cut the corn off the cobs and separate the kernels.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat and melt the butter.  Add the corn and basil and cook, stirring frequently for 4-5 minutes.  Salt and serve immediately.    

Ingredients
1 medium potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 medium yam, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, thinly sliced into rings
2 small or 1 large zucchini, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces
Salt and pepper
2 large ripe tomatoes, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch thick slices
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons dried Italian-style bread crumbs
Fresh basil sprigs, for garnish
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Toss the potato, yam, bell pepper, carrots, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss until coated. Spread vegetables evenly over the bottom of the pan.

Arrange the onion slices evenly over the vegetable mixture. Arrange the zucchini over the onion. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange the tomato slices over the zucchini.

Stir the Parmesan and bread crumbs in a small bowl to blend. Sprinkle the Parmesan bread crumbs over the vegetables in the baking dish. Drizzle with the last tablespoon of olive oil.

Bake uncovered until the vegetables are tender, and the topping is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil sprigs, if desired.

Source: Giadia

Ingredients

• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
• 2 medium zucchini or 1 large zucchini, cut into thin strips
• 2 yellow squash, cut into thin strips
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs or herbes de Provence
• 1 pound farfalle (bowtie pasta)
• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

On a large heavy baking sheet, toss all of the vegetables with the oil, salt, pepper, and dried herbs to coat. Transfer half of the vegetable mixture to another heavy large baking sheet and arrange evenly over the baking sheets. Bake until the carrots are tender and the vegetables begin to brown, stirring after the first 10 minutes, about 20 minutes total.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Toss the pasta with the vegetable mixtures in a large bowl to combine. Toss with the cherry tomatoes and enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve immediately.

Source: The EatingWell Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook

INGREDIENTS

• 2/3 cup chopped plum tomatoes
• 1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped Kalamata olives
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary, or 1/8 teaspoon dried
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 4 portobello mushroom caps, 5 inches wide
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

PREPARATION

1. Combine tomatoes, cheese, olives, garlic, 1 teaspoon oil, rosemary and pepper in a small bowl.
2. Preheat grill to medium.
3. Discard mushroom stems. Remove brown gills from the undersides of the caps using a spoon; discard gills. Mix the remaining 1 teaspoon oil, lemon juice and soy sauce in a small bowl. Brush the mixture over both sides of the caps.
4. Oil a grill rack (see Tip). Place the caps on the rack, stem sides down, cover and grill until soft, about 5 minutes per side. Remove from the grill and fill with the tomato mixture. Return to the grill, cover, and cook until the cheese is melted, about 3 minutes more.

How to Stir Fry Anything from ehow.com

• Invest in a nonstick or carbon-steel wok (you need to season a carbon-steel wok). While you can stir-fry in any old skillet, the wok's depth and sloping sides (it's cooler there, so you can move ingredients away from the hot bottom to the sides) are ideal.
  
  
• Prepare everything you need before you begin to stir-fry. Cut all your vegetables and meats and prepare your sauce. Stir-frying is fast; you won't really have time to chop the broccoli while the onion is cooking.
  
  
• Make sure that your vegetables and meats are all cut approximately the same size - bite size, as a matter of fact. Stir-frying uses high heat, so pieces must be small enough to cook through without burning.
  
  
• Learn the different cooking times of meats and vegetables. You'll need to stagger additions to the stir-fry according to how long they take to cook. (For example, you'd add onions first, and stir-fry for about 2 minutes, then add broccoli florets and stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes, then add red bell pepper and stir-fry for 2 more minutes.)
  
  
• If you've got a wok full, stir-fry the meat completely first, then add it back in at the end. (This works well for a large assemblage of ingredients, because you ensure the meat cooks fully but not too much.)
  
  
• Heat the pan first, then add oil. When the oil is hot, add aromatics, such as ginger and garlic, and stir-fry for a few seconds, or until you smell them.
  
  
• Start adding your other ingredients, according to their approximate cooking times. When the food is about two-thirds done, add your sauce. If the food will take more than a few minutes more to cook, cover and steam until done. If it will take less time, continue to stir-fry.
  
  
• Practice the basic technique of lifting under the food in the wok with a spatula or other flat utensil and moving it to the side.
  
  

Stir Fry Sauce from Yummly.com
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1-3 tsps ginger (grated)
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp honey
1.5 tbsps cider vinegar
2 tbsps sherry wine
3 tbsps cornstarch

Combine all ingredients except cornstarch.  Place cornstarch in a separate bowl and slowly whisk in everything else until desired consistency.  When your stir-fried vegetables are done, pour the sauce in and stir from the bottom, keeping the wok or pan at a higher heat. In a few minutes the sauce will thicken.