Shrimp Bake (low carb)

I asked Mike if he wanted some pasta or something for this to go over (it's similar to shrimp scampi) but he declined... after, I think we would have been happier if I had made some cauli-rice to soak up the butter sauce because it was *awesome*!!

 

This picture was taken with the "leftovers" so it's slightly cooled down to explain the butter looking this way.

Ingredients:

• 2lbs uncooked shrimp (I used the 31-40 size), peeled and deveined
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 stick of butter 
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1T basil
• 1t oregano
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400(f) and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (easy clean up).
2. Put shrimp in the lined baking sheet (go for single layer instead of clumped in the middle to ensure each shrimp gets cooked in the sauce).
3. Melt butter in a pan over medium heat.
4. Add the garlic to the butter and let simmer for a minute (so the garlic can seep into the butter).
5. Throw in the lemon juice, basil, oregano, salt and pepper then remove from heat.
6. Pour the sauce over the shrimp (you may need to stir gently to ensure each shrimp is coated).
7. Put in the oven and let bake for 12 minutes (keep an eye on this, if your oven cooks faster like mine does, it may be done in less time).

Low Carb (Cauliflower Crust) Caprese Pizza

So my mom reminded me today that she hasn't seen any new recipes for a long time... and it's true, I've been so busy with everything in life that I haven't been posting.  I also have fully switched my diet to a low carb lifestyle (I need to get ready to put on a wedding dress in less than 5 months, people!), so I think I should focus more on those recipes... and still add some "normal" recipes since they are quite delicious.  So, without further comment, here is the first recipe, and the best low carb pizza crust I've tried to date!

Ingredients (pizza crust):

• 1 medium/large head cauliflower
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1c shredded mozzarella cheese
• Italian seasoning mix
• salt and pepper

Ingredients ("cheap" pesto):

• 1c fresh basil leaves
• 2-3 garlic cloves, peeled (I love garlic)
• 1/2c extra virgin olive oil, separated
• 2T walnuts (yes, pesto is supposed to have pine nuts but $9 for 3oz makes me cringe!)
• 1/4c fresh parmesan

Ingredients (pizza toppings):

• pesto (about 1/4-1/2c or one batch here)
• pepperoni (we love pepperoni)
• 3-4 fresh roma/plum tomatoes, sliced
• 1 lb fresh mozzarella, sliced

Directions (pizza crust):

1. Preheat oven to 400(F) and line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.
2. Cut the cauliflower into florets and use a food processor to make into a "rice" consistency.  If you have a smaller food processor, like me, this will take a few rounds.
3. Add the eggs and cheese to the cauliflower along with seasonings (to taste) and mush together - I use my hands just because I find it easiest.  The "dough" may not stick together very well at this point, but just make sure it's all combined.
4. Spread the "dough" on the lined baking sheet (mine took the entire sheet and was almost to the top of the sides). 
5. Once it's pretty even and patted down, bake for 20-25 minutes until the edges are golden and it bounces back a little bit when pushed (GENTLY).
6. Let the crust cool down for a few minutes before adding toppings, this will give it a chance to become more firm... which is important if you want to eat the pizza with your hands!

Directions (pesto):

1. Put the basil, nuts, garlic, and half the olive oil in a food processor and thoroughly chop.
2. Add the parmesan and drizzle in the remaining olive oil until a wet paste consistency is achieved.
3. EASY!!

Directions (putting it all together):

1. Turn your oven to the broiler setting (I used the low setting since the high one still burns everything I try to cook with it).
2. Now that the pizza crust has cooled, it should be pretty firm... perfect to spread the pesto over (remember, you don't need a huge amount of pesto for a huge amount of taste so while it may look like a thin covering, it's what you're looking for).
3. I added the pepperoni on top of the pesto, then the sliced tomatoes, followed by the fresh mozzarella.
4. Now put the pizza back in the oven until the cheese is melted and delicious looking (about 5-10 minutes)!

****Keep in mind that fresh mozzarella is a lot of water, I patted down the top of the pizza a little bit to remove the little "puddles" that were there when it came out.  Of course, if you're using different toppings, this won't be an issue!!