Thursday, March 29, 2012

Surf 'n Turf Paella

Surf 'n Turf Paella (adapted from Food Network)

I originally found this recipe on Food Network and it was good, however I made some changes. I make this for my husband, it is one of his favorites. The best part of it is healthy and only 370 calories per serving.

Ingredients:
  • 1 1/4 cups uncooked basmati brown rice, rinsed
  • 9 oz boneless strip steak
  • salt/pepper
  • cooking spray
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves (minced)
  • 1 medium sweet onion (halved and sliced)
  • 1 bell pepper (seeded and chopped)
  • 2 plum tomatoes (chopped)
  • 1/2 cup broken whole-wheat spaghetti
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 tsp saffron threads (crushed)
  • 1/2 cup frozen peas
  • 1/2 lb raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
  • 1 tbsp sliced black olives
 Directions:
  1. cook rice in a large pot of salted water like you would pasta (about 30 mins)
  2. Season steak with salt & pepper and then spray each side with cooking spray
  3. Cook steak on a large skillet on medium-high and flip ... about 10 minutes for Medium, then let rest.
  4. Heat oil in same skillet on medium-high heat and add garlic, onion, bell peppers... cooked covered and stir occasionally until onions are soft
  5. Stir in tomatoes, broken spaghetti, chicken broth and saffron until pasta is cooked
  6. Drain rice and add to pot with peas until warm
  7. Add shrimp and cover until shrimp is pink
  8. While shrimp is cooking, slice steak against grain into small strips and lay over paella
  9. Sprinkle with olives.
Enjoy!!!

Monday, March 19, 2012

Dream Home

Dream Home
Dream Home



When my husband and I first entertained the idea of purchasing our first home, the home on the left is what I pictured. A beautiful large traditional home with fireplaces, lots of natural light, a welcoming entrance with porch (maybe even with a swing) and other welcoming details. Yes, that is exactly what I wanted. I could picture every detail... every detail except the 2.6 million dollar price tag that came with this home... that is when reality set in, we could not afford a house as large as this. However, we did set out  to find a home in our price range. Although, we did not get everything we  I wanted, we did find a lovely home that we made our own (after lots of renovations)! More to come on the renovations later!