Shrimp Penne Pasta With Pesto & Sun Dried Tomatoes

So a couple of weeks ago I made some yummy pasta for dinner and boy was it good.

Really quick and easy to make.

Things you'll need

• Half a bag of penne pasta (8oz)
• Jar of already made pesto(8oz)
• Jar of sun dried tomatoes in olive oil
• Package of shrimp
• Fresh parmesan cheese 

1.  Bring 2 quarts(8cups) of water to a boil.
2.  Pour in pasta and cook for 10 mins or until Aldente.  
3.  While pasta is cooking pour pesto and and sun dried tomatoes into the blender and mix. Also wash and clean shrimp. 
4. Warm a cooking pan with olive oil in it and place shrimp in the pan. Cook shrimp on high for about four to five minutes or until done.
5. Drain pasta and mix shrimp, pasta and tomato pesto mix altogether.
6. Garnish with parmesan cheese. 

Enjoy :)

Yours Truly,

Gurl Chat xo

Cajun Salmon & Asparagus

So I love salmon! I eat it at least once a week but, sometimes I get a little bored with the way I cook it. So this past week I decided to spice it up with Cajun seasoning and it was amazing!

All you need:

• Foil
• Salmon 
• Asparagus trimmed
• Olive Oil
• Cajun Seasoning- Note: you can buy any already made Cajun seafood seasoning at your local store or you can click the link below to make your own.
•  http://www.food.com/recipe/the-best-creole-cajun-seasoning-mix-186029

1. Place Salmon on a medium square of foil and sprinkle it with olive oil front and back.
2. Season salmon with Cajun seasoning 
3. Wrap salmon in the foil to create a foil packet and place it in the oven on 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
4. While salmon is cooking place asparagus in a skillet on a medium fire and drizzle with olive oil and Cajun seasoning. Cook for about 8 minutes or until tender.
5. All done! Enjoy :)

 Yours Truly,

Gurl Chat xo

Biscuits & cocoa

Hey ladies over the weekend I made some cheddar cheese drop biscuits and hot chocolate. It hit the spot Saturday morning. Biscuits and cocoa are great for cold weather and Christmas :)

The Recipe for the Cheddar Cheese drop biscuits :

3 cups all purpose flour 

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup butter *melted

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

1 1/4 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In large bowl stir in flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cream of tartar. Then stir in butter and mix until mixture looks like crumbs. Then stir in cheddar cheese  and mix it well. Last but not least add in milk and mix. 2. line baking pan with non-stick foil and lightly grease. Use a large spoon and drop the dough onto baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown .

The Recipe for Cocoa:

2 cups of milk

1 1/2 ounces semi sweet chocolate*chopped 

sugar to taste

whipped cream

marshmallows 

cinnamon 

1. Combine milk ,chocolate and sugar over a medium saucepan heat. Mix well until everything is blended  and remove from heat . Pour mixture into a mug and garnish with marshmallows, whipped cream, and cinnamon.

Yours Truly,

Gurl Chat xoxo

Quickie Anyone?

Ok ladies get your mind out of the gutter. Gosh! lol just kidding. So with the holidays in full force it's time to start planning. Like I said before holiday season can be supper fun but, also super stressful if you have a ton of things to do. Here are two really-quick recipes that I got out of the holiday Food Network magazine and they are yummy and cost effective. That's one thing I hate about certain recipes they call for to many ingredients. I've had that happen to me many times at the market when I've tried to recreate a dish and it's caused me to go broke in the process lol. These two dishes won't do that to you. they're perfect if  your bringing a dish to a holiday party or, if your hosting a holiday party yourself. The recipes are short, simple and sweet :)

The recipe for the Greek-Style Shrimp Bites

Things You'll need:

1. 12 small shrimp or as many you desire *I recommend pre-cooked shrimp.It will save time.
2. 1 tablespoon olive oil
3. 1 teaspoon honey 
4. 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
5. teaspoon salt
6. Dash of pepper
7. 4 thin slices of lemon
8. 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel * Tip if you don't have a grater for the lemon peel, cut a lemon in half  and squeeze it for a little lemon juice to add to the hummus.
9. Box of Keebler Town House Flat-bread crisps. 
10. Classic hummus * I recommend Baba Foods spicy black bean hummus.It gives the bites an extra kick

Directions

1. Thaw shrimp, if frozen.In medium bowl toss together shrimp, olive oil, honey, oregano, salt and pepper.

2. Preheat grill pan over high heat. Add shrimp. Cook over high heat for about 20 to 30 seconds for pre-cooked shrimp. If you decide to use fresh shrimp, cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque.

3. Place lemon slices on grill pan. Cook over high heat for 2 to 4 minutes or until they begin to brown  turning once. Remove from pan. Cut each slice into segments.

4. In small bowl stir together hummus and lemon peel or juice if you don't have grater for the peel. Spread about 1 teaspoon of hummus mixture on each cracker. Top each with piece of shrimp and lemon segment.

The recipe for the Herbed French Bread 

Things you'll need:

1.Baguette 

2.Butter

3.Fresh Thyme or dried thyme

4.Chopped Chives

5.Salt

6.Pepper

Directions

1.Slice a baguette on a sharp diagonal to make 8 long pieces.

2. Butter both sides and season with salt & pepper.

3. Arrange on a baking sheet.

4. Combine 3 tablespoons chopped chives and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or dried thyme.

5. Sprinkle on the bread and bake at 400 degrees until crisp, 15 minutes. If your oven cooks food quickly I recommend cooking it at 350 degrees :)  

Yours Truly,

Gurl Chat xoxo

Holiday Treat

Hey darlings! Here's a quick and easy holiday treat for you  ladies. Lets face it the holidays can be stressful with tons of things to do. Sometimes there's just not enough hours in the day to whip out grandmas holiday recipes. Don't worry Gurl Chat to the rescue. This treat is called peppermint bark, that I got out of the Redbook magazine.Super easy and fun to make and perfect for any holiday party. Also an easy treat to make with kids if your a mommy because it doesn't get super messy :)

• Things You'll Need:
• cookie pan
• wax paper
• butter knife & chopping knife
• glass bowl
• peppermint candies (crushed)
• 12oz bag seimsweet chocolates

1. Take bag of chocolates and pour into cookie pan. With a sharp knife chop chocolates as coarsely as possible. 2.Pour chopped chocolates into bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute. While chocolates are in the microwave, clean cookie pan and line with wax paper.Remove bowl from microwave and stir. Return bowl to microwave for 15 more seconds. 3. Remove bowl and pour chocolate onto wax paper and begin to smooth with butter knife.Begin to sprinkle crushed peppermint onto chocolate.4. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Peel from wax paper and begin to break into pieces.

Extra tip: If you want to jazz up your bark add 3oz of white chocolate into your mix for a swirl pattern. Also for breaking up your peppermint use the end of heavy cooking spoon. It will make breaking up your peppermint easy :)

Yours Truly,

Gurl Chat xoxo