foodie friday

Back at the beginning of January, Christian and I started meal planning with TheFresh20.com
It's seriously been the best thing ever!
We are both working a ton, and school is crazy, and when you add the commute to our routine, I don't have the time or patience or motivation to cook stuff.
And let's be honest, even though I would love to eat JDawgs for dinner every night, that just won't fly!

The awesome thing about our meal plans is the weekly menus incorporate a lot of the same ingredients into each meal, so it's WAY cheaper then just buying a bunch of groceries haphazardly.
Each week has a theme, which is also fun, because you can get a total Asian/Mexican/American fix if you need it!
It's also super healthy, which we love.
We usually only eat meat with our dinner 2-3 times a week, and it's usually just chicken or fish.
Every meal usually has a ton of veggies, and sometimes we modify it and add even more.

It's also super fun to cook WITH Christian every single night.
He's such a champ and helps me with everything!
It's something we both love, and it's fun to both prepare and try new meals together

Basically, I'm a believer. 

So I guess what I want to do each week is share our feelings about that week's plan, 
what we would do differently, 
and what our favorite meal was. 
Because seriously, cooking is one of my very favorite past times, and I would LOVE to share this stuff.
 

This has been my favorite meal out of every week so far:

Shrimp Scampi
with wilted arugula and pine nuts

*This recipe feeds about 4 people, so we halfed it!*

For angel hair pasta
8 ounces whole wheat angel hair
pasta (or linguine)
For shrimp scampi
3 Tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/3 cup dry white wine (chardonnay
or Sauvignon Blanc)
1 lemon, zested and juiced to yield 3
Tablespoons of juice
Pinch of kosher salt
Pinch of black pepper
1 pound medium size, completely
peeled and deveined fresh shrimp
*Substitute ¾ pound of chicken
tenders.
4 cups baby arugula, about 4
handfuls
¼ cup golden raisins
2 Tablespoons toasted pine nuts
* optional
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Garnish
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Black pepper

For the angel hair pasta
Bring a large pot of water with a heavy pinch of salt to a boil. Add in
pasta and cook for 6 – 7 minutes or until aldente. Drain, reserving ½
cup of pasta water, return to the pot, and set aside.

Meanwhile
For shrimp scampi
1. Heat a large, nonstick sauté pan over medium heat and add in
oil. Once the oil is warm, carefully (to avoid splashes) stir in
garlic, white wine, lemon zest and juice, and salt & pepper. Stir
to combine and simmer for 1 minute to combine all the
flavors.
2. Add in the shrimp and toss to coat. Cook the shrimp for 3 – 4
minutes or until the tails are bright pink.
3. Add the shrimp, wine sauce, and reserved pasta water to the
pot of angel hair pasta. Stir in arugula, raisins, pine nuts, and
salt & pepper.
4. Garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese and black
pepper. Serve warm.

So freaking good!
Can't wait to experiment and share next week's favorite recipe!