Zucchini Bruschetta (or as my kiddos call them Zucchini "Boats")

I made these today for lunch and they were DELISH!  The only way to make them better is to make them on a grill outside!  (I'll post a picture tomorrow.)

Ingredients:

• Zucchini
• Cherry tomatoes
• Grana Padano cheese
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• Diced fresh herbs that you desire
• S&P
• EVOO

1. Preheat the broiler on your oven.
2. Wash and cut the ends off of your zucchini
3. Slice the zucchini long-ways right down the middle.
4. Using a spoon, scoop the "seedy" part out of the center of the zucchini  (You don't need to do too much - just enough to make "wells" in the center)
5. Drizzle some EVOO over the flesh side of the zucchini (into the wells) and sprinkle with S&P to taste
6. Place zucchini skin side down on a cookie sheet (if you're grilling place them flesh side down on the grill)
7. Grill/Broil until zucchini is just tender
8. Meanwhile dice or halve cherry tomatoes & toss gently with 1 clove pressed garlic, more S&P to taste and any other fresh herb you might want.
9. Carefully fill the wells of the zucchini with your tomato-garlic mixture and place back in oven/on grill skin side down until tomatoes are starting to crinkle
10. Carefully sprinkle freshly grated grana padano on top of the tomatoes & place under broiler one last time.
11. Allow cheese to bubble and turn golden
12. Let zucchini cool slightly and serve while still warm!

Basil Hummus

I found this recipe on one of my favorite food blogs Simply Recipes and I had to share it because it was so good & super easy!

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 2 cups sweet basil leaves, packed (yes, this is a ton of basil, but its worth it!)
• 3 cloves garlic, smashed then minced
• 2 15-ounce cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained*
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Up to 1/4 cup water
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons salt
• Several dashes Tabasco
• 1 teaspoon tomato paste

METHOD

1. Heat the pine nuts in a small skillet on medium high heat. Stir them when they start to brown. When most of them have lightly browned, remove them from the pan into a bowl to cool. (Reserve a few pine nuts for garnish.)
2. In the bowl of a food processor, place the basil leaves and the garlic. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the rinsed and drained garbanzo beans, most of the pine nuts, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, tomato paste, and a few dashes of Tabasco. Pulse several times, for several seconds each time, until the hummus is smooth. Add more Tabasco and salt or lemon juice to taste. Add water to the point of desired consistency.
3. To serve, place in a bowl and drizzle a little olive oil over it. Sprinkle with a few toasted pine nuts. Serve with pita wedges, crackers, or rustic bread.

Makes about 3 cups

Divine Sauteed Shrimp Cocktail

Well I have a new addiction-since recovering from my HGTV obsession I have moved on to the Food Network. This new infatuation is only slightly more practical in the sense that I may actually be able to do some of the things I see. This recipe is from Giada @ Home who seems to be able to make flavorful dishes with few ingredients, I happened on this one by chance but it is a keeper! Kerry and I ate it as a meal with some crusty bread but it is actually an appetizer.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled, tail left on, deveined
1 tablespoon herbes de Provence
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 cups plain yogurt
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard (recommended: Maille)
1 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 cup freshly chopped basil leaves
Directions
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and herbes de Provence. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the shrimp are pink and cooked through, about 2 minutes each side.
In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, mayonnaise, mustard, maple syrup, turmeric, and basil until smooth. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Place the yogurt mixture in a dipping bowl.
Place the bowl of dipping sauce on a serving platter with the cooked shrimp.

If you have never used herbes de Provence seasoning, or heard of it like me, it is worth the investment!! It was fabulous and easy to find and could be used for many poultry and fish dishes. I used lowfat yogurt and mayo. Don't omit anything, it all adds to the dish, however I would use a little less oil next time (and you could get away without the basil). For those of you that have a Target near by, they sell frozen, raw, peeled, deveined, tail on shrimp that is very good. The recipe makes a lot of sauce but don't worry, mix with some chicken the next day and you have a great chicken salad sandwich. Enjoy!