Shrimp and Celery Salad Lettuce Wraps

This is what I had for dinner. Yum yum! Shrimp and celery salad wrapped in lettuce leaves. Of course, you could use any type of bread or wrap that you like. Or even crackers! This would be good with crab or lobster as well. And maybe some chopped chives, but I didn't have any. If you serve it as a wrap, you can get 2 servings out of it.

1 big serving

Ingredients
3/4 cup cooked cubed shrimp (I just steamed them and let them cool)
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Miracle Whip
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
lettuce leaves to serve

Directions
Mix all ingredients in a bowl except lettuce. Use the lettuce to scoop up the shrimp salad. Yummy!

Linking To

Homemade Healthy Granola Bars

These granola bars are yummy! They taste like oatmeal cookies! Maybe they're not healthy but aren't they healthy-rrrr?

The Dry Mix

All packed down and ready to bake.

Close up of all that goodness.

Fresh from the oven. You'll get a cleaner line if you cut it when it's completely cool, but I couldn't wait!

Chicken Breast with Super Crispy Skin

Yesterday I baked some chicken which I was planning to eat for lunch today (and I did). I wasn’t planning on eating the skin since I’m on a diet (as usual). When my oven timer beeped and I took the chicken out of the oven I was amazed. The skin was so thin and crispy and I didn’t even do anything to it. I was shocked. And, of course, I ate it!

I didn’t take any pictures because I was too busy eating chicken skin. Next time I make it I will. And if it turns out the same way I will never buy boneless, skinless chicken breast again. Well, that’s not true. But I will definitely be baking more chicken this way since I need to find ways to cook faster meals on weeknights. Oh! Maybe next time I’ll try it with a whole chicken! But then I might be tempted to eat all the skin, and that would not be good.

Indian Tandoori Chicken Tikka

We eat Indian food regularly at work. Actually, we have quite a few people on our team from India. Once in awhile, the girl (Mugdha) who sits over the cubicle wall to my left brings in this wonderful smelling food. Finally I had to ask for the recipe because I couldn't stand it anymore. I wanted some and I wanted it bad! Of course, I finally made it and I made a mistake. I added yogurt when her recipe didn't call for it. The problem is she also sent me a recipe for Barbecue Tandoori Chicken in the same email, and that recipe did call for yogurt. I tried to read the recipe and then I went to the kitchen to try and make it from memory. Well, my memory these days isn't so good. The end result was still delicious though.

Her recipe also called for 1/2 teaspoon fenugreek leaves which I didn't have on hand. Next time! Also, notice the cooking technique. I forgot her reason for doing this, but she puts the chicken in the pan and then turns on the heat. I've never done that before but it seemed to work out okay.

I got this in an India grocery store close to where I work.

Mugdha picked it out for me of course.

Here's the finished product. Yum Yum!

No Ordinary Burger Contest

Are you inspired by pork?

The burger got a makeover, and pork lovers are celebrating! 

Even my kids love pork. My husband, myself and our two girls go out for breakfast every Sunday. My 4 year old orders sausages every time. My grandmother used ground pork in her cabbage rolls and stuffed peppers to keep them moist. Pork really is wonderful and there are so many things you can do with it!

You can use a Johnsonville Brat and top it simply with sauerkraut. Yum! And Italian Sausage goes great with sauteed onions, peppers and mushrooms. How would you build your burger?

Build your best burger using Johnsonville Brat or Italian Sausage Patties, and you could win a year’s worth of groceries from WalMart in the “No Ordinary Burger Contest!”

Ignite your inspiration with pork and get grilling!

Now through September 6, log on to the contest page and submit your recipe and vote for your favorite pork burger.

Two grand prize winners will be awarded one year's worth of groceries and their winning recipes featured on Johnsonville Brat and Italian Sausage Patty boxes.

Don't forget to view the contest rules and check out Johnsonville on Facebook!

( Click here to enter the contest! )

Disclosure:  I was invited as a member of One2One Network, to spread the word about this contest, and am eligible for a prize drawing.  Any opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Low Carb Parmesan Flax Crackers

I’m back to low carbing AGAIN. Just in case you wanted to know. The texture of this cracker may not be pleasing to everyone but when you’re living a low carb lifestyle, even a cracker made from flax can be exciting! They are crisp and almost a sandy texture. I made these yesterday and brought them to work today. My friend Nathalie is on Atkins and another girl is on Dr. Poon. Both low carbers. Anyway, they were also pleased with the results of this cracker. Another girl who sits in the cubicle across from me didn't seem too fond of it (even though she didn't say anything). I saw her lonely little cracker sitting on her desk 3 hours after I offered it to her, with the corner nibbled off. When she returned from her lunch I guess she tossed it because it went missing when I went to use her kettle to boil water for my tea. I had a good laugh!

They are good on their own but they are excellent with cheese or dip. You could crush them to use as a coating for meats or you could bake the dough in a circle and use it as a pizza crust. You can roll them as thin as you like, just remember to adjust the cooking time accordingly. You have to be careful, because of their dark colour it’s harder to tell when they’re starting to burn. Next time, I’m going to make them with sesame seeds in the mix. I used the Magic Bullet to grind my Parmesan so it was fine. You can also grind your own flax seeds. A scant 3/4 cup of flax seed should get you enough ground flax to make this recipe. You can also use any combination of spices you like. I may also try it with finely grated cheddar cheese in the mix at some point.

All cut up and ready to go in the oven. They don't have to be perfect.

You can cut squares or triangles. It's up to you.

I snacked on them in the afternoon with some cheddar. Yum!

They were also good with cream cheese.

 

Juicy Chicken Meatballs

You can make these low carb by using a sugar free ketchup or barbecue sauce. This recipe doesn't contain bread and has some veggies in it so it's perfect. They were super juicy and yummy! They were still juicy the next day when I microwaved them for lunch. The spice mix is salty enough so I wouldn't recommend adding any extra salt.

All rolled up and ready to go.

The finished meatballs.