Winter Recipe Roundup

2/12/2021

It's cold and snowing here in Seattle. Snow in Covid-times is a wild feeling. I've been cooking a ton, since we're always here. .

I've been making warm and comforting grub lately. You'll see a lot of delicious cheese, succulent shrimp, and other foods you want to eat in a cozy and cold environment like Seattle in the winter. Bleh. Let's eat cookies!

Pizza Bagels

I can't stop making pizza bagels. I made them for my birthday dinner (as an appetizer) and for a Super Bowl Sunday halftime snack.

Everybody loves a pizza bagel. Trader Joe's has a great gluten free bagel option (shown here). Vegetarians and meat eaters can all find toppings.

They taste much better than the frozen variety, cook faster than a frozen pizza, and customizing toppings makes this great for all types of appetites.

Ingredients:

Bagels
Pizza sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Toppings of choice - pepperoni, black olive, more cheese, etc.

To make:

Preheat the oven to 350*
Halve the bagels and arrange them on a baking sheet
Top with pizza sauce, cheese, then toppings
Bake until the bagel edges are crisp and visibly golden brown
Cut them in half for more polite snacking

Shrimp and Mushroom Quesadillas

A shrimp and mushroom combo is one of my favorites.

These quesadillas were great and so quick to make. I tend to overstuff mine so Bryce and I each had one HUGE quesadillas.

Ingredients:

Tortillas
Shredded cheddar cheese
Mushrooms
Frozen corn
Chile lime adobo seasoning (or similar)
Avocado
Sour cream

To make:

Cook the shrimp - combine shrimp and 1 Tbsp. salt, and 1 quart water in a medium pot. Set over medium-low heat (you want water to slowly come to a bare simmer) and cook until shrimp are just cooked through, 10 - 12 minutes total. Drain shrimp and let them cool.
Heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat with extra virgin olive oil.
Add tortilla to the pan for 1-2 minutes, then flip over to crisp both sides before adding cheese, mushrooms, corn, and shrimp to the tortilla. Top with some more cheese and the other tortilla. Flip once (carefully) when the bottom tortilla is golden brown. Cook until both sides are golden brown and cheese is melted.
Slice and serve with sour cream, salsa, and avocado slices.

Thai Coconut Curry Shrimp

The original recipe from Tessemae's is made with cauliflower rice since it's Whole30 Compliant. I used swapped Tesse's peppers for cauliflower and her fake rice with the real stuff. This created another cooking appliance (my rice cooker) and ruined the one pot feature of the dish but it was worth it.

I actually couldn't find Tessemae's Lemon Garlic dressing and marinade but another brand did just fine!

This dinner was comforting, spicy, and delicious!

Rice Bowls with General Tso's Cauliflower

I'm in love with the general tso's cauliflower made by Kevin's Natural Foods. I've only seen it at Costco (in the Shoreline, WA store) but I've seen different Kevin's products elsewhere.

I used the spicy cauliflower to make a rice bowl and called it dinner. You can use the real deal with chicken or any other saucy centerpiece for your rice bowl, of course. Teriyaki salmon would be great!

Rice: Cook your choice of rice any way you'd like. I have a rice cooker and will never ever go back to cooking rice another way.

Veggies: Include other cooked veggies to your liking. I steamed broccolini and threw a can of baby corn in for the last 1-2 mins of steaming to heat them through.

Crunch: Use furikake, seeds, or nuts to add some crunch to the top of the bowl.

Seaweed papers: These things are AMAZING. They are crisp until you touch a warm food item to them, then they get all bendy and sticky. You can then use them to roll rice and veggies into. It's always fun to eat with your hands!

Snickerdoodle Party Cookies

I made these Snickerdoodle Party Cookies for my sweet Mamma's birthday this year!

The Figs and Flights community is all about sharing the best stuff.

Get in touch if you try one of these recipes and also love it.

I'd love to know how you put your own spin on a recipe.

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