Grilled Marinated Veggies and Shrimp

Last weekend Geoff and I finished exams and had the chance to escape up to my family's cottage for the weekend. Two out of three days it was rainy and cold and gross, but on Sunday it was gorgeous. Sunny, warm, no wind, 15C. Perfect spring weather. Finally BBQ season has commenced.

We went to the grocery store in town and picked up some shrimp (mom, just so you know we didn't even raid the freezer at the cottage... and there was A LOT of shrimp in there) and some vegetables.

The shrimp was probably the best shrimp we have ever made. It's way better than in a frying pan. WAY better. And of course the vegetables were really good too.

It was such an easy and fast meal that I plan on making again and again all summer now that I can finally uncover my own barbecue here in Ottawa.

Ingredients:
1 zucchini, sliced
2 bell peppers of your preferred colour cut into large chunks
1/2 of a large egg plant cut into slices then quartered
Bag of 21-24 sized shrimp
Butter
Garlic
Oil
Spices
Balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper
Wooden Skewers
BBQ grill pan

1. Soak skewers in water (this will prevent them from burning on the BBQ)
   
2. Mix 2 parts oil with 1 part vinegar in a large Ziploc baggy or a large bowl. Add in whatever spices you like (we used rosemary and thyme pluse some others that I can't remember... I just open jars and smelled, using whatever I liked at the time), 2-3 crushed cloves of garlic, 1/4 tsp salt, fresh ground pepper. Make sure you mix it up well
3. Add veggies into the baggy or bowl and cover with the marinade. Let sit at least 20-30 minutes
4. Heat up the BBQ
   
5. Peel shrimp and impale them on the skewers. About 4 shrimp should fit on a skewer. Brush the shrimp with a mixture of 1 clove garlic and 3-4 tbsp melted butter.
6. First put the vegetables on the BBQ grill pan on the bbq and grill until almost done
7. put shrimp right onto the grill. Should take 1-2 minutes per side. Flip when the first side turns pink
8. Serve!
   

Greek Salad and Balsamic Vinaigrette

It's finally getting warmer, so we decided to take a break from the hearty foods we've been accustomed to all winter and opt for something light. This Greek salad was a simple option that we were able to put together with some leftover vegetables from the pizza we made the night before. Sitting out on the deck in the sun was a nice change and brought up a new set of ideas for other summertime meals.

Ingredients:

1 English cucumber

1 yellow bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

2 large handfuls baby spinach

1 red onion

1 large red tomato

Artichoke hearts marinated in oil

Feta cheese

1. Cut the cucumber in 2cm slices, cut the bell peppers into long slices, slice the tomato into wedges, and cut the red onion into really thin slices (add as little or as much as you want... I only added 3 slices since I’m not a huge onion fan. Put in a large bowl. Add spinach
2. Rip apart the artichoke hearts and crumble feta cheese on top. I also added some of the marinade that the artichokes were in to the salad because it tastes so good

Salad dressing:

4tbs olive oil

2-3tbs balsamic vinegar

1tsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp diced garlic

Salt and pepper

1. Mix everything together really really well.
2. Add salt and pepper to taste

Naan Pizza

(Makes two pizzas)

2 pieces of Naan bread (eventually we’ll get around to posting a recipe for naan bread)

1 orange or yellow pepper (we used half an orange, half a yellow) sliced thinly

2 green onions sliced thinly

2 cloves chopped garlic

1 tomato sliced thinly

4 slices black forest ham

Artichoke hearts marinated in oil

Herb goat cheese

Mozzarella

Olive oil

1. Preheat broiler
2. Brush naan bread with olive oil and garlic
3. Layer peppers, green onions, tomatoes, ham, artichoke hearts
4. Crumble a little bit of goat cheese on top of it all
5. Cover loosely will mozzarella cheese
6. Put on cookie sheet and place under broiler until cheese is all melted and starting to brown

Cashew Chicken

Absolutely the BEST chicken you will ever eat. I don't know how it happens, but the baking soda you marinate the chicken in first makes the breasts so silky and tender. It just kind of melts in your mouth, you barely even need to chew the chicken is so tender. The chicken doesn't dry out and go all flaky as it sometimes can when you are stir frying.

Inspired by http://www.rasamalaysia.com/chinese-food-recipe-cashew-chicken/

2 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into squares

½ to 1 cup cashews

2 or 3 peppers (we used yellow and orange but you can use red or green if you prefer)

5 slices ginger

½ cup chopped onion

Marinade:

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp rice wine

Sauce:

1 tsp oyster sauce

1 ½ tsp soya sauce

6 tbsp water

6 dashes white pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp rice wine

¼ tsp sesame oil

Salt to taste

1. Marinate the chicken in the baking soda for 15-20 minutes. After, rinse the breasts thoroughly and pat dry. Marinate for 15 more minutes in the cornstarch and rice wine
2. Mix all of the ingredients together for the sauce and set aside
3. Heat up wok and put in a teaspoon or so of oil, and stir-fry chicken until the meat turns white, or is half cooked. Set aside
4. Add another teaspoon of oil to wok, stir in ginger, onions, peppers
5. Stir-fry until you can smell the peppers and add the chicken back in
6. Add in the cashews, stir and then add sauce
7. Continue to cook until meat is cooked through.
8. Serve! You can eat as is, or you can serve on top of rice