Tandoori Shrimp and Scallop Pizza

I have to admit something...I am not as fond of pizza as I was in my youth.

Unless it has unique ingredients, and has a brick oven crisp to the crust. Thick doughy crust, tons of cheese, and so much sauce is just not my thing these days. Could it have been all the years of birthday parties at Chuck-the-Cheese (and I spelled this wrong on purpose). I know un-American of me right?

Take rolled out thin crust, add Tandoori sauce (many markets such as Whole Foods carry pre-made Tandoori in their Ethnic sections, or Asian markets sell powders) and yogurt, along with some shrimp and scallops- Heaven!

I know this is the third Tandoori post in the past months (and there are more), but I like it better than pasta sauce based dishes. Spicy flavors are number one on my favorite eats.

Since I sensitivity to wheat, the crust is gluten free; it comes out so thin, and I solve the taste problem (gluten free breads and crust are not so tasty) by brushing the crust in the beginning with homemade roasted garlic olive oil.

Now all I need is too build a brick oven in the back yard and I am all set!

Tandoori Seafood Feast!

Yes it was a feast, because I ate way too many shrimps for my own good!

I selected this recipe for the 'Stick To Your Ribs' recipe exchange for my facebook group. Also my trainer, Brian and I talked about what we were making Friday, he gave me the idea for this meal.

First I preheat oven to 375 degrees, and then I prepared some basmati rice with a cilantro pesto- cilantro, onion, garlic, oil, and lime juice. Saute 1/4 cup onion in oil, add 2 3/4 cups water or veggie stock, boil. Add 1 1/4 cup basmati rice and pesto, cook about 15 or so minutes on medium heat with tight lid on. Remove from heat, let sit 5 minutes or so, then fluff rice.

Tandoori powder (2 1/2 T) mixed with oil and orange juice (traditional, lime). Mix with yogurt (2/3 C) and marinate shrimp and scallops (separate, as cooking time will vary) for an hour. Top off with cilantro, and I added some Aleppo pepper. I bought medium spice tandoori powder, and it was not hot enough. Give the seafood space to allow heat to cook at a faster time. You do not want to over cook them either. Bake 375 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes. Once you pull them out, they will continue to cook, so plate immediately. How do you know the seafood is cooked? Trust me, you do not want to over cook them.

Served over mix green and mache salad. Orange Raita is 1 orange- segments, orange juice of one small clementine, 2/3 cup yogurt, 1/2 onion- small slivers, 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, some small chopped tomato pieces, 1/4 cup oil, 1 clove garlic- finely chopped, pinch of salt. Stir and let sit about an hour before serving. Some might throw a pinch of sugar into the mixture, since I found the oranges I bought this time of year to be a bit bitter/sour. I found after it sat in yogurt, the mixture worked beautifully with the spice of the tandoori.

This was our Valentines meal part one. Next, Lamb Loin Roast with Tandoori...I opted not to have it all in one night, and I am glad; it would have been way to heavy, and I am off to the gym to a TRX class.

Happy Valentines to you and yours, and if you do not have one- take yourself out, or prepare a special meal just for you!

Tepary Beans and a Hungry Chef

When hubby and I were visiting Arizona we stumbled upon an evening Farmers Market. The heat is so intense early morning and throughout the day, they have it in the evenings. There I found some beans I had not tried before- Tepary Beans. Deciding what to do with them the past few months has been daunting with the trip and a time crunch. I love to get creative, and did not want to just throw them in a bowl as a side dish. I wanted them to shine.

Howeverrrrr...an old memory of my parents eating them simply dressed as a main dish with corn bread. Or possibly make some unique baked bean recipe is floating around in my head, I have to find it. My parents would cut up fresh onion and jalapeno's, top them off, and they were great! However, I do love sweet and spicy baked beans, but with my diet concerns, I had to watch additives and risk my sugar levels going too high.

Reading Tepary beans still hold their shape after cooking, and have this wonderful nutty flavor, I decided to match them with something smoky. What luck, we bought pecans at the Arizona market (soak the pecan shells for a few hours, so they do not burn fast). I could not find pecan wood for smoking brisket and had heard you could use the fruit to accomplish the same results. So I used my stove top smoker to cook and smoke two ribeye steaks.

Like most beans you soak the Teparies over night. (Reading) You cook them in water from 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours, so I was not sure. Using the pressure cooker works as well. I tried the 1 1/2 hour technique, medium high heat and cover with lots of water, and it worked just fine- adding eight cloves of garlic, celery, red onion, and a pinch of salt to the water to flavor them up. I wanted the garlic and saved the water for moistening the dish. I might use it as a vegetable stock, so I froze the leftover water for later.

The final result of our dinner- fantastic! Not to mention hubby getting to use his fancy steak knives from Toledo, Spain-

What did I put in my Tepary bean salad? I added small chopped red onion, pecan pieces (reminded me of cracking pecans for my mom's pecan pies and candy as a young girl, ugh!), chopped jalapeno, cilantro and cumin pesto I had made, 1/2 squeezed lime, the crushed garlic cloves, and a pinch of salt.  What really worked with the beans, is mashing the cooked garlic along with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a few tablespoons of the bean water, and a squeeze of 1/2 lime.

Yum! On the pecan smoked steaks (which I smoked twenty minutes, and then pan grilled in the top part of my cast iron smoker) with the beans on the spinach and mache salad.

I will find out what the dietitian thinks of this dish, because I was a little worried I had put a fatty meat (4 oz) with a meat substitute (beans and lentils are still carbs). Then I read that Tepary are among those beans with the lowest glycemic index, about 30. So along with dal channa, they are one of the better meat substitutes.

This bean salad will be on the menu again and soon! Check out this 'hummus' recipe using these beans...

Want to know what one of the nicest dietitian's we all know and love has to say about 'Loosing weight and keeping it off'? Chow and Chatter over at 'Eating Weeds' with this Hungry Chef!