Week 34: Go, Go, Gadget Shrimp Supreme

By kit on August 26, 2017 in Comfort Foods, Heart, Low Carb Recipes, Seafood, Vegetable Recipes with 0 Comments

If I were a superhero, I’d be a combination of Catwoman—for sassiness—Wonder Woman—because who wouldn’t want to be Wonder Woman—and Inspector Gadget. While Inspector Gadget is not an official superhero, he’s resourceful and has the perfect tool for each and every possible occurrence. Twenty-foot wall to scale? No problem, he’s got Gadget Springs in his shoes. Need to see from a long distance? Time for the Gadget Binoculars in his hat. Can’t reach something up high or want to cross a canyon? No worries, “GO, GO Gadget legs and arms” (yes, his limbs are retractable).

Like my favorite inspector, I have an extreme fascination with gadgets, tools, and gear. As a kid, the kitchen drawers and cabinets were ripe with possibility and I was often found rummaging and exploring through them as I tried to guess or make up the purpose of odd shaped kitchen tools and small appliances, like cherry pitters, melon ballers, or meat grinders. Unfortunately for my mom, I would often take these items apart in my quest for discovery and was not always able to put them back together. Oh, and then there was that time that my insatiable curiosity got me into a little bit of a bind, resulting in my fingers getting mangled between the beaters of a standing kitchen mixer. Fortunately, my young fingers were very pliable and no injury occurred.  Despite my mixer mishap, my profound fascination with gadgets, tools, and gear remains to this day. Which brings me to the gadget spotlight of this week’s post…the Veggetti!

The emotional deep dive process of this blog has me challenging myself to do things and to go places that I haven’t experienced before. For example, I’m hiking alone, climbing steep elevations (and going longer distances), wanting to camp out alone at night, biking in places where I’m afraid, learning new instruments, preparing to perform again, learning new skills, boldly communicating, and trying new tricks in the kitchen. But these new skills and challenges come with a crazy list of items I could use to make things safer, more fun, more comfortable, or easier to conquer my fears.

Gear List:  

New backpack
CamelBak water pack
 New hiking boots
Retractable spring loaded trekking poles
Electric bass
Djembe Drum
 Vitamix Blender
 Veggetti vegetable cutter
New knives
Enamel pans
Kayak trailer
Fat Tire bike
New bike saddle
Bike mirrors
 Handlebar extenders
Handlebar iPhone holder
Knobby tires

The problem with such a list is that the expenses really add up!

So, this week, while keeping The 52 Saturday priority in mind, I looked at the list with frustration and asked myself what I could really use this week. What would really make my life easier? The truth is I can do most everything I need to do without the extra gear, but with a $6.99 purchase, I could have the satisfaction of taking the Veggetti off the list. This “As Seen On TV” gadget will help remove the unwanted rice carbs in this week’s recipe and several recipes in the future. It will also save me a tremendous amount of time slicing noodle thin vegetables.

Go, Go Gadget Zucchini Noodles!

Original Recipe

The Process  

I’m hoping my eldest sister Kyle will chime in regarding the mention of “Harmony, RI 1953” in the upper right-hand corner of the recipe card, because that’s the year she was born. I can only assume that’s where my mom, dad, and sister were building their new family, and where mom was getting comfortable with her role as a housewife (think Mad Men) and meal preparer.

This creamy casserole was another comfort food staple, but I don’t remember mom ever serving it over rice. With a creamy sauce and crunchy cracker topping, it barely tasted like seafood, which worked for me!

For the recipe revamp, I decided to eliminate the casserole concept, removing the buttery cracker topping.
Inspired by my mom’s suggestion to serve it on top of saffron rice, I decided to use light coconut milk to impart an Indian flavor.
I removed the butter altogether by using grape seed oil for all of the sautéing, and eliminated the carb calories by serving the shrimp sauce over zucchini noodles. I kept the Worcestershire sauce and the sherry in the recipe, because I was curious about how those work together. Indeed, it was tasty, although I went a little heavy on the sherry, I think.
Also, I simply couldn’t afford fresh shrimp this week, so I used frozen, resulting in rubbery shrimp, so I recommend using fresh. One more note, I couldn’t find fresh lemongrass, but if you can find some (and know how to cook with it), I suggest adding it to this flavor profile, but I’m not including it in the recipe.

Creamy Shrimp Devine (mom’s maiden name)

Ingredients:

1 pound of raw shrimp
2 to 3 cups sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 large tomato diced
1 cup light coconut milk
1 teaspoon Paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Serve on top of zucchini or vegetable “noodles” of choice…get a Veggetti!

Directions:

Cook the shrimp in boiling salted water for five minutes, then drain, cool, peel, and de-vein.

While the shrimp is cooling, slice and sauté the mushrooms, onion, and celery in olive or grapeseed oil over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes.

Add tomatoes, sherry, and Worcestershire sauce and then cook over low heat for 10 minutes.

Add prepared shrimp salt, pepper, and paprika. Slowly stir in coconut milk and simmer over low heat for another 10 -15 minutes to achieve full flavor. Do not boil as this will cause the coconut milk to curdle.