Quick Dinner Idea: Italian Sausage & Shrimp Pasta w/ Chicken

I am a self proclaimed Kitchenista. A girl who knows how to cook and isn't afraid to try new things. Tonight we were thinking about going to dinner at one of our favorite family restaurants, but then I decided that I could cook something just as good for half the price. Not to mention that we'd all have leftovers for lunch the next day. I would say that I am a food conscious person. I think about what we eat. I buy fresh or frozen veggies and I try to make sure we aren't over indulging on lots of red meat. I do not over obsess about buying everything organic, or making sure we're buying grass fed meats. I do what I can, when I can. Sometimes I have time to make meals from scratch and sometimes I have to whip somehting up in a jiffy. Tonight was a "jiffy" kind of night.

I started off by seasoning two chicken breasts and 41-50 large shrimp with the seasoning below. They're about $3.50 a piece. A little goes a long way.

 The chopped shallots I'll need for the sauce and the cherry tomatoes and mushrooms to add later.

Raw shrimp unseasoned

I always keep this in the freezer. It changes everything! :-)

Seasoned shrimp. I also added a little dill weed.

For the sauce

Using the same pan that you cooked the sausage in sautee the shrimp with some olive oil and butter.

In the same pan add the shallots, cooking wine (to taste), minced garlic and butter. Cook to carmelize shallots. When done, add mushrooms. Swish around pan.

Add cherry tomatoes. Swish.

Dump Pesto. Swish.

Add a nice bit of heavy whipping cream. About a tablespoon or so. Swish. Let it cook a few minutes, turn on low.

Add your sauce and sausage to pasta. Mix together.

Plate for a small.

Plate for a tall.

It's not the prettiest presentation but not too bad for someone that was holding a 30lb toddler. Yum!

My First Garden

I decided that I would plant a garden in pots this year. Last year my Mother's potted garden produced so much that I thought I'd give it a try. Savannah and I headed over to the PXtra. The PXtra is like a Wal-Mart without all the extras. What you don't find at the actual PX, you find in the PXtra. I bet whoever came up with those names was a clever person. [insert sarcasm] Anyway, I digress. We decided to get 2 tomato plants, 4 hot pepper plants and 3 herbs. Basil, Parsley and Cilantro. The Parsley looks pretty sad but everything else seems to be thriving. As long as I get at least one tomato and one pepper from this garden I will consider it a success! Here's a peak at my little garden in pots.

Tomato and Peppers

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Basil and Cilantro

Thank You Jeanette Jenkins

Let's face it. I'll never be 18 again. Or 21 for that matter. But I have to say that I felt pretty good last week at the beach 19 months post baby. I guess I have Jeanette Jenkins, Green Tea and Biotin supplements to thank for that. I can also thank my toddler who provides me endless amounts of cardio on a daily basis. Looking good is more of a feeling than a physical description. I don't have a goal weight or size. Just a feeling.

Swimsuit - Target by Merona, $34.99
Fedora - Aldo, Let's say it was about $20, can't remember the exact price. ;-)