Shrimp Cocktail, Mexican Style!

This dish is fresh, crunchy, healthy, and a super cool treat on a hot summer day.  So, why did I make it in the middle of Winter?  What can I say, I have a thing for shrimp...

Let's do this!

You Will Need:

• 2lbs Jumbo Shrimp (Cleaned, boiled, tails removed, chilled in the fridge)
  
• 3 Celery Stalks, (halved lengthwise and chopped fine)
• 2 Jalapenos, (finely chopped)
• 1 large Cucumber, (finely chopped)
• 2 Avocados, (peeled, pitted, chopped)
• 2 Bundles of Fresh Cilantro, (finely chopped)
• 1 Small Purple Onion, (finely chopped)
• 2 Limes, (juice)
• 1 Orange, (juice)
• 2 Cups Spicy Tomato Juice (or Spicy V8)
  
• 1 Cup Tomato Sauce
• 1 Tbsp Horseradish
  
• 2 Garlic Cloves, (finely chopped)
• Cayenne Pepper Hot Sauce, (to taste)
• Salt/Pepper, (to taste)

This dish is super easy:

Mix all of the fruit and veggies together in a bowl.  Sprinkle in some salt and pepper to taste and stir it again.  

In a rather large bowl, mix the tomato juice and sauce together, stir it all around until it's uniform.  Taste it, and add as much hot sauce as you like.  Add the horseradish and give it a final stir.

Dump in the veggies and stir to combine.  

Add the shrimp last and be creative.  If you're taking this dish to a pot-luck, you might want to lay the shrimp out on top of the cocktail in a creative way with some lime wedges.  If you're like me, you'll just stir it all together and park it in the fridge!  It makes a lot!

To serve it, you can either scoop a portion into a glass (above) or just ladle some into a bowl and eat it like a nice refreshing cold Ceviche! You can't go wrong, it's a nice low-calorie lunch of deliciousness!

Great Soup! Fantastic Soup in Four Easy Steps!

Is there anything better than your favorite hot soup on a cold day?  NO!  There is not!

Since there are an infinite number of soups and recipes to make them, I thought I would simplify your grandmother's basic soup recipe, so you can adapt it to your favorite goodies (apologies to grandmothers everywhere).  Let's do this!

You Will Need:

• 4 Cups (give or take) of your favorite veggies
• 3 Cups (or so) of your favorite protein
• 12 Cups (more or less) of your favorite soup stock
• 2 portions of your favorite starch (noodles, rice, etc)

Step 1: Dice up a bunch of your favorite veggies.  If you like carrots?  Add more carrots.  If you hate celery?  Don't add any celery!  Typically, this will include some or all of the following:

• Onions (yellow or red)
• Celery
• Bell Pepper
• Carrots
• Jalapenos
• Potatoes
• Tomatoes
  

Into your big soup pot, "blurp" in some good olive oil and heat it up over medium high heat.  When it's shimmering, dump in your diced veggies and stir them around.  Season them with some salt/pepper. Stir and saute them.

Step 2: Dice or shred your protein.  For this round of soup, I had a bunch of turkey leftover from Christmas dinner so I used that.  But you can use whatever protein matches your veggies.  Beef and Barley, Ham and Bean, etc.  When your veggies are tender (onions are clear, carrots are soft), dump in your protein.  Stir, stir, stir, bump the heat up a little.  Stir and cook everything for about ten minutes. 

Stock.  Let's talk about soup stock for a sec... I am NOT a fan of the cardboard quart-sized cartons of stock (any flavor).  They either have WAY too much salt or no salt at all.  They have a "processed" taste to them, and they can be expensive.  The best soup stock in the world is FREE!  Just make it at home!  I mean, for simplicity sake you could just drop a whole chicken (skin, bones, and all) into a pot, cover it with water, and simmer it for 3 or 4 hours.  Pull the chicken out, let the stock cool.  Shred all of the meat off of the chicken bones, put it in a bowl and use it for Step 2 above!  Season your stock to taste and use it for Step 3!  There are some amazing recipes for stock out there.  The best ones use roasted bones, red wine, brandy, exotic spices, etc.  Go nuts!  The point is, you want a stock that is amazing and delicious on it's own, without the veggies and/or protein so... take the time and do the work!

Step 3: Add the stock!  Pour in enough to cover your tender bits by at least an inch or so.  Stir it all together, bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a low simmer.  Strap on the lid and walk away from it for about an hour.  Let it come together... After an hour or so, taste it and give it a final seasoning.  This is where I add any "secret ingredients" like Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper sauce, garlic powder, Italian seasoning... whatever floats your particular boat!

Step 4: Add any starches you like to the pot and simmer one final time.  How long you simmer depends on your starch.  Spaghetti noodles?  Ten minutes of simmering should do the trick.  Rice?  20 minutes.  Big thick soup noodles?  15 minutes.  Just simmer, stir, and check on it every ten minutes or so before killing the heat and calling it "Done!"

Ladle it into your best crock, add a hunk of your favorite bread, and then look out the window and mock the snow that's outside!  Get your fireplace going, put your feet up, and tell everyone to leave you alone for awhile... Good soup should be savored!!