Buffalo Shrimp with Blue Cheese Dip

While perusing Epicurious's new recipes, I came across a recipe for buffalo shrimp. Those who know me might have noticed my particular love for buffalo chicken fingers, blue cheese and a cold beer-with grilled shrimp, it is just a smidgen healthier for you! (Not healthy, but healthier...)

I've adapted this based upon ingredients available local grocery store (hello, Duluth, MN) and my lack of remembering to bring a grocery list.

1 lb de-veined, shelled shrimp (leave last part of shell on tail)
1/3 cup Frank's buffalo hot sauce
3 tablespoons butter, melted
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1/2 cup blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup sour cream (I always use full fat, because it tastes richer, but feel free to substitute lower fat or 1/2 plain yogurt and 1/2 sour cream)
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 chives, minced

Mix together blue cheese, sour cream, milk, lemon juice and chives. Add and pepper to taste.

Lightly salt and pepper shrimp and drizzle with olive oil.

Heat grill to medium-high heat (or use a George Foreman grill if it's raining, like I did).

Whisk together melted butter and buffalo sauce, pour into medium sized bowl.

Grill shrimp for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until pink and firm.

Toss shrimp in buffalo sauce.

Serve with blue cheese and your favorite vegetables.

Blue Cheese Burgers with Portobello Mushroom Caps

This recipe can be altered to suit your tastes-I used blue cheese, but feta, cheddar, jalapeno jack, Gouda-anything can be used in its place!

Ingredients:
2 lb lean ground beef
2 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (depending on how much you like it)
1 medium Vidalia onion (already diced and sauteed in olive oil until translucent)
3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 large portobello mushroom caps
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 hamburger buns

Using your hands, mix together beef, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and blue cheese.

Form into 8 burger patties (with the added ingredients they are about 1/3 lb patties).

Thoroughly wash mushroom caps and let dry. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Heat grill on medium-high.

Brush each side of burger with a little olive oil to prevent from sticking to grill.

Sear burgers about 2 minutes on each side.

Turn heat down to medium. Add mushroom caps to grill.

Cook burgers and mushroom caps about 8-10 minutes, flipping once to cook evenly.

Remove burgers and mushroom caps from grill. Slice mushrooms into strips.

Grill buns until lightly toasted.

Place burgers on their respective buns, top with a few strips of mushrooms and garlic aioli, mushroom, ketchup or whatever your stomach desires!

Shrimp, Red Pepper and Basil Pasta with Charred Zucchini

1 recipe Easy Red Pepper and Basil Pasta Sauce, a little fresh basil and parmesan cheese reserved for garnish
2 zucchini
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 lb large shrimp, de-veined and tails removed
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 lb linguine pasta

Prepare pasta sauce according to directions. (This may be prepared the day before serving).

Marinate shrimp in 1 tablespoon olive oil, white wine, crushed red pepper and garlic.

Preheat oven to 400.

Heat large pot of salted water on high heat.

Wash zucchini. Slice in half lengthwise and cut each half into 4 chunks. Toss in 2 tablespoon olive oil and cook in oven 15 minutes, turning once. Turn oven to broil and cook about 5 minutes until vegetables are just beginning to char. When this happens, remove from oven.

While zucchini are roasting, boil linguine until al dente. Drain, and toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

At the same time that pasta and zucchini are cooking, heat up large saute pan over medium high heat. Cook shrimp for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until they turn pink. Remove from heat.

Heat up pasta sauce until simmering. Toss noodles in pasta sauce.

Place pasta with sauce onto 4 large dinner plates. Divide charred zucchini amongst plates and top with cooked shrimp.

Garnish with reserved fresh basil and Parmesan cheese.

Steak Skewers with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 shallot, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
Freshly ground black pepper
24 oz skirt steak (buy steaks and cut them into 1 1/2 inch wide strips)
1 cup coarsely crumbled Maytag blue cheese (about 4 ounces)
1 cup milk
Kebab skewers

Coat steaks with olive oil and cover with shallot, garlic and ground pepper. Marinate overnight.

Preheat oven to 450.

Heat up cheese and milk in saucepan over medium heat. Stir until melted and bubbling. Turn heat to low, stirring occasionally.

Skewer steak strips. Place on cooking sheet on top rack of oven. Cook 4-7 minutes depending on how well done you like your steak, turning once so that strips brown.

Serve with blue cheese dipping sauce.

Asparagus with Herbed Parmesan Butter

Simple and delicious, this dish compliments pasta, steak, chicken, just about everything. It can be prepared ahead of time, then broiled just before serving.

Ingredients:
2 lbs asparagus
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons butter
3 cloves minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons basil
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400.

Rinse asparagus and cut off tough ends. Bring large pot of water to boil. Add salt and asparagus. Let cook 2 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking process.

Mix together lemon juice, basil, garlic and butter in small bowl. Microwave to soften butter, but do not let it melt. Mix in Parmesan cheese.

Place asparagus spears neatly in 9x13 cooking dish. Spoon butter mixture evenly over asparagus. Cook in oven about 7-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and is starting to turn golden. Remove from oven.

Artichoke, Sun Dried Tomato and Cheese Potstickers

Ingredients:
Wonton wrappers
2 cloves garlic
1 can marinated baby artichokes, drained
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil
3/4 cup Belgioioso Fontina cheese, cut into small squares 1/4 inch thick
1 cup grated or shredded Belgioioso Parmesan cheese
1 cup Belgioioso Asiago cheese, cut into small squares 1/4 inch thick
1/4 cup minced fresh basil (2 teaspoons dried basil may be substituted)
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 cup cream or evaporated skim milk

Chop up artichokes. Mince sun dried tomatoes and mix with artichokes. Heat up oil from tomatoes in saute pan over medium-high heat. Add artichokes and tomatoes and turn to medium. Cook about 3-5 minutes, stirring to prevent mixture from sticking to pan. Remove from heat.

Chop up and grate cheese if needed. Reserve 1/2 cup Parmesan for use later. Mince basil and add 1/2 of the basil to the cheese mixture. Add cooled artichoke-tomato mixture to cheese and stir well. Add crushed red pepper if you want to add a little kick to the recipe.

Add a small scoop of cheese-artichoke-tomato mixture in the center of each wonton wrapper. Moisten the edges with water and seal, pressing the edges with your fingers.

Add a 1/2 tablespoon tomato oil to saute pan and at medium-high heat, add minced garlic. Turn heat to medium, cook about 5 minutes or until garlic is tender but not brown. Remove garlic from pan, reserve oil in pan.

In small sauce pan, heat up cream with garlic and parmesan cheese over medium heat, stirring until cheese has melted. Remove from heat, stir in remaining basil and set aside.

Heat saute pan at medium-high heat. Add wontons and brown them on both sides. Add 1/2 cup water to the pan and quickly cover to allow the wontons to steam through. Repeat this process until all wontons are first browned, then steamed; reserve and keep warm.

Drizzle parmesan-basil sauce over wontons before serving.