Quick Dinner for Two

One of the issues I have with cooking is, cooking for two. As Americans we are use to getting big portions and that's how I cook. Even though my son is not a heavy eater. I still cook like it's about five us. I could say, "well, there will be leftovers and I won't have to cook tomorrow." Which is true but only partially. Reality is I like to eat and eat till I'm full. Maybe even stuffed. So, an actual two portioned dinner doesn't seem like enough food. In my journey of eating healthier I've learned to eat less and enjoy more. Before I ate more and enjoyed more. I had to make sure everything on my plate was finished and seconds was always an option.

Now, that I eat healthier and try to incorporate more fruits and veggies in my diet, portion control is next on the list. I'm also in a rush and I don't have a lot time to cook today. As I am wondering through Kroger pressed for time they had a frozen pack of Shrimp Scampi on sale. It has two point five portions and a breeze to cook. I rush home and go thru my cabinets and frig to see how I can turn this into a meal but still take no more than 30 minutes to cook. I've been laying off the pasta but it's Friday and I just wanted some noodles. I then grabbed a red bell pepper, a onion and some spinach from the fridge, and frozen corn from the freezer. I started boiling my water for the noodles. Then cutting up my bell pepper and onion. When my water started to boil I added salt and oil to the pot. Added my thin spaghetti noodles and grabbed a skillet. I put oil in my skillet and begin sauteing my onions, peppers, and some chopped garlic. I added red pepper flakes and seasonings. Once the onions became translucent I added some of the frozen corn. When the corn was no longer frozen and started cooking through I then added my shrimp from the pack. This is gonna give you a little watery consistency at first but just let it cook through. When my shrimp started turning pink I added the spinach. Just keep stirring until the spinach cooks down. By this time maybe a little bit sooner my noodles were done and I dumped them in the strainer and rinsed with cold water. I didn't save the starchy water because you don't want to dilute your scampi by adding water. I buttered my noodles and Viola...dinner!

You can add more butter to your scampi if you need to. I added just a teaspoon of vegan butter to mines. To plate just grab some noodles place on a plate or in a bowl then spoon the shrimp scampi over the noodles. To make a complete meal you could add a salad and a dinner roll.

For substitutions you could use wheat pasta or brown rice. If you are eating low carbs you could put over spaghetti squash or cauliflower rice. Tomatoes would give the scampi sauce some depth. I had it with my son but you could easily turn into a date night or romantic dinner. I love those meals that look like you slaved over them but they were really simple and full of colors. They give you time to plan other things and not be stressed. Let me know if you try this and how you liked it.

As always eat responsibly. Bon Appetit'