Shrimp & grilled vegetables lemon Orzo

Ingredients

For the marinade:

• 5 cloves garlic, zested

• Zest and Juice of two lemons

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• Salt and pepper

• red pepper flakes (optional) I added 1/2 tsp

• Fresh thyme leaves

For the grill:

• 1 and 1/2 pounds raw shrimp

• 1 red bell pepper

• 1 yellow bell pepper

• orange bell pepper

• 1 zucchini

• 1 yellow squash

For the orzo:

• 16 oz orzo pasta

• Sauté the orzo in 2 tbls olive oil for 2 minutes until a little toasted

• Add: 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon pepper

• a peel of one lemon (yellow part only avoiding the white, I use a veggie peeler for this)

• 2 garlic cloves smashed

• continue cooking according to the package

To finish the dish:

• 1/2 cup a combination of chopped flat-leaf parsley and fresh basil

• a drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice

Directions:

Cut up all your veggies. Add all the marinate ingredients and toss the vegetables in. Let it sit for 15-30 to soak in the flavor (optional) Grill the vegetables until charred 1-2 min per side. Set aside.

In the same marinate add your shrimp toss to coat. And grill. When shrimp turns pink it’s done 2–5 minutes depending on the size of your shrimp. Toss your veggies with your cooked orzo. Add parsley and basil leaves. Top it with the shrimp, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, a drizzle of olive oil over the top and serve.

Best part about this dish:

• It makes for a killer leftover lunch

• Can totally be served at room temp

• Totally versatile: Switch your veggies and meats as you like or according to seasonal ingredients

• Make it completely vegetarian or vegan

#vegetables

Red Lentil Soup

Serves 8

Ingredients:

2 tablespoon olive oil

1 large sweet potato peeled and diced

1 large carrot, diced

1 parsnip peeled and diced

2 large celery stalks diced

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic

16 oz red lentils.. Rinse and drain

8 cups water or low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth (if too thick add more)

2 bay leaf

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

Pinch of chili flakes (optional)

Few springs of lemon thyme

1-2 tbls of pomegranates molasses

Grate fresh turmeric root about an inch (optional) or 1 tsp of ground turmeric

Salt and pepper

3 tbls of olive oil

To garnish: (optional but defiently fun and will brighten the soup)

Lemon wedges (squeeze on top of the soup)

Radishes

green onion

cilantro leaves

sumac

Drizzle of good olive oil

A dollop of Greek yogurt

Directions:

In a Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sweat the onions then add all the veggies. stir to combine, add spices and salt. Sauté for 5-7 minutes to get done caramelization. Add the lentils, water or broth, and bay leaf and thyme. Bring up to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and let it simmer, until the lentils begin to fall apart and they become creamy all on their own. add more water if needed the lentils will thicken as they cook about 20-30 minutes. Stir in the pomegranates molasses simmer for 5 minutes. Serve in bowls with the optional garnishes of radishes, green onion, cilantro leaves, lemon wedges, crispy pita chips and a squeeze of Lemon juice. Enjoy

Blood orange and fennel salad

Ingredients:

One large bulb fennel or two small shaved thinly

saving the fronds to garnish

2 blood oranges (u can use other types of oranges) peeled and thinly sliced. You can also segment the oranges

3 tbls of fresh pomegranate seeds (optional )

1 tbls of roughly chopped pistachios

Dressing:

Juice of one lemon

Juice one blood orange

1 small shallot diced

1 tbls of Dijon mustard (optional)

1/3 good olive oil

Salt and pepper

Directions:

In a small jar shake all the ingredients you will get a beautiful pink reddish hue if you use blood orange.

To assemble the salad:

On a platter lay the shaved fennel first. Arrange the blood oranges on top, drizzle the salad dressing all over the top. Garnish with pomegranates seeds, pistachios and the fennel fronds. This salad is perfect on its own but also as a side to grilled fish, shrimp or roasted chicken.