As the weekend nears...

Alrighty, picture time. Before I get to dinner, allow me to rewind to my afternoon snack:



0% Plain Chobani yogurt with my beloved blueberries.



Another shot of the purple-y goodness.

My god. I love Greek yogurt. I actually went back to try some regular fat-free Yoplait this week (wanted to try the new Blueberry Pie and Red Velvet Cake flavors), and it just doesn't even come close. Yes, the Greek stuff is more expensive, but between the creaminess, lack of artificial crap and the butt-load of extra protein, I just can't help but work it into my budget. Plus, it's fun to experiment with all sorts of mix-ins. My faves are blueberries, strawberries, bananas, granola, ground flax seeds, cinnamon, pumpkin and yes, even baby food (tried a pear & raspberry blend the other day- OMG!). Anywho. I love Chobani (even more so after I played one of their Twitter games and won a free case!), but I'm also still partial to Fage too, especially since I can buy it in the large [cheaper] containers at Costco. Anywho.

For dinner tonight, I decided to branch out and take a stab at whipping up some Shrimp 'n' Grits. No recipe, so we just winged it. Sauteéd the shrimp with chopped bacon, garlic, mushrooms, lemon juice, pepper and Tabasco:



Sauteéd spinach and onions on the side:



Final results, grits and all:





When we first dug into the shrimp & grits, we both agreed it was a new texture that we didn't quite know what to make of. A few more bites in though, all of the flavors and textures came together and it was quite good. We tried thinking of other starches that could be used in place of the grits (polenta, couscous, etc.), but in the end, the grits really seems like the best match. Doug, not initially a grits fan, surprised me by saying he thought it was really good and would actually like to have it again! Woo hoo! Success. And yes, I probably will make it again because it was relatively quick & easy to put together.

OH! And the spinach & onions? Awesome. I used the same pan that the shrimp mixture was cooked in and just added onions, fresh spinach, salt & pepper. Some of the flavors from the shrimp mixture residue carried over a bit onto the spinach and the result was just ace. Such a simple combination, but it turned out well and complemented the main course just right.

So, hooray for trying new things! I love food. Now, it's time to kick back and get our Friday night movie on. Grapes of Wrath. We've been watching AFI's Top 100 films of all time and we're finally in the top 25. Some Like It Hot is on for Valentine's Day. Yes, that was all random and unrelated, but I'm just excited for the weekend and just tickled with life in general right now, heh.