Vampires Be Gone

I love garlic. Almost as much as I love chocolate and coffee. I rarely cook a meal without using garlic and almost always double the amount. Guess I don't have to worry about vampires. That reminds me...I have this weird clay art piece of a cross and garlic bulb hanging in my kitchen. Everyone who visits asks me to explain it and I have no idea what to say. There's no explanation--I just like the wackiness is all.

When I first got married, I was just learning how to cook. I invited my parents and brothers over for lasagna. I'd never made lasagna on my own before and when I got started I realized that I didn't know what a clove of garlic was. Was it one piece--what my mom always called a "toe?" Was it the entire thing? I decided to compromise and used almost an entire head of garlic in the sauce. That was actually the best lasagna I've ever made. After 15 years, my family still mentions that lasagna. I've never been ballsy enough to use quite that much garlic in lasagna again, but my attitude about garlic has always been the more the better.



Recently I went stinking rose crazy. We had alfredo loaded with garlic, garlic shrimp, and even roasted garlic dressing on our salads (that one I'll save for another day).

Take that, Nosferatu.

Let's start with the Shrimp in Spicy Garlic Sauce. I can't remember where I found this recipe, but I'm glad I did. I do everything to taste, so while the recipe says 1 T hot sauce and juice of 1/2 a lemon, that's what I start out with. I may add more of one or both, depending on who I'm feeding.

Shrimp In Spicy Garlic Sauce
from Ms. enPlace

2 lbs medium sized shrimp-peeled and deveined
5 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic
1 tablespoon Tabasco or other hot sauce, or to taste
salt, to taste
juice of ½ a lemon
1 ¾ cups olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh parsley

In medium skillet heat olive oil until hot. Add garlic and sauté 2-3 minutes until light golden brown. Add shrimp, hot sauce, and salt. Cook for 5 minutes. Sprinkle parsley and squeeze the juice of the lemon. Stir and serve in 6 small appetizer dishes.

Simple ingredients. Simple recipe.

Cook the garlic in olive oil.

Add shrimp, hot sauce, and season with salt. Cook for about 5 min.

Add parsley and lemon juice. That's all.

This Easy Alfredo recipe comes from someone I used to work with. Everyone always loves it. It is easy (and quick) to make.

Easy Alfredo Sauce
from Ms. enPlace

1 c whipping cream
½ cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated (like powder)
½ stick butter (4 T)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Pasta of choice

In a sauce pan, heat and melt the butter. Add garlic. Stir in cream and add Parmesan cheese. Stir and heat until hot and the mixture becomes thick. Do not boil. After the pasta is cooked, return it to a warm pan and mix with Alfredo sauce. Toss until well coated. Add more Parmesan if the sauce is too thin or more cream if too thick. Seafood or chicken may be added to accent the pasta.

Linking with:

Another dish with simple ingredients. I said simple, not healthy.

Melt the butter, add garlic, saute.

Add cream and Parmesan cheese. I can hear the questions...can I substitute x-y-z for cream? Yes, but it won't be as good. Live a little now...
pay for it later.

Simmer until the sauce thickens.

Add pasta to sauce or sauce to pasta. Whichever.

I could eat the whole pan by myself.