Welcome! Plus Shrimp, Salmon, and Rice

April 9, 2017 by Nicole Collins

Welcome to The Yummy Muffin! My name is Nicole, and I’m THRILLED that you’re joining me today (and hopefully every day…real talk)! I feel like I have so much that I want to tell you, but there’s plenty of time for that. So, let’s just start with the basics…I’m Baltimore (suburbs) born and bred. I’m a #dogmom, and I’m pretty much obsessed with my fur babies, Bella and Charlie. I LOVE decorating cupcakes; but if I’m going to be honest, I’d much rather eat a chocolate chip cookie than a cupcake. I’m a single lady, so I’m pretty good at cooking for one. But, I also like to make sure I’m eating home cooked meals all week, so I do all of my meal planning and portioning out on Sundays. I love sunshine. I love music. And, I will laugh at EVERYTHING and ANYTHING…appropriate or not…oops! (And I love CAPITALS and EXCLAMATION POINTS! Obvi…)

So, what’s The Yummy Muffin all about? I love food. I love reading about food. I love learning about food. I love looking at food. I love making food. I love trying food. I just love all things food. So, I wanted to create a place where I can share that love with others. I also love my pups. If you look at my Instagram (which you can do right from here!), it’s pretty much all food and doggies. So, it’s only right that they have a place in this little world I’m building. And then there’s glitter. I pretty much glitter everything I touch, so there’s a place for that here too. I just wanted to make an environment where we can be creative together; look at, make, and eat pretty things; all while hopefully building a community around it all.

Since this brainchild of mind begins and ends with food, I’m sure you’re all wondering what kind of noms you can expect to find here. I’m not gonna lie; the words from the judges on Next Food Network Star “you need a POV (point of view)…YOU NEED A POV!” kept haunting me.

Welp, as of this moment, I haven’t been able to establish a POV. But here’s what I can tell you. Because I’m a single lady in a one income household (though let me just add that I am accepting applications from eligible bachelors lol), I don’t get too crazy with my ingredients. I like to keep things simple and delicious. But when I splurge, I promise you it’s worth it! I am a big supporter of the 21 day fix plan (more on that later), and I actually had a lot of success on the plan. So, I like to make healthy(ish) food that’s interesting. I like the challenge of making something better for you. Don’t worry though, because I’m also a HUGE supporter of the cheat meal. So, don’t go hiding the chocolate and cupcakes just yet. Then we’ve got some of my favorite meals which are mash ups of recipes from around the interwebs. So, I plan to share those gems with you while giving you real tips and tricks for success (from an amateur’s POV). Can we count that as a POV? lol

I’ve thought a lot about what I want my introductory meal to be…like pretty much considered posting everything I’ve ever made on here all at once. But then I came back down to Earth and decided I’d share with you one of my favorite things to make. Shrimp, Salmon, and Rice…that’s how I’m entering the food world. (**mic drop) Sounds simple…tastes AMAZING! Tons of garlic sautéed with juicy tomatoes and a touch of Old Bay come together to create this ridiculous sauce. The shrimp cooks in the sauce, so they absorb all that flavor goodness as they cook. Meanwhile, you’ve got some brown rice cooking up with some onion chilling in the mix, AND you’ve got some Old Bay dusted salmon roasting in the oven. Toss it all together once everything finishes cooking, and VOILA! Magic. It almost gets this creamy risotto like texture to it.

It really could not be any simpler to make. Not a fan of salmon? That’s cool. I won’t judge you. Just add in some extra shrimp. Or toss another fish that you do like in there. I sometimes make this with tilapia, and it’s just as delish. One time I made it with shrimp, salmon, and tilapia! I know…but there’s no such thing as too much seafood, especially if you grew up on the Chesapeake Bay. So, please stop everything and make this right now.

Telling you about this recipe reminds me of 2 stories that I need to tell you: one about Old Bay and one about tomatoes. But I know you have to be drooling at this point, so you’ll just need to come back if you want to hear my anecdotes!

One last thing before we get to the recipe. This whole thing wouldn’t be happening right now without 2 ladies who are VERY special to me. First, I’ve got to give a GINORMOUS thank you to my Jenen-ifer. This stunning site and the adorable logo was created, designed, and executed by her. She’s soooooooo talented, and I’m soooooooo grateful for the time and attention she put into making this dream a reality. She’s built a really beautiful space for us to gather to chat and eat. (Side note…am I the only one that can only spell beautiful by sounding out B-E-A-Utiful in my mind?)

The second JUMBO thank you goes to my Sultan a.k.a Sultana Donner, Sue, or whatever other ridic name she’s inherited over the years. She certainly understands that I can be a little “extra” sometimes, and gladly supports with a smile and a nod. She also has a great collection of kitchenware that she’s been kind enough to share, so my pictures thank her for that. She’s always been super creative with AMAZING ideas; so without her to inspire me, there’d be nothing for me to write to you about. I’m a lucky gal!!

Alright, that’s enough for today. I’ve got the rest of forever to ramble at you. So, let’s eat!

Shrimp, Salmon, and Rice

Serves: 4 Print

Ingredients:

¾ cup brown rice, uncooked
½ medium onion, diced (about ½ cup)
1 ½ tbsp olive oil, divided
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tomatoes, peeled and diced (with seeds and juice)
heaping ½ tsp Old Bay
1 lb raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
8 oz cooked salmon, broken up in to chunks (tilapia or double shrimp works too)
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

For the rice: In a medium saucepan, heat ½ tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add rice, onion, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté for 2-3 mins until the onion starts to soften and the rice starts to toast. Add 1 ¾ cup water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 45 mins. Remove from heat, and let stand for 5 mins.
Meanwhile, for the sauce: In a large sauté pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium high heat. Add the minced garlic, and sauté for about 1 minute until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add in tomatoes (and the juices), and bring to a simmer. Once bubbling, stir in shrimp, old bay, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20-25 mins.
Add the cooked rice and cooked salmon in to the sauce, and stir to combine. Cook for about another 5 mins, stirring occasionally. Divide in to 4 portions.

Recipe notes: *I usually prefer a tomato on the firm side, but you want a softer, squishy one for this. The seeds and juices help create the sauce.

*I like to roast my salmon seasoned with some old bay in a 400 degree oven for about 12-15 mins. If salmon isn’t your thing, tilapia seasoned with old bay works great too. And I certainly wouldn’t judge you if you just went for double shrimp!

*If brown rice isn’t your thing, use whatever kind of rice you prefer. Just adjust the cooking time based on the package directions. Your texture will be different, but your flavors will be the same.