Grilled Shrimp Salad with Chile-Lime Dressing

Ingredients:

Shrimp:

• 1 1/2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
• 12-16 jumbo shrimp (1-11/2 lbs.) peeled & deveined, tails left on
• 4-6 scallions, each cut into two (2-inch) pieces

Salad:

• 2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 small jalapenos, seeded and minced
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• pinch of salt
• 4 cups mixed greens, such  as frisse, mizuna, radish shoots, and raddichio
• 1 medium papaya, seeded and diced
• 1 medium avocado, thinly sliced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced

Special Equipment:

• 4 (12-inch) skewers

Makes 4 Servings (2 cups per serving)

1. For the shrimp: In a medium bowl, whisk together oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. Add shrimp and scallions and toss to coat; refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. For the salad: In a small bowl, whisk together, lime juice, olive oil, jalapenos, black pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; let stand at room temperature while shrimp is marinating. In a large bowl, combine greens, papaya, avocado and red bell pepper.
3. Generously coat a grill or grill pan with cooking spray and heat to medium-high. Alternately thread shrimp and scallions onto 4 skewers. Lightly sprinkle shrimp and scallions with salt and pepper and grill, turning once and basting with any remaining marinade, until shrimp just turn pink, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove shrimp and scallions from skewers and add to salad mixture. Add dressing and toss gently. Arrange salad on 4 plates and serve.

WW POINTS VALUE: 8 pts. with or without the papaya

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Taste of Summer Cookbook.  It may look a little chaotic but it's really delicious. If you're on Phase 1, omit the papaya and the salad will still be yummy. The combination of lime juice, olive oil, garlic and chiles is so nice because it's got a hot and cool feeling: heat from the chiles and coolness from the lime juice. The leafy greens and bell pepper add crunch and the avocado adds a touch of creaminess to the salad. This salad is an elegant gourmet salad that is worth the time and  effort. It's packed with color and flavor and your dinner guests will be very impressed with this sophisticated salad. I highly recommend using Lime-Infused Olive Oil from the Imperial Olive in Williamsburg, VA for an authentic Latin taste. For more information, visit www.TheImperialOlive.com.  It's also a great salad to cook when you're watching a  baseball game. I find that cooking a South Beach diet dish before watching your favorite sports team. It seems every time I cook a South Beach Diet dish, my team does well.

 

Caribbean Pavlovas

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 4 large egg whites
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp boiling water
• 1 medium pineapple, cubed
• 1 medium papayas, cubed
• 2 Tbsp spearmint, cut into thin strips (about 8 large leaves)
• 1 medium fresh lime, cut in half

Makes 8 Servings

1. Preheat oven to 250ºF. Very lightly coat 2 nonstick baking sheets with cooking spray.
2. Blend egg whites, Splenda, vinegar and hot water together at high speed until soft, white peaks form, about 5 minutes.
3. Spoon egg white mixture by half cupfuls onto prepared baking sheets. Using the back of a spoon, spread out and smooth mixture into eight 6- to 8-inch circles, no more than 1-inch thick each. Cook for about one hour and ten minutes, until crisp. Allow to cool completely on wire rack. (These are very fragile. Handle very delicately.)
4. While pavlovas cook, make fruit topping. Combine pineapple, mango, papaya and mint in a large bowl. Squeeze juice of both lime halves over fruit mixture and gently stir fruit until ingredients are just combined. Allow fruit to macerate for 30 minutes.
5. When pavlovas are cool, gently mound about 3/4 cup of fruit filling on top of each pavlova.

WW POINTS VALUE: 4 pts (1 pavlova per serving)

Note: This recipe appears on www.weightwatchers.com. I have come to really love tropical food, especially fruit because it's so clean and fresh. I really love pineapple and have come to love mango and papaya. I had this treat for lunch after my workout and I LOVED it because it was so clean and fresh. The pavlova really woke up the taste buds in my mouth with the fruit, pineapple and lime juices and the mint. The meringue pavlova gave this dish a sweet and chewy bite to this dish. You can eat the salad alone as well. You can use canned pineapple if you can't find a fresh pineapple and it will taste just as delicious. I highly recommend eating this dish for lunch, a light dinner, dessert or even as a snack because it leaves a refreshing aftertaste in your mouth and leave you happy.

                       

Papaya Parfait

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup cubed papaya
• 1/4 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1 cup vanilla fat-free or low-fat yogurt, divided
• 1/2 cup multigrain, low-sugar cereal, divided

Makes 2 Servings

 

Toss papaya with lime juice. Layer 1/4 cup yogurt, 2 tablespoons cereal, 1/4 cup papaya, another 1/4 cup yogurt, and another 2 tablespoons cereal in a glass dessert cup or bowl. Repeat with remaining ingredients in another cup. Serve immediately.

 

WW POINTS VALUE: 2 pts.

 

Note: This recipe appears in the South Beach Diet Quick & Easy Cookbook. This was such a nice treat for breakfast. I never had papaya before and I must say it was delicious. Lime juice goes well with any tropical fruit becauseit give the tropical fruit an extra kick of zing. If you don't have vanilla yogurt on hand, use plain yogurt and add vanilla extract, almond extraxt or any flavor extract of your choice and it will still be delicious. You can also use any fruit in this parfait and it will be delicious as well.