Garlic Shrimp and Asparagus

Phase II  |  Day Twenty-six
Weight Loss: 31.4 lbs

Although Cocktail Shrimp is one of favorite things in the world, instead of tackling making my own cocktail sauce, I thought I would take shrimp in a new direction.

I weighed out four ounces of shrimp, removed their shells and tossed them with paprika, chili powder and italian seasoning.

Next I took two cloves of minced garlic and browned it in a skillet with four table spoons of our homemade chicken stock.

Toss in the shrimp, mix and then add the juice of half a lemon.

Cover and let the shrimp simmer for five minutes.  If the liquid evaporates too quickly you can add another tablespoon of chicken stock.

Steam some asparagus and you have a restaurant-worthy meal!

Fancy Chicken and Asparagus

Phase II  |  Day Twenty-four

Weight Loss: 30 lbs

So my beloved is on a business trip this week and instead of getting gloomy and possibly cheating I have decided to experiment a bit.

I figured I would start out by pounding out a little work-related stress.  I pulled out an individually packaged chicken breasts.  Then I took my trusty meat tenderizer and pounded it nice and flat.

Next I trimmed and rinsed 3 ounces of asparagus.

I lined up the chicken breast and asparagus and tossed some of my favorite spices: garlic powder, onion powder, celery salt, and lemon pepper - don't forget to FLIP and season the other side!

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Roll the chicken around the asparagus and stick a toothpick through the edges of the chicken; making sure you run the toothpick through the asparagus.

Pour two ounces of your homemade chicken stock into the bottom of the baking pan and add the juice from one half of a lemon.

Place the pan into the oven and bake for about 25 minutes.  About halfway through baking you can temporarily take it out of the oven and use the silicone baster to keep it nice and moist. The trick is to just tip the baking pan, squeeze and then baste!

Pair it with some delicious mandarin oranges and all the delicious citrus flavors really pop!