Afternoon activity hour!! Matt has been coming home around 5:00 instead of 6:30/7 lately and it’s made all the more fun around here. Today we walked to the gym together, me to prenatal yoga (aka childbirth preparation meditation class – which I love!) and him to test out his new gym membership! I spent the walk explaining to him why he should give Body Pump a try, but the guy is rather particular about his exercise and isn’t super excited about an hour of weights. He just doesn’t get it yet!!
Pre-gym snack! Honey Bunches in milk. Soooo goooooood!
Yoga was great – BERF post on it going up in the AM! I really love the class and enjoy just being in a room with 30 other pregnant women.
On my walk home I discovered this exciting group of performers who were clacking sticks together downtown! I think they are part of some kind of men’s society? Anyone recognize the sashes?
And upon my arrival, I found an exercised, showered, chef-of-a-husband putting the finishing touches on dinner!
On the menu…
Shrimp, Zucchini & Pesto Angel Hair Pasta
We finally found a brand of frozen shrimp we love – found it at Whole Foods. It’s frozen wild USA shrimp, already peeled, and tasty! When we were learning to cook we used to buy Harris Teeter shrimp from Thailand (boo) and then tried another frozen kind from WF (from Key West) that we hated. These were great – and bonus that they were already peeled!
Recipe {serves 2}
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled
- 4 ounces angel hair, cooking according to package
- 1 zucchini, chopped
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 1/3 cup prepared or homemade pesto sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Method
- Prepare pasta according to package.
- Add 1 tbsp olive oil to medium high skillet and cook shrimp until brown. Don’t stir too much or you won’t get a crust! Remove from pan.
- Cook pepper and zucchini in remaining olive oil until tender
- Toss all together in a bowl with pesto.
- Serve in bowls!
The pasta was fab – especially the angel hair! I couldn’t find whole wheat, so I just got regular. WF needs to make it under their brand name! It’s so much better than spaghetti.
As much as I LOOOOVE LOST, I will be relieved when we are finished with the series. I’m a wee bit tired of watching TV every night! Want to read books, work on projects and more! But still totally <3 the show.
Night!
you have hit the husband jackpotttttt!
I love his and hers workouts! I’m jealous. My Mr. is in med school and never has a spare moment for long, leisurely walks and yoga.
Aww, so sweet. Nice to know you’re taken care of, especially when preggo.
I never found a frozen shrimp I liked either, and now I’ve given up meat! I’ll take your word for it.
And how CUTE were the guys dancing in the street. That totally would have made my night.
pasta looks delicious!! can’t wait to catch up on berf tomorrow 🙂
ohmygoodness that pasta bowl looks AMAZING! i love shrimp and pesto!
glad you liked the prenatal yoga class, can’t wait to read about it tomorrow!
oh my goodness, angel hair is my favorite kind of pasta! and I’m glad you’re enjoying prenatal yoga, I bet that’s great to be with women who know exactly what you’re going through!
Love that wall art star thingy! Have a great evening.
Is it Whole Foods brand shrimp? I can’t find frozen shrimp that I like either.
I think it is. It’s in a clear package
I need to find some sort of class to take to help with meditation and all that good stuff- but living in the middle of NOWHERE really has its down side. It’s an hour and a half drive to the nearest one day class- the quick and dirty class of childbirth. YIKES! I’m going to feel so unprepared! 🙁
Your supper looks wonderful! I wish I could dip my fork into the screen!
The performers you saw remind me of the scene in the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang where Dick Van Dyke’s character sings “Me Ol’ Bamboo.” They dance around with bamboo sticks and have similar fringe around their knees. Youtube it! 🙂
Love that movie!!
I love angel hair! But it can be tricky, because it can stick easily and you need a LOT of sauce to properly coat it. Wheels are one of my favorite pasta shapes 🙂 Make me feel like a little kid and the sauce gets in all the nooks and crannies
I LOVE wagon wheels! But they are so hard to find!
The men are probably some sort of Morris dance group.
As an English man I can confirm they are indeed Morris dancers – can also be seen dancing around a May pole – I know, I know – we are a little crazy.
can’t wait to get your thoughts on LOST’s crazy ending …
Oh my gosh!! That pasta looks SOOOOO good!!! Angel hair, shrimp, pesto, and veggies – does it get any better than that?
Please post the recipe he used to make the pasta. I’m 25 weeks with twins and now have a new pregnancy craving! Looks like dinner is planned for tomorrow. Can’t wait to read about yoga class.
Cook some red peppers and zucchini, sear some shrimp, use some salt, boil some angel hair, mix it all together, add pesto to taste!
Did you put tomato sauce or tomatoes in their also? It looks delicious.
Oh right, I chopped a big tomato in cubes and put them in right at the end of cooking just to warm.
Thanks! I have to try that recipe…haven’t had pasta in a long time:)
They’re Morris Dancers!! They were the highlight of my visit to England a few years ago.. I was there in the Spring/Summer and there were a lot of school/church fetes, where I saw quite a few groups performing. So much fun! More info here – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_dance
Also, maaaaajor pasta craving happening in every last one of my cells right now!
Fun! Thanks for the info
Matt, Matt, Matt – putting husbands to shame everywhere 😉
That dinner looks amazing. I’ve been on a shrimp kick myself lately and that looks incredible – I’ll have to pick it up the next time I’m at Whole Foods!
Glad the yoga went well – I definitely want to do that when the time comes as well!
yup, Morris Dancers – common over here in England. Bells on their knees and banging their sticks with flowers in hats. Heh.
Wild American Shrimp is always the way to go…there are just so many different varieties. I sure miss getting them fresh off the boat in Charleston. Good shrimp is hard to come by in the grocery challenged Midwestern town I live in. WF is about 70 miles away in 3 different directions. And pesto, what is it about spring that makes us crave pesto? I am thinking tomorrows dinner will be shrimp with bow tie pasta (my five year old loves it) and pesto, with some asparagus and fresh sweet peas. YUM!!! Thanks for planning tomorrow’s dinner for me!
Oooo we’ve been looking for wild caught peeled USA shrimp and just found it at whole foods this week! It must be new. Was it in a 2lb bag? I hope it’s the same and it’s good bc frozen shrimp can be terrible and we’ve got 2lbs of it now.
Yup – sounds like the same one!
Wow, dinner looks so good! That’s so nice that your husband made it for you.
Dinner looks amazing! I have to say, Tony and
I have started working out more together and I love it. He’s letting me train him since I’m almost done with my personal training certification. He’s quite the interesting client sometimes, but also a lot of fun!
The pasta looks delicious! 🙂 I’m “regular” pasta and bread all the way. I’d rather get my fiber by adding in lots of veggies and eating fruit.
Couldn’t you just save the Lost DVDs for the weekends? It might make it more fun, something to look forward to.
We could…but it’s a hard decision because we want to know what happens next NOW!
I loved Lost but then took a break and tried picking it up at the final season. I have just 3 episodes left… and never seem to get around to finishing. I definitely wouldn’t stop when you get close to the end because it gets confusing to remember what happened if you wait too long. Maybe one day I’ll finally finish it so I can discuss it with my co-workers 🙂
That pasta looks yummy; I love pesto and I think it is one of my top 5 favorite sauces/condiments. It’s so good on meats, pastas, and pizza. What a nice hubby!
Glad you were able to get in some yoga and the fork/pasta twirl shot….I love that one!
Seriously, another cooked meal from hubby? You are so spoiled sheesh!
What’s surprising about that!? 2012 gender roles!
Haha I do ALL the cooking so I guess everyone is still different even though its 2012.
What does your husband’s t-shirt say?
Your supper looks divine.
I’m not sure (obviously, lol), but it looks like it says Fight Cancer 5K, and underneath that, Charlottesville, VA. Kath – am I right?! 😛
You’re right!
That looks like the perfect bowl of pasta to me.
So, did he like Pump?
Body Pump is DEFINITELY my most favourite exercise class – I’m (hopefully) bringing my husband to his first Pump class on Thursday!
He didn’t go! I went to prenatal, he did around-the-world upstairs
What is “around-the -world”?
He does 15 minutes on this machine, 15 minutes on that, 15 minutes on this for cardio.
And then the same with the weight machines
I loathe spaghetti – too many pasta nights growing up – but LOVE angel hair. Pasta’s funny like that! What a fabulous-looking dinner. I haven’t made pesto in ages! I’ve gotta change that soon.
I’m glad you enjoyed the yoga class! I’ve been doing Bikram for a couple months and find it very frustrating when I have to modify poses for my back, so I’d imagine going to a prenatal class rather than a regular one would be a really supportive environment for a mom-to-be 🙂
Is Matt a cardio junkie?
Not totally – he lifted weights. But he likes to be efficient with this weights and the idea of an hour was “too long” he said
Morris dancers! Used to be terrified of them as a child as they often paint their faces over here (UK) too.
Dinner looks awesome!
Yes, once you are hooked to body pump you don’t go back 😛
I was a faithful watcher of Lost until the last season or two then it just didnt do it for me. I did watch the last one though. It will be interesting to hear what you think.
I feel you on having Matt home extra hours! My fiance works until at least midnight from Jan – mid March. Now he is home at 5.. and it is amazing! We actually get to spend time together and walk the dog together! 🙂
What’s that star on your porch? It’s adorable!
It’s a paper star my mom got me at World Market years ago
Spicy Shrimp pasta is one of my favourite dishes…angel hair is the best…my kids love it!
Ooh, tell the hubbs if he wants to teach classes on how to put together than shrimp dish… 😉
I don’t see any tail ends! Perfect shrimp pasta!
Already peeled, deveined and no tails – perfect shrimp!
Your dinner looks delicious! I love shrimp, pasta and pesto! Perfect dinner in my opinion 🙂
It’s great when you have more time to do things together!
Thanks for sharing about the shrimp! I have had the same dilemma and have also been buying the HT shrimp but have not enjoyed the taste lately (let alone it’s origins). 🙂
Thanks for the shrimp tip!
they look like Morris Dancers. 🙂
This pasta dish looks so good. I think I might be able to get my kids to eat all the veggies too. I always buy my shrimp fresh with the heads on so I can use them for seafood stock.
S/N: Do you guys have mosquitos up there? I always want to at outside but these dang gone “skeeters” tear me and the kids up. maybe I need to buy a screened in gazebo.
We have killer skeeters but not until summer starts
Dinner looks delish and nutrish 🙂
That star that is hanging on your wall is cool!
http://faithfulsolutions.blogspot.com/
What a beautiful meal your husband made for you all! I agree angle hair is the way to go 🙂
What a beautiful meal!! And I agree that angle hair is the way to go! 🙂
That dinner looks delish and redeems Matt for his unwillingness to try BP! I’ve tried convincing a bunch of guys I know to try it and haven’t met one that’s even the least bit interested, but it really is the most efficient strength training workout ever. Keep working on him, Kath! It would be awesome to see what he thinks after trying it!
Your yoga class sounds fantastic — I’ll have to take a look at BERF for details. Dinner looks amazing!!! There’s not much better than a hubby who has dinner ready for you when you get home…was treated to that last night as well. 🙂
Does the chef have a recipe for that dinner? It looks great.
Yeah, he typed up the general directions a few comments up!
your dinner looks so tasty!
I tried the hour-long Pump class at work for a month (3x a week), and I have to say it seems like a waste of time. I can exercise my muscles similarly (and better since the class can’t do certain things) in less than half the time — I can understand Matt’s POV. On the other hand, I can see how it could be helpful for those who have trouble motivating themselves otherwise.
Why don’t you like the WF Key West frozen shrimp? We use it and it’s good. Also, WF does make whole wheat angel hair, it’s just hard to find.
The source is fine, we just didn’t like the taste. They were too soft or something? Hard to describe.
Ha Ha, Morris Dancers, an old traditional style of English dancing
1) That pasta looks wonderful – what a great husband to make dinner for you!
2) He’s got to get into Body Pump. It’s my favorite class at my gym. That could have something to do with the trainers – they’re super entertaining – but I think it mostly has to do with the fact that I’m weights-illiterate and therefore need someone telling me what to do and how many reps for me to have a successful strength workout.
How do you get a good sear on the shrimp Kath. I got the Key West FL shrimp. That’s all WF had. You defrost them in the water then it’s all the water and not sear. It’s more of a boil. What’s your technique?
Defrost in water, pat dry. Heat a skillet to medium high and add olive oil. Put in shrimp one at a time and walk away. Flip after about 4 minutes, one at a time. Enjoy!
How do I get the recipe for the shrimp
& zucchini pesto?
Kristy, it wasn’t so much of a recipe as an assembly: cook the pasta, cook the shrimp and zucchini on the side and toss with some prepared pesto. Hope that makes sense!
Is there a link to a recipe for this? I can’t seem to find one.
Just the how to in the post… Let me know if you have specific questions
I can’t wait to try this pasta. Do you have the ingredients and recipe listed somewhere?
This looks delicious but, I can’t find the recipe on your website?
It was just a mix of ingredients: pasta, pesto, veggies and shrimp all cooked separately. Hope that helps some!
How do you make it?
Found this wonderful dish on Pinterest only to find there’s no recipe. Please, please have your chef reconstruct this wonderful looking meal.
Just updated the post with a recipe!
This was fabulous!!!!! If it’s okay with you, I’d like to feature this recipe on my blog. I am a personal trainer and every Friday I like to give my clients healthy recipes. Thank you for sharing this!
Sure, just please link back to this page : )
Absolutely!! Thank you 🙂
DELICIOUS!!!!! thanks for posting!! hope you are still blogging!
So glad I ran across this site…… Thank You
This recipe sounds great and I’m going to try it but I was wondering how much pesto to use? It only says 1/3 pesto. And where are the tomatoes in the recipe? It says it in the title but not in the ingredients.
Sorry – no tomatoes! Just red peppers. And 1/3 cup – thanks for catching that!
Just made this last night, and it was FABULOUS!!! Having left overs for lunch. Thanks for the great recipe!
Really delicious! And so easy and quick! Followed the recipe exactly and ANYONE can make this dish! Only serves maybe 4- 3 if you are big eaters, but also could add extra pasta if this is the case. A keeper for sure!
This looks amazing. I know what I’ll be making for lunch today.
i love you post and I cannot wait to try your recipe. I have to tell you how much i LOVE BODY PUMP. I had the same resistance from my husband…he finally tried it and now he does it 3 days a week. Tell your hubby to give it a try. It is great exercise and he might even begin to like it 😉
Kelly
I made this supper last night and it did not disappoint.I loved this dish because it was light and refreshing. I made home-made pesto and the vegetables were a great addition to this recipe. Thanks for sharing this recipe and I can’t wait to make it again!
I made this last night. This recipe was delicious. It was easy to put together. The only thing I did different was sauté onion and garlic before adding the shrimp. I seasoned the squash with a little salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Even my toddler enjoyed this, we all went back for seconds. The only thing I was upset about is the fact that I should have doubled the recipe, it was that good. Thanks for sharing!
Great recipe. Easy to make and we loved the flavors.
I made this tonight for the family. Wow, what a hit! Easy and totally delicious! Thanks 🙂