Linguine with Shrimp and Garlic

So the word on the street is that Maine shrimp are in season!  Of course when anything is in season it's also much less expensive.  When I was at whole foods the other day they had these little raw wild caught babies on sale for something like $2.50 a pound!  They looked so pink and fresh I had to give them a try.  With that said dinner was an easy decision, shrimp and linguine with lots of garlic and parsley.  This truly is a flavorful $10 dinner that can feed 2 - 4 people!!

Start with chopped garlic and a shallot.  I used 5 or 6 cloves of garlic and one shallot.  I browned them lightly with olive oil and butter.  I also added fresh black pepper and some crushed red pepper.  Keep a close eye on the garlic.  If it browns too much it will become bitter.  Recipe after the jump.

Winter Beef Stew

Yesterday I had a snow day!  I knew it was going to be a pretty big one so I took the chance to do some cooking!  Now that the days are so short, it's hard for me to cook and photograph the food properly because I use natural light for my photos.  A couple weeks back I made a beef soup and it was so delicious, I thought I'd thicken it up and make it a stew.  It's great to make when you have the day to let it "stew" on the stove top! Recipe after the jump.

Happy New Year!!

I can't believe it's been a year since starting chat N'chow!  Right after Christmas we escaped for a little fun in the sun down in Mexico.  We only got back Monday night and I dove right back into my work Tuesday!  There are so many great pics that I'm sorting through and will soon be sharing!  Not so much in terms of food (ok we did not have any great food in Mexico).  I also have another very exciting project that will be launching in the next few weeks.  It's not food related & something that is very different for me.  I can't wait to see it go live!!
So check back for more posts and hope you all have a great 2011!!!  Meanwhile, I saw some Mayan ruins New Year's Eve. Above is just one of the temples that we saw.  I thought it was a great place to visit, too bad we were a year off from 2012!