Gourmet Delivery and Shrimp Noodle Salad

So this whole thing started when my sister told me the other day she was going on the Slim Fast diet. Now I know it sounds like an easy way to lose weight, just drink a couple of shakes and shed the pounds, but unfortunately I also happen to know that it does not work. Let me explain, when you starve your body of the calories it needs it tends to store everything it can find, you may start to lose "weight" but generally that is going to be muscle weight as the body will start using your muscles to compensate for the extra calories. Then when you have decided that you have had enough.... you gain it all back, but this time you gain it back in fat. No bueno! So I told her this but she said that honestly she doesn't have the time to think about eating well, let alone make dishes to feed herself. So we came up with a plan. I would do the shopping, meal planning and cooking. I would prepare her two snacks, lunch and dinner for every week day, and she would compensate me with what she would usually spend picking up some Chik-fil-a or whatever else she had nearby. I also thought that if I was going to come up with yummy recipes to eat well I might as well share it with the rest of you guys! So here goes. The recipe for today is:

Shrimp Noodle Salad with Peanut Sauce

I got the idea for this recipe from Fitness Magazine Online. It is super easy to prepare and a serving is only about 400 calories. Shrimp is always a good thing to have in your freezer. It is healthy, a good source of protein and very little fat. You can pick up a large bag of pre-cooked, no tail shrimp for about $8 at Costco.

                                                                                                      Photo courtesy of foodnetwork.com
Ingredients:

1/3 cup of cooked bean-thread or rice noodles
1/4 cup sliced carrots (or julienne)
1/4 cup snap peas
1/4 cup red bell pepper sliced (optional)
1 cup shredded romaine lettuce or baby spinach
3 oz. Peeled cooked shrimp
Scallions and Sprouts for garnish (optional)

Sauce:
1 tsp. Peanut Butter
2 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar
1 tsp. Brown Sugar
Juice from 1/2 Lime (Lemon works too)
1 tsp. Olive or Sesame oil
Chile Pepper, fresh, sauce or flakes to taste

1. Cook the bean thread or rice noodles as directed. Drain and rinse in cold water. Set aside.
2. Boil 2 cups of water and cook the Sugar snap peas for about 2 minutes, until they are tender but still crisp.
3. In the same water as the peas you can boil the shrimp until thawed or cooked, depending on whether you are using frozen or fresh. You can tell when the shrimp are done because they will turn pink and will be opaque in color.
4. Drain the Peas and the Shrimp and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
5. In your salad bowl place the shredded lettuce or spinach, the peas, the shrimp and the noodles.
6. Dice the carrots and bell peppers and add them to the mix.
7. Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing and drizzle it on top of the salad.
8. Garnish with Scallions and Sprouts if desired.

Voila'! A super easy, super tasty, super healthy lunch! Let me know what you guys think. :)