Shrimp and Broccoli Alfredo

This is the time of year where I really have to control myself. The season change always leaves me a bit tired, especially now that the drive to work is in the dark already. I also feel like a bottomless pit food-wise, and I really don't know the scientific reason behind that, but it always happens in the fall. It doesn't help with my well-intentioned boyfriend with  a turbo charged metabolism brings home bags full of snacks, and I have to restrain myself to stay healthy and not sit on the couch in my pepto-bismol pink Snuggie with a mountain of mini snickers wrappers all over me watching Law and Order on Netflix.

 I spent the bulk of my late teens and early twenties very thin, mostly attributed to eating basically bananas and cereal, with a healthy dose of cigarettes to help ignore the pangs. Once I started eating healthy and quit smoking, I turned into my healthy weight, which is that of a curvy lady. I have spent a large amount of time trying to force my body into submission to fit into a size 6 like so many of my contemporaries, but there is no healthy way to do it. I exercise daily, eat well, and do everything you're supposed to do other than weekend wine and  decadence once and a while. I decided it was time to just give up on wanting a body that I couldn't have without starving and like myself and enjoy healthy foods in moderation. And it turns out it feels pretty good. I'm on the topic because my boyfriend was shocked when I made my old love recipe for Shrimp and Broccoli Alfredo because it was so rich, but hey, it's fall. And once in a while you need some fatty-bo-batty food to get it out of your system.

Shrimp and Broccoli Alfredo

-1/3 cup half and half

- 1 T. butter

- 4 oz. fettuccine noodles, cooked al dente

-2 cups shrimp, thawed

-2 cups broccoli, chopped bite-sized

-1 medium onion, diced

-3 cloves garlic, minced

-1/2 cup parmesan cheese

-1/4 t. ground nutmeg

- 1 t. salt

-1 t. garlic powder

 Directions: In a medium saucepan, saute onions over medium-low heat 5 minutes, then add garlic, shrimp, salt, parsley, garlic powder  and broccoli and saute another 5 minutes.  Add half and half, butter and paremesan cheese to shrimp and broccoli and toss to combine. Portion noodles on plates and spoon shrimp and broccoli mixture over top. topping with pepper and sprinkling of nutmeg.

 Makes 4 main dishes.

*Allow half and half and butter to sit at room temperature 30 minutes. 

Delish. And it's really not too unhealthy of a main course if you pair it with a nice green salad. We had Chianti and garlic bread on the side, and it was a really nice meal. 

I've made this with whole wheat noodles before to try and healthy it up a bit, bit if you've ever had them, they are closer to cardboard than real noodles....Yack. Buttery and lovely, this is a great dinner for a chilly fall night when you wanna get full enough to stay away from the chocolates and chips staring at you from the counter-top, that is, if it happens to people other than myself....