A few sneak peaks from a fun photo shoot...

(+ A Recipe for Mediterranean Roasted Shrimp with Tomatoes & Capers)

Hi friends!

Does anyone else feel like this time of year is a bit of a blur? That’s normal for me with all the holiday stuff, but I’m also in the midst of starting a new business (more on that soon!) and it’s been a wild ride. Fun, exciting, terrifying, hard, confusing - all the things. You know that quote, “Leap and the net will appear?” Well let’s just say I’m on the very edge of the cliff, looking down. I’m actually in Texas right now, attending a 3-day intensive workshop on coffee and entrepreneurship, which was, in itself a leap of faith to commit the resources and time. So maybe I’m already in the air?!

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you all some sneak peaks from a recent photo shoot I did with the amazingly talented Emily Dorio. It’s been a dream of mine for years to do a sequel cookbook to The Yellow Table, and for this next one to focus on joys and challenges of feeding a family. (And boy are there challenges! Ha.) I reached out to Emily in September and it took a few months for our schedules to align, but we finally shot together a few weeks ago. I love the way she captured not only my food, but the family - the goofiness of the kids and just the fun of being together.

These are just a few of the images she captured. Thank you Emily for joining our crazy of kids and cats for a few hours - it was a blast!

Finally, I want to leave you all with one of my absolute favorite weeknight meals, Mediterranean Sheet Pan Shrimp with Tomatoes and Capers, pictured in the photos above. (NOTE: There are haricots verts in the recipe but they aren’t pictured because I roasted them on a separate pan for the shoot.) It’s delicious served with couscous, or if you really want to get fancy, make a lemon risotto to go along with it. But even if you just serve it on its own with some good crusty bread, you’ve got a great meal. (Now if only I can convince my kids to like shrimp…ugh.)

Mediterranean Sheet Pan Roasted Shrimp & Tomatoes with Green Beans 

Serves 4 // Gluten-Free

This is weeknight dinner cooking at its finest: fast, delicious, and healthy! Everything cooks together on one sheet pan, so clean-up is minimal. Both my husband and I LOVED this recipe - easily one of my favorite meals of the year so far :) Serve with couscous or good crusty bread, to soak up the sauce.

Kid-Friendly: My kids don’t like shrimp, but you could easily swap out the shrimp for chicken in this recipe. I would use chicken thighs or chicken breasts cut into smaller pieces. Chicken will take longer to cook, so just put everything on the baking sheet at the same time and cook until done (internal temp 165 degrees F). 

Prep-Ahead: This is super-fast; no need to prep ahead!

Prep Time: 10 minutes   

Cook Time: 16 minutes 

• 1 ½ pounds (21-25) shrimp, peeled and deveined

• 4 cloves garlic, minced 

• 1 tablespoon small capers*, drained

• 1 lemon 

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• ½ pound green beans, trimmed 

• 1 pint grape (or cherry) tomatoes, halved if large 

• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

• ¼ cup chopped parsley

• ¼ cup crumbled feta 

• Red pepper flakes (optional)

• Cooked couscous or crusty bread, for serving 

*If you don’t have capers - or don’t like them - just skip this ingredient! I happen to LOVE the capers, but no need to buy a whole jar if you won’t use them often. This dish is great without them, too.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 1 baking sheet with aluminum foil. 

Place the shrimp in a large bowl or ziploc bag and add the garlic and capers. Cut the lemon into 2 halves. Juice ½ lemon into the shrimp mixture and add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Stir gently and let marinate while the vegetables roast. Cut the remaining ½ lemon into thin slices, then again into half moons. Set aside.

Meanwhile, place the green beans and tomatoes on the baking sheet and toss in the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bake for 10 minutes, until softened. 

Push the green beans and tomatoes over to the sides of the pan; add the shrimp mixture and marinade to the center. Season to taste with salt and pepper and scatter with the reserved lemon slices. Roast for another 6 minutes or until the shrimp are bright pink and cooked through. Remove from the oven.

Scatter the pan with parsley and feta (and red pepper flakes, if you want some heat!). Serve immediately, with cooked couscous and/or crusty bread. 

For all of my paid members, your meal plan will come tonight!! Sorry for the delay - this week has been a doozy. Thanks for your patience :)

XO

Anna