When I first started cooking for a family, rather than cooking for two, I made a conscious decision to only make one meal a night. As a parent, I figured this would help my kids get used to two things: First, what’s served is what’s for dinner, and second, that there are a world of foods out there to try.
This is great but, the reality is that not everyone likes everything. With my kids, two of those things are seafood and spicy foods. So on those nights, it’s great to have a little leftover chicken available for the kids while my husband and I have something more interesting. That something however, still needs to be cooked and with toddlers around, one still has to be careful of the hot stove. This recipe series, One-Armed Cooking, highlights quick and easy recipes that can be made even if you are caring for children at the same time.
Shrimp is one of my favorite foods. I love that it cooks up very quickly, and the cleaning and prep work can be done ahead of time. Fresh-caught shrimp can be frozen,  so I try to buy it when it’s on sale and freeze it for later. In this recipe, by cooking the shrimp in liquid I’m not spending a lot of time over a hot stove worrying about splatter. This keeps all lurking and curious kids away from the stove if they can’t find you for a minute or two.
Shrimp With Lemon And Asparagus
Ingredients:
Juice of half a lemon
1/4 yellow onion thinly sliced and coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup bottled clam juice
1/2 to 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into thirds
1/2 cup white wine (I’m not picky, any kind will do)
2-3 tablespoons butter
What’s Next:
Remove shells, clean and de-vein shrimp if not done already. This can also be done ahead of time and shrimp can be placed in refrigerator.
Place butter, lemon juice, thyme and onions in pan. Heat to medium
Once butter melts and onions start to become translucent, add wine. Cook for 5-7 minutes.
Add clam juice and cook for 5 minutes more.
Add asparagus, cover and cook 5 minutes more.
Add shrimp, recover and cook 5 minutes more.
Serve with cooked pasta or rice. (I have mashed potatoes in my photo because that’s what my kids had that night)
 Notes from my experience:
This meal cooks up really fast, which is great on a weeknight.
The shrimp can be cleaned ahead of time and the braising liquids can also be  cooked ahead of time, as in earlier in the day when toddlers and babies are napping. This would leave only reheating the liquid and adding the asparagus and shrimp to cook. Surely, some Cheerios in the high chair can help take care of those few minutes.
This recipe series, One-Armed Cooking, highlights quick and easy recipes that can be made even if you are caring for children at the same time.
