We give succotash—traditionally a Southern dish made with corn, lima beans and peppers—an update using edamame instead of limas and turn it into a main dish by adding shrimp. To get it on the table even faster, purchase peeled, deveined shrimp from the fish counter instead of doing it yourself. Make it a meal: All you need is a warm piece of cornbread to go with this complete meal.

Makes 4 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each

ACTIVE TIME: 30 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 30 minutes

EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy

2 slices bacon
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch scallions, sliced, or 1 medium onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
1 10-ounce package frozen shelled edamame (see Tip), thawed
1 10-ounce package frozen corn (about 2 cups), thawed
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound raw shrimp (26-30 per pound), peeled and deveined
1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper

1. Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Leaving the drippings in the pan, use tongs to transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels; let cool.
2. Add oil to the pan. Add scallions (or onion), bell pepper, garlic and thyme and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in edamame, corn, broth, vinegar and salt. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, sprinkle shrimp on both sides with lemon pepper. Scatter the shrimp on top of the vegetables, cover and cook until the shrimp are cooked through, about 5 minutes. Crumble the bacon and sprinkle it on top.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 307 calories; 9 g fat (1 g sat, 4 g mono); 172 mg cholesterol; 26 g carbohydrate;
30 g protein; 7 g fiber; 491 mg sodium; 476 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (120% daily value), Selenium (53% dv), Vitamin A (40% dv), Iron (30% dv).
1 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1 1/2 starch, 1 vegetable, 3 lean meat

TIP: Tip: Edamame are found in the natural-foods freezer section of large supermarkets and natural-foods stores, sold both in and out of the “pods.” For this recipe, you’ll need the shelled edamame. One 10-ounce bag contains about 2 cups of shelled beans.

An unexpected gem -- this is better than it looks, and has become a quick favorite at our house.

Anonymous, Richmond, VA

Very good...but even better the next day. I used a full pound each of edamame and Trader Joe's frozen roasted corn, and garnished with a sprinkle of chipotle powder. YUM

, NJ

Excellent dish. Forgiving of changes in proportions - the store was short of shrimp so we had less than a pound, the edamame came in a 12 oz. bag, we used a 15 oz. can of corn instead of 10 oz. frozen - no matter, it came out wonderfully. The suggestion to serve this with cornbread is also an excellent one. We paired it with a buttermilk cornbread recipe (no sugar, using stone ground meal) and had an extremely filling dinner.

Stephen & Jayne, St. Paul, MN

Curious as to why this recipe is located under the 'heart healthy diet' section - when instructed to add bacon AND cook veggies in the bacon drippings. This has 172 mg of cholesterol per serving, and the recommended daily intake is 200 mg. Am I missing something??

Christy, Orlando, FL

I wanted to address Christy's thoughtful concerns. EatingWell's "heart-healthy" classification is based on saturated fat. Nutrition experts recognize that limiting saturated fat in the diet is a far more effective way to control/lower blood cholesterol than limiting dietary cholesterol. Because we use such a small amount of bacon, this recipe is very low in saturated fat: 1 gram per serving.

Nicci Micco, EatingWell's Deputy Editor of Nutrition, Charlotte, VT

I agree with another poster, it was even better the next day. Initially, it tasted a little too sweet, I suppose because of the corn, so I squeezed fresh lime juice over the top and that seemed to help. Even my husband and 2 teenage sons liked it, and they are real meat-eaters. I served it with bread sticks and sliced tomato on the side.

kgibs, st louis, mo