Baked Coconut Shrimp with Apricot dipping sauce

My husband and I have always loved coconut shrimp. We had it at our wedding and always order it out when we see it on the menu. I mean, is there anyone who doesn't love coconut shrimp? So when we got it in Florida (like, every day for lunch) I totally had the idea of making them at home. But hopefully, with cutting out some of that fat that frying brings!

Since I first made these, my husband and I have eaten them once a week. I have them for dinner, and my husband loves to pair them with a steak for a little "surf and turf." And since they are baked and not fried, you don't have to feel guilty about them. And perhaps our favorite part of this shrimp is the sauce! A super simple 3 ingredient sauce is all it takes to bring the shrimp from good to great!

Ingredients

For the Shrimp:
Frozen Cooked shrimp, thawed (however many you want! We usually make 16 depending on the size)
1/3 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1/3 cup plain panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 egg
splash of skim milk
1/2-1 tsp. coconut extract
salt
pepper
For the sauce:
aprox. 1/3 cup apricot preserves
1-2 tbsp dijon mustard (to taste)
1 tsp. coconut extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a large baking sheet with foil and spray liberally with non stick spray. Set aside. Set up a breading station - put flour on one plate, whisk the egg with a splash of milk and 1 tsp. coconut extract, and put panko and coconut flakes on another, separate plate. Season the thawed shrimp with salt and pepper to taste. One by one, dredge the shrimp in flour until completely covered, then dip in egg mixture, then press into coconut/panko mixture. Line shrimp on the prepared baking sheet.

When all the shrimp are on the sheet, put in oven for 15 minutes or until light golden brown. Flip each shrimp over and put in oven for an additional 10-15 minutes until that side is light golden brown.

While the shrimp is baking, make the sauce. In a small bowl add the apricot preserves. Melt in microwave on high for about 20 seconds, until preserves are very smooth. Add mustard and coconut extract to taste.

Serve shrimp hot with apricot sauce.

Coconut Encrusted Salmon with Blueberry Citrus Sauce

I came up with this meal after talking with my mom. She was telling me that the best salmon she ever had was at her favorite restaurant, and the chef had a "coconut salmon thing with this blueberry sauce" as a special. So from that, I decided to make my own version of it because, well, it just sounded good. And while my mom's not much of a foodie or a cook herself, she knows what she likes and has pretty good taste.

I'm very pleased to saw that this came out just wonderfully. It tasted tropical, fresh, healthy and just plain good. Even my husband who "doesn't like fish OR coconut" said that I could make this meal for him any time. This meal totally got me in the mood for summer, so now I'm anxiously waiting for the 8 feet of snow in my front yard to melt. This is just a great meal for this time of year...it will definitely make you feel like you're on an island somewhere, even when there's 8 feet of snow in your yard!
Ingredients

For the salmon:
1-2 skinless salmon filets
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 egg
1-2 tbsp skim milk
1/3 cup plain panko bread crumbs
1/3 (or more) cup sweetened coconut flakes
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

For the Blueberry Citrus Sauce:
1 hand full of blueberries (about 1/2 cup)
1-2 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tbsp. sweetened coconut flakes
1 tsp granulated sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees and spray a baking dish with nonstick olive oil spray. Season both sides of salmon with salt and pepper and set aside. Set up a breading station: on one plate, add flour; in a small bowl, whisk together egg and milk; and on another plate add panko and coconut. Using your fingers, mix panko and coconut together until coconut is evenly distributed amongst panko.

Press salmon into flour until completely coated, then dip into egg mixture, then dredge in panko coconut mixture. Press panko mixture into salmon until well coated on all sides. Place filet(s) in prepared baking dish and sprinkle the top of the filet with any extra panko/coconut that didn't get used. Spray the top of the filet with non-stick olive oil spray and place in oven for about 20 minutes. Check the filet after about 10-15 minutes to make sure the coconut isn't burning. If it is, cover the baking dish loosely with foil.

While salmon is baking, make blueberry citrus sauce. In a small blender (I use the magic bullet blender), add blueberries, coconut, sugar and lime juice and blend until smooth. Taste the sauce after it's blended and add more lime juice or sugar to taste.

Serve the fish hot with blueberry citrus sauce.

Coconut Cake filled with Lime Curd

With the heat wave we're having in this neck of the woods, I wanted to make something summery to bring into work for my final course 1 Wilton cake. I went with a coconut cake filled with lime curd and it was fantastic! It's a perfect cake for the weather we're having and will remind you of sun and the tropics! One word of caution though...don't use too much curd! I didn't think I did, but clearly I did. Even though I made a border of frosting around the bottom layer, the curd oozed out the sides and I ended up having to remove the top layer and scoop a lot of the curd out. It was just a messy situation! But all in all this is another fantastic Good Things Catered recipe and the flavors work out great together!!!

Ingredients
Source: Good Things Catered

2 c. all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened at room temp
1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
3/4 c. sweetened flaked coconut
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract
5 egg whites, at room temperature
1 c. coconut milk, at room temperature

Directions

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare two 9 inch pans (or three 8 inch pans for thinner layers for a three layer cake), covering pans with heavy foil or using bake even strips.
-In medium bowl, sift in flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk to combine; set aside.
-In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar and beat until lightened in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
-Add eggs, one at a time, beating to combine thoroughly between additions.
-Add extracts and coconut milk and beat to combine well.
-Add flaked coconut and beat to combine well.
-Turn mixer to low speed and slowly add flour mixture, beating until just combined.
-Divide batter evenly between two cake pans and tap to release air bubbles.
-Place pans into oven and let bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
-When done baking, remove pans from oven and let cool in pans for 20 minutes.
-Invert cakes onto wire rack and let cool completely.

Lime Curd

Ingredients
Adapted from Joy of Baking

3 large eggs
1/3 cup lime juice (juice of aprox. 4 limes)
1 tbsp lime zest
3/4 cup sugar
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, diced and at room temperature
Directions

Whisk together eggs, lime juice and sugar in a bowl over a double boiler. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick and is the consistency of sour cream (160 degrees F), about 10 minutes. If desired, add 1 drop of green food coloring so people know it's lime and not lemon! Remove from heat and pour through a fine meshed strainer into a medium bowl. Immediately whisk in butter until all of it is melted and incorporated into the sauce. Add zest and let cool. Serve immediately or pour into an air-tight container. If you decide to store the curd, make sure to put plastic wrap directly on the curd itself to prevent a skin from forming. Then cover with the lid of the container and refrigerate for up to a week. Makes 1 1/2 cups.