Coconut Curry Shrimp with Rice Noodles

I absolutely adore Thai food, but when it comes to trying to recreate curries at home, I've never had much luck. Even when I've scouted out some the more authentic ingredients, the results have always just been so-so. But I'm not a quitter, so I keep on trying. I realized the other day I'd had the makings of a Thai-inspired dish, including a can of coconut milk that had been sitting there for over a month waiting for a purpose, so I decided to give it another shot.

Instead of following a recipe this time, I decided to just go with it, and see what I came up with. I did borrow the technique I saw somewhere of using the coconut cream from the top of the can to saute vegetables, which didn't wind up being any amazing step, but I suppose it saved a few calories. I used the vegetables I had on hand- which worked for us as mushrooms, broccoli and carrots are all ones we particularly love- but I do wish I would've had a red bell pepper instead of green. You could switch out the vegetables for the ones you like best.

I was really pleased with the final outcome. It was definitely my favorite attempt of a Thai curry so far and a meal we all enjoyed- even Beckett, a little to my surprise. This certainly isn't authentic, but it was really good nonetheless. I'll still on the search for the perfect at-home curry, but until then, this is will be my go-to recipe.

Coconut Curry Shrimp with Rice Noodles

serves 4

1 (13.5 oz) can of lite coconut milk, opened without shaking first
1 tbsp fresh minced ginger
3 cups small broccoli florets (from 1 large or 2 small crowns)
1 1/2 tbsp red curry paste (or more or less, depending on the brand you use and your personal tolerance for heat)
2 tsp fish sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
2 large carrots, sliced thin
1 small bell pepper, sliced thin and cut into 1 1/2 inch long pieces
4 oz. sliced cremini mushrooms
5 oz. thin rice noodles (vermicelli-style)
11 oz large shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
2 tbsp lime juice
sliced green onions and chopped cilantro, for serving

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Carefully scoop the cream from the top of the coconut milk and spoon into skillet. Add broccoli and ginger. Cook for 3 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together remaining coconut milk with curry paste (use less to start, you can always add more), sugar and fish sauce. Add coconut milk mixture to pan, along with carrots, bell pepper and mushrooms. Cook for 10 minutes, or until broccoli is getting close to being tender crisp.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add noodles, cook for 2 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain and set aside. If they began to stick, you can rinse with water.

Once broccoli is nearly cooked to desired tenderness, taste sauce and stir in more curry paste if you'd like. Add shrimp to pan of vegetables, and cook until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice.

To serve, divide noodles between four serving bowls, top with shrimp and vegetables, spoon sauce over top and garnish with green onions and chopped cilantro.

Sauteed Shrimp with Spinach, Couscous, Feta and Toasted Pine Nuts

From the moment I saw the recipe for Shrimp, Kale and Spinach with Couscous, Feta and Toasted Pine Nuts on Florida Coastal Cooking, I knew it would be something I had to make very soon, and that my husband would absolutely love it. And I was right. In the first few bites alone, Sage proclaimed it as both "awesome" and "phenomenal." And other than "the leaves," my toddler devoured it as well. And since this had feta, spinach and couscous in it, I don't need to tell you how much I enjoyed it.

I got a much later start on dinner than I intended, but luckily once you've got your shrimp peeled, your pine nuts toasted, and your ingredients prepped, this comes together in a matter of minutes. I think dinner was ready in about 20 minutes or so from start to finish, although you'd never guess by the taste of it. I did make a couple small changes, eliminating the kale and increasing the spinach (Sage isn't a big kale fan) and omitting the white wine. I was worried it might be lacking without the wine, but the dressing the shrimp was in gave it plenty of flavor.

If you would like to see the original with the kale and wine, please visit Dawn's blog. She also has tons of other wonderful recipes (all with gorgeous pictures) worth checking out. I have loved every recipe of hers I've tried.

Sauteed Shrimp with Spinach, Couscous, Feta and Toasted Pine Nuts
slightly adapted from Florida Coastal Cooking

1 lb wild-caught shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
Italian or Greek dressing, to cover shrimp (I used roughly 1/4 cup worth of Roasted Red Pepper Italian)
1 cup water or broth
2/3 cup uncooked couscous
1 tsp olive oil
olive oil mister or cooking spray
1 medium onion, chopped (Dawn used a Vidalia, I used half of a yellow and half of a red)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
8 cups loosely packed baby spinach
1 tsp red wine vinegar
fresh ground pepper
handful of toasted pine nuts
reduced fat feta cheese, for serving

Place shrimp in a medium bowl and cover with dressing. Toss to coat.

In a medium saucepan, bring water/broth to a boil and stir in couscous and oil. Cover and remove from heat.

Mist olive oil (or cooking spray) on a large, straight-sided skillet and heat over medium. Add onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. (If needed, you can add a few tbsps of water or broth to keep them from sticking.) Add garlic and cook for another minute.

Add shrimp with the dressing to the pan and cook for about a minute and until the first side begins to turn pink. Turn over and cook for an additional few minutes, until cooked through. Remove from heat.

Stir in spinach until wilted slightly. Fluff couscous and add to spinach and shrimp mixture. Season red wine vinegar and fresh ground pepper. Toss gently to combine.

Top each serving with some of the pine nuts and a tbsp or two of crumbled feta.

Shrimp Tacos with Poblano-Avocado Salsa

Shrimp is one of the few things I lost the taste for during pregnancy and just never returned to. But with a husband who loves it and a kid who is pretty crazy about seafood in general, it seemed unfair to be denying them. Besides, I don't like not liking things. So I sucked it up and bought some shrimp. Sage immediately asked me if we could make the shrimp tacos from Weber's Real Grilling.

Both the cookbook and this particular recipe are dear to us. His dad gave him the book years ago, when we bought our house and finally got a real grill, (also a gift from him.) Sage has cooked his way through much of the book, and we have loved everything we've ever tried. The very first recipe he ever made was these shrimp tacos, over a campfire, while celebrating Father's Day with his dad and sisters maybe five years ago. With his dad's recent passing, this recipe is even more special to us now.

These were every bit as good as I remembered, and a great way to ease back in to eating shrimp for me. The salsa seems pretty spicy on its own, but once tucked into a tortilla with the shrimp, the heat becomes more mild and just has a little kick to it. We've adapted this recipe a bit, reducing the amount of shrimp, but keeping the amount of salsa the same. It will serve 2-3 people (2 tacos per person) depending on how full you fill your tortilla.

Shrimp Tacos with Poblano-Avocado Salsa
adapted from Weber's Real Grilling

for the salsa:
1 ear of corn, husked
6 scallions, white and light green parts only
olive oil (we used our mister)
1 large poblano chile
1 large tomato, seeded and diced (about 1 cup)
1 Hass avocado, diced
1 tbsp finely chopped cilantro leaves
juice from half a lime
2 cloves garlic, minced
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

1 lb. uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (we used wild-caught Key West Pink shrimp)
4-6 small flour tortillas
lime wedges, for serving

To make the salsa:
Brush or spray the corn and scallions with olive oil. Over direct medium heat, grill the corn until tender (10-12 minutes,) the scallions until lightly marked (3-4 minutes,) and the chile until black and blistered (10-12 minutes,) turning all occasionally.

Remove vegetable from the grill. Trim root ends from scallions, and finely chop remaining parts. Cut kernels off of the corn. Peel off loosened bits of skin from the poblano (as soon as it is cool enough to handle) and discard skin, stem and seeds. Finely chop remaining parts of chile. Add scallions, corn kernels and chile to a medium bowl and mix with remaining salsa ingredients, seasoning with salt and pepper.

To grill the shrimp:
If shrimp are on the small side (as ours were) thread onto skewers. Brush or spray with olive oil on both sides and season lightly with salt and pepper. Grill over direct high heat until shrimp are firm to the touch and just turning opaque in the middle, turning once (this will only take a few minutes.)

To assemble:
Heat the tortillas on the grill for 30 to 60 seconds, turning once. Fill tortillas with salsa and shrimp, and serve with lime wedges, if desired.