Baked Coconut Shrimp

When I get a food craving, if it's not for pickles, chocolate, or ice cream, there's a good chance it's for coconut shrimp. I think they are just the tastiest thing! The only problem: they are expensive. I can rarely bring myself to pay the price for a small box of them at the grocery store. So I decided to try my hand at making them! This recipe isn't exactly what I'm used to because they are baked instead of fried, which is another plus. They still taste great though, and definitely curb my craving. And they are the perfect summer kick-off food! The original recipe includes a dipping sauce, but it wasn't my favorite thing. I preferred them with tarter sauce. I really like the sauce they serve them with at Red Lobster. It's sort of like tarter sauce mixed with a pina colada which sounds weird but it goes great with the shrimp. So I may try my hand at concocting a version of that, it's got to be on the internet somewhere right?? 


Well, I will be taking a hiatus from blogging for the next two weeks. I am wrapping up finals this week and then heading to Florida right after that for a much needed vacation with the hubs!! So come back in 2 weeks for an update on our travels and more yummy food :)


Baked Coconut Shrimp

Ingredients:

• 1 pound uncooked large shrimp peeled and deveined 
• 2 egg whites 
• 2 Tablespoons cornstarch 
• 2 cups sweetened flaked coconut 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a small bowl beat egg whites with a hand mixer until soft peaks form.

Place cornstarch and coconut on two separate plates. Hold shrimp by the tail and dip and coat the shrimp with cornstarch. Next, dip the shrimp in the egg whites and finally in the coconut coating well.

Place shrimp on the cookie sheet and bake for 15-17 minutes or until coconut is a golden brown. Make sure to turn it once halfway through (around 8 minutes into cooking time) to make sure both sides brown.

Adapted from:  http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2011/01/baked-coconut-shrimp.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FofLCo+%28The+Girl+Who+Ate+Everything%29

Monkey Muffins

I think the photos speak for themselves on this recipe. These little babies are so good. How could they not be? They are basically sugar, butter, cinnamon and biscuit dough baked to perfection, covered in sweetened condensed milk. Plus there is no mixing. Just dump everything in a muffin tin and you're good to go. Does it get any better than that? 
Haha, but in all seriousness, you can't go wrong with these! I brought them to a brinner (breakfast for dinner) party once and they were gone in about 5 minutes. They were a hit! And I think Luke asks me to make them at least once every 2 weeks (I don't make them that often, don't worry!). They are much simpler and much less time consuming to make than cinnamon rolls but they taste pretty similar. And we use Pillsbury's "Simply Biscuits" to cut out the trans fat. Enjoy! 

Monkey Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 can Refrigerated Biscuit Dough, Cut Into Thirds
• Butter
• Sugar
• Ground Cinnamon
• Vanilla
• Sweetened, Condensed Milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Add 1/2 teaspoon butter to muffin tins. Sprinkle in 1 tsp sugar and 1/4 tsp cinnamon.

Roll dough into walnut sized balls. Place three into each muffin tin.

Top with 1/2 teaspoon butter. Sprinkle on 1/3 tsp sugar and a dash of cinnamon and vanilla (just a drop or 2).

Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and bubbly.

Remove from oven and immediately drizzle plenty of sweetened condensed milk over the top of each one. Be generous! Allow rolls to sit for a little while to absorb sweet, sticky milk.

Adapted from: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/12/monkey-muffins/