Coconut Shrimp Millet

Have I got a recipe for you today, friends!  A really, really good one that I want to share with you for a number of reasons.

Reason Number One:  Sunday Night Dinner into Monday Night Dinner

I’m going to tell you something that helps me maintain satisfied, healthy insides no matter how hectic the outsides get. And the outsides are a bit hectic right now! I mean that quite literally, both the hair on my head and the hair on my legs are a hot mess at the moment.

Nearly every weekend, when we cook Sunday night’s dinner, we make sure to prepare enough to have on Monday night too. Jonny goes bowling on Monday nights and even though I love my new job and no longer have to spend those nights praying for deliverance, I still don’t really feel like spending a bunch of energy cooking on the first night of the work week. SO we make something wonderful on Sunday nights in a portion that’s not quite big enough to freeze for a jillion meals but IS big enough to feed us well for the following night too. Dinner for two nights out of the week, all covered! Boom!

As boring as it might sound, so much of good, healthy self care is like this – just incorporating a few useful habits at a time that fit well into your life and feel good to you.

Reason Number Two:  We’re Going to Hawaii!

WE JUST BOOKED OUR HONEYMOON TO MAUI! And this dish makes me feel like one tropical bitch! I don’t know what we will eat while we are there, but I picture lots of food like this, meaning flavored with coconut and lime and cilantro eaten on the beach with some kind of fruity boozy drink.

But not too much booze – I saw Saved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style, you know. We’ll need to keep our wits about us in case anyone gets kidnapped by the Pupuku clan, or if Belding shows up on a tour with the Principals of Los Angeles.

Unofficial Reason Number Three:  We Own this Doormat

 Coconut Shrimp Millet

Adapted from Joy the Baker

Ingredients:

2 T. coconut oil (or other mild-tasting oil)
1 yellow onion, diced
1 shallot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t. coriander
1.5 t. cumin
3 t. hot sauce (I used Cholula)
6 cups cooked millet
1 can light coconut milk
½ cup chopped scallions
zest and juice of 1 lime
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
about 2 handfuls of chopped cilantro
12 – 16 oz. shrimp, peeled and deveined
Garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: Depending upon whether or millet is cooked or not, 15-35 minutes

Cook Time: Again, depending upon your millet, 10-25 minutes minutes

Instructions:

• Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Preheat your broiler, too.

• Add onion and shallot to saucepan and sautee for about 5 minutes, or until slightly browned.

• Add hot sauce, garlic cloves, coriander, and cumin, cook 2 minutes-ish.

• Add coconut milk and stir.

• Bring the heat down to very low, add the cooked millet, stir until millet is well coated in the other business. Set aside briefly.

• Place shrimp on a greased cookie sheet. Season to taste with garlic powder, salt and pepper.

• Put shrimp under the heated broiler for 5-7 minutes, or until they turn pink and feel just barely firm to the touch.

• Back to the millet! Sprinkle it with scallions, coconut, lime zest and juice, and fresh cilantro; and stir to combine. Cook on low, giving it a few stirs, until the coconut milk has been fully absorbed.

• Top with your cooked shrimp and a sprinkle or two of more coconut, and enjoy!

Notes:

If millet is not cooked, it can be prepared using a 2:1 ratio of water to millet. Bring water to a boil, add millet, turn heat down to low and cover, cook until water is absorbed (15-20 minutes).
And, hey, if you’re not sure what to do with all that leftover coconut, try a Way More Exciting than it Sounds Massaged Swiss Chard Salad or some Lemon Ginger Energy Bars.