 We had a little surf and turf last Sunday to celebrate Father's Day. And by that I mean - he had turf and I ate surf.🤣🥩🍤 The words surf and turf always give me hoity toity restaurant vibes. Something only to be ordered on the most special of occasions at the fanciest of restaurants.👔👗 I'm not sure how I ever landed on this theory but the reality is - surf and turf is just practical cooking when a fish eater marries a carnivore.💁🏻♀️ Since I'm more invested in the surf portion of our meal, that's where my blog will land today. Does that make me shellfish? I really think your going to love this Crispy Coconut Shrimp recipe. It's shrimple to make and super tasty so stop prawncrastinating and get to work. 🤣🤣🤣 hehehe One more... What do you call a shrimp that always gets injured??? Accident prawn.😂 I couldn't help it.  I'm such a shrimp fan and maybe it's the fact that I'm five foot nothing and faced a lifetime shrimp jokes that's caused me to embrace it.😅 Or maybe it's because it's delicious. Either way - give me all the shrimp. I like it grilled, boiled, broiled, blackened, chilled, warm, stuffed and dare I say.. even fried.🤣 Coconut Shrimp has always been a favorite of mine but I often make it often because I try keep fried foods to a minimum in my diet. Special occasions call for special treats though so whipped up a batch of these Crispy Coconut Shrimp for our Father's Day dinner last Sunday. (Even though we all know that it really was for me and not for him.😂 😉) My philosophy is this: If I'm going to indulge in fried food - it better be really, really GREAT fried food. And this Crispy Coconut Shrimp certainly fits the bill.  Crispy Coconut Shrimp 1 pound jumbo shrimp 1 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup cornstarch 2 egg whites 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut 2/3 cup panko 1 quart canola oil
 Use skimmer to transfer shrimp to a rack set on a paper towel lined baking sheet.  Ciao!
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 Melanzane alla parmigiana - it's what you say if you want to order Eggplant Parmesan in Italy.🇮🇹😄 Italian Eggplant parm is delicious but it's different from the Eggplant Parmesan you might be accustomed to. For starters: the eggplant parmesan in Italy isn't breaded. Apparently it was Americans who decided that eggplant should be dipped in egg and bread crumbs and then fried before adding sauce and cheese. Who decided this?🤷🏻♀️ Eggplant just gets soggy and no one likes mushy eggplant.😒 It's the reason that I don't order it in most restaurants. When you make Italian Eggplant Parmesan and skip the breading and frying steps, it's gluten free, lower in fat and it tastes better. In this recipe, you have the option of sprinkling panko over the finished dish for some added crunch but it's optional. Adding it at the end will ensure that it doesn't get soggy but you can also choose to eliminate it altogether and go Italian style. Either way - delicioso.  Rich, hearty marinara that tastes like the sauce my Italian grandmother had simmering on her stove all day is the other key to making exceptional Eggplant Parmesan. Jarred sauce is fine in a pinch but if you really want to elevate this dish to the next level - take a few minutes to make a quick homemade marinara. Lightened up Eggplant Parmesan is my favorite. I might be putting myself at risk of being kicked out of the South for saying this but I prefer grilled vegetables to fried and I don't much care for them drowning in butter, oil or cheese either.🤣 There are plenty of recipes out there for those of you who like your eggplant breaded and smothered in sauce and cheese. For those of us who want a lighter and less guilty inducing Eggplant Parmesan - this recipe is for you. Enjoy!  Grilled Eggplant Parmesan 1 1/2 pounds eggplant, cut into 1/2" slices 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1/2 cup panko 4 Tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic 28 ounces crushed tomatoes 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped 1/4 teaspoon sugar 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
 Grill until cheese is melted.  Transfer to platter and sprinkle with panko.  Sprinkle with remaining basil.  Ciao!
It's always a blessing to see my children thriving - even when they move away.🙃 There are so many things that make me grateful about this most recent move for my girl. No doubt this will be a year of new beginnings for her and a year of visits to Savannah for me.😂🚗  I like Savannah for a lot of reason but now there's even more reasons for me to visit the coastal city. Now I can visit my girl and eat great shrimp - all in one trip.🦐🤣 (Looking for the positives.🙃) I love shrimp and there's nothing like cooking and eating it just after it's been brought in from the ocean. The positive side to having our girl move to Savannah? - more visits and more shrimp. 😅 I like shrimp cooked in a lot of different ways but this Shrimp and Mushroom Risotto has to be one of my new favorite ways to enjoy the crustacean. The mushrooms and white wine create a deliciously rich base for the salty shrimp. It takes a little time to slow cook the sushi rice but I think you'll agree that it's worth the effort you put into it.😋  Shrimp and Mushroom Risotto 1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms 2/3 cup boiling water 4 cups chicken broth 2 cups bottled clam juice 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 Tablespoon butter 1 onion, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/4 cups arborio rice 1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced thin 1/4 cup dry white wine 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 pound medium shrimp, shelled
 Add shrimp and cook and stir 5 minutes or until cooked through. Ciao!
 The first batches of fresh corn on the cob hit grocery stores around the end of April in central Georgia. For me, that initial corn sighting signals the end of cold weather and the beginning of summer.🌽🌞 I'm fairly certain that the corn is brought in from Florida because Georgia corn isn't ready yet but that doesn't stop me from buying it. I love corn on the cob almost as much as the neighborhood donkey who gets all of my empty cobs.😂 🫏 I'm convinced that the way that a person eats their corn on the cob says a lot about their personality. Whether you eat your corn like your typing on a typewriter, a in circles around the cob, in random bites or by slicing it off the cob - the way in which you eat a cob of corn reveals some truth about you. Here's my unscientific theory: Left to right eaters (typewriter-style) are orderly and methodical Rotary (concentric circles) eaters are artistic and creative Random eaters are free spirited and Clean slicers (with a knife) are the only people who really know how to properly enjoy their corn. 🤣  Some would argue that slicing corn with a knife should only be for young children or people with braces on their teeth. Those people are wrong.😅 I recognize that it's an oxymoron but I prefer my corn on the cob - OFF the cob and eaten with a spoon. Regardless of your corn eating corn style - I think you're going to want to try this recipe. It's a lightened up version of the classic cream corn. Oh and it has no cream so it's also dairy free.😉. Maybe I should rename is Coconut Cream-less Corn.🤣  Coconut Creamed Corn 9 ears of corn 14 ounce can lite coconut milk 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Process until smooth. Return pureed corn back to saucepan and bring to a simmer again.  Remove from heat, stir in pepper and cayenne. Season with salt to taste.  Caio!
 I'm not normally a summer soup person.🍲 Give me a bowl of warm chowder or a hearty stew on a chilly Fall day and I'm happy girl but for me, summer is all about grilled fish and fresh salads.🙃🥗 Soups and sweaters are a natural match. Soups and swimsuits - not so much.👙 😅 And yes, I've tried chilled soups like gazpacho -- they're just not my thing.🤷🏻♀️  I grew up in Ohio where the corn is so sweet and tender that it needs no butter or salt. It's one of the great pleasures of summer. Safe to say I'm a fan of all corny food - chips, tortillas, flakes, pop.😂🍿 So naturally, fresh corn recipes catch my attention like this recipe for vegetable soup in my Cook's Illustrated magazine. It sounded so good, I decided it was worth breaking my no soup in summer rule.🌽😂 I wasn't so sure how my husband would react to eating soup in the middle of a heat wave but we actually both enjoyed this soup so much that it was worth the beads of sweat that dripped down our foreheads while we ate.😅 Maybe I'm a summer soup person after all. The fresh vegetables really shine through in this fresh, bright soup. Just for kicks I did the nutritional calculations for this recipe. A 2 cup serving of this soup is only 189 calories. I paired my soup with a handful of crackers and it was a filling, low-calorie summer meal.  Corn and Vegetable Soup 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 onion, chopped 2 carrots 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 4 cups chicken broth 10 ounce can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies 3 ears corn, kernels cut from cob 1 zucchini, cut into 1/2" pieces 4 ounces green beans, cut into 1" pieces 1/2 cup fresh basil. chopped
 Stir puree back into soup and season with salt and pepper if necessary.  Ciao!
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