This last weekend, my friend in our apartment complex (lovingly dubbed “the courtyard”) organized a cookout/ movie night. She acquired a projector, organized the potluck, and set up all the fixin’s. We grilled and ate our weight in meat, pasta salad, and veggies, then watched a movie outside in the courtyard.

The courtyard houses some pretty awesome people and we had a great laugh. The best part was being close enough to use our own bathroom, grab a glass of water, and not have to worry about the journey home.

Anyway, I decided to try the shrimp skewers Bonnie perfected for us a few weeks ago in Maine. I tweaked Bonnie’s recipe a bit because I love grilled pineapple. The marinade was amazing and the overall product was delicious. It’s really simple and assembling the skewers can be a social activity. This is a great one. Enjoy 🙂

Pineapple Shrimp Skewers (prep time: 30 minutes, grill time: 10 minutes, serves: 3-4)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup room temp. coconut oil
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 TBSP fresh ginger, grated
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• juice from 1/2 lime
• 2 TBSP fresh cilantro, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 lb. large, uncooked shrimp
• 1 pineapple
• 2 or 3 other semi-soft veggies. Suggestions: onion, mushroom, bell pepper, zucchini, tomato. Mine had all these veggies and it was a bit too many types.
• Skewer sticks, metal or wooden

Instructions:

1. Whisk all ingredients besides shrimp, veggies, and pineapple. Set aside 1/4 cup of the marinade for just before grilling.
2. Pour the shrimp into a sealable container and gently mix in the majority of the marinade. Let it sit in the fridge for as long as possible, at least 30 minutes. The coconut oil will have hardened in the fridge. That’s ok, easier to skewer.
3. While it’s marinading, chop all veggies into 1-2 inch chunks. Chop in a way that makes them easily skewered.
4. Start heating up the grill. While it’s heating, assemble the skewers. Do it in whatever order you think will keep the food on the stick while grilling. Tip: If you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in water before skewering so they don’t burn on the grill.
5. Baste the skewers with the 1/4 cup of marinade. Grill until shrimp are no longer opaque. It shouldn’t be longer than 10 minutes. Turn every 3 or 4 minutes and be vigilant, they’re easy to overcook.

Enjoy! That day or the next. These babies are delicious. I hope you’re all having Happy Thursday. Big hug and a smile -Ash