Sweet & Spicy Shrimp Tacos

I asked a friend of mine what her favorite menu item at Chili's is and she said "the Spicy Grilled Shrimp Tacos." I've never tried them - but knew I had to try them and soon. I wasn't disappointed! They are seriously so delicious.

Then, of course, I was on a mission to re-create them at home. Once again, I was not disappointed - these were fan-tastic!! I looked over a few recipes for shrimp tacos and ended up with what I think is the perfect marinade for the shrimp. I already have a favorite Lime Cilantro Coleslaw - so I was half way there:)

Sweet & Spicy Shrimp Tacos
Avocados, sliced
Lime and Cilantro Coleslaw

For the Marinade
3 Tbsp light brown sugar
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 c olive oil
24 raw shrimp (31-40)*

Peel and devein shrimp. Preheat the grill.

Mix all the dry ingredients together for the marinade. Put shrimp in a gallon size ziploc bag, add the dry ingredients and the olive oil. Make sure that each piece of shrimp is covered in the marinade. Marinate for 15-20 minutes.

Put the shrimp on skewers. We put aluminum foil on the grill and cook it that way. Grill shrimp for about 2-3 minutes per side flipping only once.

Assemble the tacos!! Shrimp, coleslaw, sliced avocados, tortilla. Try not to eat all of it yourself - or do - they are seriously that good.

*31-40 refers to the size of shrimp I used. There are 31 to 40 shrimp per pound. Whether you buy frozen raw shrimp in a bag or frozen or raw shrimp from the seafood counter, this is the way they are categorized.

Hot Mexican Corn Dip

Oh yeah babe. This is a good. Addicting. Disappears at parties before you've snuck another scoop in at parties good. This dip is eaten by the people who are unabashed in their desire to snack at parties (I'm usually included in that group - only I try to pretend I'm civil and use a plate and wander around while I'm eating it so people don't realize that I'm the one who ate all the dip:)

Hot Mexican Corn Dip

Cooking spray or butter, to grease

1 1/2 lbs frozen corn

7 oz chopped green chiles, drained

2 c Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

1 c Pepper Jack cheese, shredded (set aside)

1 c grated or sahved Parmesan

1 c mayonnaise

1 small can diced jalapenos

Corn chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9- 13- by 2-inch casserole dish.

In a medium bowl, mix the corn, chiles, jalapenos, Monterey Jack, Parmesan and mayonnaise until fully combined. Spread half the mixture in the prepared casserole dish sprinkle with Pepper Jack cheese and top with remaining corn mixture. Bake, uncovered, until bubbly around the edges, 30 to 40 minutes. Serve the dip warm from the oven with corn chips.

***I’ve also made this more child friendly by eliminating the jalapenos and using more Monterey Jack instead of Pepper Jack between the two layers.

Apple Bacon Coleslaw

I saw this recipe HERE - but changed it just a bit.

Apple Bacon Coleslaw

1/4 c cider vinegar

1 c mayonnaise

1/3 c honey

1/4 c orange juice

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 medium cabbage, shredded
5 or 6 carrots, shredded

1 lb bacon fried crispy then broken up into small pieces

1 bunch green onions, thinly slice

3 apples, peeled, cored and shredded (I used gala)
juice from 1/2 fresh lemon

Mix the first 5 ingredients together for the dressing. I suggest you shred the apples last and quickly squeeze the lemon juice over the shredded apple - to preserve the color of the apples. I also set aside some of the bacon crumbles to add just before serving.

Mix everything in a large bowl and let sit in the fridge over night. This is always better if you let it sit for a day or so.

As you can imagine just by looking at the ingredients - it's fairly sweet. Make sure you taste it before serving - mine needed a little extra salt to balance the sweetness.