Christina's Coconut Lime Sugar Cookies

adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup coconut oil, heated until barely melted then cooled1 ½ cups white sugar
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
zest of two large (three small) limes
3 tbsp lime juice
1 cup coconut
½ cup sugar for rolling cookies

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. If you haven't already toasted your coconut just put a layer of coconut on a cookie sheet and bake it at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes. Watch out. It goes from white to burnt really quick if you aren't watching closely.
2. In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
3. Using a mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and very fluffy.
4. Beat in egg, vanilla extract, lime juice and lime zest.
5. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients and toasted coconut.
6. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and roll in sugar. Place on lined cookie sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart. I made mine too big and they ran together. These do spread quite a bit.
7. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned.
8. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

Fantastic served with cream cheese frosting with the zest of a lime or two.

Christina's Chili-Lime Mango Chicken

from Our Best Bites

6T olive oil
¼ cup fresh lime juice
Zest of 1 lime
1 t chili powder
1/2 t cayenne pepper
1/2 t salt
1 T sugar
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes
3 ripe but firm mangoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, lime zest, chili powder, cayenne,
salt and sugar. Place in a zip-lock bag and add the chicken and mangoes, stirring gently to
coat with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

Heat saute pan over medium heat. Remove the chicken and mangoes from the marinade and saute until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Serve over rice.

Note: may need extra salt.

Christina's Spicy Thai Shrimp With Coconut Rice

This dish is not at all authentic in terms of Thai food, but it was so yummy that I didn't care! For you Thai food purists like me, just ignore the fact that it's supposed to be Thai and enjoy the fact that it tastes good!

from Rachael Ray

1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
2 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth, divided
1 cup long grain white rice
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 fresh red chili, seeded and thinly sliced or 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce or 2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups (a couple of handfuls) basil, torn
Zest and juice of 1 lime

Toast coconut in a saucepan over medium heat until it turns golden brown. Reserve 1/2 cup for garnish. To the remaining coconut add the chicken stock, rice and salt, and bring it to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, place a lid on top and cook for 15 minutes. Let the mixture stand for five minutes off the heat then fluff with a fork.

While the rice is cooking, preheat a large, nonstick skillet over high heat with the canola oil. When the pan is hot, add the shrimp, red bell peppers and chili (or red pepper flakes), stirring frequently for about 3-4 minutes.

Add the fish sauce (or soy sauce), basil and toss to combine. Serve the shrimp and some of the sauce over the coconut rice and squeeze some lime juice over everything. Garnish with the reserved toasted coconut and the lime zest.