Shrimp and Pineapple with Yellow Curry Sauce

In honor of the Final Four, I'll give you an opening night double-header. This is another restaurant favorite we've adapted at home. It comes from Indochine, an awesome Thai/Vietnamese place in Wilmington.

I've made this with several different bases. The bottom line is that you need a curry sauce/soup with coconut milk. I've made it by just getting a can of coconut milk and mixing in curry powder, but I've found the simplest way is to get a pre-made sauce you can find in the ethnic food aisle of many grocery stores. There are a couple of brands I've tried, including Patak's and Sharwood's. When I made this the other night, I used Sharwood's Pinapple & Coconut Cooking Sauce, and it turned out really well.

OK, here's what you need:
1 green bell pepper sliced into strips
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed
1-2 eighths of an onion, layers separated
.5-1 lb shrimp
2 cups pineapple chunks
1-2 Roma tomatoes quartered
Curry sauce
Milk
Curry powder
Ground ginger
Ground turmeric
Olive oil
3-4 cups Jasmine rice (prepared)

I use a rice cooker to do the rice so I don't have to worry about it while I cook everything else.

Heat up a wok and pour some olive oil around the sides. Throw in the green bell pepper strips and onion slices, then after a minute or so, add in the garlic. Let the veggies soften a bit. Add shrimp and stir until shrimp begins to pink up. Add sauce, pineapple and tomatoes, bring to a boil. I like to put a little milk into the empty jar, put the lid back on and shake to get the excess off the sides, then add that in with a little curry powder to taste. You can also add some turmeric and ginger to taste if you want.

Once the sauce comes to a boil, turn the heat down to medium and simmer long enough to let everything meld together, soften up the tomatoes and let the pineapple soak in the sauce. Don't let the peppers get too soft, though. Serve over Jasmine rice.

At the restaurant it's actually saucy enough that it can be eaten like a soup/stew with a spoon. Just depends on how you like it.

Now if I can just replicate Indochine's cabbage salad...

Black & Bleu Chicken Sandwiches, Baked Sweet Potato "Fries"

We will start with something really simple... and what I made for dinner tonight.

You surely have had something delicious at a restaurant and thought, "Boy, it would be great if I could make this at home." I've been trying to do that a little more often to help save a little money and enjoy some good eats. Tonight's recipe is one of my favorites from Two Guys Grille here in North Carolina.

Because of cook time, start with the sweet potato "fries." Plan on one potato for each person at most. I used two, and had plenty for me, my wife, our 19-month-old son and a decent handful leftover. Pre-heat oven to 400. Rinse and dry the sweet potatoes and cut into strips (leave skin on). Mine are cut like decent sized steak fries. Put cut sweet potatoes in a big bowl, drizzle with some olive oil and mix. Sprinkle with salt or seasoning salt and cinnamon (trust me on this) and mix again. Spread cut potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until done. Two Guys serves its sweet potato fries with cinnamon butter. It's pretty tasty. I just go with ketchup.


For each sandwich, pound a boneless, skinless chicken breast to an even thickness (about a 1/4 of an inch). Rub both sides with your favorite blackening season. I used Old Bay Blackened Seasoning. Grill until done. I did mine on a Foreman Grill, and when the chicken was cooked, I topped it with bleu cheese and closed the lid for a minute or so until it was all melty. Serve on a Kaiser toll. Top with lettuce, tomato, onion, bacon, whatever you like. I also put a little Ken's Steakhouse Chunky Bleu Cheese dressing on mine. Throw in a side salad, and you have a tasty meal!

Move over, Mommies! Dad's in the kitchen!

The Internet is full of Mommy blogs, many of which are loaded with recipes. In my house, though, Daddy does most of the cooking, and I figure that's the case for a lot of families. So here are recipes that are Dad-tested and family-approved.

Anyone with a little cooking experience can handle these. Some are my own. Others are adapted from other sources (with credit where credit is due). My promise is that they are all good. None of those recipes that just don't stack up after all the effort. Suggestions are welcome!