Project Food Blog: The Classics
Tahitian Love.
You wake up to the sound of water gently hitting the side of your bungalow. The sun is rising over the water, and as you step out onto your personal balcony the air hitting your face is fresh, pure, and awakening. You look down over the railing and see a few fish eating their breakfast, each fish a different color of the rainbow. In a few minutes your spouse will wake up and join you for a hot vanilla tea, and soon after you will officially begin your day.
You are in Tahiti. Ia orana!
Since our amazing honeymoon in Bora Bora and Tahiti last year, I have not been able to part with our Tahitian vanilla. It came to us in a special package from the French cooks that gave us our cooking lesson, and I refused to use it until I was ready to make a classic Tahitian dish. Until I felt inspired. Until we were ready to relive our honeymoon.
Every afternoon I would see the vacuum sealed bag in my fridge and think about when to use the special vanilla, and every day it remained in the fridge… until now.
It has been a trying week. A week that taught me how special the love is between PB and I. To celebrate our love and simultaneously enter the next Project Food Blog challenge, I finally brought out the Tahitian vanilla to make a memorable meal.
Shrimp in a vanilla coconut sauce.
There is only one element missing that would make this dish completely authentic…. our bungalow!
Taste the memories of our Tahitian trip with us. And don’t forget to play some sappy love songs while you dine.
I hope this dish brings you as much happiness as it brought us.
Shrimp in a Vanilla Coconut Sauce
Inspired by an unforgettable meal in Tahiti 2009.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
1/3 lb medium or large shrimp, cleaned and deveined
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup rum
1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup coconut milk*
1/2 cup heavy cream
kosher salt & pepper to taste
*Coconut milk can either be made fresh or purchased in can form. To make it fresh simply google the instructions. There are lots of great tutorials online. If you prefer to save some time or can’t find fresh coconut, your regular grocery store should carry canned coconut milk, which is just fine for this recipe.
Directions:
Heat the oil in a medium pan over medium high heat. Add the shrimp in one layer and flip after 1 minute (bottom should be pink). Cook on the other side until both sides are pink and remove from the pan. Cut a slit down the vanilla bean, and using a paring knife scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds, vanilla bean pod, and rum to the pan and stir. Simmer until the rum greatly reduces, about 3-4 minutes. Add the cream and coconut and turn the heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring now and again, until the sauce reduces slightly. Return the shrimp to the pan and toss with the sauce. Serve over rice and garnish with fresh herbs. Enjoy!
**This is my official entry for Challenge #2: The Classics in Project Food Blog. If you enjoy this post and think I deserve to move on, please vote for me beginning Monday September 27! You can click on the widget on the top right of my site to get to the voting page, or click here!
46 Responses to “Project Food Blog: The Classics”
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this looks wonderful… I love this post, it is a beautiful read… and I really want to try this.
you have my vote!
@Kristina @ spabettie, Thank you Kristina! It was really delicious and took no time to make- you should definitely try it!
Your dish looks light and refreshing:) Love the photos of Tahiti! Good luck in the contest!
This looks INCREDIBLE Sabrina!
@Jessica @ How Sweet It Is, This is right up your alley because it’s slightly sweet, yet light and filling!!!!
Sabrina, this is just a beautiful post making me feel as though the Caribbean breeze is just an open door away. Great job with challenge #2! Mine will be up in the morning…
I love the tablescape. This is beautifully written, Sabrina. I’m voting for you!
What a great dish this looks like! Very yum! Where did you and the husband stay in Tahiti? My husband and I are dying to go and always looking for recommendations from reliable sources. Thanks in advance!
@Bethany @ One Girls Taste on Life, Thanks! Our hotel in Tahiti was not as fabulous as the one in Bora Bora (same with the places in general). In Bora Bora we stayed at the St. Regis and I would highly recommend it despite the high price. The service and beauty was worth every penny. Also, Laurel at True Tahiti is the BEST source for anything and everything for vacations at any Polynesian island. She is an American living in Moorea and helped us book our trip. She was amazing.
GREAT post. You know Josh & I are so jealous of your fabulous trip π This dish looks incredible. A tropical delight for sure. Hope you are having a great weekend Sabrina
Sabrina, this meal looks absolutely amazing. Not only do I LOVE your post, but the dish is definitely one that I’ll be trying! Thanks so much for sharing. π
That sounds sooo amazing. Of course with a dish like that you will get my vote π
What do you put in your vanilla tea, or do you drink it black?
@Janice, I drink it black. Here I buy the Mighty Leaf brand of vanilla black tea and I also drink it black, but one of my friends puts milk and sugar in it.
What a beautiful place to spend your honeymoon–it’s no wonder it inspired you to create an equally beautiful dish. I’ll be voting for you. Great job!
That dish looks simply amazing. Love your table setting as well.
How did you ever find the courage to come back after spending a week in paradisei!? Your dish sounds delicious!
we were just talking about Tahitian!! yum, your dish looks so very very good!!!
Good luck in the next phase of the FB competition!
Looks beautiful, and you can feel the love in your post!
I am loving the different flavors in this recipe! But more importantly the story associated with it π
You make me want to travel to Tahiti! Your dishes are so full of love and I love that!
yeay! no need to go over the top or out of this world to come up with a great entry. you just did with your simple homey and gorgeous Tahiti dish π great job on this one. you will definitely get +1 vote from me π
I totally played around with the idea of doing a Tahitian dish. I was going to do what the Tahitians call ‘ceviche’, which is raw fish in coconut milk. But seeing this home run I am glad I chose another geography. Mine would have paled. Can’t wait to vote you forward. GREG
@sippitysup, I am guessing you are talking about poisson cru? I was considering that as well but I really wanted to use our special vanilla!!
Oui, poisson cru! GREG
Yum! This shrimp looks amazing. And your topical photos look even more amazing. You totally have my vote!
wow. The perfect place to use that precious bean. I just wish I can get a waft of the wonderful smell that surely have permeated your sweet kitchen!!
You did a wonderful job- I really enjoyed reading this post.
oh wow, i’m totally swooning over here π not only for this dish, but also for tahiti! maybe someday π until then, i’ll have to give this a try!
Looks great, Sabri! A tropical vacation sounds perfect right now π haha
Great pictures and a truly different cuisine! You have my vote!
Ben and I want to go to Tahiti so bad! Love the pics and recipe.
I like that you took something from such a special memory.
yum! got my vote!!
That looks positively delectable and delicious. Beautiful presentation and post. You have my vote and I wish you lots of luck in the competition.
Gorgeous!
You’ve got my Foodbuzz β₯!
Hope we both make it to round three.
Thank you for your kind vote! Right back at you dear! – Megs at Foodalution!
I have always wanted to go to Tahiti. Thanks for taking me there. Nice #pfb2010
I love coconut in my dishes. This recipe looks good and I love that the list of ingredients is not too long.
What would you recommend a good substitution for heavy cream? Or is that not an option without changing the taste of the food too much?
I want to go to Tahiti for my upcoming honeymoon. It just looks like such a tropical dream.
@Lea @ Healthy Coconut, I would use whole milk instead of the cream, or even light cream. If you want to go the non dairy route, though, I am not quite sure how to help. I haven’t yet experimented making sauces with non dairy milks.
If you decide to go to Tahiti please email me any questions! We had the time of our lives and it was completely worth the hefty price tag. It was literally a once in a lifetime experience!
@RhodeyGirlTests,
Thanks for your help. I will definitely follow-up with you once we decide where we are going for the honeymoon. We are getting married in Puerto Vallarta but Tahiti will be more private and romantic place to spend our honeymoon in
Sounds amazing. But where can I get one of those bungalows in Philly?
Gorgeous photos! This dish looks really delicious – can’t wait to try it!
Oh wow! This looks beautiful. Just voted for you. Also, I can’t help but add you are beautiful nd PLUS you love to cook = awesome. π
@Lingbo, Thanks!