This month I was paired with My Year on the Grill for Taste & Create. I recreated Raspberry Chipotle Sea Scallops, but since I didn’t have the same raspberry chipotle sauce used in the original recipe, I created my own version, which turned out to be pretty good. Also, I made my version with shrimp and scallops as well as a side of coconut basmati rice.

After I made the sauce, I opened a small can of undisturbed coconut milk and separated the fat from the water. I added the coconut water and a small scoop of fat to the water for my rice. When that came to a boil I cooked some basmati rice. Coconut rice is so good, and it seemed to be a perfect companion to the spicy raspberry chipotle sauce.

Meanwhile, I melted a tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of coconut fat in a heavy skillet. When that was hot, I added the shrimp first, scallops second, and cooked until just done, moving them around a bit to coat with buttery coconut goodness.

I love raspberries, and I love spice, so why not marry the two together into a chipotle sauce?

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 3 tsp chile chipotle powder
• 2-3 TB evaporated cane juice
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 TB apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp liquid smoke

Start by heating the raspberries in wine. Bring this to a boil and drop the temp a little while adding the rest of the ingredients, stirring well until the fruit breaks down and becomes a sauce. Make sure you like the spice level before serving. Add more chile chipotle powder if you like things spicy, or more sugar if you like it sweeter. I made this specifically for Raspberry Chipotle Scallops and Shrimp. Enjoy.

This BBQ sauce is based off of the flavors from a traditional Vietnamese Sweet and Sour recipe given to me by an amazing chef named Duc in Hoi An, Vietnam.

First I made this pineapple and onion mix and sauteed it on medium for 10 minutes until the onions were soft and the pineapple was partially cooked. I used:

• 1/4 red onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 cup pineapple, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup white wine
• green onion

I combined the following ingredients and mixed well.

• 1 six ounce can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 3 TB soy sauce
• 2 TB rice wine vinegar
• 1 TB onion powder
• 1 TB garlic powder
• 1 TB toasted sesame oil

I am mostly vegetarian. I was a strict vegetarian for years, and a few years ago, while living abroad, I decided I needed to start eating chicken in order to be able to eat since there was no such thing as “vegetarian” food in Bolivian villages. I am not a big fan of chicken right now for lots of reasons not worth getting into here on my blog. However, I do enjoy turkey, especially ground turkey, which I use to make turkey meatballs.

I would love to say that I go so far as to grind my own turkey. I don’t. I buy ground turkey from Whole Foods that already comes with salt, pepper, parmesan cheese, and a few other herbs. I make some meatballs with it, pan fry them in a little olive oil until they are brown on all sides, and them pour in some red wine, cover the pan, and let them cook on medium until they are almost cooked through in their red wine gravy.

Meanwhile, I make a homemade sauce.

For my sauce:

Start by sautéing a yellow onion in some red wine on medium high until it is soft. Then add two 28 ounce cans of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes. Start to break the tomatoes in pieces with a spoon as you stir. It may take a while to break these down, but just keep going back to the pot over the course of the next 30 minutes or so, breaking them down each time you stir.

After adding the tomatoes, keep the heat of medium high until it starts to boil. Then add 3-4 cloves chopped garlic, stir, and turn down the heat to medium low. Then add some fresh ground pepper, some sea salt, and stir well. Sometimes I add a pinch of raw sugar, but I’m not sure you need to.

Let this simmer until the meatballs are ready to be added. Then turn the heat back up to medium high. Add some fresh chopped basil and stir. All of the tomatoes should be at least coarsely chopped by now. Add the meatballs, and all of their juices, into the pot, mix well, and let it boil for 10-15 minutes to be sure all of the turkey is cooked.

Enjoy with whatever you like. I just had mine in a bowl with some warm bread olive oil and basil.