On my way to the subway in the morning I usually pass a large hurd of high school students making their way to school. It is quite entertaining to catch tidbits of their conversations. "Oh my gosh Johnny is such a jerk". "Have you been asked to prom". "Dude, look at my new head phones". Halfway to the subway yesterday I noticed that I had yet to dodge a high school girl wearing skinny jeans, uggs, and texting while gabbing away to her friend. After a brief moment of panic that I had taken a wrong turn it occurred to me that they were on spring break. This is where my brain went from point A to point Z in sixty seconds...
Once I hear "spring break" I imagined myself laying on the beach, reading a mindless magazine, with a coconut drink in hand (complete with a frilly umbrella). Next thing I know I am physically at the subway stop but mentally I am still in the tropics eating coconut roasted shrimp. Roasted coconut shrimp? Sometime between the word spring break and the subway stop I visualized an entire day of spring break, including what I would eat for dinner, on the patio of our ocean front hotel suite.

Although I would prefer to be in the tropics cooking Coconut Roasted Shrimp, I will settle for cooking it in my closet size NYC kitchen. Regardless of if I am sitting at my table or on a patio over looking the ocean, this recipe makes me do a happy dance.

COCONUT ROASTED SHRIMP

INGREDIENTS:
-2 TB extra-virgin olive oil
-6 TB shredded coconut
-Pinch of cayenne
-Kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper to taste
-16 large shrimp, shelled and deveined

-Set a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425F.
-Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or foil.

-In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, coconut, cayenne, salt and pepper. Add shrimp and toss. Spread on the baking sheet and roast until pink, about 7 – 8 minutes.
NOTE: For a crispy all around texture, roast shrimp on a wire rack placed on top of a baking sheet. It will allow the air to circulate the entire shrimp, crisping the bottom as well as the top.