Recipes for when everything is everywhere all at once
It's nothing coconut shrimp and crispy chicken thighs can't fix.
Hello, chefs.
I was telling Dan last night that I have a vivid memory of the first time anxiety registered in my little child brain as a sensation. I was standing in the kitchen while my mom did the dishes and trying to explain to her that something didn’t feel right in my belly—not in a sick way, but in a something-isn’t-right-but-I-just-can’t-place-it way.
It’s such a strange thing to remember from the otherwise fuzzy childhood years. But it struck me last night that the fact that I remember this moment in the same way I remember the obviously traumatic or euphoric moments of my childhood tells us that anxiety is more than just needing to “chill out.”
I have a period of a few weeks every year when I feel that same something isn’t right feeling with truly no rhyme or reason. My life could be crazy busy or monotonously slow, or I could be dealing with a really low low or high high, and it comes on all the same. Something physiological about my body just says, whoopsies! You’ve been too content for awhile! Let’s fix that!
A few decades of this cycle have taught me how keep me inside myself when it comes back around: cooking (even when I don’t feel like it), reducing the time I spend watching other people’s lives (the One Sec app is still a #1 fav for this), and being really, really nice to myself with no justification required. Pilates membership? Yes. Luxury French leather goods? Yes. Expensive albeit life-changing electrolytes every morning? Absolutely. (Who knew getting lightheaded every time you stand up isn’t normal?????)
I’ll also leave you with Dolly’s new rock album as a soundtrack for your cooking and self-indulgence this weekend. Love y’all, happy cooking, we got this.
-Faith
Crispy coconut shrimp
The name is deceiving—this is not, in fact, fried or battered shrimp, but instead pan seared regular degular shrimp with a crispy coconut topping. The whole thing is way easier (and possibly healthier?) than the usual crispy shrimp situation, and a simple sauce takes it to the next level. We had it with an easy salad made with bagged coleslaw mix, sliced red peppers, and a rice vinegar/sesame oil/honey dressing.
Slice up a shallot and heat a few glugs of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook for about 2 minutes, then add 1 cup of unsweetened coconut flakes. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the mixture is crispy and browned; season with salt and pepper and remove onto a plate.
In the same pan, add another few glugs of oil and heat over medium. Add about a pound of peeled, thawed shrimp that has been patted dry and gently cook on both sides. Season with salt and pepper and remove onto a plate.
In the same pan, add 1 cup of orange juice, the juice of 1 lime, 2 tsp of fish sauce, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. In a small bowl, combine 1 tbsp of corn starch with 2 tbsp of water and add the slurry to the orange juice. Stir diligently! Once the sauce is thickened, remove from heat.
Serve: rice on the bottom, then shrimp, the sauce, then crispy topping.
Crispy mustard chicken thighs
This would be a fun one to do for a crowd; you can prep your chicken thighs in advance and just throw things in the oven as your guests arrive. Rub some sweet potatoes down with olive oil, pierce with a fork, and throw on a baking sheet and in the oven about 10 minutes before your chicken. Chop up some green veg (broccoli, green beans…) and toss on the pan with the sweet potatoes with some oil and salt about 25 minutes before your chicken is done.
Place your chicken thighs on a baking sheet, pat them dry, and season with salt and pepper. I made this with about 5 thighs.
In a small bowl, combine 2 tbsp melted butter with 1/2 cup bread crumbs and a sprinkle of salt. In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup dijon mustard, 2 spoonfuls of minced garlic, 1.5 tbsp dried thyme, a drizzle each of olive oil and worcestershire sauce, the zest of 1 lemon, a pinch of red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
Top the thighs with the mustard mixture, then sprinkle with the bread crumbs and pat down so they stick nicely. Bake at 400 for 45 minutes.