Grilled Scallops with Coconut Curry Sauce

1 cup orange juice or bottled mango nectar
3 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1# sea scallops or 1# bay scallops
Coconut Curry Sauce

Combine juice/nectar and basil in a large bowl, add scallops, tossing to coat. Cover and chill 1 hour.

Remove scallops; discard marinade. Grill, with lid closed, over medium-high heat, 6-7 minutes on each side or until done. Do not over cook. If using bay scallops toss them in a grilling basket that has been sprayed with olive oil or brushed with coconut oil to grill. Serve with Coconut Curry Sauce, below. (I put the scallops right in the sauce to serve.) I like to serve on a bed of Forbidden/Japonica/Black rice. The nutty flavor of the rice and the dark color are nice compliments to the curried scallops. Makes 8-10 appetizer servings or 4-5 entree servings.

Coconut Curry Sauce
1 cup coconut milk
1 Tbsp curry powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried crushed red pepper
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
2 tsp fresh lime juice

Combine coconut milk and curry powder in a small saucepan, and cook 4 minutes. Add salt, red pepper, and basil. Cook 1 more minute. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice. Makes 1 cup.

Coconut Ginger Rice

1 (14 oz) can unsweetened coconut milk (not water or cream)
2 1/4 cups water
2 cups jasmine or Basmati rice
4 slices fresh, peeled giner
Garnish: chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

Combine coconut milk and 2 1/4 cups water in a heavy saucepan. Stir in rice and ginger. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Remove ginger before serving. 4-6 servings.

Coconut Rock Buns

Makes 6 to 8 buns.

I've been on a coconut kick lately, harvesting and using some of our own coconuts. I am completely hooked on the fresh, sweet coconut "water" from young coconuts. It's very refreshing when chilled and has a surprising amount of nutritional value. It can also be a good base for smoothies. While looking for coconut recipes on the web I found a very fun blog out of Jamaica that offered this recipe. They are very similar to what we know as scones.

2 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cup soft margarine (I use butter)
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 Tbsp raisins (I substitute candied ginger, cut into raisin-size pieces)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened, as fresh as you can find
2 medium eggs
1 tsp vanilla
4 Tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 360° (25° less if using a convection oven). Grease baking sheet. Using fingertips, rub fat into sifted flour until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add sugar, raisins or ginger, baking powder and coconut, mix in evenly. Beat eggs and vanilla. Pour into flour mixture and combine then slowly add milk. Combine mixture until a moist dough is formed. Divide dough and spoon onto greased baking tray and form into "rocky cones." You can sprinkle with brown sugar at this point or just pop into the oven. Bake for 15 minutes or until nicely browned.