An Inspired Shrimp and Mango Entree

Greetings everyone! Forgive us for being later posting than usual. Because of the wait, however, Dale has had time to create a new entree for us that is, well, I would call it fun. It’s an intriguing dish that is interesting to make and is as nutritious as it is delicious.

We are into May, warm weather, Yay! I’m wondering what your spring has been like. So many of you are from Texas, Florida, Idaho, Washington, Arizona, New Hampshire, California. Our springs here in Colorado are always tumultuous. A vivid example is the recent upset in what we thought was an early spring. Part of March and most of April were filled with warmth and flowers. Toward the end of April, to our dismay, it froze, deeply. Our lilacs were burned, and our trees boasted tons of dead leaves. Will they continue to live, I wondered? I prayed that God who is the author of life would save our trees.

Trees bear fruit. They give us a sense of expectancy, like the golden apple tree and the pink flowering plum trees and slow growing pear trees we have on our property.

Today we will be thinking about fruit, physical and spiritual.

Dale’s World:

Shrimp with Mangos

 

Mangos are one of my favorite fruits but they are problematic. It is difficult to find ripe mango in the grocery store and they are difficult to peel. So if you can’t find ripe mangos, try frozen ones. A 10 ounce bag would be sufficient but if the bag you find is larger – use all of them. I’m of the opinion that you can’t have too many mangos. Avoid the canned mangos; I tried them.

You will Need:

24 large shrimp                           1 cup orange juice

2 or 3 mangos                           1 Tbsp. Corn starch

1 red bell pepper                       1 Tbsp. Sugar

1green bell pepper                   ¼ tsp salt

½ yellow onion                         1/8 tsp. Cayenne Pepper

2 Tbsp. Canola oil                  1 Tbs. Rum

4 Green Onions

 

Prepare:

 

1. Defrost, peel, remove the tail, devein or do whatever you need to do in order to work with the shrimp. Shrimp is available in many forms: fresh, frozen, peeled, deveined or tail off or on. Use whatever form you prefer. The only caveat I would give is: avoid the cooked shrimp – it can sometimes be rather tasteless. If the shrimp are small, use more.
2. Prepare the mangos: peel and cut them into bite sized pieces. Not too small. The frozen ones may require no preparation at all. Just let them defrost.
3. Cut the tops and bottoms off of the bell peppers, and then cut them into strips ½ inch wide.
4. Halve the onion – top to bottom. Cut off the root end and stem end then cut it in ¼ inch strips – top to bottom. Don’t chop it into small pieces.
5. If you are using fresh orange juice (the best choice), squeeze the oranges.
6. Stir the corn starch, sugar, Cayenne pepper and rum into the orange juice.
7. Remove the roots and any wilted leaves from the green onions, and cut them into ½ inch sections. These are for your garnish.

 

Cook:

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan on relatively high heat – ¾ power.
2. Add the shrimp, bell peppers and yellow onion. Cook, stirring constantly, until the shrimp turn pink.
3. Add the mangos and stir.
4. Add the seasoned orange juice and stir until the sauce thickens.
5. Plate up and scatter the onions over the top.

Rice, Chinese noodles or cous cous are good compliments.

Fun seafood dish with mangoes

Food for Thought

Bearing Fruit

Mangoes originated in India, where giving someone a basket of mangoes is considered an act of friendship. Dale introduced the fruit to my husband and me years ago in a delightful dish, and my husband has loved them ever since.

I love them too, but in the past have avoided fruit because of the extra calories. Now, however, the doctor has prescribed a diet that eliminates many stomach troubling vegetables. So I find myself eating more fruit. Research into their health benefits is amazing.

Take the mango. It contains over 20 different vitamins and minerals, helping to make it a superfood. The mango lowers blood sugar, boosts brain health and is possible protection from age-related macular degeneration and prostrate cancer. It lowers heart disease risk with its high amounts of pectin, low sodium levels, high potassium and high B vitamins and it contains a great deal of fiber. One cup of diced mangoes provides 100% of the daily requirement of Vitamin C. And there is much more. Wow!

I think I’ll buy a few mangoes every week.

Nutritious Shrimp and Mangoes

We always have strawberries and blueberries on hand, plus apples, but I am looking forward to summer and the many varieties of other fruits. Fruit is great with meat and fish, and bring out a big bowl, fill it with a variety of colorful fruits and you have a centerpiece everyone will enjoy.

When we think of what a boon God bestowed on the world the day He created fruits, perhaps it shouldn’t surprise us that the Bible uses “fruit” as a spiritual metaphor. Sometimes God compares us to trees that bear fruit in their time. A verse I love these days is, “You will still bear fruit in old age.” I don’t want to spiritually barren as I age. I want to bear fruit for Christ till the end of my days: everything from the fruit of love to the fruit of bringing people to Christ. When I see fruit happening (often in a surprising way), I rejoice! And I praise God for His grace.

Galatians 5: 22-23 tells us “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” (KJV)

Consider longsuffering, which can be translated “patience.” This week I’ve been disturbed by some workers we’ve had refinishing our deck. They had attitudes bordering on arrogance and were very pushy.

My husband Bob felt troubled too. But instead of growing increasingly resentful , he prayed about it and sensed God wanted him to be gentle with them, patient. He cooked pizza for them for lunch. They ate outside on our patio which they love, and Bob had a chance to witness to them.

He did what a true believer should have done—prayed about his attitude toward them, received a word from God, and by God’s power, exercised the fruit of the spirit: love, gentleness and patience.

I Thessalonians 5:14 says “Be patient with all men.” We can do it only by His strength.

When I pray for joy, which has trouble breaking through the barrier of my melancholic temperament, God is faithful to give it. Lately joy came with the sudden realization, that like King David, “the lines have fallen unto me in pleasant places.” How many are the blessings recently! Praise!

Our pastor has been preaching a Sunday series called “Embedded.” The main idea of this teaching is that committed believers in Christ are like nuggets, flakes,  of gold embedded in the culture, in the city, in the neighborhood, in the family. Our lives show forth Christ to everyone around them.

May we continue to seek to walk worthy of Christ, “bearing fruit in every good work” (Colossians 1:10b).

The Glory of Spring