Ingredients:
• 1 large sweet potato, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise, cooked in a tightly sealed, double layered aluminum packet on the grill, with a few Tbs of butter in with the potatoes
• 16-20 large raw, peeled and deveined shrimp
• olive oil
• Cajun style blackening spice
• 1/2 large red pepper, deseeded and cut into 1-inch squares
• 1/2 large green pepper, deseeded and cut into 1-inch squares
• 1/2 large Vidalia onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
• salt and pepper
• 1 15-ounce can of pineapple rings cut into 1-inch chunks
Procedure:
One key to a successful meal is a well thought out combination of colors and flavors. Here Chef Dan Eaton achieves that with cajun shrimp, peppers and pineapples.
The sweet potatoes will take about 1/2 hour to cook on a medium hot grill, with the lid closed, and you'll be able to start assembling the shrimp skewers while the potatoes are cooking. Toss the raw shrimp with a little olive oil and a generous amount of homemade, or store bought, blackening spice and then toss the peppers and onions with a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Assemble the skewers by alternating the peppers, onions, pineapple and shrimp until all the shrimp are gone. Take the sweet potatoes off of the grill, or put them on the upper rack to keep them warm when they're done, and then lay the skewers right on the grill. You'll need a pair of tongs to turn the skewers over as they cook but be gentle so you don't break the pineapples and you can even close the lid to help things move along! Divide the sweet potatoes onto individual plates and, when the shrimp are done, remove everything from each skewer right on top of the sweet potatoes.
Hints:
This same technique would be perfect for chicken or pork....just make sure the pieces of meat are cut so they cook in a relatively short time. Use fresh pineapple, instead of canned, if you have it.
Serves 4