Crispy Baked Coconut Shrimp + Tips for Healthy Party Food

This easy Baked Coconut Shrimp Recipe is gluten free, and comes together with minimal ingredients! The perfect healthy party appetizer – it will be a hit for sure! I serve these with my Chili Orange Dipping Sauce, but cocktail sauce or a sweet Thai chili sauce would also pair well.

Thank you VOVETI for sponsoring this post. Elevate your entertaining this season with VOVETI Prosecco.

Are you ready for all the upcoming festivities this month?

If you’re entertaining, putting together a healthy party spread is not too difficult.

When I’m planning a gathering, I always start with planning what drinks to serve. Cocktails are fun, but let’s face it — you don’t want to spend your whole evening bartending.

Sparkling wines add a festive air to any party, are elegant, and are crowd-pleasers. Sparklings also pair well and a wide variety of easy-to-serve party foods. Plus — sparkling wines are wonderful on their own, no need to add sugary juices or syrups, so it limits additional calories (important, during a season where indulging is the norm!).

Recently, I stumbled upon VOVETI Prosecco – an easy drinking Italian sparkling wine. It’s a brut style DOC with tempered acidity – fresh and light.

It was the perfect wine to serve with the coconut shrimp I’ve been wanting to make, and perfect alongside a few salty snacks as well.

I also have these adorable little VOVETI Prosecco splits. I am tucking them away to use as stocking stuffers! (Santa, hint hint.)

Healthy Party Appetizers

Parties don’t have to be calorie and sugar land-mines to be full of tempting and delicious food. Try these simple ideas — I promise, you can put together all the food you need for a small holiday gathering in 2 hours!

• Seafood: Seafood cooks quickly, is loaded with omega 3s and protein, and is a crowd favorite. Try these Crispy Baked Coconut Shrimp, or go even easier by serving shrimp cocktail.
• Nuts: For this party spread, I roasted my own nuts with some herbs and spices – I will be sharing a recipe for Holiday Spiced Mixed Nuts later this week! I prefer to buy raw nuts, and roast them myself, because then I can be sure they are roasted in a healthy oil and are lightly salted – but buying them pre roasted is definitely a time saver!
• Fruit: Buying fruit that doesn’t need to be prepared is a great way to add healthy food that is perfect for snacking on with wine. Grapes and mandarin oranges are perfect for the winter season.
• Popcorn: Skip the chips, and serve a bowl of buttered popcorn. I like to pop it on the stove top with olive oil and a little butter, lots of sea salt, and some italian herbs. When I serve popcorn, the bowl is always empty mid-party.

Tips for Baked Coconut Shrimp

• Make it Gluten Free: Instead of buying store bought breadcrumbs, I make my own gluten free coating by grinding up Brown Rice Crisp cereal – it’s the perfect light texture!
• Make it Ahead: You’ll want to bake the coconut shrimp right at the start of the party. It only takes 12-15 minutes to bake, and it’s best when still warm and crispy. To prepare it ahead of time, make the breadcrumb/coconut coating, and beat some eggs. If all your other party food is prepared ahead of time, coating the shrimp and throwing them in the oven won’t take too my time!

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Baked Coconut Shrimp

This healthier baked version of Coconut Shrimp is a party favorite. This is gluten free, made with homemade gluten free "bread crumbs," and served with a homemade Chili Orange Dipping Sauce. Serve with a store bought cocktail sauce or sweet Thai chili sauce to save time.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 5 people

Calories 292kcal

Author Michelle Miller

Ingredients

• 1 pound jumbo shrimp
• 2 eggs
• olive oil spray, if possible

"Flour" Mixture

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• black pepper to taste

Coconut Mixture

• 1 cup unsweetened coconut shredded
• 1/2 cup brown rice crisp cereal blended into flour
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large baking tray with baking paper or a Silpat. If neither of these options are available, generously grease the pan with olive oil. If shrimp aren't defrosted yet, add to a strainer and run under cool water for 5-10 minutes to thaw quickly.
• In one bowl, mix together the "flour" ingredients.
• In another bowl, beat the eggs.
• In a 3rd bowl, add together the ingredients for the coconut mixture.
• Take shrimp one at a time and dip into the flour mixture, then into the eggs, and then into the coconut mixture. Place onto the baking tray, leaving space around each shrimp so the hot air can circulate around them and brown them all the way around.
• Lightly spray the coated shrimp with an olive oil spray. 
• Once all the shrimp are coated, bake for 12-15 minutes. Around the 10 minute mark, begin monitoring the shrimp. The coconut will go from nicely browned to burnt rather quickly, and all ovens are different.
• If you'd like to prepare these ahead of time for a party, prepare the 3 bowls (flour, eggs, coconut mixture), and be sure you have your dipping sauce made ahead of time. These can be coated in 5 minutes and baked just as your guests are arriving. It's best to serve these still warm while they are extra crispy. I don't recommend baking these and then reheating - I have tried re-baking the leftovers, and they weren't nearly as good as they were the first day.

Nutrition

Calories: 292kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 294mg | Sodium: 1317mg | Potassium: 198mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 5.8% | Vitamin C: 4.8% | Calcium: 16.9% | Iron: 18.4%

Other Healthy Party Food Recipes:

• Greek Salad Layered Dip, by iFoodReal
• Honey Crisp Apple Crostini with Whipped Goat Cheese and Pecans, by Simply Fresh Dinners
• Coconut Mint Cookie Truffles, by Vitamin Sunshine
• Sriracha Sesame Cashews, by Vitamin Sunshine

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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.