This recipe was inspired by my birthday dinner two years ago at one of my favorite Des Moines seafood restaurants (Splash). I wouldn’t be able to tell you how it popped into my mind two years later, especially since I almost drank a full bottle of wine by myself that night.

It must have been really good.

My meal was delicious Sake Grilled Shrimp with Sweet Potato Mash and Black Bean Salsa. I tweaked it a bit and tried to recreate some of the same flavors in this Chipotle Shrimp version. You could easily marinate your shrimp in sake instead of the chipotle marinade if you prefer.

Some may not consider this a “Busy Mom” meal, but it is really simple and many components are make-ahead. If you have little ones that don’t like things too spicy, you can adjust the taste or use your favorite marinade instead.

Chipotle Shrimp with Sweet Potato Mash and Black Bean Salsa
serves about 4

Chipotle Shrimp
Use whatever kind of shrimp you prefer: tail on, tail off, pre-cooked, etc. My shrimp were on the smaller side so I figured about 8-10 shrimp per person.

• Your desired size of Shrimp, pre-cooked or un-cooked
• 2-4 Chipotles in adobo sauce + 2 Tbls additional sauce
• 1 Tbls minced garlic (I love garlic so I go a little heavy)
• 3 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Juice of 1 lime

Salsa (you can make this ahead!)

• About 1 cup black beans
• 1/2 of a mango, diced
• 1 small jalapeno, de-seeded and finely chopped
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
• Juice of 1 small lime
• Salt and Pepper

Sweet Potato Mash

• 3 Large Sweet Potatoes
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 stick of butter (You could probably get away with a half stick)
• A few splashes of milk
• Salt and Pepper

First you have to marinade your shrimp. Throw all of the ingredients and shrimp into a Ziploc bag and keep in the fridge for a few hours. Every once in awhile give it a little shake to move the marinade around.

For the black bean salsa, dice up all of the ingredients, cover and store in the fridge.

The mashed sweet potatoes are the most time consuming because you peel, cut and boil your potatoes until tender. Add the brown sugar, butter and milk and beat with a mixer until it’s the right consistency.

To cook your shrimp, follow the directions according to what type of shrimp you bought. I sauteed mine in a bit of olive oil for a few minutes on each side. To finish, top your mashed sweet potatoes with the shrimp and black bean salsa. Delicious! And colorful!

I would love to hear any variations you try!