Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Source: The Food You Crave

Shrimp has to be one of my all-time favorite meats to cook. First of all, because it's delicious, and secondly, because I'm terrible at putting things in the fridge to properly defrost. With shrimp, all you have to do is throw the shrimp in a strainer and run some water on it for 5 minutes. Yay!

I love feta, but the dill in this recipe intrigued me. I've only used dill for fish recipes. I thought it added such a great flavor of freshness to the dish. If you love shrimp, you'll love this recipe!

Baked Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, diced (1 1/2 cups)

2 cloves garlic, minced

Two 14.5-ounce cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes, with their juices

1/4 cup finely minced fresh flat leaf parsley

1 tablespoon finely minced dill

1 1/4 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese (about 3 ounces)

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Heat the oil in an ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until the tomato juices thicken.

3. Remove from heat. Stir in the parsley, dill, and shrimp and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle feta over the top. Bake in the oven until the shrimp are cooked through and the cheese melts, about 12 minutes.

Linguine with Shrimp and Vegetables

Source: The Food You Crave

I bought this book a few weeks back as part of my "healthy eating" initiative. I just started randomly flipping through it and this caught my eye. It's kind of a spring/summer dish, but really, I looked through the ingredients and picked it when I saw I only had one item to buy from the grocery store. I don't go by "the lazy housewife" for nothing.

Simply, this was amazing. I ate this until my stomach hurt. I licked the serving spoon before I put it in the dishwasher. This was SO GOOD, and asparagus and tomatoes aren't even in season! I think the key is all the fresh ingredients. Fresh parsley and real grated Parmesan are a MUST.

As always, I make way too many noodles. In this case, I mixed in what I thought was a reasonable amount, and put the rest in a Ziplock bag to serve with tomorrow's spaghetti. All the pasta dishes I make now are with whole-grain noodles. I really can't tell the difference, and since I tend to gorge myself on carbs, I feel a little better knowing they're good for me.

Now if I could only make myself like whole-grain bread. Blech.

Linguine with Shrimp and Vegetables

Ingredients:

3/4 box (12 ounces) linguine

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 bunch (about 1 pound) asparagus, woody bottoms removed and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cook the linguine according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the shrimp and cook until they turn pink and the asparagus is tender but firm, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the shrimp mixture from the pan and set aside.

3. Combine the lemon juice, wine, and reserved pasta water in the skillet over medium-high heat. Let simmer until the liquid is reduced by about half. Return the shrimp and asparagus to the pan and stir in the parsley. Add the drained linguine, tossing to combine. Add the tomatoes and toss. Sprinkle with cheese, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Seafood Gratin

Adapted from: Barefoot Contessa at Home

Boy, oh boy. If this doesn't make you go out and buy one of Ina's cookbooks, I don't know what will! I saw this on Smells Like Home and what with my seafood addiction and all, had to make it! This is the best dish I've cooked so far in 2009! So incredibly tasty and flavorful. If you like seafood, this is a must-make dish!

A couple of drawbacks: yes, the dish is expensive. You need 8 ounces each of lobster, fish, and shrimp. But as the Smells Like Home blogger notes, you really could not get 4 servings of a dish like this at a restaurant for $30!

The prep time is also lengthy. For me, it took about 2 and a half hours from initial prepping to the table. Part of that is I truly suck at julienning...well, anything, so that step took me a good 20 minutes or so.

I cannot wait to heat this up again tomorrow...yum!

Seafood Gratin

1 cup clam juice

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons white wine, divided

3 tablespoon tomato puree

8 ounces raw shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails cut off and cut in half crosswise

8 ounces halibut or cod, cut into 1-inch chunks

8 ounces cooked lobster meat, cut into 1-inch chunks

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3 cups julienned leeks, white and green parts (2-3 leeks)

1 1/2 cups julienned carrots (3 carrots)

1 cup panko

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves

1 tablespoon minced garlic (2 cloves)

1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place 4 individual gratin dishes on sheet pans. (I used a square baking dish.)
2. Combine the stock, cream, 1/2 cup of the wine, and the tomato puree in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and add the shrimp. After 3 minutes, use a slotted spoon to remove the shrimp to a bowl. Add the halibut to the stock for 3 minutes, until just cooked through, and remove to the same bowl. Add the cooked lobster to the bowl.
3. Continue to cook the sauce until reduced by half, about 12 minutes. Mash 1 tablespoon of the butter together with the flour. Whisk the butter mixture into the sauce along with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
4. Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saute pan. Add the leeks and carrots and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of wine, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, until tender. Set aside.
5. Combine the panko, Parmesan, parsley, tarragon, and garlic. Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter and mix it into the crumbs until they’re moistened.
6. Divide the seafood among the 4 gratin dishes. Strew the vegetables on top of each dish. Pour the sauce equally over the seafood and vegetables and spoon the crumbs evenly on top. Bake for 20 minutes, until the top is browned and the sauce is bubbly. Serve hot.

Pioneer Woman's Penne a la Betsy

Source: The Pioneer Woman

I've seen this recipe floating around on a few blogs, and being the shrimp lover that I am, I had to put it in the rotation! This is divine! I've made similar cream-based sauces and this time I added a few pinches of cayenne to spice it up. It was incredibly good and filling!

I forgot to pick up fresh herbs at the store and used dried. It turned out fine, but I could tell they would have made a world of difference compared to the dried. I really need/want to get an Aerogarden!

Penne a la Betsy

1 pound shrimp

3/4 pound penne pasta

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup white wine

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh basil, chiffonaded

Salt and pepper

1. Set a large pot of water on the stove to boil. Add the penne pasta and cook until al dente.

2. Peel, devein and rinse shrimp under cool water. Heat 1 tablespoon each of butter and olive oil in a skillet. Add shrimp and cook for a couple of minutes, until just opaque. Remove to a plate and let cool for a few mintues.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons each butter and olive oil in skillet. Add garlic and onion and saute, stirring occasionally. Remove tails from shrimp and chop into bite-sized pieces and set aside. After the garlic and onion have cooked for awhile, add white wine to skillet. Let evaporate a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Add in tomato sauce. Stir until well combined. Add heavy cream and stir. Turn heat down to low and let simmer while you chop herbs. Add parsley and basil to skillet and stir. Add shrimp back into skillet and add salt and pepper to taste. Add cooked penne pasta and heat a couple of minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Baked Shrimp Scampi

Source: Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics

I used to not like shrimp. My only exposure to it was shrimp cocktail when I was younger, and I found the texture kind of weird and I didn't love cocktail sauce. Now, shrimp is one of my favorite foods! Baked, fried, you name it, I'm eating it!

Like Annie, where I originally saw this recipe, I love the fact that I already had everything on hand. I didn't have fresh parsley or rosemary, so I just used dried this time. It turned out divine! The only change I would make for the future is not to pour the ENTIRE olive oil mixture over the shrimp. It seemed like a little bit too much liquid.

Baked Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients:

1 lb. large shrimp in the shell

1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. dry white wine

Kosher salt and black pepper

4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 tsp. minced garlic (about 4 cloves)

2 tbsp. minced shallots

1 1/2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley

1/2 tsp. minced fresh rosemary leaves

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest

1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 large egg yolk, lightly beaten

1/3 cup panko

Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Allow to sit at room temperature while you make the butter and garlic mixture.

In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and a pinch of black pepper until combined.

Starting from the center of an oval or round baking dish, arrange the shrimp in a single layer in the dish. Pour the remaining marinade over the shrimp. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the shrimp. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Place under the broiler for 1 additional minute to brown the top. Serve with lemon wedges.

Shelly's Crunchy Shrimp

Source: Nom Nom Nom

I saw these recently on Shelly's blog, and I love Panko, and I love shrimp, so I had to try it! It was so simple and delicious! The original recipe is for 2 servings--if you have more, I'd plan for at least 10 shrimp per person and adjust the rest of the ingredients accordingly. I also reduced the amount of cayenne pepper to 1 teaspoon. The original recipe called for 3, which was too hot for us. I'll definitely make this again!



Shelly's Crunchy Shrimp

Ingredients:

Approximately 2 dozen medium shrimp, thawed
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
2 teaspoons black pepper
3 teaspoons garlic salt
2 eggs
Panko bread crumbs (about a cup or so)
Vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Mix the flour, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and garlic salt in a small bowl or pie plate. In a separate bowl, beat 2 eggs. Pour some Panko crumbs in another pie plate.
2. Heat up some vegetable oil in a large skillet (not olive oil). Pour just enough oil so it thinly covers the entire bottom of the pan.
3. Take a shrimp, dunk it in the flour mixture, then the egg, then the panko. Carefully put it in the skillet. Repeat as necessary.
4. Fry each side about 2-3 minutes until golden brown.
5. Serve, either plain or with whatever sauce you prefer. I thought they were great all by themselves, and my husband liked a little cocktail sauce!

Garlicky Shrimp Pasta

Source: Cook's Illustrated

Yum yum yum! Cook's Illustrated continues to impress me. I love shrimp, and I love pasta, so I knew this would be a winner. I especially loved the idea to cut the shrimp in small pieces and use shorter pasta--so much of the time I make dishes like this with linguine and the pieces get lost in all that pasta. It made for an even balance, and it was surprisingly filling! I've never made a dish with clam juice before, and I like the taste it added to the dish. Cooking the shrimp for a short period allowed it to still have a nice bite. I would suggest having all the ingredients ready to go once you start cooking the shrimp, since the dish comes together quickly from that point. And I just realized I completely spaced on the parsley--it would have added some nice color had I remembered!

Garlicky Shrimp Pasta

5 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons), plus 4 medium cloves, smashed
1 pound large shrimp (21-25), peeled, deveined, each shrimp cut into 3 pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
Table salt
1 pound pasta in short, tubular shapes, such as fusilli, campanelle, or mezze rigatoni
1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons unbleached, all-purpose
1/2 cup dry vermouth or white wine
3/4 cup clam juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon lemon juice plus 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Toss 2 teaspoons minced garlic, shrimp, 1 tablespoon oil, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in medium bowl. Let shrimp marinate at room temperature 20 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

2. Heat 4 smashed garlic cloves and remaining 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until garlic is light golden brown, 4 to 7 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and use slotted spoon to remove garlic from skillet; discard garlic. Set skillet aside.

3. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta. Cook until just al dente, then drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup cooking water, and transfer pasta back to Dutch oven.

4. While pasta cooks, return skillet with oil to medium heat; add shrimp with marinade to skillet in single layer. Cook shrimp, undisturbed, until oil starts to bubble gently, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir shrimp and continue to cook until almost cooked through, about 1 minute longer. Using slotted spoon, transfer shrimp to medium bowl. Add remaining 3 teaspoons minced garlic and pepper flakes to skillet and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute; stir in vermouth and cook for 1 minute. Add clam juice and parsley; cook until mixture starts to thicken, 1 to 2 minutes. Off heat, whisk in butter and lemon juice. Add shrimp and sauce to pasta, adding reserved cooking water if sauce is too thick. Season with black pepper. Serve, passing lemon wedges separately.

Sunday Gumbo

Source: All Recipes

My husband has grown very fond of the Cheescake Factory's version of this dish, and I've never made gumbo before, so I decided to give it a go. It was VERY tasty! The only thing I did not like was the Italian sausage. I picked up a different brand of Italian turkey sausage than I normally do, so I'm not sure if that was the problem, but the sausage had a heavy licorice flavor. Weird. While eating, I actually thought it would be better with kielbasa--I'll try that next time! The original recipe calls for slicing the sausage and then cooking. If you've never sliced raw Italian sausage before, it's pretty difficult. I would suggest browning them on the outside and THEN slicing.

Sunday Gumbo

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Ready in: 1 hour

1 pound of Italian sausage links (or Kielbasa!)
1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cubed (I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs because they are so much more tender and flavorful!)
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 celery hearts, chopped
1 teaspoon dried majoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cans of chicken broth
2/3 cup uncooked brown rice
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 pound of shrimp
2 cups frozen sliced okra

Directions:

1. In a Dutch oven, brown sausage and chicken in oil. Remove with a slotted spoon. Slice sausage and set entire mixture aside and keep warm. In the drippings, saute the pepper, onion, and celery until tender. Add in garlic powder, thyme, majoram, and 1/4 tsp of the cayenne pepper. Stir in the broth, rice, meat mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.

2. Stir in tomatoes, shrimp, and okra. Add additional cayenne pepper to taste. Bring back to a boil, and reduce heat to low and cook for another 10 minutes until shrimp turn bright pink, stirring occasionally.

This is very hot (temperature wise) if you serve it immediately! I would let it sit for a few minutes before serving.

Shrimp Scampi Bake

Sadly, I have no photos of this recipe. I cannot find my camera. I am known for just setting things down in what I THINK are obvious places, so I'm sure it will turn up!

In any case, this is a simple, yummy recipe!

Source: www.allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter (I halved it)
2 tablespoons of dijon mustard (I also halved this)
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh garlic
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley (from my herb garden!)
2 pounds of raw shrimp (I bought frozen, rinsed in cold water to thaw)
1 pound of pasta

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta.

2. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, mustard, lemon juice, garlic, and parsley. Blend ingredients, and remove from heat once butter is melted.

3. Add shrimp to a shallow saucepan. Pour sauce over shrimp. Bake 12-15 minutes. While shrimp is cooking, add pasta to boiling water and cook per package instructions.

4. Remove from oven and serve over pasta. Enjoy!

Since I halved the butter, the pasta didn't have as much "sauce" as I would have liked. I'd suggest adding about 1/4--1/2 cup of white wine to make more sauce for the pasta.