Stuffed with Scampi Shrimp

I think it is pretty obvious that our family loves shrimp. Being on the coast, we are fortunate to get some amazing seafood and shrimp just happens to be our favorite. When I found this recipe (on Pinterest) for not shrimp scampi but scampi shrimp, I knew that I had to try it!

Before and After

This was a fun recipe to make! You get to butterfly shrimp and then stuff them with an amazing mixture. The stuffing itself smelled so good! The recipe calls for breadcrumbs of your choice, so I decided to use Panko breadcrumbs. I thought it was neat that the "liquid" used to bind everything together was sour cream! It really added a nice flavor and taste to the mix. The recipe calls for chopped shrimp in the actual stuffing mixture, so after I added the shrimp, the mix seemed a little dry. Therefore I added a little more breadcrumbs and some more sour cream, which fixed everything. I know that there are some people who do not like lemon on their seafood (this included my dad), so I would leave the lemon juice out of the stuffing and put it maybe on the side.

One of the little thing that I learned making this dish was that the recipe calls for 1lb of shrimp and then another 16 jumbo shrimp.  I bought 1.5 lbs of the regular, not previously frozen, not cooked shrimp and it was enough for both.  After deveining and shelling the shrimp, I chose my 16 shrimp that I was going to stuff, and then used the rest in the stuffing mix. I know that shrimp is not the cheapest, especially if you are not near the coast, so I hope that this helps! 

The Final Product

I knew that there needed to be something to put the shrimp on, so decided to make some fettucini with my own garlic butter sauce. I thought this was a perfect accompaniment to the shrimp. This was such a great meal and is one that I will make again real soon! 


Hope you enjoy trying this scampi shrimp! Bon a petit!


-Kym's Kitchen


Here are the recipes:
(From: http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2011/01/10/scampi-stuffed-and-roasted-shrimp/)

Scampi-Stuffed Roasted Shrimp
recipe adapted from Cooking for Isaiah by Silvana Nardone
(serves 4)


For the filling:
1 lb medium or large shrimp, peeled, deveined and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup sour cream
1 cup breadcrumbs- panko, finely crushed crisp rice cereal, any kind is fine
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons finely minced fresh parsley
salt and pepper

Remaining ingredients:
16 jumbo shrimp- (about 1 lb)peeled, deveined, and butterflied
2 tablespoons olive oil
Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 425°F.
2. Start by making the shrimp filling. Peel, devein, and then finely chop 1 lb of medium or large sized shrimp. You want the pieces very small so that they blend well with other filling ingredients.
3. Mix the shrimp with finely crushed crispy rice cereal (a la Rice Krispies), panko bread crumbs, or traditional bread crumbs. Any style works well here. Add 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, 2 cloves of garlic, a dash of hot red pepper flakes, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup sour cream. Use your hands to work all ingredients into a uniform and well blended ball.
4. Now prepare the jumbo sized shrimp for stuffing. You’ll need about sixteen of them if you plan to serve four people. These, too, should be peeled and deveined, but be sure to leave the tails on for presentation. Butterfly them by running a sharp knife along that curved indentation that runs down the backsides of the shrimp. You’re not cutting all the way through, just far enough in so that you can open and spread the bottom of the shrimp out into a wide circle.
5. You want the tail end to stick up and arc over. The cut side should be split and facing down on your cutting board, almost creating a little lap for the filling. Place these prepared shrimp on a baking sheet that has been well greased with olive oil.
6. Now take tablespoons of the filling mixture and mound it onto the laps of the jumbo shrimp, pressing so that the mixture stays in one clump when you take your hand away. Repeat this process with all remaining shrimp and filling, laying each on that greased baking sheet. Brush each prepared shrimp with a light coating of olive oil and set the pan in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the shrimp is pink and opaque.
7. I recommend serving the shrimp with lemon slices and a sprinkling of fresh parsley. I also think it would be nice to serve each individual shrimp on a lemon slice if you were to serve them as an appetizer.

Kym's Butter Garlic Sauce

1 1/2 Stick of unsalted butter
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. chives

1. Melt butter and garlic on the stove
2. Once the butter is melted add the chives and stir
3. Pour sauce over noodles or brush on slices of bread to make garlic bread