I asked my daughter tonight whether we should do burgers (I mean real MEAT burgers … ) or shrimp tonight, and she requested shrimp. She loooooooves shrimp. And crab legs. I haven’t cooked crab legs at home … that’s one of those things that I would rather have served to me at a restaurant. But shrimp … THAT you can cook at home. Deliciously.
This is a great way to make “breaded” shrimp without all the fat of deep frying the shrimp because you bake it! It’s fast too … It was Gina at Gina’s Skinny Taste that suggested that you could do this with shrimp! I have breaded and baked fish this way, but for some reason hadn’t thought of “breading” shrimp this way. It’s delicious … if it wasn’t for my kids (who don’t like nuts), I probably would have added some nuts … a few toasted pinons or almonds would be so GOOD in this … Ah well. It’s was super-yummilicious just like this.
Because the shrimp take a little bit of work, I wanted simple sides with it. So I served it with angel hair pasta tossed with a little Basil-Lime Pesto and a simple mixed green salad with some cantaloupe and a tequila-lime vinaigrette I had made for some previous dinner.
Let’s look a little closer at those shrimp, shall we?
Well, maybe just a bit closer …
Are you hungry yet? Let’s get started!
Herb and Parmesan Crusted Shrimp
Ingredients:
- about 1 lb. large shrimp
- 3/4 c. whole wheat bread crumbs
- about 1/4 c. freshly grated parmesan (or asiago or romano)Â cheese
- 1/2 t. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 t. tarragon
- 1/2 t. dill
- 1/2 t. Red Robin Seasoning (or seasoned salt)
- 1/4 t. granulated garlic
- freshly ground pepper (to taste)
- 1 egg (you can substitute 2 egg whites or use egg beaters if you like)
Directions:
- Prepare your side dishes. Once the shrimp is done, you will want to serve it right away!
- If you are doing this in an oven, preheat to 450 degrees F. I use a convection toaster oven ( … so no preheating needed)!
- Coat your baking pan with cooking spray.
- Mix together the bread crumbs, grated cheese, and spices in a good-sized bowl for dipping.
- If the cheese shreds look too lengthy for breading (mine did!), whirl them in your food processor or handy chopper for a few seconds.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg (or egg whites or eggbeaters) till it’s well mixed and a bit frothy.
- Dip a shrimp or two or three in the egg first (to coat), then in the crumb mixture, flipping to coat each piece. I like to set the shrimp in the breading and use my fingers to “bury” it in the crumbs. Then carefully lift it out and set it on the baking dish. This makes for very messy fingers and I find myself rinsing them off a million times, but it’s fun AND it gets a little extra of those lovely crumbs on the shrimp. (You can also double dip your shrimp if you want extra breading–put them back in the egg mixture, then in the breading again.)
- Set the shrimp pieces on the baking tray, leaving a little space between them. Admittedly, mine were not spaced all that well.
- When you’ve finished dipping all the shrimp, spray them liberally with cooking spray.
- Bake at 450 for about 6-7 minutes. At this point, you should go warn your eaters that it’s almost time to eat!
- Flip the shrimp, spray with cooking spray, then cook another 3-5 minutes on the other side.
- Serve immediately with lemon wedges and your delicious side dishes. 🙂
Oh yes! About that salad …
I was desparate for something quick to throw together to go with this shrimp and my girl had just cut up an entire cantaloupe into chunks for munching on. I had never put melon on a “green” salad before and I’ve got to tell you it was SO delicious! All it is is mixed organic greens with a few hunks of melon and sprinkled with Cooking Light’s Tequila Lime Vinaigrette on top. Oh so simple and oh so sweet! The dressing is even sweet, too, so even your children would like this (you could make the dressing without the tequila for them). The sweetness of this fresh melon salad with the salty herbed breaded shrimp and the garlicky angel hair pasta was just SO perfect!
Here’s the dressing recipe again so you don’t have to go look it up:
Tequila Lime Vinaigrette (from Cooking Light Magazine)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons tequila
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
- Dash of salt
Directions:
- Toss all ingredients into a food processor and whir till blended. Or you can just whisk them all together in a bowl, but the food processor will chop up the cilantro really nicely. I used watermelon-infused tequila (made by soaking watermelon cubes in tequila for several  days). Cover and chill until ready to use.
This recipe was shared at:Â Recipe of the Week: Seafood
4 comments
CHANGED MY MIND-INSTEAD OF MAKING ALL YOUR RECIPES, WHY DON’T I JUST COME OVER FOR DINNER???? HAHAHAHA
LOL come on over Danielle! I would LOVE to have you! 🙂
Healthy and delicious!!! Looks incredible! 🙂
These look amazing. Healthy also. The girls and I love shrimp….can’t wait to try this one 🙂