Parmesan Encrusted Garlic Shrimp

If you’re one of those folks often accused of being lusty about food, you’ll enjoy this simple recipe. I was craving something that seemed decadent, yet was quick cooking and simple to prepare.  Since I was already serving my pasta with Raphael Sauce from yesterday’s post, this garlicky, rich – but not too filling dish seemed a perfect fit.  

Parmesan Encrusted Garlic Shrimp is one of my non-recipe recipes.  If you like to cook, you know what I mean….one of those, “these flavors / ingredients sound good today.  Let’s see what I can come up with,”  kind of things.   I served it with a crusty whole wheat artisan loaf  for dipping and was mmmm-ing and ahhh-ing my way through the entire meal. The tender and juicy shrimp were a really nice contrast to the slightly crunchy Parmesan crust and hearty bread.  

Since there are so few ingredients, and olive oil is one of the key flavors, it’s important to choose a good quality fruity oil and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  You could easily experiment with flavored oils with what I’m sure would be delicious results.

I knew it was going to be a rich dish, and leftover shrimp bear a remarkable resemblance to hockey pucks, so I went for  an appetizer size portion even though I served it with dinner.  Feel free to scale up or down.  Both would work well.

 Ingredients

10-12 medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
good quality olive oil for drizzling
1 large clove of garlic, minced
salt to taste
fresh ground black pepper to taste
4 tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

Instructions

Choose a low-rimmed oven proof pan.  Something that is nice enough to sit on the table with dinner is a good choice, as this is an oven to table recipe.
Coat the bottom of the pan generously with olive oil. You don’t want the shrimp floating in oil, but you definitely want them well coated and “juicy”.
Place the shrimp in the pan and toss with garlic, salt and pepper.
Arrange the shrimp in a single layer and broil on high for three minutes.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with Parmesan.
Return pan to broiler and cook for another two to three minutes until cheese is melted and crusty and shrimp are cooked through.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with parsley.

 Read more Fat CampFriday blog posts and recipes!

Related Posts:

Week in Review – October 17
Garlic and Herb “Smash” Fries
Potato Leek Soup with Parmesan Herb Croutons
Pasta Sauce Raphael
Fit Foodista’s Week in Review – September 27