Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp

It's the time of year when I can't stop thinking of some of our favorite European destinations such as the Mediterranean coasts of France and Italy.

My mouth starts to water as I imagine fresh seafood seasoned with wonderfully aromatic herbs, garlic and olive oils.

And I know how quick and easy it can be to capture that feeling in our own kitchen.

All we have to do is bake some shrimp, actually prawns.

(Ive always thought of shrimp as the little guys and prawns as the much larger fellas ((in between shrimp and lobster in size)).

Look at it this way, if you put shrimp direct on the barby, they'd fall right through the grill, right?

Whereas, if you put nice fat prawns on the grill, you'll be beating off the neighbors)

The thought of butterflied-baked-shrimp or prawns might surprise you.

After all, they cook so quickly that you might consider baking too much work, with too great a risk of overcooking.

In fact, this method for butterflied-baked-shrimp is one of the best ways I know to ensure that they cook perfectly, especially when you're making lots of them.

Yes, prawns (shrimp) take almost no time to cook, especially if you butterfly them (the technique of slitting them halfway through all along their length), then opening them up so that, maybe, sort of, they look like a butterfly.

That's why sauteing, pan-frying, stir-frying, deep-frying, and grilling, all quick methods, are popular ways to cook prawns (shrimp).

But try using any of those methods to prepare lots of shrimp or prawns and you start to see the problem.

You'll need multiple pans and multiple hands, to get them all done at once.

Or you have to cook them in batches, which also means that you eat them in batches or wait until all the cooking is done, by which time most of them are cold, overcooked and rubbery.

Baking, however, is another story with a much happier ending.

As you'll see in this recipe for Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp, all the shrimp (prawns) are prepped together and go into the oven at the same time.

The recipe here serves four, but all you need to double, triple, or quadruple it is a bigger baking dish or multiple dishes.

You can prepare the shrimp (prawns) for baking well in advance and keep them covered in the refrigerator if you like.

And, as long as you pre-heat the oven good and hot, the prawns (shrimp) still cook quickly.

Serve them as an appetizer or place them atop hot linguine or spaghetti tossed with your favorite sauce or pesto for an amazingly delicious main course.

However you serve them, one bite will make you too, feel like you've been magically transported to the Riviera or the Amalfi Coast.

Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp with Herbed Breadcrumbs

Serves 4

Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp Ingredients;

2 c. fresh breadcrumbs

16 extra-large prawns (shrimp), peeled and deveined, tail fins left on.

Freshly ground black pepper

"Sea" salt (of course)

2 Tbls. chopped fresh basil leaves

2 Tbls. chopped fresh oregano leaves

2 Tbls. chopped fresh parsley leaves

1 Tbls. chopped fresh thyme leaves

1 Tbls. minced garlic

4 ounces unsalted butter, melted

4 c. baby arugula leaves, rinsed well and patted dry

2 Tbls. extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)

1/2 lemon, juiced

Lemon wedges, for garnish

Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp Preparation;

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Evenly spread the breadcrumbs on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes, watching very carefully to make sure they don't burn.

Remove them from the oven, transfer to a mixing bowl, and set aside to cool.

Raise the oven temperature to 500 degrees.

With a small, sharp knife, butterfly the prawns (shrimp) by slicing all along the length of its outer curve where the vein was removed, cutting about half to two-thirds of the way down through it, from just in front of the tail to the head end and be careful not to cut all the way through.

Turn the shrimp (prawns) over and gently make three very shallow slits across the other side, perpendicular to the length of the shrimp, to prevent it from curling during cooking.

Lightly season each prawn on both sides with salt and pepper.

Set aside.

Add the basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, and garlic to the breadcrumbs, season with some salt and pepper, and toss well.

Brush a large ovenproof skillet with some of the melted butter to coat the bottom.

Dip each shrimp (prawn) in the butter, opened side down, and then dredge it in the breadcrumb mixture, pressing down so the crumbs stick and coat well.

Place all the prawns (shrimp), breadcrumb side up, in the skillet in a single layer and drizzle them with some of the remaining melted butter.

Bake just until the prawns are just cooked through, turning pink and white and the breadcrumbs are a deep brown, about 5 minutes.

While the shrimp (prawns) are baking, put the arugula leaves in a mixing bowl, add the EVOO and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper, then toss well.

Divide the arugula amongst four serving plates, mounding it in the center.

Arrange four prawns (shrimp), breadcrumbs up, around each mound of arugula.

Drizzle your Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp with the last of the melted butter.

Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

And there my friends, is an absolutely outstanding Butterflied-Baked-Shrimp (Prawn) appetizer or main course.

Either way, it's Super Natural.

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