Lydia Shire
Executive-Chef/Owner Biba Restaurant and Pignoli Restaurant, Boston, MA


My Father's Famous Shrimp Hors d'oeuvres

My four children could not fathom Christmas without these! My father was a wonderful cook. I used to help him make these shrimp. Now even my "fancy" foodie friends can't wait.

• 2 lbs. cooked, peeled and deveined shrimp (16-20) --
  that means how many there are to a pound of shrimp.
  A good fish market usually has these all ready for the holidays.
• 2 jars Kraft "Roka Blue" cheese (found in the dairy section of the supermarket in little glass jars)
• 2 cups flour season with 2 tsp. each salt and pepper
• 3 eggs beaten with 2 tbls. water
• 1 lb. freshly made fluffy bread crumbs or preferably 2 packages Japanese "panko" crumbs
• lemon wedges for garnish
• oil for frying

Method: Hold each shrimp in your hand and with a sharp paring knife cut the shrimp open around the circumference without cutting all the way in half. In other words, you are opening it up as much as you can so that it can be stuffed with the cheese. Pack in as much cheese as you can, smoothing out the cheese with the edges of the shrimp. Do all shrimp like this -- chill for 30 minutes covered with plastic warp in the refrigerator. Have 3 bowls ready -- one with the seasoned flour, one with the beaten egg and one with the crumbs.

Dip each shrimp lightly in the flour, shaking off any excess and then dip into the egg making sure that the shrimp is totally covered by the egg -- then into the crumbs, again making sure they are totally covered.

At this point they may be returned to the refrigerator covered and ready for your guests to arrive.

Heat 2-3 inches of peanut of corn oil in a semi-large pot or dutch oven, etc. Heat to approximately 350 degrees or when a piece of bread is dropped in it turns brown in 1 minutes. Be careful the oil is not too hot as the shrimp will brown too fast before the cheese has a chance to melt.

Fry 6 at a time. Remove with a slotted spoon. Drain on paper towels.

Serve immediately and watch the faces of your guests when they find this surprise in their shrimp. Garnish platter with lemon wedges and parsley sprigs.

Afterthought: If you cannot find Kraft "Roka Blue" cheese you can make your own mix of equal amounts blue and cream cheese. But in my opinion, there are times in this world that a little help from a "jar" actually tastes great -- it is the right consistency -- and sometimes you must work "smarter" not "harder".

Happy Holidays!

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS:
To butter only one side of my toast!
That crispy chicken skin is not to be thought as a vegetable!
Mai-tais are not to be served in punch bowls!
Champagne is not a diet soft drink

Newsgroups: Holiday Entertaining: What are you cooking?
Sweet Spot: Holiday Baking