Shrimp appetizers are always a hit and romesco sauce needs more recipes tied to it. My previous post was a fantastic romesco sauce recipe and all the ways you can use it. This recipe for garlic shrimp crostini with romesco and shaved parmesan is one of those ways. By using medium-sized shrimp, this is the perfect two-bite appetizer for your next gathering.
Looking for an easy shrimp appetizer? You've found it with this garlic shrimp crostini
Plan ahead and you can make the romesco sauce a day or two before. There's only a few ingredients in this tasty little appetizer and it's pretty easy to make too. The French bread loaf will likely be available at your local grocery store bakery.
There are typically two sizes of bread. There is a larger, bulkier French bread loaf that is great for sandwiches and French bread pizza. Then there is a smaller, thinner loaf that is perfect for making crostini. Since we're making an appetizer and usually appetizers are a little snack before the main event, we want a bread that keeps things in the right proportions. This is what I call a two-bite appetizer and the smaller loaf accommodates this well.
CHEF'S TIP FOR REMOVING THE SHRIMP TAILS: An easy way to remember how to do this is: pinch, pull, peel. When you remove the shrimp tail do it with care. You'll want to gently pinch the tail at the furthest end. You'll be able to feel that little bit of meat in the tail and we want to keep that. Adjust your pinch grip and pull the tail gently off the shrimp while also leaving that tail meat intact.
The rest of the process is very simple. The remaining shell is very easy to peel off. Then set the shrimp aside on a plate or sheet pan to season it.
Shaved Parmesan Cheese and Chopped Chives add subtle flavor to complement the romesco
Using a potato peeler, you can shave the parmesan cheese right from the block. Chopping some fresh chives for a garnish add that mild onion flavor that chives are known for. And yes, if you purchased a package of chives, you would have a lot left over. So, use them for something else! I have an excellent cheddar herb biscuit recipe where you can simply use chopped chives as the herb in place of sage and thyme. If not, you could chop all the chives and add them to your salads for a couple of days.
By spreading the romesco sauce on the crostini, then placing the shaved parmesan on top of that - it locks it in place. Then top with two of the garlic shrimp and top with chives and you've got a mouthful of flavor.
More Ideas for Romesco Sauce:
- Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Dill Havarti, Arugula & Romesco Sauce
- Drizzle this sauce on your grilled chicken on a bbq night
- Slather the sauce on a piece of meaty white fish like halibut or striped bass
- Grilled Zucchini & Summer Squash Drizzled with Romesco Sauce (coming soon!)
- French bread pizza with romesco sauce, sautéed eggplant, onions and garlic
Garlic Shrimp Crostini with Romesco Sauce and Shaved Parmesan
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 crostinis 1x
Description
What to do with that romesco sauce? I gotcha covered with this awesome garlic shrimp crostini with romesco and shaved parm.
Ingredients
- 1 thin French bread loaf (see note#1)
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, more if needed
- 2 large garlic cloves, finely diced
- 8-10 chives, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped parsley, optional
- 12 parmesan cheese shavings (from block of cheese)
- 1 pound bag of MEDIUM shrimp (41-50 per pound/e-z peel/deveined/tail-on)
- ½ cup of Romesco sauce (more if needed)
- 1 tablespoon Canola oil, more if needed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
**NOTE**: I included the time it will take to make the romesco sauce which is about 15 minutes. But you can do that a day or two before you make the crostini.
Instructions
- Slice 12 rounds of bread from the loaf at about ¾” thickness. You can make more if you want. For this video I made 12. (see note#2)
- Place the sliced bread on a foil-wrapped, toaster-oven sheet pan and brush the olive oil on the tops. Set aside for now.
- Finely dice the garlic. I usually slice the garlic into thin strips then dice it down into smaller bits from there.
- Finely chop the chives.
- If you are using the optional parsley, chop that now. I add it in with the shrimp at the end of cooking, but it’s not required.
- With your peeler, shave 12 slices of parmesan cheese from a block of cheese. You’ll see in the video I cut a chunk of parmesan cheese from the block. Try to cut the chunk of cheese so that when you shave the parmesan it will match the same size as the slice of bread.
- Remove tails from shrimp and peel off shell. Gently pinch the tail of the shrimp and be careful not to pull off the meat in the tail. Pull the tail off and peel the rest of shell off and discard. Do this for all the shrimp.
- Lay shrimp out flat on a small plate or sheet pan and season with salt and pepper.
- Heat canola oil on medium-high heat in a large pan.
- Turn on your toaster oven broiler (or oven broiler if you’re making a larger batch, but keep the rack near the middle of the oven) and place the sheet pan with the crostini in the oven. It only takes a few minutes to brown them so keep your eye on them. They don’t need to be turned. You’ll need to cook the shrimp now and it will be easy to forget about the bread. Don’t forget.
- Once your oil is hot, add the shrimp and lay out flat in the pan. Let cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Turn the shrimp and let it cook a couple more minutes. You can toss with a spatula, but have your kitchen tongs on hand to assist with the turning also. Shrimp should be turning pink and curling now.
- Add a splash more oil to the middle of the pan and add the chopped garlic. Let it cook for a minute in the middle until fragrant, then mix with the shrimp. If you’re using the parsley throw it in now and give it a mix. Shrimp is done now.
- Your crostini should be toasted and now you need to work quickly to serve this fresh and hot.
- Lay out your toasted crostini on a cutting board and transfer the shrimp to a small bowl.
- Using a teaspoon spread the romesco sauce onto each crostini.
- Add on shaving of parmesan cheese to each crostini (on top of the romesco sauce).
- Place two shrimp on top of the shaved parmesan.
- I had already transferred some of the romesco sauce into a squeeze bottle to garnish my shrimp platter with little dots of the sauce. You don’t have to do this, but I like to give presentation options. J
- Lastly, garnish the garlic shrimp crostini with the fresh chopped chives. Serve immediately.
Notes
- There are usually two types of French loaves in the bakery section of your local grocery store. You’ll want the thinner more narrow loaf. See blog post above with pictures and I also discuss it in the video.
- I believe my bag of shrimp had about 45 shrimp in it which means you can make around 22-24 of these if you want. For this I made 12 and used the extra shrimp for salads.
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