Baked Stuffed Shrimp
For stuffing
1 cup chopped mushrooms (about 1/4 pound)
3 tablespoons minced onion
2 tablespoons minced celery ribs
1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 pound scallops, chopped, or lump crabmeat, picked over
1/2 cup chicken broth
32 Ritz crackers (about two thirds of a 12-ounce package), crushed into coarse
crumbs
18 jumbo shrimp (about 2 pounds), shelled, leaving
tail and connecting shell segment intact
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Garnish: chopped fresh parsley leaves
Accompaniment: lemon wedges
Preheat oven to 375°F. and butter a large baking
dish.
Make stuffing: In a large heavy skillet cook mushrooms, onion, celery,
garlic, and parsley in butter over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until
softened and liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated. Add scallops or crabmeat
and cook over moderately high heat, stirring, 3 minutes. Stir in broth and
cracker crumbs and remove skillet from heat.
Butterfly shrimp by cutting lengthwise along inside curve, almost completely
through. Split open shrimp and devein. Mound about 2 tablespoons stuffing onto
each shrimp, pressing gently, and put shrimp, stuffed sides up, in baking dish.
Melt butter and drizzle over shrimp. Sprinkle shrimp with paprika and bake 20
minutes, or until stuffing is golden.
Garnish shrimp with parsley and serve with lemon wedges.
Serves 6.