Baked Italian Shrimp

My itty bitty was hangry and he wanted his "popcone schwimp." Complete toddler meltdown when I had to inform him that our boxes of Gorton's Popcorn Shrimp were all gone. Although I find it incredibly cute when he is rolling on the floor and crying in hysteria I want to defuse the situation and bring him back to his sane self. His request couldn't be filled until a light bulb moment happened. I had bought a pound of shrimp and froze it and decided to make a recipe that I had saved for a dinner later in the week. A few menu adjustments and these being subbed in for itty bitty's snack and his mama was back in the kitchen.

Faux-fried shrimp goodness. Nuff said. Okay not really. Quick and easy to make. The aroma from these cooking was almost unbearable to the point of wanting to gnaw my arm off. The ideas were racing through my mind of how I was going to use them. On top of noodles with some marinara sauce or... and before I could get the thoughts sorted out in my head the baking sheet with the shrimp was already pulled out of the oven and they were devoured. Not the entire batch. A serving size. ('Memeber I count calories and blah, blah, blah.)

For another night I will be at the ready and have a pot of spaghetti noodles prepared and sauce on the stove top for when these come fresh out of the oven to make a meal instead of a snack. These would also be great served as appetizers with a side of marinara sauce for dipping. The time it would have taken his freezer counterpart to cook these were done in the same amount of time. Nothing beats homemade versus a frozen box. Hands down.

Baked Italian Shrimp

MyRecipes.com and Coastal Living, May 2001

Makes 12 servings

Stars of the Show:

• 2/3 cup fine, dry plain breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley - I used dried parsley.
• 2 pounds peeled shrimp - You can leave the tails on or take them off. I removed mine because I don't like to hassle with the tails when I'm ready to eat.
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp seasoned salt - Didn't have seasoned salt on hand so I made my own. No exact measurements just a couple shakes of the following: salt, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil

And Action:

Combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and parsley in a shallow dish, set aside.

Place shrimp in a large bowl. Sprinkle shrimp with garlic, seasoned salt, and pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and toss gently.

Dredge shrimp in breadcrumb mixture. Arrange shrimp in an even layer on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 400° for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring twice.