I love finding recipes in unusual places like this one that I found under the lid of a container of Nature Sweet grape tomatoes from Costco. I’m the type of home cook who can’t pass a rack of recipes in the supermarket without thumbing through to find a few that might work at home. Not that I make many of them, but they are great for new ideas. 

The reason I picked up grape tomatoes is because regular tomatoes have no flavor this time of year and I wanted something to go with a mozzarella, basil and tomato salad. My kids had a craving for some fresh Mozzarella cheese so I picked up a tub of egg sized balls again at Costco to serve with their dinner. My wife and I love it in a tomato salad with good extra virgin olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar, some sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

This recipe was on the back of the package and looked good enough to try.

Toasted Shrimp and Tomato

makes 8 servings

3 cups croutons or bread crumbs
½ cup parsley
3 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons lemon zest
1 ½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
1/3 cup olive oil
2 pounds large shrimp
lemon wedges
1 pound grape tomatoes

Prep

Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees F. It takes a few minutes to get there so you might as well get it going while you finish the prep.

Finely chop the parsely, garlic and lemon zest.

Peel and devein the shrimp. Cut the lemon wedges and you are ready to start.

How to Prepare at Home

Lightly oil a large baking pan. If you are using croutons, pulse them in a food processor and turn into breadcrumbs. Other wise just use your favorite commercial breadcrumbs.

Combine the “bread crumbs” parsley, garlic, lemon zest, pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Add 4 table spoons of olive oil or enough to moisten the crumbs.

Arrange the cleaned shrimp and tomatoes in the baking pan in a single layer. Spoon a little of the breadcrumb mixture on to each of the shrimp and tomatoes. Drizzle the tops with a little more of the olive oil.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes depending on the size of the shrimp. The shrimp are done when they turn pink and the crumbs are lightly browned.

Serve with the lemon wedges.