I was a single parent, female and all of 27 years old. I had a small boy child and anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I'm not only a klutz but also very mechanically challenged. I can't put a simple toy together without having extra parts, the manufacturer always sends extra parts right? Anyway, I'm sure you have an image. I had bought my first home and as always something always needed to be done. Having a home and not being able to repair or put together something most people could do themselves is a bit demeaning. (and expensive) There was a young lguy iving down the road, a few years younger then me that I befriended and I would often barter with him. 'Hey I'll cook you dinner if you come help put up this screen door." "If you help me with this wiper on my car I'll bake you banana pudding". It got to the point when I would call and say, do you want to come to dinner, he would ask, what do you need put together now? We had grown very close and I not knowing how to cook in small amounts always had extra and welcomed the adult conversation at the dinner table and either invited him to dinner or sent home care packages several times a month. I gew very close to Robert and he still calls me Big Sissie. If I remember correctly I cooked dinner for Robert and a date one evening...
Anway... this blog is for you Robert, you requested 'shrimp kimberly', so here is the story....
One night I had made a sauteed shrimp dinner for myself and Dalton. I just kinda threw this and that together, not really following a recipe but putting together things I thought would taste good together. While we're eating Dalton says, this is good, what is it called? I said it doesn't have a name, I just made it up. Dalton thought for a minute and said... Well since you made it and it has shrimp in it, we can call it Shrimp Kimberly. (creative I know, wait until the Bunny Bunny and birdy bird stories) So Shrimp Kimberly was born. Now, my 5 year old had a sophisticated palate for a child, but I wanted some adult input so I invited Robert to dinner. He swore it was wonderful. So, I had added this dish to the "cookbook in my mind" and went about making it every couple of months. I wanted it to be special and not a once a week meal. Fast forward 5 years. I start to date a man and I decided to invite him to dinner. What to cook? Do I go dress dinner up or down? Will I scare him if I cook something he might think is weird? Is he a picky eater? (Oh Boy, wait for that blog) Is he allergic to anything? Do I cook steak, seafood, something casual or something a bit special? After all it is the first meal at my home that I'm cooking for this guy! I wanted to impress him, but what if I cooked something and he didn't like it.. OMG.... why did I open my mouth and say "Would you like to have dinner at my house this weekend?" ... Anyway.. I remembered that he ordered shrimp one night on an earlier date, so I decided on shrimp. I really liked this guy and I wanted to impress him with my cooking. Now how to cook it? I thought and I pondered and then it hit me.. I hadn't made Shrimp Kimberly in awhile. So I asked a few qualifying questions, most importantly do you like garlic? I second guessed, I thought about changing the recipe, I thought about making steak instead, but in the end I made the shrimp. I really liked this guy alot and knew I needed this to be the meal of all meals ( THE MEAL)... I cooked dinner...(he said I threw out the bait)... I served dinner (he said it got him intersted). Now he might have been a polite person but he asked for seconds! (and then he said I set the hook)! Eight years later we're still married. Terrell still teases me, when we talk about having shrimp for dinner he tells me that I knew what I was doing and that I planned on using the Shrimp Kimberly"catch" him! hmmmm shhhhhhhh I was just trying to make a guy a nice meal.... :D
Here's the recipe - serve with a green salad and seasoned rice. A nice Pinot Grigio goes well with this.. serves 2..... easily doubled
1 pound peeled and deveined shrimp
2-3 T olive oil
3 cloves garlic smashed and finely chopped
1 lemon zested and juiced
1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsley
1/2 - 3/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
3 T shredded pecorino romano cheese (or parmesean)
Old bay dry seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
Have EVERYTHING else ready to serve, this dish takes 6 minutes from start to finish
Heat a non-stick skillet to medium heat. Lay the shrimp on a plate in a single layer and sprinkle with Old Bay. When the pan is heated add 1 T olive oil and the garlic, sautee lightly. Add the shrimp in a single layer - add the zest - lemon juice and black pepper. Shake the pan to move the shrimp around. When the shrimp are cooked 1/2 way, turn the shrimp over and shake the pan again. Sprinkle the parsley and breadcrumbs on the shrimp. Drizzle another 1-2 T of olive oil on the shrimp to moisten the bread crumbs. Turn the heat to Medium-high and add the shredded cheese ,cover for about 30-45 seconds to slightly blend in the cheese and for the bread crumbs to stick to the shrimp. Remove from the pan and serve over rice with lemon wedges. Quality ingredients cooked with great flavors and you've impressed them with an elegantly easy meal. Enjoy!
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