Sometimes you come across a dish that you know immediately is a “Must-Try”! For me, those kind of recipes are small plates that usually involve some type of gooey cheese and of course, can be paired with a crisp Chardonnay. Add in some freshly baked bread and seafood? Well, then you take it to a completely different level! That is exactly what food blogger, “Creole Contessa”, created with her Stuffed Shrimp Bread…
As you know, I am a part-time personal chef for a local family and when I mentioned this recipe to them, they wanted to try it, too! Since they don’t eat bell peppers, I did leave those out but next time if I make it just for me, I will make sure to put them back in. Actually, I will probably try jalapenos to add a little heat, YUM!
The other change I made was to use mini Ciabatta loaves. These are perfect little squares and I just thought they would look prettier on the plate (I was right but if you can’t find the mini ones, the whole loaf will do just fine!) Note: The pictures will reflect doubling the recipe since I was making it for two different families.
Stuffed Shrimp Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs large shrimp, peeled, deveined, diced into 1/2 inch chunks
- 1 loaf Ciabatta bread
- 2 tablespoons butter, unsalted
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup celery, chopped
- 1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon creole seasoning (I ended up using 2 teaspoons)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 3/4 cup jack cheese, grated
- 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
- green onions to garnish
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cut Ciabatta bread in half or slice of top of bread.
Scoop out less than half a inch out of bread and set aside.
Mix seasonings and set aside.
Season shrimp with half of seasonings and set aside.
In a large skillet, melt butter olive oil and cook onions, celery, bell pepper, for 5 minutes add garlic, season with remaining spices cook 1 minute more. Note: Again, I didn’t include bell pepper but it would add a great flavor so I encourage you to do this if you aren’t surrounded by pepper haters…ha, ha!
Add shrimp cook for 5 minutes. 
Turn off heat.
Add dry mustard, sour cream and mayonnaise to shrimp mixture, mix well.
Add cheese and blend until melted.
Stuff Ciabatta with mixture.
Bake at 350°F oven for about 20-30 minutes until golden brown on top.
Garnish with green onions.
Cut into slices and serve.
Bottom Line: This recipe is delicious and can be tweaked to fit your tastes. For example, my husband loves creamy dishes so he thought it was perfect. I am not a huge cream fan, so I might reduce the sour cream and mayo for me and add in some hot sauce for some extra heat. I definitely think diced jalapenos would be a fantastic addition and you can easily switch this recipe up with crab as well (or lobster….oooohh)!
You will be a hit to family and friends if you make this easy dish that could be served in appetizer portions, brunch, or a satisfyingly, easy dinner! Please try this in your kitchen and let me know if you came up with your own tasty twist. I am Chef Frankie, always in the kitchen and always cooking with “love and wild abandon”!
For original recipe see: