Shrimp Butter Toasts: 2000s Recipes + Menus : gourmet.com

2000s Recipes + Menus

Serves10 (hors d'oeuvre)

Active time:35 min
Start to finish:7 1/2 hr

April 2007

In the South, you’ll usually find this delicate spread—not a smooth paste, but slightly textured, to play up the flavor of the shrimp—on "benne wafers" (sesame-seed crackers). Spooned onto buttery toast points, it makes for tiny little bites with big sea flavor.

For shrimp butter

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 lb medium shrimp in shell (31 to 35 per lb), peeled and deveined
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup minced onion
2 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cayenne

For toast points

10 slices firm white sandwich bread, crusts discarded and each slice cut to form 4 triangles
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Garnish:

whole cooked shrimp

Make shrimp butter:

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sauté shrimp with salt and black pepper, stirring, until just cooked through, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Transfer shrimp with a slotted spoon to a food processor, reserving skillet (do not clean).
Cook onion in 1 tablespoon butter in skillet over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape onions into processor and cool mixture to room temperature, about 15 minutes. Add lemon juice, cayenne, and remaining 9 tablespoons butter and pulse until shrimp are finely chopped. Pack shrimp butter into a 2-cup ramekin or serving bowl and chill, its surface covered with plastic wrap, at least 6 hours (to allow flavors to develop). Bring to room temperature 45 minutes before serving.

Make toast points:

Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat oven to 400°F.
Brush 1 side of bread triangles lightly with melted butter and toast, buttered sides up, in a large shallow baking pan until golden around edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. Serve toast points with shrimp butter.

Cooks’ notes: