Diversions

To get over my distress at the poor Dubliners who live in an abysmal climate, I went menu looking for some new places to eat.

What about the Dubliners? you ask?  Here is the weather for the month of July, 2016:  it rained for 23 days and the chance of a sunny day was 20% but the chance of rain was 60%.  Had they gotten a sunny day, it would have lasted only 5.6 hours.  This was July  This goes far to explain why most of the Irish have pale, lovely skins. 

Not that So. Cal. is far behind - we have May Gray; June Gloom - a week of humidity in July and September Embers.  Thus the necessity for something pleasant gastronomically to contemplate.

The Salt Creek Grill, El Segundo offers Stuffed Shrimp - horseradish-stuffed, bacon-wrapped shrimp with a chipotle-honey dipping sauce.  $17

McCormick & Schmick, El Segundo offers Shrimp Kisses - pepper jack cheese, bacon-wrapped shrimp.  $14

Both sounded passably edible, but rather pricey.  So, since I am cheaper than a free grocery bag, I put my mind to work to duplicate these dishes for considerably less in my own kitchen.  Very possibly you will have better ideas, so don't be shy. 

Anytime you eat a bacon-wrapped shrimp, the odds are that it was cooked in deep fat, like a French fry.  It's the only way (that I know) to work with limp bacon that cooks slowly and shrimp that cook quickly.  And they've probably got a freezer full of them.  "Gimme six shrimp pigs!"  "Yes, chef."

I think it would work if you pre-cooked the bacon to "limp" while you split the cleaned shrimp and painted a line of horseradish in the groove left.  Wrap'em in the bacon, put them on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 until the bacon looks edible.  I think we're all capable of mixing equal parts honey and Boar's Head chipotle mayonnaise together?

Shrimp Kisses are even easier - saute the shrimp in butter, while you nuke a passel of pepper jack cheese to pour over the cooked shrimp.  Crunch up the strip of bacon you cooked and garnish the sauce.

Mix together orange marmalade and horseradish to taste and serve. 

Given the fact that a pound of shrimp is $11 or $12 a pound, and that you may have to spring for a jar of marmalade, it is still much cheaper than the restaurant's version.  Now, send me all of the money you saved each time you made either of these.