Sambuca Shrimp

Hey All,

As the holiday season is approaching, have had many many many many many requests for ideas on apps to make for guests. Something different is what is always asked, something they are not used to. These days it is getting harder and harder to find things people have never heard of, but cooking something properly is an item that may elude your guests, so I always recommend keeping it simple but doing it well. Case in point the recipe listed below is a simple Sambuca Shrimp, the difference is making the sauce using the best ingredients, finding the best quality of shrimp possible, and giving it just the right amount of kick to help warm your guests from the cold.

Hope you all enjoy!


4 tbs olive oil
1 medium onion diced
3 cloves of garlic cloves, minced
1tsp dried basil
pepper flakes to taste
salt and pepper to taste
2 cans San Marizano Tomatoes (only use the real kind stamped from San Marizano region) if trouble finding, email me and I will tell you where to look for them
10 leaves of Basil thinly sliced

1lb peeled deveined raw shrimp (not from grocery store, in Ottawa go to Whalesbone Oyster Sustainable Fish market...get best quality you can find and the freshest)

4 ounces of Sambucca

3 tbs fresh parsley, minced

Preparation:

In large deep skillet, heat oil over medium heat; cook onion, 2 cloves of garlic, dried basil, salt, pepper and hot pepper flakes, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes, breaking up with back of spoon; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, for about 5 minutes or until sauce is thickened enough to mound on spoon finish with fresh basil
To a pan add 1tbs butter and a bit of olive oil to stop it from burning over medium heat. Once butter begins to bubble, add last clove of minced garlic and add shrimp to pan, after one minute add sambuca to pan and flambe, wait one minute for the alcohol to burn off and then add your tomato sauce (about 2 to 3 ladels) to the pan. Cook just until shrimp begin to turn pink, about 1 minute more. Remove from heat; cover and let stand until shrimp are pink. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with good crusty bread