Crispy Herbed Shrimp with Roasted Asparagus

Every month I book-ear pages of my Cooking Light to try new recipes. Some months are better than others for trying new recipes. I was especially excited about this recipe though, I knew I had to try it ASAP.

I'm glad I did! This is a fantastic one, although I will admit I did make a few changes based on what the hubby and I like.

This one takes a bit more time and effort than a normal recipe, mainly just from pan-frying batches of shrimp. I don't like to crowd the pan, so I was searing 6-7 shrimp at a time. It took a while to do a pound of shrimp! Definitely worth the effort though. The recipe also features an aioli to dip the shrimp in (I did take some liberties with the aioli). The roasted asparagus and grape tomatoes were the perfect complement, and actually a speedy side dish.

The hubby loved this one and actually went back for seconds (something he rarely does and only reserves for truly good dishes).

Ingredients:
Shrimp-
3/4 cup panko
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 eggs, lightly beaten
canola oil

Aioli-
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup canola oil mayonnaise
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground red pepper

Roasted Asparagus and Grape Tomatoes-
2 tbsp olive oil
2-3 garlic gloves, crushed
1/2 lb asparagus, trimmed
2 cups grape tomatoes
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. To prepare shrimp- Combine panko through crushed red pepper. Stir with a whisk, set aside. Sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper. Dredge in cornstarch. Shake off excess, dredge in egg. Shake off excess, dredge in panko mixture.
2. Heat 1 tbsp canola oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once heated, add 6-7 shrimp to pan. Cook 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Place on a cooling rack once cooked. Add more oil to skillet as needed. Repeat process until all shrimp are cooked.
3. To prepare aioli- mix Greek yogurt through red pepper in a small mixing bowl. Serve mixture alongside shrimp.
4. To prepare roasted veggies- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat cookie sheet with cooking spray. Add asparagus and tomatoes to cookie sheet. Heat olive oil in small pan over medium-high heat. Once heated add crushed garlic to pan, cook 2-3 minutes or until toasted. Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove garlic from pan with slotted spoon, discard. Drizzle olive oil over asparagus and tomatoes, toss to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Roast veggies in oven for 6 minutes or until asparagus is tender.

*Adapted from Cooking Light's Crispy Herbed Shrimp with Chive Aioli*

This recipe serves 4, so we had plenty of leftovers! Happy to report that the shrimp were still good the next day, even when I devoured them cold :)