Baked succulent shrimp coated with fresh basil pesto on wooden skewers. Delicious and amazingly creamy, these pesto shrimp skewers are great as easy to make appetizers.
You have got to try this recipe. I am seriously obsessed. There is no better word to describe my love for creamy pesto shrimp.
Juicy perfectly cooked shrimp coated with a creamy layer of pesto. On skewers. What’s not to like, right?
If I weren’t the sharing type, I’d have absolutely no problem eating this entire plate by myself. Unfortunately, my guilty conscience would nag at me if I didn’t.
I don’t know about you, but almost anything on wooden skewers just looks fancy to me. They seem like they require a lot of time and effort to put together. Luckily, looks can be deceiving. And you and I both know better. It’ll be our secret. We’ll let our guests think we worked super hard to make elaborate appetizers for them.
But you know what? As fancy as these pesto shrimp skewers look, it’ll take you just 15 minutes to prep, bake, and have these amazing appetizers ready to be served, if you have pesto on hand. And if not, well, it’s just another 5 minutes to whip up a fresh batch.
Sounds simple, doesn’t it? It so totally is. Because well, it really is quick and easy.
And I’ll have to share these at Fiesta Friday!
I don’t have an outdoor grill. Even if I did, I wouldn’t even know how to use it. I do, however, have one of those 4-in-1 electric grills. Except it’s such a pain to clean. I’d have to remove the grill plates, clean off any burnt residues, then reattach them. Not to say that I don’t use it once in awhile, but sticking a baking tray into the oven is just so much easier. Less of a hassle for me anyway. You’re welcome to grill these if you like =)
Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease the surface of a baking pan with nonstick cooking spray or vegetable oil.
Lightly brush pesto on both sides of the large raw shrimp. I like putting the pesto on the shrimp before baking because the cheese (at least, the parmesan in my version of pesto) melts creating a creamy flavor. If you like the pesto a little bit grainier, you can bake the shrimp first and brush on the pesto later. It’s all about preference. You can either you my recipe for Fresh Basil Pesto or use your favorite recipe.
Bake the pesto covered shrimp on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes until the shrimp turns reddish pink and no longer gray.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the shrimp to cool for a few minutes before inserting the skewers. You’ll want about 4 shrimp per skewer. I chose to insert the skewers after the shrimp was already cooked because I wasn’t sure whether the wooden skewers would do well in the oven. If the skewers you use are oven safe, you can insert the shrimp on skewers before baking.
Serve the shrimp warm.
Enjoy!
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- 24 large shrimp, deshelled and deveined
- 2 tablespoons pesto
- 1 ½ tablespoon vegetable oil (for greasing the pan) or nonstick cooking spray
- Preheat the oven at 350F. Lightly grease the baking pan with nonstick cooking spray or vegetable oil.
- Brush pesto on all sides of the shrimp.
- Place the shrimp on the baking pan, and bake for about 10 minutes until the shrimp has turned a reddish orange color and is no longer gray.
- Remove the shrimp from the oven, and allow them to cool for a few minutes.
- Insert about 4 shrimps per skewer for a total of 6 skewers.
- Serve the shrimp warm.
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This came out really tasty and my 2 and 5 year olds liked it. It was very easy. I added minced garlic to the mix as well and served it wrapped in pita with a greek-style salad and rice pilaf.
I’m so glad that it worked out for you! And the addition of minced garlic sounds delicious in pita!
Mmm! Love pesto! I could put it on everything! Thanks for linking up to Show Me Saturday!
Thanks, Ginger!