An Artist Has Got to Eat! Green tomato & shrimp casserole

After a couple of requests, I thought I'd share this recipe on my blog. After all, an artist has got to eat! Our garden has provided us with lots of great things to cook AND paint!

The end of the season had left us with a lot of little green tomatoes that weren't going to ripen in the chilly air, so I cut them all off before I lost them to frost! I had made one Green tomato casserole & figured with a little alteration I could make a whole dinner out of it...by adding shrimp! So this trial & error turned out great.

The recipe as follows serves two. Double as you need to- there's not too many 'exacts' here.

1/2 an onion chopped
1/4 to 1/2 c. red bell pepper chopped
olive oil (to saute)
4 green tomatoes (plus 1 red one as well since I had it) chopped
almost stale whole wheat bread, but into cubes (approx. 2 cups)
shredded cheese (Mexican blend, or cheddar if you prefer) (approx. 1 cup, more if you like)
Herbs d'Provence
shrimp, 1/2 lb. shelled (if serving 2)

-Preheat oven to 350F.
-Butter the bottom of your baking casserole dish.
-Saute onion & bell pepper in olive oil until onions are carmelized & soft, but not quite browning.
Add chopped green tomatoes (and the red one if you have it). Keep stirring, sauteeing until the green tomatoes have softened a good bit. This may take awhile, as green tomatoes are about as hard as baseballs when you start out!
- Once that is softened, set aside in another bowl, & use the pan to saute your shrimp in olive oil (yes, you'll need to add approx. another tablespoon). Saute until just pink & no longer clear. Be careful not to overcook. Remove from heat.
-Start layering 1/2 the tomato mixture, then 1/2 the bread cubes, then the shredded cheese, then 1/2 the shrimp. Repeat and top with shredded cheese. Layer it so it looks good to YOU! I used the last 1/2 Tbspn. of butter cut into little bits and placed around the top of the casserole. Bake about 10-15 minutes until cheese is melted and bread edges are just getting toasty.

-Good grief, this was surprisingly good! Perhaps you could serve it with a salad- even better!

nodp