New Orleans Style Shrimp & Polenta

rep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

Polenta
• 2 cups dry polenta
• 1 quart half & half
• 1/3 cup chopped green onion
• salt to taste
Shrimp
• 1 1/2 pounds large (16-20) shrimp, peeled & deveined
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup sherry, white wine or bourbon
• 1 1/2 pints heavy cream
• 2 de-seeded roma tomatoes, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, minced
• lemon zest
• salt to taste

Method

• Polenta: Cook the polenta in half and half according to package directions. Mix in the green onion at the end of cooking.
• Shrimp: Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onions in the butter a few minutes until fragrant. Add the red pepper, cayenne and garlic. Remove pan from the heat & deglaze the pan by adding alcohol. Place pan back on the heat and stir. Reduce sauce down by half. Add the cream, stir, add tomato and green onion. Add the shrimp to the sauce, stir and cook another 3-4 minutes until the shrimp is cooked through. Season with salt to taste. Top portions with lemon zest and more green onion.