Grilled Shrimp and Bread with Cilantro Pesto

5 from 6 votes

Grilled Shrimp and Bread with Cilantro Pesto

I realize that after Labor Day everyone basically stops wearing white and gears up for Pumpkin season – but I’m a rebel and I don’t subscribe to that notion! So I’m opting for some Grilled Shrimp with Cilantro Pesto and a side of grilled bread!!

Prep Time30

Cook Time6

Total Time36

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Servings: servings

Author: Gaby Dalkin

Ingredients

For the Cilantro Sauce

1 shallot roughly chopped
2 cups tightly packed fresh cilantro leaves stems removed (about 4 ounces)
1 clove garlic
½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

For the Grilled Shrimp and Bread

2 lbs medium shrimp peeled and de-veined
Wooden skewers soaked in water or metal
1 loaf of bread sliced into 1 ½ inch pieces on a bias
1 lemon juiced
1 teaspoons red pepper flakes
kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
olive oil for drizzling
3 lemons halved and grilled

Instructions

For the Cilantro Sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a high powered blender and blend for 60 seconds until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately. Or you can refrigerate the vinaigrette for up to 5 days.

For the Grilled Shrimp and Bread

Thread about 6 shrimp on each of the soaked wooden skewers and set them on a large plate of cutting board while skewering the rest.
Drizzle about ⅓ of the vinaigrette over the skewered shrimp along with the juice of the lemon, red pepper flakes and some salt and pepper. Set the shrimp aside to marinate for about 10-20 minutes while you prepare your grill.
Arrange the thick slices of bread on a large platter and drizzle liberally with olive oil.
Prepare your gas or charcoal grill to medium high heat. Place the pieces of bread over the heat and grill for a few moments on each side until the bread has grill marks. Using a pair of tongs, flip the bread over and let the other side grilled for a minute or so more until both sides have nice grill marks. Remove the bread from the grill and set aside.
Place the shrimp skewers on the grill over medium high heat and grill for about 2-3 minutes on each side until the shrimp are pink. Remove the skewers from the grill and set aside.
Serve the shrimp and bread with the remaining cilantro vinaigrette and grilled lemon halves.

Notes

I like to grilled some extra lemons too! Just halve the lemons, throw them on the grill until they get some nice charred markets and then remove them for later!

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