Balancing summer trends with fall ingredients isn’t always black and white. This recipe combines late season tomatoes with some of fall’s early bounty. Everything in this dish can be made in advance, so you can spend more time entertaining than being in the kitchen.
Ingredients
- 1 head fennel
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 small shallot
- 1 lemon, zested & juiced
- salt and pepper
- 12 raw 16/20 shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 12 cherry tomatoes
- 1 baguette, thinly sliced on a bias
- 12 leaves tarragon
Preparation
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Trim and peel the fennel, celery and shallot. Using a mandoline, shave the vegetables paper thin and place them in a mid-size mixing bowl. Add lemon zest and juice to the mix. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Arrange shrimp on a paper-towel-lined tray. Lightly season both sides with salt and pepper. Pat dry to remove any moisture; this ensures a nice golden-brown sear on your shrimp. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil begins to ripple, gently add shrimp to the pan. Sear for 2–3 minutes on each side. Toss the cooked shrimp directly into the fennel slaw. Allow to cool completely. The shrimp can marinate in the slaw for up to 24 hours.
Arrange 6 large slices of baguette on a sheet tray and drizzle with remaining olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, thinly slice cherry tomatoes. Place the slices on a paper-towel-lined tray and sprinkle with salt.
To assemble the toasts, spread slaw on the bread, top with shrimp and tomatoes. Garnish with tarragon. Serve immediately.
