One of my favorite appetizers to serve at dinner parties is grilled shrimp, especially if the Main Course is a meat one. This Grilled Shrimp Wrapped in Bacon is a Martha Stewart recipe from her Hors D’ Oeuvres cookbook and what I served at my Surf ‘N Turf Farewell Dinner for Tug and Kate. In this case, I skipped the bacon as I was serving the shrimp with a Flat Iron Steak. If you don’t have time to marinate the shrimp overnight, a couple hours will do and if your bacon is thicker than the lean suggested, you need to cook it a bit before (I do it in the microwave) so it’s done at the same time as the shrimp.

Grilled Shrimp Wrapped in Bacon Makes 13 to 15 Hors D’ Oeurves

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons champagne or white wine vinegar

3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound large shrimps (13 to 15 per pound, peeled and deveined, with tails intact

5 slices very lean bacon, sliced thin

Combine the oil, vinegar, dill and garlic in a bowl. Add the shrimps and marinate overnight.

Cut each slice of bacon into thirds and wrap a piece around each drained shrimp, securing well with a toothpick.

Grill over hot coals until the bacon is crisp and the shrimps cooked through, about 7 to 8 minutes. You can also cook them under a hot broiler, 4 minutes on each side, being careful not to burn the bacon or overcook the shrimp.

I’ve made this recipe for over twenty years and it’s always a big hit. If you don’t do them with the bacon, you can just skewer them as I did. If you want to get fancy, you can serve the grilled shrimp with a Key Lime Mustard, a Dill Sauce. or Mango Barbecue Sauce. Just make sure you pass them out along with plenty of napkins, as they can be a messy appetizer.

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