Baked Shrimp Toasts

For my friend T's birthday, I thought I would have her and her husband (who wants to be referred to as Superfly in my blog!), as well as our friends S & J, for dinner. As a starter, I wanted to try my hand at making baked shrimp toasts. T really loves seafood!

Baked Shrimp Toasts - makes about 12-15
This dish is traditionally deep fried but since bread absorbs a lot of oil, I've always wanted to try to bake it. I think it came out very well, minus the oiliness! The shrimp paste topping is very similar to chạo tôm.

* ½ lb raw shrimp (shelled and deveined)

* ¼ small onion, minced
* ½ tsp garlic powder
* ¼ tsp salt
* ½ tsp sugar
* ½ tbsp cornstarch
* ground black pepper
* white bread slices
* oil for brushing
* black sesame seeds

Pat down the shrimps with a paper towel to make sure they’re dry.

Place into a food processor with the remaining ingredients (except bread and oil).

Blend in food processor until it becomes a paste.

You can make a little patty and fry it, to taste and adjust the seasoning if you’d like.

Using a rolling pin, roll down the bread slices if they are too thick.

Slice into whatever shapes you prefer (triangles or I used a cookie cutter for circles).

Brush one side of the bread with oil.

Spoon some of the shrimp paste on the other side.

Brush the shrimp paste with oil so it becomes golden.

Sprinkle some sesame seeds.

Bake at 350F for 10-12 minutes (until the shrimp is cooked through). You can broil it if you want it more golden.

Tada!

Rolled down bread and brushed with oil, then covered with shrimp.

This is a great recipe because it can be prepared in advance. Once your guests arrive, you just have to pop it in the oven and you're done!

I really like the contrast of the black sesame seeds!