Shrimp Thermidor and Best Ever Chocolate Brownies

Monday night.  Spent the day inside trying to toilet train #3.   I don't seem to remember this being a big challenge for #1 and #2.   When I was planning my menu for the week, I realized that I had enough shrimp for me and Mike.  As the kids don't like shrimp, thought I'd plan a meal for 2!   Also, with being trapped inside as a slave to the potty, decided to keep the girls busy by baking brownies.

Best Ever Chocolate Brownies - recipe from Elaine Churchill
(Elaine was a very good friend of my mother's and Oma.   Her youngest daughter, Louise, is still a very close friend of mine, even though she moved all the way to California on me)

2 squares unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup flour
pinch of salt
1 cup walnuts (optional - didn't do this)
Preheat oven to 350.   Melt chocolate and butter in saucepan.  Beat eggs until foamy.  Add sugar to eggs and beat until thick (10 minutes).  Stir in vanilla and chocolate mixture.  Fold in flour and nuts.   Pour into greased square pan.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Ingredients all laid out

Cracking eggs!

sampling the batter.  Yum!

Shrimp Themidor (made this for 2, but could stretch to 4)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped Celery
1 tsp oil
1 can condensed cheddar soup
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp sherry
3/4 pound fresh or frozen cooked shrimp
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
dash hot pepper sauce
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 tbsp butter
dash paprika
Saute onion and celery in oil.   Stir in soup, milk and sherry.   Add shrimp, hot sauce and parsley.   Pour into small baking dishes.   In seperate bowl, mix bread crumbs, melted butter and paprika.  Sprinkle over shrimp mixture.  Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until bubbling.  Serve with toast.

My shrimp were uncooked so
I had to pre-steam them

hmmm?

Shrimp mixture before cooking

Quite good. Pretty, too. 

Verdict

The brownies were very good!  Chewy and not too sweet.   Kids gobbled them. 

The Shrimp was surprisingly tasty.  When I see things that involve a can of soup, I'm usually a bit turned off (snobby cook, I guess).   It looked very nice on the plate and had a good flavour.  Mike liked it as well, but was perplexed on how to eat it with toast.   I'd make this again.