This is a perfect and relatively easy romantic main course for 2. Celebrate Valentine’s Day, date night at home, or even just Tuesday!

(makes 2 servings)

Ingredients

All-purpose flour, for dusting work surface

1 – 8oz sheet frozen puff pastry (approx.), lightly thawed

Pastry cutters

1 large egg, beaten

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

¾ lb fresh shrimp, peeled and de-veined

Salt, pepper, and (optional) Cajun or Creole seasoning, to taste

1 shallot, minced

Juice of 1 lemon

Splash of white wine (optional)

8oz (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons and at room temperature

Chopped chives for garnish

Instructions

For the puff pastry shells

Preheat oven to 400 F (205 C).

Lightly dust your work surface with all-purpose flour.  Place 1 sheet lightly thawed frozen puff pastry on work surface and dust lightly with more flour.  Roll out gently to flatten and smooth any creases.

Using a 4” (approx.) pastry cutter, cut out 4 large disks.  Using a smaller, 2” (approx.) pastry cutter, cut a small disc out of the center of two of the large disks.  You should have 2 large disks and 2 “donuts” or rings.  Discard trimmings or save for another use.

Place both large disks onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Using a fork, poke lots of holes into each disk to prevent pastry from rising.  (This is called “docking”).

Using a pastry brush or just your fingers, lightly paint a thin layer of beaten egg onto each large disk.  Carefully place a “donut” or ring of puff pastry onto each of the large disks and press VERY LIGHTLY to seal into the egg wash.  Brush the tops of the “donuts” lightly with more beaten egg.

Bake in the center of your preheated oven until puffed and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. The result should be 2 puff pastry “cups”. Don’t worry if they don’t rise perfectly evenly. Set aside.

For the shrimp

In a sauté pan, melt 2 tablespoon butter over medium heat.

Season shrimp with salt, pepper, and optional Cajun or Creole seasoning.  Sauté in butter until just cooked through and pink, about 1 and ½ minutes per side.  Set aside and keep warm.

For the butter sauce

Place minced shallot into a small saucepan with lemon juice and optional splash of white wine.

Bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, until only about 1 tablespoon or so of liquid remains.

Set heat to low.

Carefully add unsalted butter to saucepan, 1 or 2 tablespoons at first.  Working with the pan on and off the heat, whisk butter until almost melted before adding 1 or 2 more tablespoons to the pan.  Let each addition of butter melt almost completely before adding the next portion.  The goal is to keep the butter from separating; it should form a smooth emulsion with the acid from the reduced lemon juice.  (It’s not difficult at all, you just need to be diligent and keep moving the pan on and off the heat, whisking almost constantly).

Assembly

Place 1 puff pastry cup onto a plate.  Using half of the cooked shrimp, place 2 or 3 into the cup and let the rest spill over onto the plate.

Spoon a few tablespoons of the lemon butter sauce over top, garnish with chopped chives, and serve right away.