Seafood Stuffed Potato Skins
October 15, 2017 by Nicole Collins
Go shorty. It's my birthday. I'm gonna party like it's my birthday.
IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!
That means we're having something EXTRA special today!
Honestly, the older I get, I feel I should start becoming less and less excited about my birthday.
But, that hasn't happened yet. So, I'm going to continue celebrating all month, as usual. Birthday month celebrating is totally a thing.
Especially when your bday is right smack dab in the middle of the month. I mean, what else is a girl to do?
I'm actually super excited, because I'm going to see a Cirque Du Soleil show today! I've never seen one before, so I'm really looking forward to it. My friend, Alison, and her family invited me along to purchase a set of tickets to see a couple of Baltimore Symphony Orchestra shows over the next year, and today is the first one in our series. Perfect timing, or what?!?
That's only one of many fun things happening this weekend. I had brunch with the bestie yesterday at one of my favorite local spots. Then, we hit a free bookstore that was having their grand reopening yesterday after a devastating fire last year. And, later this morning, I'm headed to the biggest farmer's market in the city with my other friend, Allison. What a great weekend!!!
Here's the thing about birthdays, though. Someone always wants to feed you your favorite meal. That someone for me is usually my mama. That doesn't sound like it should be a problem, right?
But, for me it is. Because we all know by now how indecisive I am, and I really don't know what my favorite meal is. Back in the day, my go to request used to be Crab Imperial from Hales Seafood. But, over the years, the Crab Imperial got smaller and smaller yet more and more expensive.
So, it really is a struggle trying to decide what I want my special birthday meal to be. Thank goodness my mama is patient!
These days, I usually end up with something crabby, something shrimpy, or a plethora of appetizers. Those items will all forever be winners in my book.
That's why I'm combining a little bit of all 3 in today's extra special birthday recipe!
So, here's what we're doing. We're stuffing potato skins with a creamy, cheesy, mix of crab and shrimp. I know, I bet you wish it was your birthday right now, too.
Let's start with the shell. We take a nice baked potato, scoop out most of the potato, brush it all over with melted butter, and dust it with Old Bay. Then, we pop it under the broiler to help it get crispy. I could eat just that!
But, it gets better. We take some crab meat and steamed shrimp and mix it up with some cream cheese, almost in a crab dip type fashion. Load up the potato shell, top it with a little shredded cheese, and stick that baby back under the broiler. O M G.
Steamed shrimp is a staple in the Baltimore area. It's generally shell on shrimp that are completely covered in Old Bay gently steamed over a water and vinegar or beer and vinegar bath. I cheated and bought my shrimp already steamed, because there's a place right around the corner from me that makes the best steamed shrimp on the planet. But, if you can't find already steamed shrimp at a local store, feel free to just roast up some shrimp in the oven with a little dusting of Old Bay.
These seafood skins kind of remind me of something we used to order all of the time as a kid. There used to be this restaurant service where you could order whatever you wanted from a variety of restaurants in the area, and then men in tuxedos would deliver it to you. I don't remember what it was called, but I guess that was my generation's Uber Eats.
I mean, I really don't think it gets much better than creamy seafood stuffed in a crispy, carby potato skin no matter how it ends up in front of you.
Maybe I'll just skip the show today and plant myself in front of a plate of these.
Nah, I REALLY want to see Cirque Du Soleil. So, maybe I'll just smuggle some in my purse...
Even if it's not your birthday, you've earned these Seafood Stuffed Skins today. So, let the festivities continue!
Let's eat!
Seafood Stuffed Potato Skins Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
4 medium russet potatoes (about 2 1/2-3lbs)
1 lb lump crab meat
1 lb steamed shrimp, peeled and diced
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 tsp mayonnaise
½ stick (4 tbsp) butter, melted
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
old bay, to taste
Directions:
Prepare the potatoes: Pierce potatoes all over with a fork. Microwave potatoes for 14-16 minutes until tender. When cool enough to handle, slice potatoes in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop the flesh out of each half of potato, leaving a ¼ inch border. Preheat the broiler.
Prepare the seafood mix: In a mixing bowl, combine crab meat, shrimp, cream cheese, and mayo. Use your hands to incorporate the ingredients together. Set aside.
Finish the skins: Line a baking sheet with foil. Place potatoes cut side down on the baking tray. Brush the potato skins with butter. Flip over the potatoes. Brush the insides of the potato with melted butter. Dust the insides with old bay, to taste. Place under broiler for 4 minutes (with cut side up first). Flip potatoes over, and broil for 4 more minutes. Flip back over one last time, and broil for 4 minutes. Divide seafood filling evenly between potatoes, filling the center of each potato skin. Dust with old bay. Top skins with cheddar cheese. Broil for 4 more minutes until the cheese has melted. Serve!
Recipe notes:
*Sometimes, the best kitchen tool we have is our hands. It's much easier to combine the crab mix with hands than with a spoon.
*You can be flexible with your mayo choice. Lowfat, EVOO mayo, and Miracle Whip all will work too. Same goes with cream cheese; lowfat or neufchatel will work as well.
*I like to buy already steamed shrimp from the store to save time. It's seasoned with old bay when it's steamed, so that adds another layer of flavor. You could also make some roasted shrimp at home by seasoning 1 lb peeled, deveined shrimp with about 1 tsp of old bay and roasting them at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes.
*I like to eat this as a meal with a salad or fruit on the side. Cut them in half, and they'd make a great appetizer!
