Pesto Shrimp Bake with Squash and Tomatoes #30MinuteMondays

A quick summer casserole bursting with Italian flavors.

I know this is a totally blasphemous thing to say in the food blogging world, especially in the middle of summer, but I'm really not a fan of tomatoes. They've grown on me since I was a kid, when I wouldn't touch foods with them in it (including pizza, ketchup, and most of all anything involving raw or sundried tomatoes). I now really enjoy a good tomato sauce (like this bolognese or this garlic tomato sauce) and I'll dip into a fancy ketchup if it's got curry mixed in or something, but the appeal of raw tomatoes still largely eludes me.

My best experience so far has been with a couple of memorable caprese salads, including one at dbar, one of my favorite Boston restaurants, which is conveniently located just blocks from our apartment. A caprese salad with housemade mozzarella and tomatoes and basil from their rooftop garden was on the specials menu, and my mom and I had to try it. And, surprisingly enough, I didn't hate the raw tomatoes.

That experience inspired me to pick up some heirloom tomatoes at the store and make my own caprese salad with figs (added to help distract me from the raw tomatoes). It was a wonderful salad, but for me, the tomatoes detracted from its overall deliciousness. They weren't as good as the ones grown at dbar, and I suddenly felt like I'd met my quota of raw tomato consumption for the entire summer by eating those two caprese salads.

That's why I ended up roasting the remaining tomatoes with shrimp and zucchini and slathering the whole thing in pesto. Because, even when something's not delicious as-is, it's almost always delicious roasted with some pesto.

While not the most photogenic dish in my arsenal, this summer casserole is flavorful and satisfying. The tomatoes transform into tender bursts of flavor, their juices mingling with essence of fresh basil and a good dose of extra virgin olive oil. I couldn't resist adding parmigiano reggiano (I add it to everything when I have a chunk on hand), but you can leave it out for a Whole30-compliant meal. I used adorable zephyr squash that I spotted at the market, but zucchini or summer squash will work just as well. This dish is summer comfort food at its finest!

For more fast and easy paleo dinners, check out the other recipes in the 30 Minute Mondays series: caramelized salmon with basil chile oil and pickled vegetables, grilled shrimp skewers with creamy sesame slaw, rainbow salad with grilled chicken and raspberry walnut dressing, and roasted shrimp and asparagus with green goddess dressing.

Pesto Shrimp Bake with Squash and Tomatoes
Yield: 2-4 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Bake time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound (20-30 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed
3 small zucchini or other summer squash, sliced
3 large heirloom tomatoes, sliced (or a mix of sliced heirlooms and halved smaller tomatoes)
2 cups lightly packed fresh basil
1/4 cup walnuts*
1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese, plus more for serving (optional)*
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons heavy cream or coconut milk
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

*You can omit either the cheese or the nuts, but I don't recommend omitting both. If you do need the pesto to be nut-free and dairy-free, you will probably want to add more oil and salt. You could also use pine nuts instead of walnuts, since pine nuts are actually seeds.

Preheat the oven to 450. Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with olive oil. Layer the tomato slices, shrimp, and zucchini in the dish in an alternating pattern. Bake for 15 minutes.

While the shrimp and vegetables are baking, make the pesto. Pulse the basil, walnuts, and cheese (if using) in a food processor until finely ground. Drizzle in the olive oil and then the cream or coconut milk with the processor running. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

After the dish has been baking for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven and spoon the pesto on top. Return the dish to the oven and bake for 5 more minutes, or until bubbly around the edges. Let sit for at least five minutes before serving. Top with additional cheese if desired and serve hot.