Bacon Wrapped Crab Stuffed Shrimp

Bacon...Crab...Shrimp...what more can you want? These things are amazing, one of my favorite things to make, but they definitely make you work for them. Yes, they aren't the healthiest of foods and I try to stick to healthier options, but I can't say no to these from time to time. You want to impress a date or a loved one and prove to them that you can make something delicious? Then these are the perfect bite sized treats. I will say tho, that they do take a bit of time and can get a bit pricey depending on seafood costs where you live, but it makes a good amount.

I've tried making this recipe with colossal shrimp (the biggest I could find) and I've also used jumbo and extra large. I wouldn't go smaller than extra large tho Jumbo are a lot cheaper and you get more for your buck. I like having the smaller ones and having a bigger quantity of them because then you get more bacon and filling per bite. I guess it's just a personal preference. If you're going for presentation, I'd use colossal. They just take a little longer to cook in the oven.

The original site I got the recipe from was http://foododelmundo.com/2009/08/25/bacon-wrapped-crab-stuffed-jumbo-shrimp/ I will always credit my sources because if it wasn't for them, I'd probably never have thought of it, but I like to add my own little twists, especially if I try making the recipe a few times with different variations.

The original recipe uses Jumbo, but you can adjust for extra large if you want smaller ones. I want to say the extra large you needed about 20, give or take a few. It also depends on how much you stuff them. Make sure you peel and devein them. I like to leave just the tails on. It also helps to cut a little deeper down the backs of the shrimp to give you more room to fit the stuffing in.

Along with the shrimp, you'll need a pound of bacon. I cut my slices of bacon because when they wrapped around the shrimp multiple times, sometimes the inner layers didn't get very crispy and I like my bacon crispy. The amount of pieces you cut them into all varies on the size of shrimp you're using, but they should warp around at least once to make sure the filling is held into place.

For the filling:
 1 lb crab meat (I use a crab that comes in a can kind of like tuna fish)
 1 egg
 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
 cayenne pepper (you only need a pinch, but can add more if you like it spicy)
 1 tsp salt
 1/2 cup bead crumbs
 1/4 cup mayonnaise
 juice from 1/2 lemon
 1/4 tsp garlic powder (I like fresh chopped garlic)
 1 tsp dried mustard

Combine together all these ingredients until it forms a crab cake like mixture.

Stuff the shrimp with as much filling as you can without it falling out all over the place. If you end up with extra crab mixture, I like to make mini crab cakes and stick them in with the shrimp to cook. Wrap the bacon around the shrimp, holding it all together and stick a toothpick through it.

*Tip: It always helps to soak the toothpicks in water first, so they don't burn in the oven.

Lay them on a cookie sheet, I cover mine with aluminum foil and stick them in the oven on broil for a few minutes. Keep a close eye on them because when broiling stuff, it can burn quickly. Once one side is browned, take them out and flip them over. Put them back in for a few more minutes until the other side is brown. If you don't have a broiler option, you can put them in the oven at 400 degrees for 5-10 minutes until they're browned, flip and repeat.