Grilled Shrimp with Heinen’s Ravioli and Walnut Pesto
The tips and photography for this post were provided by local blogger, Abby Thome of The Thome Home.
Fire up the grill and get ready for one of the most delicious and impressive spreads you will make this summer: grilled shrimp and ravioli kebabs with a walnut pesto for dipping. It’s time to ditch the basic chicken and steak combination for kebab grilling and shake things up with fresh shrimp and fresh Heinen’s ravioli. Yes, you heard that right, ravioli on the grill!
Let’s talk shrimp first. Heinen’s has an incredible variety of fresh seafood available daily as well as the most knowledgeable staff to guide you along in choosing the perfect seafood for the dish you are making. The large peeled and deveined tail-on shrimp were the perfect size for skewering — and having the tail on makes it easy to hold and dip into the pesto. The best part about choosing shrimp for your grilling is that it takes only a few minutes of prep. Fifteen minutes prior to skewering, toss the raw shrimp into a Ziploc bag; add a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Place the bag of shrimp back into the fridge to marinate for fifteen minutes until you are ready to assemble.
Grilled Shrimp Kebabs
- 1 ½ pounds Peeled and Deveined Raw Shrimp
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ½ tsp Kosher Salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
Instructions:
- Place shrimp into a Ziploc bag, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Let marinate in the fridge for 15 minutes prior to skewering (Make sure to have your wooden skewers soaking 1-2 hours before you are ready to grill!).
- Once shrimp is done marinating, it’s time to skewer! Skewer shrimp from the bottom to tail. Simply pinch together the tail end to the bottom, creating a backwards “C” and push the wooden skewer through the thickest bottom and push through to the end nearest to the tail. Four shrimp per kebab works fantastic.
- Grill for 4-5 minutes per side, just until the shrimp is pink and a few grill marks start showing. Remove from grill and place beside the walnut pesto for dipping.
Next up, Heinen’s Beet, Squash & Goat Cheese Ravioli (available in the Deli Case). Talk about a total showstopper — these fresh, preservative-free ravioli are not only visually stunning, but so decadent. The creamy squash, beet and goat cheese filling paired perfectly with homemade walnut pesto. Have you ever grilled ravioli? Do not let it scare you if you have not!
No need to boil the pasta prior to putting it on the grill. Simply toss the ravioli in extra virgin olive oil to coat along with a pinch of salt and pepper. Skewer and then place on the grill. These will only take 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill once you have nice grill marks on both sides of the ravioli. The inside stays creamy and smooth, and the ravioli reaches a chewy pasta stage with crispy edges. There is truly nothing like it!
For the walnut pesto, all you need is five ingredients to create the most colorful and flavorful pesto that you can use in a multitude of dishes!
Walnut Pesto:
- 2 oz Basil Leaves
- 1/3 cup Heinen’s Grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- Zest and Juice of 1 Lemon
- ½ cup Walnuts
- ½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- ½ tsp Pepper
Instructions:
- Simply put all of the ingredients listed above into a food processor, blend for 2-3 minutes until the pesto is nice and smooth with a little bit of texture left.
- Store in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator until use.
Grilled Shrimp with Heinen’s Ravioli and Walnut Pesto
