We made this as an appetizer for our Halloween party, but it would be just as good over a bed of linguine noodles. The original recipe called for bay scallops, but we chose to use shrimp instead because we couldn’t get scallops. Since we’re in Colorado, finding fresh seafood can sometimes be a challenge, but based on the way our guests gobbled them up, shrimp seemed to be a fine alternative.
Pumpkin-Sage Shrimp
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs Raw Shrimp – medium size, peeled and de-veined
1 stick (8 tbsp) Softened Unsalted Butter
1 1/2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1/4 cup Canned Pure Pumpkin
1 tbsp Fresh Sage – chopped
1/4 tsp Salt
1 Lemon – cut in half
Instructions
In a bowl or food processor, combine the softened butter, pumpkin, sage, and salt. Whisk or pulse until smooth. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 of the shrimp to the skillet, making sure that the shrimp aren’t crowded, and cook until pink, about 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the pumpkin-sage butter and a squeeze of lemon juice. Remove the shrimp from skillet and repeat the steps until all of the shrimp has been cooked. Serve warm or at room temperature with picks.
Pumpkin-Sage ButterSauté ShrimpStir in Pumpkin-Sage ButterShrimp Sautéed in Pumpkin-Sage Butter
We’d been to Jax Fish House and Oyster Bar when we visited Fort Collins a while back, so when we found them in Boulder, we were quick to pay them another visit. They have the most incredible happy hour with oysters for a $1.50 each as well as a variety of other options. There are a total of five restaurants with locations in Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, and Glendale in Colorado and the fifth in Kansas City. The goal of Jax Fish House is to serve fresh seafood to land locked communities and they fly in their seafood fresh everyday. One of the things we really like about Jax is their commitment to sustainable seafood sources as well as sourcing their food from local farmers. We really appreciate the farm to table and, in this case, sea to table approach that provides the freshest ingredients that are in season at the time.
Jax Fish House and Oyster Bar
We started with a dozen oysters, of course, which were wonderful. Obviously we enjoyed some wine with our meal, but we believe in enjoying a wine of your preference versus worrying about a specific pairing, so red or white wine works well with seafood for us. After the oysters, we enjoyed a small plate with spicy tuna on crispy rice, which had wonderful flavor. Peel and eat shrimp was next on the agenda followed by another dozen oysters (yes, we were hungry). Finally, we had the special for the night, which was shrimp and grits with Tabasco butter with a scrumptious fried egg with a runny yoke.
Oysters on the Half ShellSpicy Tuna on Crispy RicePeel and Eat ShrimpShrimp and Grits with a Fried Egg
After dinner, Chef Alex Krill came out to ensure that we were satisfied with our meal and we talked about their commitment to source food from local farmers. We also talked about his recent trip to Thailand and how we both appreciated getting inspiration from local flavors of the places we visit, the more exotic, the better. Every member of the staff on all of our visits were extremely friendly and proud of the restaurant in which they worked. We were back the next night for more oysters, but getting a seat at happy hour isn’t always an easy thing, but we were lucky enough to get a seat at the bar once again. We prefer eating at the bar as we typically share plates and enjoy the attentive service that we usually get when sitting at the bar. We also had some calamari as well as a second dozen oysters once again. If you’re in a location that has a Jax Fish House and Oyster Bar, we highly recommend that you pay them a visit, especially during happy hour.
