Shrimp Toast

Rinse shrimp under cold water, devein and peel then cut them in half vertically making two identical halves. Save all your shrimp shells and tails.. Roast the shrimp shells in the oven at 350 degrees until golden brown about 8 minutes. Crack, break or chop the shells into pieces (approx the size of a thumb nail).

In a large heavy based pot over high heat add a few tbsps of olive oil and sauté the carrot, onion and celery until soft.

Add the shells and tomato paste and continue to cook a further 5-8 minutes.

Carefully pour in the remaining oil, add the bay leaves peppercorns and thyme, make sure that all the ingredients are covered in oil, you may need to add more than a liter depending on the shape and size of your pot.  Leave on high heat for 5 minutes and then reduce to low and allow to cook for at least 1 hour. Turn off and allow to cool for at least 1 hour. Once cooled strain though a colander and allow solids to drain of all the oil.  Discard the solids and strain the liquid through a fine chinois or cheese cloth at least twice.  Once oil is completely cooled down transfer it to a bottle. Shrimp oil can be saved for a month in the fridge or up to three months in the freezer. Makes an excellent topping to pasta, pizza, seafood and vegetable dishes.

Slice bread into 1” thick slices. Drizzle with shrimp oil and season with salt and pepper. Place enough shrimp oil to coat the bottom of a large saute pan and heat until oil begins to shimmer. Cook bread until golden brown. Slice diagonally and set on a large plate or cutting board.

Season your halved shrimp with salt and pepper. In the same pan you made your toast. Add enough shrimp oil to coat the bottom of the pan and heat it until you begin to see small whisps of smoke. Carefully add shrimp to the hot oil taking care to not splash the oil or overcrowd the pan. You may need to work in batches depending on the size of the pan. Allow the shrimp to develop some color before moving them in the pan. Cook until slightly underdone. Transfer to a large plate.

As soon as your shrimp are removed reduce heat to low and add shallot and sliced garlic and 1 t more shrimp oil. Simmer until translucent do not burn or develop color. About 1 minute. Add your sherry and orange juice and using a wooden spoon gently scrape off any brown bits from the pan. Turn heat up to medium and reduce the sherry until nearly all the liquid is gone. Reduce heat to simmer. Add 2 T shrimp oil and 2 T cold cubed butter. Working quickly add your shrimp back in plus 1 T chopped parsley and the juice of the two lemons. Stir constantly until butter is melted and an emulsified sauce has formed. Taste and add more salt and lemon if desired.

In a mixing bowl, drizzle some of the warm sauce over your frisee and orange segments and season lightly with salt.

Arrange sliced avocado on top of toast and season with salt. Follow with shrimp, and then the frisee salad. Finish with pan sauce, parsley and a drizzle of shrimp oil.

Combine the rhubarb, sugar, vanilla beans, vanilla bean pod, Lemon and salt into a sauce pan and cook over medium heat while stirring until it becomes a jam-like consistency. Should take 20- 30 minutes. Take off heat and cool down, and reserve in refrigerator until ready to serve.