Legal Seafood's Double-Stuffed Baked Shrimp

Legal Seafood is my all time favorite seafood restaurant.  It was founded in Cambridge, MA in 1904 as a successful fish market and later a restaurant opened in 1950.  Today there are over 30 restaurants along the East Coast as well as an online seafood market catalog.
Did you know that Legal Seafood's award winning clam chowder has been served at every Presidential Inauguration since 1981?  It was started when Ronald Reagan wished to feature foods from all 50 states and has continued since then.
Bon Appetit has said a meal at Legal Seafood is among America's top ten "tried and true" dining experience (did they know the name of my blog?).  Legal Seafood is also included in Patricia Schultz's popular guidebook "1,000 places to see before you die".
As my friends would confirm, every time I'm in Beantown I have to get my Legal fix.  Last year after a Yankee/Red Sox show down at Fenway we went to Legal's at the Prudential Center for dinner.  While waiting to be seated I realized they were selling their cookbooks.  In full Yankee gear I asked if the chef would sign it for me and he did (see below). Wasn't exactly what I hoped for, but I did laugh.

Last week I tried the baked stuffed shrimp. It was both delicious and easy to make. I used a mix of whole wheat and low fat Ritz crackers to make it healthier/lighter.  I would also suggest cooking the celery down longer than the recipe calls for (it was a bit too crunchy).  The next day I chopped up the left overs with some chopped red peppers.  Formed the mixture into cakes, dusted with some flour and sauted in a little butter for a round two recipe of shrimp and crab cakes.  Tried and True- enjoy!

Double-Stuffed Baked Shrimp
Legal Sea Foods Cookbook By Roger Berkowitz and Jane Doerfer
Serves 4
One 4 ounce package of Ritz crackers
4 tablespoons of butter
1/3 cup chopped scallions (both white and green parts)
1/2 cup of celery
2-3 teaspoons of minced garlic
1- 2 tablespoons of dry white wine
1/8 teaspoon of Old Bay Seasoning
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
8 ounces backfin crabmeat picked over for shells
salt
fresh black pepper
1 large egg
16 jumbo shrimp ( about 2 pounds) peeled and cleaned

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
Place crackers in plastic bag and crumble with your hands or a rolling pin.  Put them in a large mixing bowl and set aside.  In a large skillet melt 2 tablespoons of butter over med heat and cook scallions celery and garlic for 5 minutes.  Toss with crackers.  Stir in wine, Old Bay Seasoning, lemon juice, parsley and crab meat.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Mix in the egg.
Place the shrimp in a large buttered pan (I used parchment paper to cut down the butter calories).  Cover each shrimp with about 3 tablespoons of crabmeat.  Dot the crabmeat with remaining 2 tablespoons of butter.  Bake for 15 minutes and serve with lemons.