We love grilling all year long and one of my husband's favorite things to make, especially for a party is shish-kabobs. He and the kids prefer steak shish-kabobs, but I am not really a fan of beef. I much prefer fish and shellfish (have you tried my shrimp & broccoli alfredo recipe yet?)

Unfortunately, if you have ever grilled shrimp on the grill, you know how easy it is for them to go from almost-raw to over-cooked and rubbery. And as much as I love my husband, he hasn't mastered the art of not over-cooking fish on the grill (although he is getting good at grilling salmon on a cedar plank).

I started making my shrimp skewers in the oven recently and they have been turning out fabulous. Best part is, my husband doesn't seem to mind because now he doesn't have to worry about my "icky" shrimp being near his manly beef on his grill! (just kidding).

As it often is with cooking and grilling, it all comes down to the marinade or seasonings and these Southwest Shrimp Skewers pack plenty of flavor in each bite!  This flavor combination is so simple, but delicious!

You will notice that I don't specify which kind of chile peppers to use. That is actually intentional. There are many kinds of peppers out there with varying degrees of heat. You may only be able to tolerate a chopped-up bell pepper. As for me? I will go with a jalapeno or serrano pepper. You know your tastebuds and what you can tolerate better than I do, so choose accordingly!

Ok - let's get to making them! You will need:

• 1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes
• 2 limes
• 4-5 small chile peppers (if you don't like the hot peppers, you can always cut a red bell pepper in to 1" squares)
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ teaspoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
• Sea salt and fresh ground pepper (to taste)
• bamboo skewers

Making them is easy!

Cut the limes in to 8 wedges. Split and remove the seeds from the peppers. On each skewer, place a lime wedge, followed by a shrimp, a pepper, shrimp, tomato and then another lime wedge.

Place skewers on an oiled rack (I actually have an old cooling rack that I use for this) over a baking sheet. Drizzle the skewers with the olive oil and season with salt, pepper and spices.

Bake for 8 - 10 minutes in a preheated 400F oven or until done. Serve and enjoy!

Scroll down for the complete directions!