Stay tuned friends. I have decided to go back to blogging. I’m hoping one day that something will transition to enable me to doing something with ‘doing what I love’ which is cooking, creating, inspiring. For now, I just aim to continue to create, share and journal my love of all things food and cooking.
We are renovating our kitchen! Yes, I currently have no kitchen – so probably not the best of times to decide to start back up with my blog. Thankfully it’s summertime here in Alberta so the BBQ has been a lifesaver, but I cannot wait until this whole renovation project is finished – fingers crossed only a few more weeks. In the meantime I thought I’d share a recipe for this pasta dish I made prior to reno’s since I had a pretty picture of the dish. The recipe is courtesy of Rachael Ray. It’s a quick easy light pasta dish – I think perfect for summertime. I made the recipe pretty much as written although I did toss use fresh ripe tomatoes I had on hand..and of course parmesan. I hope you all enjoy.
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, deveined, tails on
1 tablespoon lemon juice
4 large shallots or 1 small onion, finely chopped
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
2 small dried or fresh red chilies, finely chopped or fresh peppers thinly sliced or 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons butter
A handful parsley, finely chopped
1 28 can tomatoes, crushed by hand and their juice or chopped fresh tomatoes
A few leaves of basil, torn I used a whole bunch
1 pound linguine
**Optional Parmesan for garnish (I know Rachael Ray typically doesn’t put cheese with seafood – but I like to break this rule)
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for your pasta. While this is happening heat up a large skillet with 2 tbsp approx. of your olive oil. Once your oil is hot add your shrimp (do not crowd your pan do it in a couple batches if need be). Cook the shrimp only for about 2 minutes until almost done – but not quite. Toss the shrimp with lemon juice and set to the side. Add a little more oil to your pan and add your shallots, garlic, thyme, chilies, salt and pepper. Stir and cook for a couple minutes then deglaze your pan with your sherry. Let your sherry cook for a minute or so to reduce a bit then add in your butter. Add your parsley and tomatoes and add back in your shrimp to finish cooking. At this point it calls to add in your basil, but I prefer to add it in fresh at the end in the bowl. Toss your cooked pasta with your sauce reserving a bit of the cooking water in case you need to loosen up your sauce. I also garnish mine with freshly grated parmesan cheese, I know some purists don’t like cheese with their seafood – but I tend to break this rule on occasion – I pretty much like cheese with everything! Serve it up with a glass of ice cold white wine and and crisp green salad for the perfect summer meal.
