Greek Shrimp Pasta
I am still drooling over this lovely meal. It might have something to do with the fact that I actually ate it while sipping wine, sitting across from my husband, watching the sunset out our big windows, and talking without interruption (that is code for 'wait until the kids are in bed' to eat). A little date night at home is a great way to end the day. I found this recipe on Pinterest, and while I would have loved it as written (meat free), I knew my hubby would need some shrimp to get excited about pasta. It was a good call. A nice shrimp pasta is pretty hard to beat, and those little babies really added some flavor to the dish. When summer rolls around and tomatoes are actually in season, this will be evenmore delicious. Speaking of summer, when (or if?!!) you finally are able to get your grill out, make some of this quick pasta without the shrimp and then top it with a grilled chicken breast, if chicken is your thing.
Greek Shrimp Pasta
-adapted from foodandwine.com
- 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives, roughly chopped
- 1/4 pound feta cheese, crumbled
- 3 tablespoons drained capers
- 3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley (gotta use the fresh stuff, peeps)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
- 12 oz thin spaghettior angel hair
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb shrimp (I used peeled, deveined, raw frozen shrimp that I thawed in the fridge for the day)
In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives, feta, capers, parsley, salt, and pepper. I actually did this a few hours early and popped it in the fridge. Cook your pasta according to the directions, reserving about a half cup of the cooking water (just scoop some out with a coffee cup while the pasta is in there). Meanwhile, heat the oil ina large saute pan and then cook the garlic (stirring constantly) for just about a minute, no more. You want to flavor the oil and just take the sting out of the raw garlic. Remove from heat, and toss together with the hot pasta and tomato mixture. Add cooking water as necessary to get the desired consistency of sauce, and top with the shrimp. Now, you can do a number of things with the shrimp. You can saute them in a bit of olive oil until pink (or if they are cooked already, just to reheat), but I prefer to roast. I tossed the thawed shrimp with about 1 T of olive oil, a bit of salt and pepper, and spread on a baking sheet. I roasted at 400 degrees (turning once) for about 12-15 minutes.