Linguine with Spicy Shrimp

My sister, who lives in Washington state, shared a recipe with me this week that I just have to share with you.  This recipe has it all, it is taken from Cooking Light magazine so it is lower calorie (436 calories per 1 1/4 cups), it is full of spicy flavor, and it is very quick to make.

Since the beginning of January work has been piling up both on my desk at the library and at home so I was very pleased to have this quick, but tasty, recipe.  In my usual fashion I made more than one adjustment to the recipe.  I used some of the whole tomatoes that I canned last fall, they had more flavor than the tomatoes available at the store and like my sister said "the fresh tomatoes in the store right now look anemic".  I used dried parsley from my garden so I tossed it in shortly before adding the cream to soften it up.  I used frozen shrimp rather than fresh since I live so far from the ocean and I only added 1/2 pound, we thought it was plenty of shrimp, but a pound of fresh as the recipe calls for would certainly be good.

I used an unmeasured combination of chipotle pepper spice, paprika, black pepper and a crumbled dried red pepper in place of the cajun seasoning and ground red pepper, but that is only because I did not have cajun seasoning and felt the substitution would be fine.  It was, in fact we loved this dish and will be making again before long.  This is a spicy dish, but the half and half cuts the heat slightly and adds a richness to the flavor.  However, if you prefer a milder spice decrease the amount of red pepper you use, or cut it out completely as my mother did.  I wrote the recipe below exactly as it appeared in Cooking Light, but I added salt to the pasta water, I think pasta would be really bland without, however, if heath dictates less salt, it could be left out.

Linguine with Spicy Shrimp
~Cooking Light, June 2010~
Serving size 1 1/4 cups / Calories 436

8 ounces uncooked linguine
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp
1 1/2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.  Drain.  Place pasta in a large bowl; keep warm.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onion; saute' 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add garlic and tomatoes; saute' 2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Sprinkle shrimp with Cajun seasoning, red pepper, and salt.  Add shrimp mixture to pan; saute' 3 minutes or until shrimp are almost done; remove from heat.  Stir in half-and-half.  Pour shrimp mixture over pasta; toss. Sprinkle with parsley.

Sense of Home / Recipes / Main Dishes




This post is linked to:
Real Food Wednesday
Delicious Dishes
Full Plate Thursday
Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesday
Pennywise Platter Thursday
Fat Camp Friday
Foodie Friday