shrimp scampi

by Rachel McCarthy
I have to admit, I’m not a seafood person. Shrimp was one of my favorites when I was a baby, but as I got older, I thought it was the most disgusting food ever! A few years ago, I gave crab cakes a try {I had no idea what I was missing!} and now I am completely obsessed with anything crab. In preparing my grocery list for this week, I was stumped for Sunday’s dinner. A lot of my recipe inspirations come from my favorite cookbooks and cooking shows, and I have seen so many recipes for shrimp as of late. Richard made shrimp last weekend for himself and I have to say, it actually looked pretty good. 

So, I decided to be adventurous and make some kind of shrimp for dinner this past weekend. I knew I needed something in a sauce {to mask any possible fishy scents} and it had to be served with something {just in case I couldn’t eat it, I needed something for a backup!}. Shrimp Scampi it is! Since I hardly ever cook seafood, besides crab cakes, I read through so many recipes for shrimp scampi, trying to decide the elements of the dish I like and didn’t like, to achieve my ultimate seafood pasta dish. 

Turns out, shrimp really isn’t that bad! I’m looking forward to the warmer temperatures so we can throw the shrimp on the grill to create delicious, flavorful dishes for spring and summer!
shrimp-scampi

Shrimp Scampi

1/4 lb. frozen shrimp {I bought shrimp that was already peeled & deveined}
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 garlic clove, minced
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup white cooking wine
8 ounces linguine, cooked
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese and parsley for garnish, if desired
Cook pasta according to package directions; drain pasta and set aside. In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes and shrimp. Saute for about 3 minutes until the shrimp begins to turn pink. Add the lemon juice and white cooking wine and season with a little salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 5 more minutes {My shrimp was already cooked, so I was basically just reheating the shrimp. I found a good indication of the “doneness” to be their shrinking in size and the amount of sauce I had remaining in the skillet — you want enough to coat the pasta!} Remove the skillet from the heat and toss with the pasta. Garnish with Parmesan cheese and parsley {fresh or dried} if desired. 
**I used only about 1/4 pound of the frozen shrimp — Richard used the rest to make his own shrimp concoction! But, you can easily double or even triple this recipe because there are only a few ingredients 🙂

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