Ina Garten's Baked Shrimp Scampi

Sunday night, I made Ina Garten's Baked Shrimp Scampi. This recipe is to die for! It doesn't take long to make and the flavor will knock your socks off. It tastes like a combination of shrimp scampi and baked stuffed shrimp. The only issue I have with it is that it does use one whole stick of butter. (No wonder it tastes so good!) So, pick a time when you are not dieting to indulge in this scrumptious dish.

You can find the recipe on the Food Network web site or in her Back to Basics book.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/baked-shrimp-scampi-recipe/index.html


NOTE: I got some feedback on this recipe --it calls for to much butter. A friend tried making it with 1/2 the amount of butter but says it didn't turn out that good. For those of you fearful of ingesting a whole stick of butter, fear not. The beauty of this dish is that all the butter settles to the bottom of your baking dish, creating a buttery and protective bath that keeps the shrimp tender and juicy. When you remove the shrimp, you'll see an ocean of cooked butter left behind. If you are a butter lover, then you can scoop it up and pour it back over the shrimp, but honestly it won't need it.

Parsley & Basil Pesto Pasta with Seared Shrimp

I found a recipe in Cooking Light that I really liked, but I added a few of my own modifcations. The CL recipe called for all parsley in it and only walnuts. My version adds shrimp, basil, pine nuts and red pepper flakes into the mix.

Ingredients

3 cups parsley leaves (flat leaf)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup pine nuts

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

pinch red pepper flakes

3 cloves garlic minced

1 pound spaghetti

15 shrimp medium size

First, make the pesto and defrost your shrimp if they are frozen.

Pesto: Combine all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. I find that you have to add a coinsiderable amount of olive oil to the mix in order to get the leaves to process.

3 cups parsley leaves (flat leaf)

1 cup basil leafs
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cloves garlic minced

olive oil as needed

Once you have the mixture, place it in an air tight container and cover the top with a small amount of olive oil.

In a large non-stick pot, heat 2-3 tablespoons olive oil. Once the oil it hot add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes. Once you begin to smell the flakes cooking (may be about 10-20 seconds) add shrimp and reduce heat to medium. Let shrimp begin to cook a bit and then add one clove of minced garlic. Stir so the garlic gets distributed on the shrimp. Turn off heat, so shrimp don't over cook and set pan aside.

Bring pasta water to a boil. Remember to salt your water. Cook 1 pound of spaghetti.

Rough chop about 1/4 or less of walnuts. You can use your own judgement here on how much walnuts you want in your dish.

Remove shaghetti from heat just before it is done. You want it almost al dente. Transfer it into the pot with shrimp to finish cooking. I do this by scooping it out with a pasta ladel. You can also use a regular collander but be sure to save some of the pasta water. This will help thicken your sauce. Combine shrimp and pasta and begin to add pesto. Stir it in bit by bit over medium heat until you get the desired amount of sauce. Add small amounts of pasta water as you go. This will help distribute the sauce and finish cooking the pasta. Once the pasta is al dente (about 2-3 minutes) sprinkle walnuts on top and combine. If you like you can also sprinkle on some parm cheese. Enjoy!

Substitutions:

Whole wheat or organic pasta

Skip basil and use only parsley