If you’re looking for a tasty meal that doesn’t take a lot of time, try this tomato spinach pasta with spicy shrimp.
You know, I’m always trying to come up with new ways to fix my favorite foods and this recipe is spot on. Shrimp is a favorite and it fits right in with the tomato spinach pasta. The whole meal takes about 30 minutes to prepare, so it’s perfect for a quick dinner.
Shrimp…I’ve already got 15 to 20 shrimp recipes in my recipe index. Like, Shrimp and sausage stew, Shrimp penne with vodka sauce, and Bonefish Grill bang bang shrimp.
Preparing the pasta and spicy shrimp
When I thought about how I wanted this pasta dish to taste and be presented, I thought cajun spicy, and tomatoey, but not a heavy sauce. Just enough sauce to coat everything. To spice up the shrimp, I used Mike’s Seasonings, all purpose “spicy recipe.” It is quite similar to Paul Prudhomme’s, Blackened redfish magic.
To further turn up the heat, I added some crushed red pepper flakes. It’s easy to adjust how much spiciness you want in the dish because there is ample time for tasting when the vegetable broth is cooking and before the spinach gets wilted in. You could also add some cayenne pepper or minced jalapeno peppers.
I think recipes are just guidelines and you can change things up as you like. That’s what makes cooking fun and this is a recipe you can do some experimenting on.
The shrimp is sauteed quickly in a separate pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and a good amount of spicy seasoning. Cook them on medium heat and turn them occasionally until the flesh turns opaque and they are ready to be added to the tomato spinach pasta.
To compliment the pasta dish, you can brown some broccoli and asparagus spears in the oven with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. 20 minutes at 400° on a sheet pan, turning the veggies once should do it. Brown up the vegetables while you’re preparing the rest of the dinner.
This was a real hit when we had it…give it a try.
Tomato spinach pasta with spicy shrimp
Ingredients
- 1 lbs mostaccioli or penne pasta, cooked al dente
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 5 plum tomatoes, coarse chopped
- 2 cups vegetable broth I used Better than Bouillon vegetable base
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes adjust to your liking
- 1 tbsp anchovy paste
- 6 oz. tomato paste
- 5 oz. baby spinach
- 1 lbs peeled and deveined shrimp, 30 to 40 per pound size
- 2 tsp Cajun seasoning, like Mike's Seasonings or Blackened Redfish Magic
- parsley for garnish
- shredded parmesan, romano or aged provolone cheese if desired
Instructions
- Cook the pasta to al dente per package instructions, drain and lightly coat with olive oil. Set aside and keep warm.
- In a large, high sided skillet, add 1 tbsp olive oil and the minced garlic on medium low heat, cook until fragrant, 30 to 45 seconds.
- Next, add the chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper and heat up a couple minutes, then add the vegetable broth, red pepper flakes, tomato paste and anchovy paste stirring to dissolve. Let this simmer a couple minutes and adjust the seasonings to taste.
- Add the spinach and fold in to wilt, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the heat to low.
- In a separate skillet add 2 tsp olive oil on medium low heat, add the shrimp and sprinkle with the cajun seasoning. Stir and turn until the shrimp is cooked through which takes 2 to 4 minutes.
- While the shrimp is cooking, add the pasta to the first skillet and fold in to combine with the tomatoes and spinach. Top with the shrimp, garnish with parsley if desired, serve hot, with grated cheese on the side.
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