Shrimp and Mushroom Linguini in an Herbed Cheese Sauce

Another rich and decadent pasta dish, fitting for a Sunday night meal but easy enough for a weeknight. The main ingredients are of course the shrimp and mushrooms, but once they were tossed with the cheese sauce, I felt the need to add some colour back in, so I added some cooked broccoli in. Just another example of how adaptable these dishes are to your personal taste. 


Shrimp and Mushroom Linguini in an Herbed Cheese Sauce
Serves 4


Printable Recipe


Ingredients

• 1 (8 oz) package linguini pasta (or fresh pasta)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (3 oz) package cream cheese
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 3/4 tsp dried basil
• 2/3 cup milk, warmed
• 1/2 pound shrimp, cooked (preferably in white wine and garlic)

Directions

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguini and cook until tender. Drain.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, cook and stir until tender. Transfer to a plate.
• In the same pan, melt 1/4 cup butter with minced garlic. Stir in the cream cheese, breaking it up with a spoon as it melts. Stir in the parsley and basil. Simmer for five minutes. Mix in milk until sauce is smooth. 
• Stir in cooked shrimp and mushrooms and heat through.
• Toss linguini with sauce and serve.

Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto

Urban legend: Risotto is hard to make and those who dare to brave it will become slaves to their stove for hours to stand and stir.

I recently made risotto and when I told people I made it, the answer was always: "But isn't it hard to make? And doesn't it take hours?" No! It is not hard to make. And no! It did not take hours but a mere 35 minutes.

Before taking on this challenge, I did some reading, and I learned that unlike regular rice, risotto can absorb a lot of liquid and that you add about three to four times the amount of liquid to rice. But to make the risotto perfect and delicious, you need to add the liquid warmed in really small volumes, about 1/2 a cup at a time. Before you can add more, you need to wait for the previous liquid to be absorbed.

This was my first time making risotto and it turned out great, but it does require some patience and it's not a fix-it-and-forget-it -- you do need to be in the kitchen and able to stir every few minutes. But trust me, the result was worth it!

Ingredients

• 1 cup arborio rice
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 tsp butter
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 6 cloves of garlic (I like a lot of garlic!)
• about 20 shrimp
• 10 stalks of asparagus
• pepper to taste

Directions


In a pot, combine the chicken stock and water on medium heat. You want it to be warm when you add it to the risotto because it will absorb better. I used a ladle to transfer the liquid over to the risotto.


In a shallow but large pan, melt three teaspoons of butter on low to medium heat, add garlic and sautee the diced onion until soft.

Add the risotto and coat with the butter until it's "toasted," about three minutes.

Add the wine and stir until absorbed.

Increase heat slightly (I never went past medium) and add in broth-water mixture about a 1/2 cup at a time. Stir frequently until liquid is absorbed before adding more. This process should take about 30 minutes of stirring and adding liquid slowly.

In another pan, melt some more butter and add garlic. Sautee shrimps about 4 minutes until pink. Add chopped asparagus for the final few minutes to soften.

Cook rice until tender and mixture has a creamy consistency.

Add cream, parmesan and pepper and shrimp and asparagus. Stir until mixture is creamy, about 2-3 minutes.

Download a printable recipe for Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto

Creamy Shrimp Fettucine

Now that you know how to make pasta, here's a delicious and easy topping for it: Creamy Shrimp Fettucine.

Ingredients:
(serves 4)

• about 6 shrimps per person
• 3 tsp butter
• 3 tsp olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, very finely chopped (I have discovered pre-chopped garlic = way easier)
• one red pepper sliced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup cream

Directions:

• Heat the butter and oil over a medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook for a few minutes. Then add red pepper.

• Stir in tomato paste and wine, simmering for about 10 minutes
• Bring a large pot of water to boil and add pasta. Before draining, add about a 1/4 cup of pasta water to the pasta mixture
• Add shrimp to the sauce and raise the heat to medium-high, cooking until shrimp turn pink
• Reduce heat and stir in the cream, cooking for one minute until thickened. Add salt and pepper to taste

• Add pasta to sauce and mix together
• Serve to hungry crowd!