Roasted tomato and shrimp pasta

Roasted tomatoes and shrimp pasta

Serves 4 || total time: 1 hour || active time: 25 minutes

I wanted to challenge myself to make a dish without using a recipe. I started with the roasted tomatoes and went from there. I got the inspiration from a restaurant at Disney World, Narcoossees, from which came one of the best meals of my life so far. I was served these tomatoes on a seemingly simple salad, but one bite convinced me otherwise. They were absolutely delicious and I knew I had to make them myself. I love tomatoes and shrimp together and picked the rest of the ingredients from my kitchen pantry.

I always have these ingredients in the fridge, freezer, or pantry and the actual cooking time was quick. If you don’t have shrimp, try chicken. This recipe is great anytime of the year, regardless of tomato season since the roasting brings out an intense tomato flavor.

Ingredients:

·      ½ lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

·      1 carton grape or cherry tomatoes

·      3 cloves garlic, peeled left whole

·      1 shallot, sliced

·      ¼ cup scallions, sliced ½”

·      zest and juice of one lemon

·      5-7 marinated artichoke hearts (I like Wegmans brand)

·      ¾-1 lb penne pasta

·      ½ cup pasta water (don’t throw away your water after cooking the pasta!)

·      ¼ cup white wine (or chicken stock)

·      ¼ cup white wine

·      parmesan cheese for sprinkling

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°. On a small sheet pan, drizzle olive oil and add tomatoes and garlic. Toss with salt and pepper to coat. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until the tomatoes just burst. Set aside to cool.

While the tomatoes are roasting, peel and devein the shrimp. To devein, run a paring knife along the back of the shrimp and pull the insides out. (If you’ve never done this, don’t be grossed out, you’re just removing some not so yummy insides)

Put a pot of water on to boil. Add penne then start the sauce. In a large sauté pan, sauté shallots on medium heat until just translucent. Add scallions, lemon zest and artichoke hearts.  Sauté for 2 minutes. Add shrimp and sauté until shrimp are almost cooked. (you don’t want to overcook the shrimp) Add wine and lemon juice and let the sauce simmer. Add the cooked penne and roasted tomatoes and garlic to the sauté pan and thoroughly coat the pasta. Take about ½ cup of pasta water and add to the dish. Let cook for another minute or two then, off the heat, sprinkle with parmesan cheese.