Hubby comes home for lunch most days so I’m always looking for something beyond soups, salads and sandwiches. At the same time, neither of us wants a real heavy lunch either. On the days when he teaches his night classes, I do like to have a more substantial lunch, however, since we probably won’t really have a dinner meal. I think this Shrimp and Tomatoes with Pasta fits the bill for that just perfectly.
You can actually prepare everything except the pasta ahead of time and refrigerate it for 3-4 hours before tossing in the hot pasta. It’s up to you as to whether you warm the shrimp and tomatoes at all. Preparing those ahead of time, even an hour or so, allows the flavors to marry very well. I think you’ll be a little surprised at how much the white balsamic adds to the dish.
Don’t skip out on the fresh basil. Dried basil just won’t do, y’all. And while you can enjoy this dish now with the basil you get from the market, be sure to put this on your summer menu when your fresh garden basil is so abundant.
I’ve not been very successful growing fresh basil under the grow light during the winter. It actually does okay — but just okay — growing near our kitchen windows. Because we have a wrap-around porch, it doesn’t get any direct sunlight and, therefore, tends to get leggy. Oh well…I just keep trying.
I actually prefer using cherry or grape tomatoes in this dish. They tend to hold their shape better and are always just a tad sweeter. Certainly when summer tomatoes aren’t available, I’ll always go for those. I’m just not one to buy beefsteak tomatoes during the off season. If you’re in a bind, you can always use well-drained diced canned tomatoes. Not quite the same, but it works.
Ingredients
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined and tail removed
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, divided use
- 4 Tablespoons olive oil, divided use
- 4-5 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced (or halved grape tomatoes)
- 1/2 onion, finely diced
- 4-5 Tablespoons fresh Genovese basil, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 16 ounces linguine or fettucini
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan or shredded mozzarella.
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat 2 Tablespoons butter and 2 Tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat.
- Sear shrimp until it turns pink and opaque, about 3-4 minutes; remove from skillet and set aside.
- Wipe skillet clean; heat remaining butter and olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion to skillet and sauté until opaque; remove from skillet and cool slightly.
- In a large covered bowl, mix sauteéd onion, tomatoes, basil, vinegar, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Stir in cooled shrimp.
- Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain and toss with shrimp mixture.
- Garnish with Parmesan or mozzarella, if desired.
