It’s rare for me to make up a recipe as I go along, but I was feeling very secure ….in a culinary way and decided to go for it.    I was looking at a handful of beautiful ingredients and decided I couldn’t go wrong putting them all together somehow.    I had fresh shrimp, beautiful asparagus from an organic farm, homemade pesto sauce ( made with my own home grown basil), glorious lemons, grass fed butter, my favorite olive oil, and of course, garlic, salt and pepper.  Did I forget the wine?  I love to cook with wine.  Sometimes I even put it in the food.   

So where to begin?  I’m not sure that it really matters how you combine these ingredients, but the way I did worked well.  We have two cooks in our kitchen most times, and one cook (husband) always has plenty to say.  When he saw I wasn’t using a recipe or didn’t have a cookbook open, he took this to mean all comments were fair game.   I will give him credit for some great suggestions, such as seasoning the shrimp with salt, pepper and paprika and letting them sit for a while, while tending to the other ingredients.  He also suggested that I cook the shrimp first and then take them out while I cooked the asparagus to give more flavor to the sauce.  And if I’m being truthful, he also suggested the order in which the ingredients were added.  He wasn’t crazy about the use of butter, but then again, he’s Italian and only uses olive oil.  I insisted on the butter, and between us, it’s critical to the dish!  

In this particular instance, collaboration ( or should I call it “interference”  was a good thing).   We both agreed that it was absolutely delicious, and we wouldn’t have done anything differently…….except he still says no butter. Wrong!

I hope you’ll give it a try, and maybe add a few changes of your own.

Buon Appetito!  

Recipe: 4 to 6 generous portions

1 Pound pasta ( I used orecchiette, but any pasta shape will do)

1 pound shrimp

6 TBSP of olive oil

1 pound asparagus cut into one inch pieces, and separate stems from tops

4 to 5 garlic cloves, minced

Juice of 3 lemons

1 TBSP lemon zest ( or more)

2 TBSP pesto sauce ( or just basil if you prefer)

3/4 cup of white wine

3 TBSP butter (essential!)

2 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

2 tsp paprika

red pepper flakes to taste

1. Mix cleaned shrimp in a bowl with salt, pepper and paprika. Mix well to coat all shrimp with a little bit of olive oil as well.
2. Heat up 2 TBSP of olive oil in skillet to hold the asparagus. First sauce the stem pieces for about 5 minutes and then add the tops for approximately another 3 minutes. Add a pinch or two of salt as you go along. You want the asparagus to be firm, but cooked through.
3. While asparagus are sautéing, heat another large pan with 3 TBSP olive oil. Cook shrimp until brown on both sides. Take out of the pan and set aside and cover.
4. You may need to add more oil to the pan, but heat it up well and then add the garlic and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. If you want some red pepper, now would be the time to add it. Add the pesto and stir well. Then add the lemon juice. Stir up all the bits on the bottom of the pan.
5. Now add the wine ( to the pan, but feel free to indulge here. I always do), and bring to a quick boil. Let it boil down a bit before lowering the heat.
6. Now add the shrimp and asparagus back to this pan. Stir well to combine and heat through.
7. You can add your cooked pasta right to the pan or put it right into the serving bowl.
8. Add the butter and stir ( and maybe a little of the pasta water).
9. Garnish with the lemon zest and lemon slices if you like.