16 June, 2011

Eats - Spaghetti with Spicy Tomato Shrimp Sauce

I apologize that there aren't any pictures of this. It was an off-the-cuff meal that turned out delicious. So delicious that I cleaned my plate before thinking about taking a picture. So...here's what I did:

For the Tomato Sauce:
1/4 of a large white onion, diced
15 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 tbsp sugar
2-3 tbsp red wine
15 oz. can of tomato sauce
A few sprigs fresh basil - chopped
3 cloves garlic - chopped
Salt
Black pepper

Heat a sauce pan on medium high heat with 2-3 tbsp olive oil.  Add the diced onions.  Cook 5 minutes, then add the can of diced tomatoes and the sugar.  Stir and let the tomatoes and onions cook down for about 5 minutes, add the wine and let cook another 5.  Add the remaining ingredients, stir, and let simmer for 30 minutes more, or until the sauce has reached a desirable consistency.

For the shrimp:
1/4 stick butter
15 shrimp (no tails, deveined, pre-cooked)
A few sprigs fresh basil - chopped
3 cloves garlic - chopped
3 tbps White wine
Salt
Black pepper
Crushed red pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large, deep skillet.  Add all ingredients to the pan.  Allow to cook a few minutes, then add the tomato sauce to the skillet and stir together, cooking just a few moments.  Toss with spaghetti and serve.

For timing:
Start the water boiling for the pasta when you add the "remaining ingredients" to the tomato sauce and start the shrimp when you add the pasta to the water.

Another hint (From one of my smart aunts):
Chop your fresh herbs and garlic together.  The herbs keep the garlic's stickiness to a minimum, and the garlic keeps the leafy herbs contained.