OH LOOK, FOOD! :: PENNE ALLA PUTTANESCA + SHRIMP

Okay, so Tasty Tuesdays didn’t work out. As much as I love to cook, shooting, cooking, and posting the blog is quite the task! One a week, and especially on a certain day of the week, not working out! So as to not set expectations for a weekly food blog post, the name has received a well deserved change! I put it out there to the Twitter world, and I appreciate all the suggestions! ”Oh look, FOOD!” is the winner and will be the new name of my food posts. Enjoy!

Today’s Oh look, FOOD! post is a delicious penne alla puttanesca + shrimp. There are a few notables about this dish. First, the “+” is because the shrimp can be added or left out. So for you vegetarians out there, this dish is for you too! If you have a vegetarian coming to dinner, simply serve out their portion of sauce before adding the shrimp. Everyone is happy! The second notable about this dish is the name. ”Penne alla puttanesca” translated to Italian, means “whore’s pasta”. It’s origins are traced back to Sicily or the Bay of Naples. Either way, that’s a funny name! Said to be named because they were all ingredients that a prostitute could have on hand and easily whip up between clients. Bit of history with your dinner! Alright, let’s get cooking. Unfortunately, if you don’t have all these ingredients in your cupboard, much like it’s name, this is an expensive, but easy dish ;) (I really couldn’t help it!)

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil (also ironic considering the name)
4 large cloves garlic, diced
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped (I had a large onion, so I only used about 3/4)
3 tsp. finely grated orange zest (about 1 orange)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup dry white wine (I went for a sauvignon blanc)
1 28oz. can diced tomatoes and juices
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 Tbs. capers, rinsed
1 pound penne pasta
1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
12 oz. frozen medium cooked shrimp
Sea salt and pepper

Get all your ingredients together and prepared. This dish is easy, but a lot goes into it, so you’ll need to be on top of your ingredients.

STEP 1) Add the 2 Tbs. of olive oil and bring to medium heat. Add the 4 cloves of diced garlic and cook until tender (about 2-3 minutes).

While your garlic is cooking, go ahead and zest your orange and chop your onion. I like a little extra, but it’s cooking, so add what tastes good to you!

STEP 2) Add 1 chopped onion, 3 Tbs. orange zest, 1 tsp. oregano, and 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes and cook until the onion is tender (about 5-6 minutes).

STEP 3) Add the 1/2 cup dry white wine and simmer until the wine has reduced by half.

STEP 4) Stir in 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes with juices, 1/3 cup Kalamata olives, and 2 Tbs. capers.

STEP 5) Use a masher and mash the tomatoes. This will squeeze out a lot of the juices from the tomatoes, so when you simmer your sauce down, the water evaporates, and leaves you with a rich tomato taste. At this point, add salt and pepper to taste.

***If you do have a vegetarian coming for dinner, transfer 1/4 of the sauce to smaller sauce pan now.***

STEP 6) Stir in 12 oz. frozen cooked shrimp. I like to use frozen shrimp, because they’re already prepared and cooked, so I don’t have to hassle with them. They’re also great at absorbing any flavor that you put them into. With a dish like this, they come out tender, juicy, and full of flavor!

STEP 7) Cook your pound of penne to a nice al dente pasta (slightly firm to the bite). While cooking your pasta, keep your sauce at a medium heat.

STEP 8) Strain the pasta and transfer the whole pound to the pan. Stir the pasta in carefully.

STEP 9) You’ll notice that you still have a lot of thin juices in your pan. Cook down for 10 minutes until your sauce is nice and thick. This also gives the pasta time to absorb some of those amazing juices!