Casarecce with Sicilian Pesto and Shrimp

5 MINPrep Time

15 MINCook Time

6Servings

by Giada De Laurentiis

Photo Credit: Super-Italian

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Frozen shrimp are a great pantry item, and tossed with one of my indispensable condiments, they make for an unexpectedly delicious weeknight meal. As pasta with tomato sauce goes, this one is lighter and fresher because the tomatoes aren’t really cooked, just warmed a bit by the hot pasta. My favorite time to make this is in the summer when cherry tomatoes are bursting with flavor. I like it with a short pasta to cradle all the pesto in the nooks and crannies; it won’t coat long noodles like spaghetti as well. Even if you have to make the pesto from scratch, you can still pull this dish together in the time it takes to cook the pasta.

Casarecce with Sicilian Pesto and Shrimp

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Prep Time

5 minutes

Cook Time

15 minutes

Ingredients

For The Sicilian Pesto:

1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
1 clove garlic (peeled and smashed)
1 cup packed basil leaves
2 14-ounce cans Corbara tomatoes, drained (or 1 pint fresh cherry tomatoes)

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1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

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1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

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For The Pasta:

1 pound casarecce, or other short pasta

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1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
½ pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, each cut into 3 or 4 pieces
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups Sicilian Pesto
Torn fresh basil leaves, for garnish

Instructions

Recipe courtesy of Super Italian by Giada De Laurentiis.
For the pesto, in the bowl of a food processor or high speed blender, pulse the almonds and garlic together until finely chopped. Add the basil, drained tomatoes, salt and pepper flakes, and pulse again to combine. With the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream until combined.
Remove the sauce to a bowl and stir in the parmesan cheese. If not using right away, refrigerate for up to 5 days; the pesto will thicken in the fridge after several hours.
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente according to the package directions.
While the pasta cooks, in a large sauté pan heat the oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is quite hot, add the shrimp and sprinkle with the salt. Increase the heat to high and cook, stirring frequently, until the shrimp pieces are starting to get some browned spots and are cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in the pesto and remove from the heat.
When the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, then drain the pasta and immediately add it to the pan. (See Hint.) Add 1/4 cup of the pasta water and toss to combine, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits of shrimp. If the sauce is too thick, add more pasta water as needed to make a light sauce.
Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with the basil leaves.
Hint: If your pan isn’t large enough to hold all the pasta, transfer it to a large serving bowl after draining. Use 1/4 cup of the pasta water to loosen the sauce, then add it to the pasta and toss to coat.