Shrimp Scampi Pasta Bake
I love food. Almost all food, in fact. Breakfast, lunch or dinner, there really isn’t a lot I won’t eat. Two of my (and my family’s) favorites are shrimp and pasta. We usually eat them separately, but every so often I’ll put the two together.
The classic choice for a shrimp and pasta dish is Shrimp Scampi. While delicious, there are a few steps and it takes some time. You have to make the shrimp, you have to make the sauce and you have to make the pasta. Then you toss the whole thing together and you get dinner. But what if you changed things up? What if instead of all those separate steps you just had one? What if you adapted the recipe like professional and amateur chefs have been doing for decades?
See, shrimp scampi is one of those creations in which immigrant cooks adapted Italian techniques to American ingredients. The original recipe were tiny, lobster-like crustaceans with pale pink shells known as scampi sautéed in olive oil, garlic, onion and white wine. But Italian cooks in the States swapped the scampi for shrimp and then added things like tomatoes, butter or breadcrumbs. That’s why when you see Shrimp Scampi in American restaurants, sometimes it’s made with butter, sometimes with tomato sauce. Sometimes it’s served by itself while other times it’s served over pasta. Like most age-old recipes, it’s changed over time depending on what’s available and people’s palates. This recipe from the Food Network is one more option in a long list of scampi options.
But unlike most scampi recipes, this one doesn’t require a lot of steps. You just mix all the ingredients up in a bowl and dump it all into a casserole dish. The shrimp and pasta cook at the same time because they’re swimming in chicken broth while the casserole bakes. So, when the timer goes off all the ingredients are cooked through and ready to go. All you need to do is dig in and enjoy. I did and I can’t wait do it again.
Notes
Adapted from the Food Network
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, plus more for the casserole dish
- 12 ounces rotini pasta
- 1 pound frozen peeled and deveined medium shrimp
- 2-1/2 cups chicken broth
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
- 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream, warmed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch casserole dish with butter.
- Spread the pasta in an even layer in the bottom of the prepared dish. Scatter the shrimp over the top and dot with butter. Pour in the broth, then sprinkle with garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Cover with aluminum foil and bake until the pasta is al dente, about 25 minutes.
- While the pasta bakes, toss the Parmesan and parsley together in a small bowl. When the pasta is done, stir in the warm cream and top with cheese mixture. Serve immediately.
