Pasta with grilled shrimp and basil vinaigrette

I had some guests over the weekend. I wanted a light dish but something flavorful too. I bought this BON APPETIT cookbook on sale at a local bookstore and was really itching to try something in it.

I had to adapt the recipe what what I had. I was also inspired by the spinosi pasta (they look like spagettini) I still had in the pantry. It was given to us when we attended a cooking class at a local hotel. the Italian chef demonstrated some pretty cool techniques on cooking pasta.

So with a block of PARMESIANO REGGIANO  (a small one... like 150 grams) off I went to find this recipe.

Ingredients:
4 prawns or 500 grams of shrimp. peeled and deveined
5 tbsp. lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tbsp dijon mustard
3/4 cup fresh basil chopped
1 clove of garlic
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp butter

pasta if choice

parmesan cheese (1/4 cup)


1. combine 4 tbsp lemon and dijon mustard in a bowl. whisk in olive oil and basil. Season with salt and pepper. set aside

2. place shrimp in bowl and drizzle with 1 tbsp lemon juice and 2 tbsp olive oil. sprinkle shrimp with salt and pepper

3. grill shrimp (or pan fry) with a little oil until cooked. set aside. If using prawns, cut into bite sized pieces.

4. cook pasta in pot with boiling salted water until firm to the bite ( al dente) - do not drain pasta, (you'll need the pasta water if your dish is a bit dry)

5. while pasta is cooking, sauté the garlic in a pan (about 1 min), add the shrimp and pasta (scooped from the pot) - if the pan looks dry, add a little pasta water. add the lemon/basil mixture. butter and parmesan. toss till well coated.

Serve with some garlic bread. garnish with fresh basil.

My guest loved this dish. They said it was very light and flavorful for something that doesn't look like it has anything on it.
I thought it was like something out of a restaurant actually. A keeper for sure! (I just can't make this all the time since parmesan is quite expensive)

Enjoy!!!