Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta

Well the Testosterone Police showed up at the house today.  They punched my “Man-Card” again.  I’m not sure how many points I have left….   They showed up the first time when I started cooking and baking.  They showed up again when I started blogging about it.

Today they showed up because they found my Pinterest account.  They said next time they came I better be wearing a dress, pearls and heels….  (sigh…)   I guess I’ll go play golf with my baby boy tomorrow to try and build some points back up.

 

Anyway, I did find on Pinterest a recipe for Cajun chicken pasta, and decided to give it a make-over to a lighter version and use shrimp instead.  (Oh goodness! Was that the guys at the door for the make-over comment?).   I assure you, after 26 years of marriage, rearing two boys to adulthood (well almost) and a 7 year old girl, I have a lifetime MAN CARD – even if I do scare the bejeebies out of them when I let my daughter paint my toes.  

Ingredients-

1 cup of sweet pepper, chopped.  ( I used red and green)

3-4 cloves of garlic, sliced thin

1 large or 2 small Shallots, peeled and sliced

3 scallions, sliced and divided (white and green)

6oz sliced mushrooms, slightly chopped

2lbs medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 Tbsp. canola oil, divided (1 for shrimp marinade, 1 for veggies)

1 package fat free cream cheese

½ cup milk

1 Tbsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning – divided  (1 for marinating the shrimp, 1 for the veggie sauté)

Chicken broth or water (amounts vary to keep cream cheese from getting to thickened)

16oz box Fettuccini noodles

Salt and pepper to taste

Grape tomatoes, cut in half.

How to-

Marinate the shrimp with a Tbsp of Cajun seasoning and Canola oil.  Stir to coat and refrigerate for thirty minutes to an hour. Chop veggies!

Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat.  Add shrimp.  Stir occasionally until shrimp are cooked through.  (about 7-10 minutes)  Remove from heat and set aside.  Heat a large pot with water to cook the pasta at this time.  Then drain, and leave in colander until needed.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add Tbsp canola oil.  Once hot, add garlic, stir and brown.  Add the rest of the veggies - except the green part of the scallions and the tomatoes. Stir often.  Once softened add cream cheese and constantly stir. Add chicken broth as needed to keep the mixture fairly moist.  ( I ended up using about 1/2 a cup). 

Once cream cheese is melted, add shrimp.  Stir in to coat. 

Reduce heat to simmer, and add the green parts of the scallions and grape tomatoes.

Serve up the pasta and top with the shrimp