Fast and Delicious!

Lately, I’ve been trying to find recipes that are healthy, delicious and require a small amount of time.  Why you may ask?  Well, as much as I’d love to make a gourmet meal each work night, I don’t have the energy.  I’m exhausted.  However, I want to feel good about the decisions I make for dinner so that my day ends on a optimistic note.

With that said, I was given a handful of Food Network magazines the other day and found a recipe by one of my food icons, the Barefoot Contessa.  I kid you not, this recipe, from start to finish, takes fifteen minutes and is so flavorful, healthy and filling. Have a look.

 

Lemon Pasta with Roasted Shrimp

Ingredients:

*2 pounds shrimp (17-21 count), peeled and deveined     

*Good olive oil (makes a tremendous difference!)

*Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

*1 pound angel hair pasta

*4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

*zest and juice of 2 lemons

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the shrimp on a sheet pan, lined with parchment paper, with 1 tablespoon olive oil (more is okay!), 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.  Toss well, spread them in one layer and roast for 6 to 8 minutes, just until they’re pink and cooked through.

2. Meanwhile, drizzle some olive oil in a large pot of boiling salted water, add the angel hair and cook until al dente, about 3 minutes.  Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking liquid.  Quickly toss the angel hair with the melted butter, 1/4 cup olive oil, the lemon zest, lemon juice, 2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper and about 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking liquid.  Add the shrimp and serve hot.