I’m over winter.
I’m over the snow. Over the heating bill. Over the fact that my car’s steering wheel apparently stops moving when it drops below twenty degrees.
I’m even over the stews and soups, and as much as I adore my slow-cooker, I’m ready to retire it in favor of all things springy and light. Mostly, I’m ready for seafood and white wine and fresh vegetables.
And as a blogger-y aside, did you know that winter meals are kind of misery to photograph? It’s true; not only are things like beef stew not the loveliest, but you have like thirty seconds a day during which the light is good enough to get a nice shot, and those thirty seconds happen around, like, 2 o’clock. Which is a touch early for dinner.
Anyway, daylight savings happened. And with it came fifty degree weather, and the appearance of heirloom tomatoes at my local market (!) and so:
Seafood. And white wine. And fresh vegetables.
I first discovered this recipe from a post that Big Girls Small Kitchen wrote for the Ramshackle Glam Community (those of you who were around way back in the way-back beginning of the site might remember that), and it was so incredibly delicious – and surprisingly simple (and I know, it doesn’t look especially simple, but I swear it is) – that I started making it all the time…and then I forgot about it. Until yesterday, when I realized that while my son loves seafood (like, weird-loves it; the kid literally goes out to dinner and requests lobster and sashimi, which I’m both proud of and mildly horrified by because if his tastes are this expensive at three years old I think we need to dedicate a savings account to them), I don’t know that he’s ever eaten shrimp.
When I brought out dinner, this was how the conversation went.
“What’s that.”
“Shrimp.”
“I don’t like shrimp.”
“You’ve never eaten shrimp.”
“I don’t like it.”
“Try one bite.”
[Bite.]
…And then he ate them all.
I’m serious. ALL OF THEM.
(The recipe is down there after the jump.)
The Appetizer: Heirloom Tomato, Cucumber & Avocado Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
The Wine: Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio, which has bright fruit flavors and is basically warm weather in a bottle, (You’ll be seeing more from Ecco Domani in the coming months; I’m working on some style and entertaining collaborations with the company that I’m really excited about, so stay tuned.)
Fettuccine with Shrimp, Peas & Spinach (serves 4)
What You Need:
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and cleaned
¼ teaspoon crumbled saffron threads (this is kind of hard to find; if you can’t find it don’t worry about it – just skip the saffron)
1 tablespoons olive oil
3 shallots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 bag fresh baby spinach
Juice from 1 lemon
2 packages fresh fettuccine
What You Do:
1. Bring a pot of very salted water to the boil for the pasta and cook according to package directions (fresh pasta only cooks for a couple of minutes).
2. When you strain the pasta, set aside a cup of pasta water, and stir the saffron into the salted water. Set the pasta aside, and add a little olive oil to keep it loose until you’re ready to add it to the dish (don’t worry about it getting cold; it’ll reheat when you add it to the rest of the ingredients later).
3. In a large pan, saute the garlic and shallots over low heat until just golden. Add the wine and salt. Let the wine cook nearly off, then add the pasta water-saffron mixture.
4. Bring the sauce to a boil, then throw in the peas and the shrimp. Stir to mix everything together, then cook for about 30 seconds.
5. Finally, add the spinach and toss everything together. Lower the heat and cover the pot for 2-3 minutes, until the spinach is wilted and the shrimp is cooked through. Taste for salt and add more as needed.
6. Stir the pasta into the pot of shrimp and vegetables, and toss to distribute all the ingredients. Serve immediately.
