Like all my favorite pasta dishes, this was inspired by a trip through my produce aisle, then my meat and seafood counters. The sausage adds richness, the asparagus and favas add freshness, and the shrimp made it a little something special (at least at our dinner table). For a dish like this, where the ingredient list is short and sweet, be sure to use your very best and freshest ingredients. When it all comes together – a dish like this really sings, because you’ve used every part of the ingredients to build flavor along the way – the fat from the sausages is used to cook the shrimp and veggies in, for example, and the pasta water steams the vegetables to perfect tenderness and binds the dish together. It was simple enough to take just a few minutes, but lovely enough to serve as a special weekend supper – my favorite kind of food.
Pasta with Shrimp, Sausage, Fava Beans, and Asparagus
Served 4.
Leftover Potential: Re-heats well, but be careful not to overcook the shrimp!
about 1 lb pasta
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Italian sausages
12 oz shrimp, peeled
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and halved
1 cup fava beans, halved
1/4 cup heavy cream
grated parmesan cheese, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
1. Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water until tender, about 7-9 minutes. Drain, reserving about 1/3 cup of the pasta water, and set the pasta aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan. Remove the casings from the sausages, and crumble the sausages into the pan. Cook until the fat renders and the sausage is crisp. Remove the sausage from the pan.
3. Add the shrimp to the pan, and saute until pink and cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Remove the shrimp and reserve with the sausages.
4. Add the asparagus and fava beans to the pan, and saute until starting to become tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add the pasta water to the pan, and pan-steam until completely tender (the water should mostly evaporate).
5. Return the pasta, shrimp, and sausage to the pan, and stir in the heavy cream. Bring the mixture to a simmer, tossing to warm it through. Simmer until the cream has thickened slightly, then season with salt and pepper, and finish the dish with parmesan cheese.
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I really can appreciate this dish for 3 main reasons:
1- it’s pasta!
2- fab. ingredients
3- legumes are incorporated…and I certainly need to up my iron intake ;o)
Great meal…thanks for sharing.
Flavourful wishes, Claudia