Creamy Garlic Butter Fettuccine with Shrimp and Scallops

Nearly two years ago, I introduced our family to a low-carb eating lifestyle.  I really cut back on our consumption of potatoes, bread and pasta, mostly. Homemade pasta dishes at our house have been few and far between since then. I haven't made a creamy pasta dish since I can't even remember when, so I thought I'd  treat ourselves for dinner tonight.  What did I make?  A seafood pasta in a creamy garlic butter sauce.  It turned out so delicious, I wanted to share my recipe with you.  My recipe serves 4-6.  You can, of course, divide the recipe in half, to serve 2-3 people.

Creamy Garlic Butter Fettuccine with Shrimp and Scallops

Ingredients:

4 tbsp or 1/4 cup butter

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups heavy cream (35% fat content)

1/2 tsp fine sea salt

pinch freshly ground black pepper

2 cups thawed, peeled raw shrimp

2 cups thawed scallops

1 cup frozen peas 

2 tsp freshly chopped thyme (optional)

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs (optional) 

1 1/2 pounds fettuccine pasta

salt

Directions:

First heat butter in a large pot over medium heat. Once the butter melts, 

add the garlic and stir until soft, but not brown.

Add heavy cream and raise heat to medium high until mixture begins to boil (five minutes). Stir occasionally.
Add salt and pepper. Lower the heat to low and simmer slowly for ten minutes to thicken the cream; stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, while you are waiting for the cream to thicken, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil (I used a dutch oven) and cook the fettuccine until al dente. Once cooked, drain the water and set aside.

Next, add the shrimp, scallops, peas and thyme to your thickened cream mixture.  You will need to raise the heat to high again to bring the mixture back to a boil.  Once the shrimp turn pink, turn off the heat.  A couple minutes should do the trick. Make sure not to overcook the seafood, or it will turn tough.

Pour the creamy seafood mixture into the pot of fettuccine you had set aside. With a wooden spoon, incorporate the sauce into the pasta until evenly distributed.  Cover the pot with the lid and let stand for several minutes to thicken up.  You can serve it hot, as is, or you can...

Add bread crumbs over top and place your dutch oven (or broiler safe dish) under the broiler for just a few minutes until crumbs are golden brown (watching ever so carefully, so the breadcrumbs don't burn!).

The bread crumbs add a delicious, crunchy texture to the dish!

And here it is served on a plate...

Mmm!  It was so delicious!

Bon Appetit!

It Takes Two to Tapa!

Last Saturday, we all woke up, got dressed, and went out for a family breakfast.  We went to our most favourite breakfast place in all of Barrie - the Country Kettle Restaurant on Essa Rd.   We had eggs over-easy, crispy bacon, home potatoes, and toast.  It's a small, cozy little place, where you are welcome with a hot cup of coffe and where you can always feel "at home".  It's quite special to go out for breakfast, as a family.  I know that one day, I'll look back and reminisce about all these good times, as the girls grow older (and us too).  It's always the little things!

After breakfast, we went grocery shopping.  Nuno and I decided to make Tapas for dinner, instead of cooking up one big meal. We picked up some chorizo, mussels, shrimp, baguettes, and a few other items.  If you don't know what Tapas are, they are types of snacks, or appetizers - finger food, if you will.  Tapas originated in Spain, but they aren't just Spanish appetizers anymore.  They have evolved into a whole new cuisine.  People are serving them at parties, dinners, get-togethers.  And the best part, is that they encourage conversation, laughter, and a more relaxed atmosphere.  It doesn't have to be all about the three course dinner anymore. 

Nuno and I, working together on our tapas dinner



These are teeny tiny quail eggs.  We even had a couple with double yolks!

Toasted baquette slices, brushed with x v olive oil, and topped with sliced chorizo and quail eggs

Steamed mussels and shrimp in a wine, garlic and herb sauce

On the dish in front, you can see bacon wrapped brussels sprouts with dipping sauce.  My friend, Laura, shared the recipe with me.  They were absolutely incredible!!  Thank you, Laura! I will definitely be making those again. 

Here are the tapas, served on our living room table, with chilled white wine.  We ate, while we watched some TV with the girls.  It was the perfect end to a wonderful, relaxing Saturday!

By the way, Recipe to Riches aired again last night.  Yesterday's episode was Appetizers.  The winning recipe came from a New Brunswick man, John Grass.  His recipe for bacon-wrapped, grilled chicken skewers looked very tempting and simple enough to make at home.  Nuno has to remind me that the show is geared to shoppers wanting to buy simple, fast, pop-in-your oven, grocery store products.  I laugh and agree.  I can compromise...buy them at the store, then make my own at home. 

Thanks for stopping in to read today's post.  I hope you enjoyed.   See you soon! xo



So, What's Cooking?

Happy Tuesday, everyone!  It's a chilly autumn day in my neighbourhood, with pops of sun, here and there.  I always love it when the sun is out - it lifts my spirits and makes my day cheerier.  Today's post is a picture post, so you can see some of the things I've been cooking this past week. 

 Easy like Sunday morning...

Sliced baguette dipped in milk, eggs, cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, and vanilla

 Can you smell the cinnamon aroma?

"Come and get it!"

Warm french toast drizzled with maple syrup and fresh berries.  Perfect way to start a Sunday morning!



Soup is a lot like a family. Each ingredient enhances the others; each batch has its own characteristics; and it needs time to simmer to reach full flavor - Marge Kennedy

This is the shrimp bisque I made last week.  I'm very proud of it.  This one's going in my cook book!

 I also made this rosemary top sirloin roast, with new potatoes, sweet potatoes, and mushrooms.

Here it is on a plate, with gravy made from pan drippings.

These are some of the things cooking over here at our house.  What about you?  How has the Autumn season affected your cooking?  The cool, blustery weather has been perfect for soup-making, casseroles, and hot and bubbly things, hasn't it?  I love Fall and everything that comes with it!  



What's Cooking Wednesday

Hello everyone!  Although, it isn't quite Fall yet, I can already feel it's presence all around me.  The temperatures have dropped, students are back at school, and my mood is changing.  I'm looking for the warm, cozy, comfort food only Fall can bring!  Here's a little taste of what's been cooking in my kitchen...

Beets are in season from Summer through to Fall.  This is a beet salad.  First, I roasted beets in the oven, sliced them and then added crumbled goat cheese, parsley, a little extra virgin olive oil, salt and freshly cracked pepper.  It is DELICIOUS!  Give a try...I think you'll like it (even if you don't love beets).

Crispy baked chicken drums together with fresh, Ontario bi-coloured corn, and mashed sweet potatoes (with a sprinkle of cinnamon & nutmeg)

Oven-roasted paprika chicken served with medley of white and sweet potatoes

My garden basil, pine nuts, shredded gruyere cheese, olive oil, ready to be made into pesto

Grilled chicken breast served with pesto Penne and grilled skewer shrimp.

A little inspiration for last night's dinner...

...Julia Child's french onion soup!

Farmer's market onions

 

Julia-inspired french onion soup, served with toasted french baguette, topped with melted Gruyere cheese

Culinary tour of Cayo Largo

Over a month ago, my husband and I booked an all-inclusive trip to the Caribbean in celebration of our wedding anniversary.  Of course, we took our kids with us because we couldn't possibly enjoy it as much without them.  We also invited my Mom to come along, as she had never traveled anywhere in the Caribbean.  It was a real treat for us and the kids having her share the experience with us.  So, on Monday, June 6th, we flew to our topical destination - Cayo Largo del Sur.  This small, limestone island is part of the Canarreos Archipelago of Cuba.  Cayo Largo is the second largest of approximately 350 islets.  It is only 28 km long and approximately 3 km wide.  There are no permanent residents living here, only workers who stay in a small village while working at the hotels, etc.  They typically work for 20 days and return home for 10 days.  This was the schedule for all the people I spoke with.  The Island is very relaxing.  There is not much to do in terms of shopping, outside dining, or entertainment.  You are pretty much restricted to your hotel, beaches, and some limited excursions.  If you are looking to simply relax and enjoy incredible beaches, then this would be an ideal place for you!

Playa Blanca - beach in front of our hotel

Now since this is a cooking blog, I won't go into too much detail about what we did, but I would like to share with you some of the food and drink we experienced during our week's stay. 

This is a picture of me, on day two, eating a seafood entree at the restaurant located on Sirena Beach.  This was not part of our all-inclusive package. 

The entree included a large lobster tail, 2 grilled shrimp, and a delicious grilled fish as well.  It was absolutely divine!

At our hotel, at every lunch hour, there were offerings of grilled chicken, pork, and fresh fish for patrons.  I enjoyed this fish and rice with a glass of white wine.  If fish is not your fancy, there are also grilled hamburgers, hot dogs, personal pizzas, as well as pasta, and other buffet items. 

And this here, is one of the most famous Cuban cocktails -  a Mojito.  It was made by a bartender named Mathew at the Paraiso beach bar.  It contains sugar, mint leaves, lime juice, club soda, and of course, Cuban rum.  He also added a couple of drops of something called "angostura", typically used for flavoring drinks.  It was the BEST mojito I ever had!

Nuno and I went on a special sunset cruise on the day of our anniversary.  This gigantic skillet was filled with over one dozen large lobster tails for the guests.  I took this shot while sneaking into the boat's galley, when no one was looking!  The smell of the lobster and rice cooking was unforgettable!  We waited for our food to be served while we watched the sun set.  It was very romantic!

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Looking back, I wish I had taken more pics of the food.  But then again, I didn't always want to carry my camera with me to lunches and dinners.  After all, I was on vacation.  I hope you enjoyed the images of what I did capture.  We had such a wonderful, relaxing week in beautiful Cayo Largo.  It is nice to be home again after being spoiled for an entire week.  Although it was nice to get a break from cooking meals, I really miss  cooking!  I do hope you enjoyed this post.  Your comments are so welcome and appreciated.  Have a wonderful day! xo