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Creamy Shrimp Pasta

April 19, 2022 by Valerie Phifer

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My Creamy Shrimp Pasta is full of lemon, garlic, cream, and veggies. A one-pan sauce in under 30 minutes your family will love!

overhead picture of a plated dish of closeup of creamy shrimp pasta with broccoli, asparagus, and tomatoes

What better way to eat your veggies?

I know I give our youngest son grief for only wanting to eat veggies raw. Worse things could be his vice, I realize. Like his sugar habit. But that’s another story.

But even Nash (yes, Mr. Raw Veggies Only himself) happily devours this dish.

Except for the shrimp…

He’s a work in progress, and I sometimes wonder where he gets his pickiness from. Nathan and I eat everything! How does this happen?! The Lord is testing me.

If you have to eat vegetables, though, what better way to do it than to cover them in a cream sauce with lemon and garlic? A little fat, a lean protein, loads of vegetables, and tons of flavor.

You. Can’t. Lose.

The carbs

Don’t hate on the pasta. Like I alluded to above – all things in moderation make for a really good, well-rounded meal. If you’re on a keto-friendly kick, I’m sure this will still go nicely with whatever you typically swap out for the pasta.

When it comes to picking out a pasta for this dish, I like to stick with a corkscrew-type of pasta. It holds the sauce well, it’s roughly the same size as the vegetables and shrimp, and it’s sturdy enough to hold up to a fork. (Although I admit I usually eat my pasta with a spoon so that I don’t miss any of the sauce.)

Rotini is always good and easy to find. I used cellentani this time for a nice change of pace, but cavatappi is basically the same thing if you find either of those in the store. Links for reference only, because I’m pretty sure there’s like 6 boxes in a package; and even though our family can put away some pasta, even that’s a bit ridiculous.

Rachael Ray who?

Anybody else a fan of the old 30-Minute Meals show? Is that still on even? There was a time when I watched it regularly, had her cookbook (probably still do somewhere), and tried to duplicate exactly what she did in 30 minutes.

And then once I kind of learned some basics of the method, I ditched the cookbook, got bored with the show, and went solo. I’ve got a pretty good grasp of creating a dinner in 30 minutes – either because I’m strapped for time (hello, soccer) or because I still like a good challenge.

One super easy way to cut down on cooking (and cleanup!) time is to limit the number of pans you use. My dad has said I’m a queen of one-pot meals. When I’ve gone through our go-to dinners, I was surprised to find he’s right. Lots of what I make is in one pot – either on the stove, in the oven, or a combination of starting on the stove and finishing in the oven.

It just cuts down on the amount of thought it takes to pull a meal together, and I love that I’m cleaning up only one pot or simply throwing it in the fridge for leftovers the next day.

Simple. Quick. Delicious.

So, although I’m technically using two pots for this – one for pasta and one for sauce – I still consider it to be pretty low-maintenance. Pasta doesn’t need much attention, right? So the one pan with all the other goodness in it makes for an easy task.

closeup of creamy shrimp pasta with broccoli, asparagus, and tomatoes

What you need for Creamy Shrimp Pasta:

  • extra virgin olive oil
  • garlic cloves
  • cherry tomatoes
  • dry white wine (like a pinot grigio or chardonnay)
  • shrimp
  • fresh asparagus
  • fresh broccoli
  • lemon
  • heavy whipping cream
  • pasta
  • parsley

Throw it all in the pan… sort of

While the pasta is cooking, start the sauce.

Add the olive oil, garlic cloves, and cherry tomatoes to a saucepan and bring to medium heat. Cover with a lid and leave for about 4 minutes, until the tomatoes begin to pop and the garlic is browned. Once the tomatoes have softened and begin to pop, take the back of your spoon and gently press them against the side of your pan to break them down completely. Next add the white wine and let simmer for a minute or two to let the alcohol cook out.

a pan on the stove simmering cherry tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil

Add the shrimp, asparagus, and broccoli, stir to combine and cover with the lid to simmer for about 8 minutes. Check to be sure the shrimp is pink and cooked through.

a pan on the stove with shrimp, tomatoes, asparagus, and broccoli

Finally, add the lemon zest and juice, stir and simmer for a minute. Bring the pan to a low temp, add the cream and parsley, and let simmer for a few minutes until thickened up.

cream sauce in a pan with shrimp, broccoli, asparagus, and tomatoes

Drain the pasta and add to the sauce.

One-pan sauce. Is there anything better?

A note about the vegetables:

There are times when I use frozen vegetables. They’re fresh, crisp, already chopped – such a time saver!

But there are also times that they just don’t work well in a recipe. And this is one of those times.

Fresh asparagus and broccoli are key here. The frozen versions just have too much moisture and will keep your sauce from thickening up nicely. Nobody likes a watery sauce, am I right?

And frozen or canned asparagus is often slimy. Bleck. Just wash that fresh asparagus, trim off the tougher ends, and then cut into 2-inch pieces. Then chop the broccoli into small florets, and you’re golden. They’ll cook evenly but also keep a little crisp to them. The perfect bite!

Up for the challenge?

Think you can knock this meal out in 30 minutes? Or get your picky eater to try some vegetables or shrimp? Let us know how it goes in the comments!

finding Sunday pace together, Val

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shrimp, broccoli, asparagus, and tomatoes in a cream sauce with pasta

Creamy Shrimp Pasta

Shrimp, pasta, and a lemony garlic cream sauce. Throw in a few veggies, and you’ve got a one-pan sauce that’s as tasty as it is easy.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Servings 6

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves chopped
  • 16 oz. cherry tomatoes
  • ½ c. dry white wine
  • 12 oz. shrimp peeled, deveined, thawed
  • 1 bunch asparagus cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 c. broccoli chopped
  • 1 lemon zested and juiced
  • 1 c. heavy whipping cream
  • 16 oz. pasta
  • 1 tsp. parsley

Instructions
 

  • Boil the water for the pasta. While it’s coming up to a boil, and while the pasta is cooking, start the sauce.
  • Add the olive oil, garlic cloves, and cherry tomatoes to a saucepan and bring to medium heat. Cover with a lid and leave for about 4 minutes, until the tomatoes begin to pop and the garlic is browned. Once the tomatoes have softened and begin to pop, take the back of your spoon and gently press them against the side of your pan to break them down completely. Next add the white wine and let simmer for a minute or two.
  • Add the shrimp, asparagus, and broccoli, stir to combine and cover with the lid to simmer for about 8 minutes. Check to be sure the shrimp is pink and cooked through.
  • Finally, add the lemon zest and juice, stir and simmer for a minute. Bring the pan to a low temp, add the cream and parsley, and let simmer for a few minutes until thickened up.
  • Drain the pasta and add to the sauce.
Keyword Italian, pasta, shrimp

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting our family in this way!

Filed Under: Italian, Lunch/Dinner, Quick Meals Tagged With: 30 minute meal, seafood

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Hey, I’m Val!

Cooking and eating are some of my top love languages. They fill me up (literally and figuratively), cause me to slow down, and help me to reconnect with those around me. Out of that overflow, I hope to bring that same enjoyment from our busy home to yours.

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