Shrimp and Broccoli Fettuccine

I had a recipe for this somewhere when I made out my grocery list... Not sure what I did with it! So I’m kind of winging it on this one. 😊

I’m doing the broccoli first: I buy veggies in bulk at Sam’s, so this was two pounds of broccoli florets. Trimmed and steamed in the microwave. 

Shrimp next: I buy them peeled and deveined. They’re still raw, so I count them “from scratch,” but pre-peeled, pre-tailed, and pre-deveined saves an enormous amount of time! I’m just doing a quick sauté in a well-seasoned cast iron skillet.

NOTE ON THAT CAST IRON: figure out how to inherit it, if you can, lol! The old stuff is best. This skillet is from the mother of a friend; I've got another of my great grandmother's. Perfectly serious about the 'inheriting,' you see! 

If you’re GF, I seriously recommend locating your closest Oriental Market. I am in mine all the time.You can tell that’s where these came from! Rice noodles are my favorite of the GF noodle picks, I think - remember your Pad Thai at your favorite Asian restaurants? - these are those noodles. And they're "regular" noodles in the Oriental Marker; that is, they sell them at "regular noodle" prices, not gluten-free noodles prices. Price: $1.69 or thereabouts; ingredients: Rice Flour and Water; calories, 200 per 2oz serving.  Love them. Get thee to the oriental market.

All that broccoli and shrimp is going to make 2oz of pasta a serving, I promise! I didn’t used to believe it, either. Enough vegetables and lean protein and it really does make it a dinner-size portion.

I put the sauce together while the pasta was cooking. The recipe I can’t find probably called for a roux with Parmesan, but since I’m on my own here, I’m making a favorite of mine. It’s in my handwriting in my own cookbook, on an index card - spotted and stained, you know those are your best recipes! No clue where I got it. It's titled "Italian Wedding Pasta Sauce," for what that's worth! 

I mix 2 heaping tablespoons of cornstarch into a cup and a half or so of milk, and microwave until boiling - I use my IKEA four-cup measures for this. Keep an eye on it - it will boil over on you fast! (Mine did, as a matter of fact.) Add 14oz of chicken broth once it’s thickened slightly - I know my recipe calls for a can, but it’s so hard to find GF broth, I usually use this broth base - marked Gluten Free, you can see! It is processed and pretty high in sodium, I'm sure - but needs must. I give in on the broth base.

Put that back in the microwave for another 2 minutes or so, until it’s boiling and thickened slightly. It’s still a thin sauce, so I used some fresh Parmesan to thicken it up a little more.

Then it’s time for bento-boxing! I’m cooking on a Saturday morning, just prepping for the week. This reheats well! Add a little half and half or whatnot if the sauce has soaked up - rice noodles, in particular, are terrible at that, I will admit.

SHRIMP AND BROCCOLI FETTUCCINE 

12 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined 

2 lbs broccoli florets

14 oz of Pasta

2 heaping tablespoons cornstarch 

1 1/2 C milk

14 oz chicken broth (or equivalent)

1/2 C Fresh Parmesan 

Start pasta water heating. 

Trim and steam broccoli florets.

Sauté shrimp. Set broccoli and shrimp aside.

When pasta water boils, start pasta and sauce. Mix cornstarch into milk and microwave two minutes or until boiling and thickened slightly. Add broth; again, bring to a boil. Stir in 1/4 C Parmesan; add a little more, as needed, to thicken sauce.

Drain pasta when done. Rinse if using rice noodles.

Toss pasta, broccoli, and shrimp with sauce.  Top with Parmesan.

Servings: 7
Calories per serving: 258