Recipe testing Bitchin' Kitchen Cookbook: Rock Your Kitchen--And Let the Boys Clean Up the Mess is continuing with gusto and flare in my kitchen!
Soups, home fries and now... pasta! I had to make some changes because it is still horribly freezing here on the east coast so I did my best with what I happened to have at home.You can find Nadia G.'s Fettuccine Rose with Shrimp recipe here. Actually, on her site she calls it Nadia G's Shrimp Fettucine Rosé. Hmm... Interesting...
According to the cookbook you heat two tablespoons of butter in a saucepan on medium heat. Add 1 clove of garlic degermed and minced. OK, I added more, I love garlic. Saute for two minutes until golden.
Add 20 cherry tomatoes sliced in half. Considering they are $4 a tiny container at my store right now I picked up two hot house tomatoes for $2 (OMG, produce is just so expensive!), removed the skins, deseeded and chopped. I added a small pinch of hot chile flakes, salt and brown sugar. I sauteed everything for around five minutes.
I was dividing the recipe in half when it comes to the sauce so I added 1 cup of half and half instead of two with some fresh parsley, chopped. I brought to a slow boil over medium heat and then immediately turned it down to medium-low.
I threw in some shrimp and some grated Parm with some salt and pepper, stirred and simmered for five minutes. Five minutes? That did not seem a long time to reduce the sauce and I was using half the liquid.
I did not have fettuccine so I used linguini instead. I like to cook it a little in the sauce to make sure everything is coated.
I ended up with seafood soup! A delicious, garlicky and fabulous seafood soup but not a pasta sauce. It was tasty but so thin! The online version of this recipe has an additional 10 minutes cooking time. I do not know if this is an editing error or the recipe got changed farther down the road and updated online. I do know that for me it was disappointing but I will make this again because I can just imagine how good it will be when I cook down the sauce.
Despite the fabulous flavour, I can only give this recipe three out of five wooden spoons due to the timing issue, discrepancy and thinness of the sauce.
There are many reasons people just print off recipes from sites for free, the free part being the major pay-off of course. But! You miss out on comments like this one in Bitchin' Kitchen Cookbook:
"I once received an interesting comment about this recipe. It read: 'Pfft. No real Italian would ever use cheese with seafood!' I promptly suggested an alternative: 'Dear sir, you can always replace the Parmesan with a light sprinkling of "Go F*ck Yourself." Hey, I'm all about options."
Yes, this is not your ordinary cookbook. More to come!
8 comments:
Your foodie photos for this are wonderful as always. I really like the white bowl the finished meal is in.
Yes, and love that "saucy" quotation too!
Oh thank you Debra! I love that bowl too. That is one of my thrift store treasures. She is so saucy and sassy isn't she? I love that too! Makes the cookbook so entertaining. It is so much more than just a book of recipes. I am really looking forward to writing the review.
Ok, I have got to put her cookbook on my wishlist. I've seen her show and her comments are just awesome! When it comes to cookbooks, there are times when I'd rather have the cookbook. Other times, if it's just that one recipe I want, then I'd just go and print it out.
Ola Suzie!
AP here from BK! Thanks for reviewing the recipe! Your pictures are FAB!
The recipe title is somewhat different on the site due to unavoidable tech issues :S
As for the discrepancy in the recipe - allow me to explain: In the book we mention bringing it to a "slow boil" and removing from heat. Online we simply approximated how long the "slow boil" would take. Hope that helps!
This sounds great!! I will definately try it!!
I saw the episode regarding this recipe - Nadia is a hoot!!
Hey Angelique! Guess mine came to a boil too quickly, that would explain it. Thank you, that is very helpful! :) Linda, oh I wish I had seen that episode, gotta look it up. She is a hoot! Does she ever make me laugh.
Whoa that looks damn good! I always put parm on my shrimp scampi, I guess I'm not a "real" Italian LOL. What a mouthwatering photo and I bet that book is just a hoot and half.
OK, my two cents worth since I know you love it saucy. I probably would've used canned diced tomatoes, they actually have more flavour than those overpriced hot house ones in the produce section. Let it simmer all you want, be patient, I've yet to find any recipe that accurately gives a time when the tomatoes are thickened to my liking. Judge it yourself and cook as long as you want to the consistency that suits you, it won't hurt the tomatoes.
A teaspoon or two of tomato paste would also help to thicken the sauce. I usually add it while sauteeing the garlic, it cooks the paste a bit and this way you know it will be well incorporated into the sauce. Just be careful the paste doesn't burn,stir..stir..stir with the garlic and then add the tomatoes.
I hope that helps with the soupiness issue next time.
Thanks Ava and I always add Parm to my seafood scampi too, love seafood scampi! You are definitely the real deal when it comes to being Italian, LOL.
Next time I will use canned tomatoes, good idea! I wanted to stay true to the recipe but my instincts totally said "keep reducing!"
Oh good idea, tomato paste! That is so smart. Yes, lots of stirring, got it. Great ideas, thank you!
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