Cooking the Pantry-Shrimp and Pasta with Sugar Snap Peas

The other day was busy as all get out for me. I found myself running late and unprepared for dinner. Do you ever find yourself in a similar situation? I know you do. That question was really rhetorical. Life often gets ahead of us and we find ourselves scrambling to catch up, right? What does one do when facing a day like that? Well, I turn to my pantry to see what I can pull together.

Pantry Shrimp Pasta and Sugar Snap Peas

A quick check of my pantry and freezer revealed the following ingredients:

The Pantry Ingredients

1 pound linguine
extra virgin olive oil
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
2 pounds jumbo shrimp, frozen
fresh garlic
fresh sugar snap peas
fresh spinach
white wine, Sauvignon Blanc
shredded Romano cheese
salt and pepper to taste
fresh parsley, chopped, about 1/4 cup
fresh baby spinach (an afterthought)

I was relieved. No need to worry. I was confident I could turn those ingredients into a tasty dinner and avoid the expense of a take out or restaurant meal. Here's what I made with these ingredients.

Directions

Heat a couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a large pan (with a cover) over medium heat. Fill a pot with water and a generous dose of salt to cook your pasta. While the water is heating for the pasta, cook 4 cloves of chopped garlic for 1-2 minutes in the olive oil. Add the sugar snap peas (1 cup per person) and stir to cook 3-4 minutes.

Saute the Garlic and Sugar Snap Peas

Once the water is boiling for the pasta, add the linguine, cooking for 4-5 minutes. Drain the pasta and set aside. The pasta won't be cooked, but that's OK. It will finish cooking in the sauce, absorbing additional flavor. Meanwhile, add 1/2 cup white wine to the snow peas and cook for 1 minute. Then add the diced tomatoes and all but 1 tablespoon of the chopped parsley. Bring the sauce mixture to a boil.

Add Tomatoes to Make a Sauce

Add the shrimp to the sauce and top with the pasta. Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Stir and add the baby spinach (about 1 large handful per person). Cover the pan and remove it from the heat. Set aside for 5 minutes. Stir to combine. Sprinkle with Romano cheese and serve.

Yum!

I made a tossed salad to serve with the pasta dish and everyone was happy. No fuss...no muss...and we saved ourselves a few dollars we might have spent going out to eat. Everyone wins! You can get the printable Shrimp Pasta with Sugar Snap Peas recipe by clicking the link.

Shrimp, Pasta and Snow Peas

What do you do when you find yourself running late and unprepared for dinner? Take out? Restaurant meal? Pantry dinner?

Feel free to share links to your quick meal solutions in the comments.

Frazzled,

Comments

TheProDivaMarch 19, 2012 at 7:51 PM
You hit the nail on the head Donna! I am always short on time, and most times I neglect to make dinner. In fact, I am sending hubby out right now to find us something to eat because I'm still working. I love that you are able to find ingredients in the kitchen and make them work for you...this is a characteristic of a great cook! I'm trying to be better!

And the pasta dish looks amazing!
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