Peppered Shrimp Alfredo

Ingredients

• 12 ounces penne pasta
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 pound portobello mushrooms, diced
• 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 (15 ounce) jar Alfredo sauce
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more to taste
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 
  
• Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. Meanwhile, melt butter together with the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until softened and translucent, about 2 minutes. Stir in garlic, red pepper, and mushroom; cook over medium-high heat until soft, about 2 minutes more.
3. Stir in the shrimp, and cook until firm and pink, then pour in Alfredo sauce, Romano cheese, and cream; bring to a simmer stirring constantly until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with cayenne, salt, and pepper to taste. Stir drained pasta into the sauce, and serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Cooked by Stephanie

Recipe provided by: allrecipe.com

Commentary
Aaron: I thought this meal was very good.  I compared it to the diablo shrimp and chicken pasta I get from Johnny Carinos.  I wouldn't change much I loved the spice!  Asparagus could be a good addition though.  I give this meal a grade of A - only because I think some addition of bigger vegetables would be a good addition.


Cristina: Although it was actually my turn in the rotation, Stephanie was kind enough to pinch hit for me this week, as I was out of town earlier this week and had little time to prepare. (On a side note, I was in Salt Lake City, UT for work this week, and while there I did eat two of the best meals of my life, so I'm currently coming down from a food high and as such, may be judging to a particularly high standard this week). 

Okay...so on to the critique.  I am not big on seafood.  I am currently working through that, and shrimp is something I have recently been beginning to enjoy.  I am still not big on certain textures, cooked onions and mushrooms being high on that list.  So needless to say, I was very concerned about eating this meal.  As Stephanie was preparing it, I watched her chop up half an onion and had to feverishly hold my tongue, all the while my eyes were beginning to water.  Then just as I thought she was done, I looked on in complete horror as she proceeded to chop the other half.  Rather then subject myself to anymore torture,  I thought it was in my best interest to go into the other room and just wait to be "surprised". 

And I was pleasantly surprised.  I am a big advocate for wheat pasta and the sauce was really delicious and just the right amount of spice.  I ate all the pasta and shrimp in my bowl and tried to consume some of the mushrooms and onions, but in the end, I had a bowl full of surplus vegetables in sauce.  I agree with my collegues that asparagus would have been a welcomed alternative, and I look forward to attempting this meal with chicken in the future.  On a scale of 1-10, I give this meal a 6.5 w/ the whole onion, an 8.5 without it. 

Stephanie: Well this was a pleasant surprise. I compared it to the Cajun Chicken Pasta that I always loved at Chilis. Kinda spicy. I feel like the cayenne pepper was a little much but it really depends on your own specific tastes. After all of the vegetables cooked through there was a lot of juices in the pot, next time I'd take some out. I felt like it kept the sauce from getting as thick as I was wanting. I'm not a HUGE fan of mushrooms so I was thinking about taking those out next time and adding in about inch long pieces of asparagus. That could be even better.