Pasta with Shrimp and Garlic Tomato Cream Sacue

For my entire childhood, all I ate was macaroni and cheese.  My repertoire gradually expanded to include other foods with cheese, such as grilled cheese, cheese pizza, and broccoli with cheese. While I now eat almost anything, there is still a special place in my heart/stomach (those two are pretty much the same thing for me) for pasta with cheese.  Now I like to add a few other ingredients in to make things more interesting.  This is my current favorite. It’s pretty easy to make and delicious to eat the next day for lunch, too.

Ingredients (serves 3-4):

3 tablespoons olive oil
10-20 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 28 oz. can whole, peeled tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound penne or other pasta
1 pound raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups fresh baby spinach
3 tablespoons light cream
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

Warm the olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat.  Add the crushed garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. (Note: to crush garlic easily, I place 2 or 3 cloves at a time under a chef’s knife turned so the blade is parallel to the cutting board, then push down on the flat top of the knife with the heel of my hand).

Drain and chop the tomatoes.  Turn the heat to medium-high and add the tomatoes to the skillet with the garlic, sprinkling with salt and pepper to taste.  Cook until the sauce thickens and comes together some, about 10 minutes.  Remove the skillet from the heat and cool slightly, then process the sauce until smooth in a food processor or blender.  (If you prefer a chunky sauce, you can skip this step).



 
Return the processed sauce to the skillet over medium-high heat, and add the shrimp.  Let them cook for about 3 minutes until pink on the bottom, then flip to cook the other side.  After a minute or two, add the spinach.  Toss gently until the shrimp are opaque throughout and the spinach is wilted.  Stir in the cream and remove from the heat. 
When the pasta is done, combine it with the shrimp, sauce, spinach, and parmesan.  Add the cooking water if the sauce seems too dry.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve with additional parmesan sprinkled on top.