Peggy Lampman's Tuesday dinnerFeed: Spaghetti and Shrimp in a Goat-Cheese Sauce

Posted on Tue, Sep 28, 2010 : 4:41 a.m.

Peggy Lampman's Tuesday dinnerFeed: Spaghetti and Shrimp in a Goat-Cheese Sauce

By Peggy Lampman

Spaghetti with a Shrimp and Goat Cheese-Tarragon Sauce

Peggy Lampman | Contributor

One of the best tips I often use for pasta and sauce recipes is to reserve a 1/4-1/2 cup of pasta water, ladled right from the pot just before draining the pasta. I then add it to the pasta sauce.

Whisking goat cheese into olive oil, garlic and hot pasta water.

The water contains starch and flavor and helps the pasta adhere to the sauce when they are tossed together. I've also discovered that combining the hot water with soft, creamy goat cheese makes a delicious, practically instant, pasta sauce.

Bags of raw, shell-on medium-sized (26 to 30 count) frozen shrimp are a great deal at $9.99 at Meijer. Although shelling a pound of shrimp after cooking sucks up a solid 10 minutes, I never purchase cooked or shelled shrimp. Pre-cooked and shelled shrimp seem flavorless to me. I generally cook my shrimp, as well, in Old Bay Seasoning.

Yield: 3-4 servings (with plenty of shrimp)

Time: 25 minutes

Cost: Approx. $16.50

Ingredients

12 ounces spaghetti (I used whole wheat)

1/4 cup reserved pasta water (see above notes)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon fresh tarragon (1 teaspoon dry)

5 ounces soft goat cheese 1 pound cooked shrimp (see above notes)

Red pepper flakes

Directions

1. Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Before draining, ladle out 1/4 cup pasta water and reserve.

2. In a sautÃ© pan, heat olive oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic and sautÃ© 1 minute. Crumble goat cheese into pan, and, with a fork, mash into the garlic and oil. Then add reserved pasta water. Combine pasta water and goat cheese and whisk until smooth.

3. Stir in tarragon and shrimp; season to taste with kosher salt and red pepper flakes. Serve with pasta.

Looking for a specific recipe? Click here for dinnerFeed's recipe search engine; type the recipe or ingredient into the search box!

â€¨