Citrus Shrimp with Penne Pasta

Hey, all! This is Violet! I'm feeling rather honored that Blogarita asked me to come over and post some of the recipes that I try at home... I have only recently begun cooking foods other than Easy Mac and toast, because I've spent so many years working so much that I haven't had time to cook. But, with Dave around to sample all my experiments, I've become rather adventurous and like to try things out of the ordinary.

This is a recipe that I found in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. When I decided to make it at first, I thought it would be just for Dave and me. Then it was us plus two friends. By the time I was cooking, we were having a dinner party for eight people... Luckily, I had enough food to double the recipe.

I was a little bit nervous that the citrus flavor of the dish wouldn't go over too well and that we would end up ordering pizza instead, but in fact, the flavor gave just enough kick to it to make it unique, but not overpowering. The orange slices also really brought out the flavor and the shrimp really complemented the whole dish quite well. I think one of the tricks is not to overcook the veggies; they were tender but not mush. I've also been on a health food kick recently, and I replaced the regular penne pasta with whole grain pasta, which worked well. Everyone liked it so much that I didn't even have any leftover to bring to work with me for lunch the next day!


Citrus Shrimp with Penne Pasta

12 ounces peeled and deveined medium shrimp
4 cups (uncooked) penne or bow tie pasta
1 teaspoon finely shredded orange peel (set aside)
2 medium oranges
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon instant chicken bouillon granules (I just used one of those little cubes)
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 red or green sweet pepper, cut into 3/4-inch squares (Since I double the recipe, I used one of each)
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 1/2 cups fresh pea pods, ends trimmed and halved diagonally

Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; keep warm.

Meanwhile, shred the peel from the oranges and remove remaining peels. Set oranges aside. In a small bowl, combine orange peel, orange juice, water, cornstarch, bouillon granules, sesame oil, salt, and ground red pepper; set aside.

In a large skillet cook sweet pepper in hot oil over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove sweet pepper from skillet. Add shrimp to skillet; cook and stir about 2 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque. Remove shrimp from skillet.

Stir orange juice mixture; add to skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Return shrimp and sweet pepper to skillet; stir in pea pods. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Gently stir in orange sections. Gently toss shrimp mixture with pasta.

Nutritional Info: Makes 4 large servings! 384 calories, 7 grams total fat, 2 grams of fiber