Shrimp in Sambuca Cream Sauce

My mom has been making this recipe for years, and I am not sure why it’s taken me so long to try it on my own. An interesting flavor combination, dill, tomatoes, sambuca, and cream, mixed with shrimp and ladled over whole wheat pasta, this dish is SO easy and seems a little bit fancier than your everyday pasta.

I LOOOOVE this time of year and the availability of beautiful, locally grown produce. Tomatoes and dill provide much of the sauce’s flavors.

A nip of sambuca provides a kick of licorice, a little sweetness, and a bit of spice.

While doing my little foodie photo shoot, I checked out my garden, including this habanero plant. There’s something happenin’ here! Can you see the teeny tiny little peppers starting to form? Last year my habaneros were plentiful and spicy, ripe just around the time that we had great tomatoes. Salsa! Let’s hope this year is just as good!

Once I was back inside, I started the cooking. For this recipe you will need:

2 large tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 pound large shrimp, shelled and cleaned

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1/2 cup ouzo or sambuca

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 TSP olive oil

about 4 cups of pasta, I used whole wheat spaghetti

Sautee the tomatoes and dill in the olive oil for just about a minute. Gently lay the shrimp into the pan so that each is fully exposed to the bottom of the pan. Cook until pink on one side, then flip over. Drizzle the ouzo or sambuca over the shrimp, and cook until the shrimp are pink on the other side. Slowly pour cream in, stirring gently to combine the ingredients. Increase the heat a little so that everything is simmering. Once the sauce is hot and the shrimp are cooked through, add the cooked pasta directly to the sauce and stir.

Top with some chopped, uncooked dill for an extra punch of flavor.

I paired this with a delicious white wine that we picked up after tasting it at Foodie’s Urban Market in the South End. The Domaine des Cassagnoles white from the Gascogne region of France had some pretty intense grapefruit flavors. Chilled for a couple of hours, it was incredibly refreshing, and the grapefruit really cut through the creaminess of the sauce. and was sweet enough to work with the slightly acidic tomatoes. At $12 a bottle, this wine is a great deal and truly a perfect summer sipper.

This week I am attending the media preview of a new wine shop and am getting ready to head to Provincetown next weekend with friends. I just put in an order for Mix Bakery cupcakes, and I am SO excited! I can already taste the vanilla buttercream topped strawberry cupcakes. . .

What are you up to this week?