Tomato and Shrimp Linguini

Shouldn't I be posting about the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival that happened this weekend? Yes, I should be. But instead I'm posting about this tomato and shrimp linguini I made for dinner. It was so good that I had to post it right away. Hopefully some of you will like it too, but I really just didn't want to forget the recipe. Sorry guys. It was something I just felt out as I made it, and boy did it turn out great. A lot of recipes that I come up with don't make it on my blog. There are a lot of mistakes in cooking. Sometimes a mistake turns out to be a great thing and sometimes a mistake can easily be fixed. Most of the time I'm too tired/lazy to calculate the measurements for a dinner I've spent an hour cooking. Real life.

I've sort of been in a food rut lately. True story. I go to the grocery store and buy the same things week after week. Lately my go-to staple has been frozen edamame. Weird, huh? It's a problem. I buy 2-3 bags at a time and eat them for my dinner. I could produce garbage bags of edamame shells at a moment's notice. No, no, I can't do that. But it's really getting crazy. I decided to buy something in addition new based on what looked good that night. I bought some things that are sort of seasonal for my grocery store. These were purple fingerling potatoes, baby pearl onions, and chestnuts. They didn't make it to the dinner table, though because I was way too preoccupied with the fresh oregano and tomatoes I bought. Shocker! I've never used fresh oregano so I was sort of overly excited about it. When dried it's really strong and not my favorite herb, especially when it's all you can taste in a dish. But fresh? It's entirely better, fresher, etc. Just try it.

This meal is really simple, but also really flavorful. I'm usually let down and unimpressed when I order fresh tomato pastas at restaraunts, because they're always lacking flavor for me. This pasta is filled with flavor, and you won't be missing a traditional tomato sauce at all. Seriously, go make this.

Tomato and Shrimp Linguini

1 lb raw, peeled, and deveined shrimp
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp crushed dried garlic or 1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1 lb tomatoes, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
3 tbl fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp freshly fround black pepper
1/2 lb linguini
1 tbl olive oil
1 tbl salted butter
1/3 cup dry white wine (such as vermouth)

Heat a large pot of water for the linguini and add plenty of salt. While the water comes to a boil toss the raw shrimp, red pepper flakes, garlic, and 1/2 tsp of salt in a medium bowl to coat. In another bowl toss the tomatoes with all their flesh/juices, fresh oregano, 1/2 tsp salt, and black pepper to coat. When the water comes to a boil add the pasta and cook to al dente.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook through. The time will vary depending on their size, but they should be pink and curl up. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and cook out the alcohol, about 1-2 minutes. Add the pasta and toss to coat. Add the tomatoes with all their juices and toss. Season to taste and serve.