creamy lemon pasta with shrimp

Dinner

Creamy Lemon Pasta with Shrimp

Yogurt makes a fine substitute for cream in the sauce for this easy pasta recipe. Just warm the yogurt (do not boil) and add some pasta-cooking water to thin it out. Lemon and fresh basil brighten up the whole-wheat pasta and complement the shrimp in this quick dinner recipe.

Ingredients

8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
12 ounces peeled and deveined raw shrimp (21-25 count)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 cups loosely packed arugula
¼ cup whole-milk plain yogurt
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil

Directions

Bring 7 cups of water to a boil. Add fettuccine, stirring to separate the noodles. Cook until just tender, 7 to 9 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water and drain.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until pink and curled, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the shrimp to a bowl.
Add butter to the pan and reduce heat to medium. Add garlic and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring often, until the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add arugula and cook, stirring, until wilted, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to low. Add the fettuccine, yogurt, lemon zest and the reserved cooking water, 1/4 cup at a time, tossing well, until the fettuccine is fully coated and creamy. Add the shrimp, lemon juice and salt, tossing to coat the fettuccine. Remove from the heat and toss with Parmesan.
Serve the fettuccine topped with basil and more Parmesan, if desired.