I have always been a big fan of Alfredo sauce. Until last night I had never had it anywhere except restaurants. I decided that needed to change. I found a recipe for Peppered Shrimp Alfredo at allrecipes.com It sounded delicious, and had 125 reviews most of which were positive. Many reviewers said it was better quality then anything they had ever had in a restaurant.  That sold me on the recipe, so it was off to the kitchen to test it out.

I had never cooked with shrimp or prawns before, so I used precooked medium/large frozen shrimp.

I changed the original recipe slightly. I used white mushrooms instead of Portobello, parmesan cheese instead of Romano, and I added 1 ½ cups of baby spinach since it needed to be used up.

I did get a bit carried away with the cayenne pepper, misreading the 1 tsp of cayenne that the recipe called for instead thinking it said to taste. It was spicy but not too spicy and the garlic bread neutralized it a bit.

The penne turned out fabulous! This is one recipe I will be making again. I agree completely with the recipe reviewers, this recipe is way better then anything similar I have had in a restaurant.

I served the penne with green salad and garlic bread.

Do you have a favorite Alfredo recipe?

Today it was a snowy afternoon, so I decided to make a nice warm and spicy dinner.

I combined two pasta recipes from my Pasta Bible cookbook by Feni Wright, and came up with a unique recipe. Note it’s not for those with mild taste buds, this one is hot and spicy! I served the pasta with Pillsbury crescent rolls straight out of the oven. Both of my parents loved it. I liked it too, even though it was almost too spicy for me.

Artichoke and Sausage Egg Noodles

2 farmer sausages

4 cloves garlic

several stalks fresh chives

1 red pepper

1/3 cup vodka

1 white onion

Salt

Black pepper

Oregano

Basil

Parsley

Red pepper flakes

540 ml chunky tomatoes (I used the ones with garlic and olive oil)

Organic ketchup

parmesan cheese (grated)

Prepare vegetables, and chives.

Cook the sausage in boiling water until well cooked (several minutes).

Once the sausage is cooked remove from water, and cut into pieces.

In a separate large frying pan fry the sausage with the vegetables and chives until the vegetables are tender. Add all the seasonings, and spices ( to your taste). Let the mixture cook for several minutes. Then add the chunky tomatoes, and ketchup. Add more of the same seasoning you already added (if desired), and boil for a few minutes. Then simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Boil water (with oil and salt) for egg noodles. Add noodles and cook according to package (7-8 minuets). Drain. Serve hot. Sprinkle on fresh parmesan cheese if desired.