Cajun Seafood Pasta

Cajun Seafood Pasta Dish Guide

Serves 4-5

1 lb 16-20 shrimp, peeled and deveined

6 oz andouille sausace, diced

1.5 cups heavy whipping cream

8 oz cooked crab meat (backfin or claw is fine)

2 T blackening seasoning*

4-5 green onions, diced

½ cup shredded swiss cheese

½ cup freshly grated parmigiana Reggiano cheese

2 roma tomatoes, diced

1 lemon, half for juice and the other half for serving.

Fresh basil and oregano leaves for garnish

2-3 T olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1 lb fettuccine pasta

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season generously with salt. Add in the pasta and cook 1-2 minutes shy of al dente.

While the pasta cooks, in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat, add in the andouille and a splash of oil and cook for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and set aside. Add a touch more oil and add in the shrimp. Season generously with blackening seasoning and cook for 2 minutes. Flip, cook and season the other side. Squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon half. Remove shrimp from pan and cover to keep warm. Add in the green onion whites and light greens, saving the dark green for garnish.

Stir the onions for 1-2 minutes or until softened. Add in the cream and scrape any fond off the bottom of the pan. Bring the cream to a simmer and allow to reduce slightly. Add in the crab and break up and warm it through. Then add in the cheese and stir to combine and melt. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper as needed.

When the pasta is almost cooked, add it to the cream sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes more or until it is al dente and the sauce is thickened slightly. Return half the sausage to the pasta, stir, cover and let sit off heat for 5 minutes for the pasta to fully absorb the sauce.

To serve, plate up the pasta topped with more sausage, the shrimp, the diced tomatoes and remaining green onions. Dust with more grated parmigiano and blackening season as desired. Finally garnish with fresh oregano or basil for a bright herbal note and serve with lemon wedges.

*We make our own blackening seasoning as follows:

2 t smoked paprika

¼ t ground thyme

1 t dried oregano

½ t garlic powder

½ t onion powder

¼ - ½ t cayenne pepper

¼ t ground mustard

¼ t salt

¼ black pepper

Combine all and use immediately. For this recipe you may need to double the recipe to have enough.

If you use a store-bought Cajun or blackening seasoning taste it as it will likely be much more salty than homemade.