This is a great date night meal! It will make a ton of leftovers, so you can send some home with your boo.
I make this with a decent bottle of Sauvignon Blanc because the acidity in the wine pairs well with the lemon juice and the fresh cut grass-like aromas of the asparagus. Chill the rest of the bottle and have it with your meal! Remember to always use a wine that you enjoy the flavor of by itself if you're going to cook with it because the food takes on the flavor of the wine.
Ingredients
- penne pasta: 1 pound
- butter: 0.5 cup
- Dijon mustard: 1 Tbsp
- garlic: 1 Tbsp (to taste, minced)
- flat-leaf parsley: 1 Tbsp (to taste, minced)
- lemon: 0.5 piece (juiced)
- white wine: 0.25 cup (to taste)
- uncooked medium shrimp: 1 pound (peeled and deveined)
- pint grape tomatoes: 1 piece (halved)
- bunch fresh asparagus: 1 piece (trimmed)
- olive oil: 2 Tbsp
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese: 2 Tbsp (to taste)
- garlic: 1 tsp (minced)
- coarse kosher salt: (to taste)
- black pepper: (to taste, freshly ground)
- red pepper: (to taste, crushed)
- Pecorino Romano cheese: 0.25 cup (to taste, grated)
- Italian cheese blend: 0.25 cup (to taste, shredded)
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
-
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
-
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain pasta and return to the pot.
-
Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon garlic, parsley, lemon juice, and white wine. Place shrimp and tomatoes in a small glass baking dish and pour butter sauce on top. Stir until shrimp and tomatoes are well coated.
-
Combine asparagus, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon garlic, salt, black pepper, and red pepper in a second glass baking dish.
-
Place both baking dishes side by side in the oven and bake until shrimp is fully pink, about 15 minutes. Pour shrimp, tomatoes, and butter over the cooked penne pasta and stir to combine. Add Pecorino Romano cheese and Italian blended cheese; mix to combine. Serve asparagus over top of the pasta.
