Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta with Sausage

Last night, I made this cajun dish that we had in New Orleans since I still have the Big Easy on my mind. After the wonderful trip that we had, it's hard to just forget about it, even if tomorrow is Easter.  We stayed in a vacation rental in the Garden District that slept all eight of us very comfortably and it also had a pretty decent kitchen.

On the first night, we picked up some take-out from a neighborhood restaurant and my niece, Claire, made this dish to go along with it that she found on Pintrest. 

The recipe is from the blog The Hungry Bluebird which has lots of great recipes.  Everyone loved this dish and I knew I wanted to make it when I got home.  

The good thing about this recipe is that it tastes even better leftover the next day when all the seasonings have had time to soak in.  So, don't be afraid to make the full recipe even if it's only for two people because you'll want to eat it tomorrow, too.  Here are the seasonings I used.

Add in the onions, garlic, red pepper and andouille sausage and you'll be licking your plate.  It's just a perfect combination of flavors.  Last night, we also had spaghetti squash to spoon it over, an alternative to pasta if you wish which is also perfect with this recipe. 

Serves 4

1/2 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed
1 andouille sausage, about 1/2 pound, sliced into rounds
1 - 2 Tbsp. cajun/creole spice mix
olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 Tbsp. cajun/creole spice mix
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 - 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup heavy cream
12 ounces fettuccine
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
grated parmesan and chopped parsley, for serving

1.  Bring large pot of water to boil for pasta.  Toss shrimp with 1 - 2 Tbsp. of cajun seasoning and coat well. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and drizzle bottom on pan with olive oil.  Add shrimp and cook for 2 minutes or so until starting to curl.  Flip shrimp over and cook another minute or two and then remove to a plate and set aside. 

2. Drizzle pan with a little more olive oil, add sausage and brown until nicely caramelized, about  4 - 5 minutes.  Remove to plate, set aside.

3.  Add pasta to salted boiling water and cook until al dente, a minute less than package instructions.

4.  On medium heat, add another good drizzle of olive oil and add onions, red bell pepper, thyme, smoked paprika, 1 Tbsp. cajun seasoning, brown sugar, and a generous pinch of salt.  Saute until onion and pepper have softened a bit, scraping up any browned bits that you can.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

5.  Add crushed tomatoes, chicken broth and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a simmer, stirring and scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

6.   Add cream and stir to combine, bring to a simmer.

7. Once simmering, add cooked pasta and andouille sausage and stir to combine and heat through, 2 - 3 minutes.

8.  Add more chicken broth or cream if it seems dry or you'd like more sauce.  Salt and pepper to taste and then lastly, add shrimp and combine, or place shrimp on top of pasta.  Sprinkle with some freshly cracked black pepper, grated Parmesan and chopped parsley.