Super Garlicky Shrimp with Angel Hair Pasta & Meyer Lemons

Wine & Dine Wednesday a super simple pasta that can be whipped up quickly on a weeknight, but can also be served to guests for a lovely supper. The shrimp marinate with the garlic and Meyer lemon while you prep things, along with a good amount of extra virgin olive oil that you cook the shrimp in which becomes a sauce.

Here we go! Clean shrimp. Peel, devein and take the tail off. Rinse off and dry on paper towels. I used a pound of large shrimp. Mince up 3 cloves of garlic finely. Zest a Meyer lemon into a bowl. Add shrimp, garlic, a hearty amount of EVOO and a heavy hand with the pepper grinder as well as a few pinches of salt. With the lemon you zested, squeeze out all the juice into same bowl. The juice will create a marinade as well as start the shrimp in their cooking process. Set aside.

Get a big pot of salted water up to a boil. The angel hair pasta cooks quickly. You can time it to be done just as the shrimp are done. On the stovetop in a big pan get a good sized knob of butter melted over medium high heat, pour all the contents of that glorious bowl into the pan after the butter has melted. Ahhhh, butter and olive oil, heaven. Remember, we are creating a sauce for the pasta. Add the spent lemon to the pan too. It will still release oil. We are going to get the most flavor out of everything we are using here. Cook the shrimp for a few minutes a side. They cook quickly. Stay with them. Move them around. Turn them. The second they are done, turn off the heat and move the pan to the counter. Error on the side of slightly undercooking the shrimp on the heat as they will continue to cook in the pan while they sit waiting for the pasta.

While that was all happening, the pasta cooked. Take a mug and fill it with the pasta water and then drain the pasta. For our meal for two, I only used about half of the cooked pasta. The rest will be used later in the week for another meal. Slice up another Meyer lemon, leaving a good amount left on both ends. To the slices, take all the pits out, as these are going into the pasta and on to the plate.

With a tong, start adding the pasta to the shrimp and sauce that are in the pan. Mix. Add more pasta. Mix again. You are trying to get all the sauce to coat the pasta. Add some of the pasta water. Crack more pepper over. Add a few handfuls of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Add lemon slices. By now, that pasta is going to be looking pretty awesome. Plate or bowl up the pasta. With the remaining lemon ends, squeeze the juice out of them right over the top of the pasta on the plate. It is a final touch that adds lots. Serve with a little bowl of extra Parm. Enjoy!