Easy Tuscan Shrimp and Scallop Pasta

The winter months typically are a time for more comfort food. Rich soups and hearty pastas go hand in hand with the cooler weather. If you are like us, you get tired of the old pasta with red sauce. We always wish there was a way to incorporate more vegetables into our pasta dish so truly we can have one item on our plate that hits multiple food groups.
Like everyone else, we struggle with time to cook, time to plan and trying to figure out what to make. This issue we present a very simple and versatile yet rich pasta dish. We add a lot of spinach into this along with fresh tomatoes. You can add just about anything you want. Regardless, this is a dish that will go together very quickly so you can have dinner on the table in no time.
As manager of our Wednesday Canyon Country and Saturday Old Town Newhall Farmers Markets, we have access to the freshest local vegetables. Certified Farmers markets like ours are always 100% local. The produce is picked and at our market within days. Compare this to supermarkets where most produce is weeks or months old.
In the winter season, our farmers markets will have lots of leafy greens like spinach, kale and it’s sweeter cousin, Swiss chard. These are all great. But winter is also a time for wonderful winter squash, carrots, cauliflower and so much more. Feel free to use these in this recipe.
We also add shrimp and scallops which our farmers markets carry as well. Our fishmonger is one of the best in the business and they bring only top quality fish to Santa Clarita. The scallops are wild and fresh sashimi grade and packed dry, never soaked in sodium tripolyphosphate which plump them up with unnecessary water weight. The shrimp is wild caught from the Sea of Cortez. Whatever seafood you use, stick to wild caught which leading health of experts recommend.
This is a heavy dish. Feel free to substitute half and half in place of heavy cream if you want to make it a little bit lighter. However, be confident knowing that this goes together quick and is very easy to make. Enjoy!

Ingredients
½ lb. Scallops, preferably dry and fresh
½ lb. Wild caught shrimp, large U-15 size, peeled and de-veined
1 lb. dry or fresh pasta noodles of your choice
1/2 lb. Fresh spinach, cut in half
1 Pint basket (about 2 Cups) fresh cherry tomatoes
¾ C Shredded Broncha or Parmesan cheese
3 Cloves fresh minced garlic
1 C chicken broth
1 C heavy cream
Olive oil
Garlic Salt and Pepper
Red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions
Step 1
Rinse seafood and pat dry. Season with garlic salt and pepper.

Step 2
Add about 1 TB olive oil to a skillet over medium heat. Once oil is hot, cook scallops about 2-3 minutes per side. Repeat the process with shrimp, adding more oil if needed. Shrimp should be pink once finished. Remove seafood from skillet and set aside. In the meantime, start a large pot of water boiling in preparation to cook pasta.

Step 3
Using the skillet the seafood was cooked in, and place it over low heat. Add oil if needed. Add garlic to skillet and sauté for about 30 seconds being careful not to burn it.

Step 4
Add broth and heavy cream to skillet. Next add tomatoes. Stir in cheese. Allow to combine for 60 seconds and taste. Add salt and pepper if needed. Add red pepper flakes if desired.

Step 5
In the meantime, begin to cook pasta so it will be ready once sauce is complete. Follow pasta cooking instructions on package.

Step 6
In the meantime, increase heat under sauce skillet and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, add spinach. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the spinach. The spinach will shrink drastically. Allow sauce to continue to cook 1-2 minutes until it thickens. Stir sauce well until all spinach has been submerged in sauce and has wilted or shrunk. Remove sauce from stove and set aside.

Step 7
When pasta is cooked, drain and return pasta to pot. Add all of the sauce mixture from skillet and mix well. All to sit for 1-2 minutes. Stir and then serve on plates.

Step 8
Add shrimp and seafood to plated pasta and nestle into pasta. Serve and enjoy!

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