Smoked Paprika Shrimp with Créme Fraîche Lemon Pasta

Créme Fraîche is one of those ingredients I very rarely see at my regular grocery store.  It just seems they don't want to carry such a fancy ingredient - so, when I stumbled across some on a trip to Whole Foods, I immediately grabbed it and knew exactly what I was going to do with it.  I had my eye on this recipe for a bit now, and was about ready to make it with just regular old sour cream.  Good thing I held out just a tiny bit :)  This was a fantastically simple, very flavorful dish.  Although I would have liked to have had it with smoked salmon (what the original recipe called for), I knew Chris wasn't going to really like it (heck it was a stretch using shrimp), the shrimp was a nice little substitution.  Even chicken would work really well with this dish.  Definitely worth the try!

Smoked Paprika Shrimp with Créme Fraîche Lemon Pasta
Adapted from Whole Foods
Printable Recipe 
Ingredients:
26-30 medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
1/8 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
10 oz mostaccioli or ziti pasta
1/3 cup créme fraîche (or sour cream)
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-2 Tablespoons chives, chopped
1 red pepper, thinly sliced

Directions:
Place shrimp in shallow dish and toss with olive oil.  Sprinkle in paprika and lemon pepper seasoning, toss to coat.  Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Preheat grill to 375 degrees F.  Remove shrimp and place on a piece of aluminum foil sprayed with non-stick spray or on a pan meant for the grill (spray with non-stick spray).  Place directly over the heat and grill for 2 minutes.  Flip shrimp and grill another 3 minutes, or until the shrimp is just cooked through.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions; drain well, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water.

To the pasta, add the zest, lemon juice, and pepper.  Toss to combine.  Add the créme fraîche, the shrimp and chives, stirring to combine.  Serve immediately.  Enjoy!

One Year Ago:  Grilled Shrimp with Wasabi Mayo Sauce
Two Years Ago:  Sweet and Sour Grilled Chicken
Three Years Ago:  Hoisin Barbecue Chicken