Basil Shrimp Pasta a colorful dish

Orange peel adds intriguing flavor to this shrimp and tomato pasta dish. Fresh basil and Parmesan cheese add additional flavor. This colorful dish is served over a bed of rotelli (corkscrew pasta.) The shrimp cook quickly in the tomato and orange sauce.

A salad with cannellini beans — large white Italian kidney beans — completes the meal.

Fred Tasker’s wine suggestion: Basil shrimp pasta? An herbal sauvignon blanc.

Helpful Hints:

• Use a potato peeler to peel orange strips. Try not to take white pith with the peel.

• Any short cut pasta such as penne or bowtie can be used.

• Any type of pasta sauce can be used.

• A quick way to chop fresh basil is to snip the leaves with a scissors.

Basil Shrimp Pasta

Makes 2 servings

Recipe by Linda Gassenheimer

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 cup sliced onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 cup low-sodium pasta sauce

1 cup water

4 strips orange peel, about 2 inches by 1/2 inch

3/4 pound peeled and deveined large shrimp

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 pound rotelli (corkscrew) pasta, (about 1 1/2-cups)

2 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese

Place large pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and saut? 3 minutes without browning. Add garlic and saut? another minute. Add pasta sauce, water and orange peel and cook 5 minutes. Lower heat to medium and add shrimp and cayenne pepper. Cook gently 2 to 3 minutes, turning shrimp over until shrimp are pink. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Remove orange peel and stir in basil.

While sauce cooks, add pasta to boiling water and cook for 8 minutes or according to package instructions; drain and divide between the two dinner plates.

Spoon shrimp and sauce over the cooked pasta, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

Per serving: 513 calories (17 percent from fat), 9.7 g fat (2.1 g saturated, 4.5 g monounsaturated), 283 mg cholesterol, 46.6 g protein, 59.9 g carbohydrates, 5.4 g fiber, 326 mg sodium.

 Italian Salad With Cannellini Beans

Makes 2 servings

Recipe by Linda Gassenheimer

4 cups washed, ready-to-eat Italian-style salad

1/2 cup rinsed and drained low-sodium cannellini beans

2 tablespoons reduced-fat oil and vinegar dressing

Place salad in a bowl. Add the beans and toss with the dressing.

Per serving: 102 calories (13 percent from fat), 1.5 g fat (0.2 g saturated, 0.4 g monounsaturated), 1 mg cholesterol, 6.1 g protein, 17.6 g carbohydrates, 5.2 g fiber, 14 mg sodium.