Italian Sausage & Shrimp Alfredo Pasta

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This was good. Damn good. Italian sausage, shrimp, and pasta tangled up in alfredo sauce, how can it not be good???

This dish came together as a way to use up a couple of sausage links left over from another recipe, some frozen shrimp, and half of box of farfalle pasta. I've never been a fan of Emeril's but am kind of liking him on this season of Top Chef so I thought I would give his alfredo sauce recipe a go.

Alfredo sauce is too easy to make! I was worried that mine might be kind of funky with the addition of the fat and fond from the sausage and shrimp, but it only added to the flavor and didn't affect the texture at all. I added some garlic and nutmeg to the recipe to add a bit more flavor as well. The sauce was rich, smooth and creamy. I sometimes find alfredo sauce to be too rich, but this was perfect.

While the recipe and most of the ingredients are Italian, it felt a bit Cajun to me. A variation of this easy alfredo sauce will be permanent fixture in my rotation as a way to use up scragglers in my fridge and pantry. Buon Appetito and laissez lex bons temps rouler!

Sausage & Shrimp Pasta with Alfredo Sauce

adapted from recipe by Emeril Lagasse

2 links of Italian sausage, sliced into 1/4" pieces

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 pound dried pasta

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 shallot, minced

1-2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 cup heavy cream

1/8 tsp of freshly grated nutmeg

1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook the sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat until browned on both sides and cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside. Add shrimp to pan and cook 1-2 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and add to sausage. Reserve skillet.

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta water.

While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in the reserved skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and saute until tender. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add heavy cream and nutmeg and bring to a boil. Cook until sauce has reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Return the pasta to the to the pot it was cooked in, set over medium heat along with the reserved cooking liquid. Add the butter-cream mixture and half of the Parmesan and toss to combine thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper and add in sausage and shrimp. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Serve immediately.