Creamy Shrimp and Spinach Alfredo

First and foremost I think I am well overdue to say...OU OH YEAH!!  March Madness Sweet Sixteen baby!  Who had OU advancing in their brackets??  I know I sure did...I was criticized for having Ohio University advancing so far...hmm looks like people should have listened to me when creating their brackets!
The Bobcats played a GREAT game against UNC last night.  Seriously...we took the number one seeded team to over time.  It was such a fun game to watch...I know my adrenaline was through the roof!  At one point I claimed "if OU wins I'm taking 8 shots!" That part of me was glad they did not win...seriously 8 shots Liz? What was I thinking...

This was the first year I created a March Madness bracket, (we have a pool going at the office).  I don't religiously follow college basketball (and by that I mean I don't follow college basketball at all) but it's a lot of fun!  My teams are all doing so well!  Here is how I created my bracket.  First I looked at the ranking (seemed like the best place to start) but if I haven't ever heard of the team I did not choose them (made that mistake with Murray State).  Then it all had to do with color, mascot, and desirable places.  Naturally I chose University of North Carolina to win it all because I like blue...North Carolina is pretty, but honestly I don't know what a Tar Heel is...

Brian and I met some friends at 3-spot in North Royalton to watch the game.  We ordered a few beverages and split appetizers.  We ordered fried calamari, mussels, and fried zucchini.  All I can say is...at least our drinks were good.  It was Friday, so we were limited to what we could eat (no meat!) but I guess that's what we get for ordering seafood at a sports bar (the fact that the appetizers were $5.99 should have been a clue).  But of course this got me thinking about my blog...I am always thinking about my blog...How I want to learn how to appropriately cook seafood.  I already mastered tilapia (ok maybe I didn's master it) So I started thinking about shrimp...then I started thinking about alfredo...and then I realized I was thinking too much about food.

Nonetheless, I made this for Jane and I and it turned out so well!

Creamy Shrimp and Spinach Alfredo

Source: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/shrimp-fettucine-alfredo/ I put my own spin on this recipe though

Alfredo is definitely my go to meal.  It is my all time favorite pasta dish (good thing its so healthy)  My Aunt Donna gave me this little hint of putting some cheddar cheese in it to give it an extra kick of flavor (Thanks Aunt Donna!)  When I did my Alfredo turned out tastier than it ever has before!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound fettuccini pasta
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 pound cooked shrimp - peeled and deveined
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 3 cups fresh spinach
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• salt to taste

This recipe is simple, yet you must keep an eye on your sauce.

Bring your salted water to a boil (I always add a little EVO to my water, it helps keep the noodles from sticking).  Add your pasta and cook thoroughly.

Saute your shrimp and garlic in your butter for about 1-2 minutes.  Add in your spinach.  The spinach will take up the whole skillet and you may think "woah this is too much"  It's not...spinach shrinks like you wouldn't believe.  Saute and medium heat until spinach is tender and shrimp is pink.

Pour in half and half and stir.  Make sure your heat is medium-med/low.  You don't want the sauce to boil.  Add in the parmesan cheese one tablespoon at a time stirring constantly.  Throw in your 1/4 cup cheddar cheese and continue to stir. Sauce will take a little bit of time to thicken


Combine your sauce with your noodles and you are done! Yum!