Every once in a while, my ability to cook is overshadowed by my desire to cook something remarkably easy, yet good enough to serve to guests -- no special skills, tools or knowledge required. Today is such a day. This simple, straightforward and scrumptious recipe, taken from the pages of absolutely nowhere, goes from stovetop to table in less time than it takes to cook spaghetti, and, when beautifully plated, will bamboozle everyone into thinking I cooked all day.
"I dream of stirring cream into marinara sauce." ~ Melanie
The only thing more rewarding than having a freezer shelf full of my perfectly-seasoned ~ Fresh & Spicy Tomato-Basil Sauce (Marinara) ~ (made from our own garden's tomatoes, onions, garlic and basil), is being able to use it as a base for this decadent tomato-cream sauce. My recipe is remarkably similar to most recipes, so, feel free to use your own homemade marinara if you've got it.
Store bought? I think not, but, nonetheless, that choice is yours to make. My ratio is 2:1, or:
2 cups marinara sauce, preferably homemade
1 cup heavy or whipping cream
This can be changed to suit your taste, but, do not substitute half and half or milk. Just don't do that.
~Step 1. Place the marinara in a 2-quart saucepan. Add and stir in the cream. Over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, heat until sauce is steaming. Remove from heat, cover and set aside.
Pretty, pink & perfectly-seasoned sauce. Easy enough so far?
For the shrimp & lobster ravioli:
2 10-ounce bags high-quality shrimp and lobster ravioli
1 tablespoon sea salt, for seasoning pasta water
4-6 tablespoons salted butter, cut into bite-sized pieces, at room temperature, the softer the better
1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes, well-drained
the tomato-cream sauce
~Step 1. In a wide-bottomed 4-quart stockpot bring 3 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add the 1 tablespoon sea salt. Add the ravioli and cook until al dente, about 3-4 minutes. Turn heat off. Thoroughly, drain the ravioli into a colander, then immediately return the steaming-hot ravioli to the still hot stockpot and place the stockpot back on the still hot stovetop.
~Step 2. Add the butter pieces and the diced tomatoes. Using one or two spoons, ever-so-gently gently toss, like you would a salad, until butter is completely melted and ravioli are evenly coated in the slightly-salty butter. Add 1 1 1/2 cups of the sauce and toss again until the ravioli are evenly enrobed in the buttery-rich sauce. Cover and set aside about 4-5 minutes, to allow the ravioli to absorb the excess sauce. Uncover, gently stir, then, add more sauce, in small increments, until desired consistency is reached.
Portion & serve immediately. No cheese please:
Shrimp & Lobster Ravioli with Tomato-Cream Sauce: Recipe yields 6-8 main-dish servings.
Special Equipment List: 2-quart saucepan w/lid; large spoon; wide-bottomed 4-quart stockpot w/lid; colander; two spoons
Cook's Note: Damn the torpedoes and full speed ahead. When serving any sort of Italian-American fare, a double-whammy of calories and carbohydrates, in the form of garlic bread, is huge hit. Why? Because eating Italian-American fare without a great big basket of garlic bread on the table is, gulp, culinarily criminal. Make a salad too, because it too goes great with it too (and makes one feel a bit less guilty). Try my recipe for ~ A Great Garlic Bread Spread for Great Garlic Bread ~.
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2021)
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