Cajun Pasta a different recipe

Dr. Sweetpea is officially addicted to Cajun Pasta. I decided to try a new recipe for dinner and Dr. Sweetpea was raving about it again! We will for sure be making this again in the near future.

Cajun Bowtie Pasta

(Source: St. Louis Today Newspaper - Frazer's Restaurant and Lounge)

1 pound box of bowtie pasta

4 tablespoons butter

1 onion, sliced

1/2 green bell pepper, julienned

1/2 red bell pepper, julienned

12 large fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined*

4 ounces Kielbasa, cut into 12 slices*

4 teaspoons minced fresh garlic

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon blackening spice

1 1/3 cup chicken stock

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes

1 cup tomato sauce

2 cups heavy cream (I only used 1 cup)

1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and keep hot. Melt butter in hot skillet. When butter begins to sizzle, add onion, bell peppers, shrimp, and sausage.* Cook for 3 minutes, stirring twice. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add 1 teaspoon each of salt, pepper, blackening spice, and chicken stock. Cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, and cream. Stir in cooked pasta and simmer until pasta is heated through and sauce has become quite thick, about 3 to 5 minutes. Serve in a shallow bowl, garnishing with Parmesan and Parsley.

*I used chicken thighs instead of the shrimp and sausage. I cut up the chicken into 1 inch pieces, tossed them in 1 tablespoon of the blackening spice and cooked on the skillet until they were almost done. Then I took the chicken pieces out of the skillet and cooked the veggies until they were tender. Once the vegetables were done cooking, I added the cooked chicken back into the skillet before adding the remaining sauce ingredients.

Homemade Blackening Spice:

4 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon salt

Mix all together in a small ziplock bag.