Shrimp, leek and spinach pasta

I love my family. I hope they know that. Even though I am not always the best at calling, or emailing, I want them to know that I think of them all the time and I miss them! In fact, just writing on this blog again makes me think of my sister, Shea, because we cooked a lot together over Christmas break and I had just started my blog so the ongoing joke was "Oh Jaynee, you should put this on your blog". We had fun :)

Well, I didn't put any of the things we cooked on this blog and I have been horrible at keeping up with it. This is my spring attempt to be a good blogger-- It's like getting motivated to go to the gym for me! Spring has made me excited to try new recipes and to eat refreshing foods. Yesterday I ate brie with some of Brandon's Grandma's homemade apricot marmalade that she canned in the fall-- soooo delicious and sweet!

Tonight, I cooked a dish I found in the magazine Real Simple. My mother-in-law bought me a subscription to Real Simple for Christmas and I have really enjoyed the first three issues. I was excited to tell her today that I was cooking one of the recipes for dinner from the magazine she bought me :)

Here's the simple recipe:

Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes
Serves 4 (I cut the recipe below in half for just Brandon and I and we still had leftovers)

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces gemelli, fusilli or some other short pasta (I used Rotini because it was the best Walmart had to offer)
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 leeks (white and light green parts only), cut into half-moons
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp
• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 10 ounces baby spinach (about 12 cups)

Instructions:

• cook the pasta according to the package directions; drain and return to the pot
• meanwhile, heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks have softened, 3 to 5 minutes. (I added 1/2 cup dry white wine after the leeks softened and cooked until it evaporated to make the dish richer) Add the shrimp and lemon zest and cook, tossing frequently, until the shrimp is opaque throughout, 4-5 minutes more.
• Add the cream and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the pasta in the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring, until slightly thickened, 1-2 minutes. Add the shrimp mixture and the spinach and toss to combine.

Bon Appetit! I served this dish with a piece of buttery toasted pita bread