Sweet Potato Orzo with Shrimp

Quick and easy dinners are becoming my specialty.  Though they are convenient (and I’m sure Fritz is happy to have “real meals” more often), I really miss baking.  ‘Specially bread.  Luckily, I think I’ll have enough time tomorrow to attempt bagels for the first time ever!

Now the question is, should I go the regular bagel route, or should I follow my heart and try to find some sort of harvest beer bagel recipe?  ‘Cause that’s what my heart really wants.

Anyway, I threw together a super fast meal tonight that was born out of the increasingly familiar situation called “I have a lot of stuff I’d like to try/use up/clean out of the fridge/cabinet”.  And as usual, I was not expecting much but the results were fan-tastic.

Love when that happens.  It might help to not have high hopes in the first place, though.

Sweet Potato Orzo with Shrimp

• 1/4 lb dry sweet potato orzo (plain orzo or other small pasta/grain would work too!)
• 1 shallot
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 T butter
• 25 small shrimp (no idea what the weight is, but I did count them!  I used frozen and pre-cooked)
• 1/2 C edamame (again, mine was frozen)
• 1 C dry white wine (Chardonnay)
• salt to taste

Bring a few cups of water to boil in a saucepan and cook the orzo according to package directions.  I boiled mine for only a few minutes, because I did not want a mushy pile of sweet potato goo.  As soon as the pasta is done cooking, drain, run cool water over it (to stop any more cooking), and set aside.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and brown the shallot and garlic.  Add the thawed shrimp, edamame, and wine and allow the sauce to reduce for a few minutes.  Once it’s thickened a bit, add the orzo and toss.

Um, yeah.  That’s it.  Season with salt to taste and you are good to go!

What sounds like a weird flavor combination (shrimp? sweet potato? edamame?) actually works perfectly, with a tiny bit of sweetness from the orzo contrasting perfectly with the wine and garlic sauce.  The fact that the orzo is made with sweet potato also makes this dish a little more dense than it would be with regular orzo, which was nice on a chilly evening.

And since the bottle of Chardonnay is open already–well, as Julia Child once said:

“I enjoy cooking with wine.  Sometimes I even put it in the food.”

This coming from a woman who also apparently said:

“The best way to execute French cooking is to get good and loaded and whack the hell out of a chicken. Bon appétit. ”

Clearly this is a woman who I can get on board with.

Enjoy your dinner!