I would never call Prince a shrimp!

I was Old Mother Hubbard today, with my bare cupboards and fridge. I was gone all last week and got takeout when I came home, and went to a party yesterday. I finally made it to the store today. But I realized around 6-ish that the only thing I'd eaten today was the piece of Boar's Head Catering Style Turkey that the nice deli lady gave me for thickness/thinness approval (I recommend it). I decided it was time to head for the kitchen to whip up a batch of Martha's Shrimp, Tomato and Basil Pasta. I made a little side salad first, as I was starving and I can't cook and have a glass of wine on an empty stomach. I did manage to go to Publix and stick to the list though, so I have that going for me, which is nice.



I peeled my shrimps, and de-veined them, managing to slit my finger in the process. Joy. And I wasn't even using a knife. Explain that one. So here is a pound of shelled and de-veined shrimp.



I should have gone to Costco for them, but I hate going there on the weekends.... Although I would have gotten free snacks.... See what happens when I don't eat... ramble on...Wouldn't it be weird if you met someone named Sheldon Devein?

Moving on, I halved a pint of cherry tomatoes. Well, some were a little bigger, so I quartered them. Yeah, tomato acid on a slit finger... awesome. That only happened once. Diced up a couple cloves of garlic, too. And some fresh basil.



You need to cook up the shrimp in some olive oil first. Martha only seasons the shrimp with salt and pepper. Well, I don't have a Connecticut stick up my ass, so the flakes you see are the red pepper flakes I tossed in. Martha needs to hang out with Giada with the Big Head more often, because this is turning out to be a version of GWTBH's Shrimp Fra Diavlo that I love.



I will admit right now that I am a messy cook. I splatter, I spill, I dirty more pots/dishes/spoons/etc than I should. Whatever. That's what laundry, Lysol counter wipes and the dishwasher are for. Although the way I swirl stuff with olive oil around in the pan, I am constantly amazed that I have not set off a grease fire. Knock wood on that one, because I have no flour and I think if I remember my cooking safety as taught by Miss Mooney in 7th grade home ec., you throw flour on a grease fire. Please let me know if I am wrong. I don't break my eggs into custard cups first either. Take that, Miss Mooney. That's just how I roll. Sadly, she was old then, so she's probably dead now. Yeah, I'm going to hell...

Anyway.... You set the shrimp aside and toss the garlic into the pan, along with a can of diced tomatoes with the sauce, along with two cups of water, bring to a boil, then let it simmer until it gets "saucy."



My friend Kara called then, so we were chatting while I was waiting for my sauce to get "saucy." Supposedly this takes 15 minutes. Well, 20 minutes later, I am the only one getting "saucy." Or maybe it was sassy. Either way, I cursed out Martha for her poor judgement in cook times.

Still not saucy.



I cranked up the temp and let it boil harder, and finally!!! Saucy. So I tossed in the tomatoes, basil and shrimp and stirred it up. Yummm!!



Meanwhile, I had boiled up some angel hair pasta. Martha uses linguine, but I'm not Martha. And here it is, all ready to eat. Well, I did sprinkle on a little Parmesan cheese. It IS pasta, after all.



And here is the Shrimp, Tomato and Basil Pasta playlist, which is surprisingly heavy on his royal purpleness! Hence the title of this blog.

I Got the Feeling Neil Diamond (oh not again Steve Jobs!!)
Baby Don't You Break My Heart Slow Vonda Shepard and Emily Saliers (Dammit, come on!)
Revolution The Beatles (THANK YOU!!!! I love the guitar in this song.)
Blue Eyes Cryin' in the Rain Willie Nelson (you had me iPod, then you lost me...)
Plainsong The Cure (I do love how this is used in Marie Antoinette when they are first crowned...)
Hero Takes a Fall The Bangles (Yay, we're back to happy!)
Dancing Queen ABBA (You can dance, you can jive.. And I did.)
When Tomorrow Comes Eurythmics
Sexy M.F. Prince (and for a short skinny man, he is a sexy mother fucker. I think it's because he's so funky and the way he plays that guitar....)
Famous Last Words My Chemical Romance (I am not afraid to keep on living. I am not afraid to walk this world alone!)
When Doves Cry Prince and the Revolution (such an AWESOME song!!!!)
Candy Shop Madonna (OK, I'll bite. What the hell is Turkish delight???)
Waterfall Wendy & Lisa (not Prince, but come on, close enough!)
Sometimes You Can't Make it on Your Own U2 (He took off his sunglasses when he sang this in concert... I LOVE YOU BONO!!!!!)
If I Was Your Girlfriend Prince (from Sign O' the Times BUT was originally on The Black Album)
Right Here Staind
Have Fun, Go Mad Blair (All aboard that funk boat that I'm about to start sailing on....)
Since U Been Gone Kelly Clarkson (Yadda yadda)
Mysterious Ways U2 (I LOVE YOU BONO!!!)
Julia The Beatles
Birthday The Beatles (I play this every year for my dad on his birthday. Cuz it's my birthday too, yeah!!!)
Heartache Tonight The Eagles (which usually is followed by a headache tomorrow morning)
Deserve It Madonna
Little Red Corvette Prince and the Revolution
Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word Elton John (Ain't it the truth)
How's it Gonna Be Third Eye Blind (sigh)
The Boxer Simon & Garfunkel (My cousin Marty wanted them to play this at the dueling piano bar. Yeah, they didn't)
If I Could Turn Back Time Cher (Totally not embarrassed to have this on my iPod.)
Rumpshaker Wrexx-n-Effect (All I wanna do is zooma-zoom-zoom-zoom and a boom boom!)