Home cooked goodness... Seafood Pasta!

Home Made Seafood Pasta!
Last night I made a feast. With 3 lbs of pasta, it really was enough for an army. Upon everyone's arrival we had different flavored cheese, stuffed olives, roasted red peppers, sliced meats, and other anti-pasta flavors that we picked up from a small Italian Store in Jacksonville. (Sammy's Italian Market & Deli 9802 Baymeadows Road) After everyone had a drink I cooked the appetizer. I found fresh squid at Publix for $6.65 lbs and fried it in a simple salt/pepper/flour batter after soaking it in buttermilk. With a little squeeze of lime and marinara dipping sauce, it was amazing and fresh. As an entrée I made Seafood Pasta. Everyone raved about it. I used bowtie pasta and made a sauce that was extra creamy. The sauce was a pink/orange color because of the cream cheese, milk, butter, vodka, and tomato mixture. It had extra garlic, mushrooms, bell peppers, and onions. I rarely use recipes and just go along as I’m cooking, like last night. The seafood in the pasta consisted of: Large Shrimp, Sea Scallops, and Tilapia. I often find that EVERYONE over cooks shrimp. That means they are almost impossible to peal or they become tough. It is better when it is a little undercooked because the heat from your meal will continue to cook the shrimp through. The shrimp I placed into the sauce mixture at the last minute before being served and they were perfect. The scallops and fish I blackened with my own blackening mixture. They both were then pan sautéed in BUTTER. Butter makes everything better. I will never cook with anything but real butter, and nothing I make at home is ever low fat. :) The Sea Scallops were $7.69 lbs and the Tilapia was $14.96 for two lbs. I mixed everything together and placed the Scallops and Fish over the pasta before I through on fresh diced tomatoes and grated cheese. The Seafood Pasta was served with three different bread options. The entire meal cost around $50 for me to make, give or take. We had 15 people over for dinner, which make the cost per plate around $3.50 a person. We still had a ton of leftovers. (Lunch today will be great!!!) My advice for anyone entertaining company, always serve cheese, pasta, bread, and other filling stuff. It isn’t very expensive, goes a looooong way, and keeps people full! On this blog I can only post 5 pictures per blog, I wish I could share more because the company was better looking than the food. Great food and Great friends are the list for a successful life!