Caprese Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Tomatoes, and Triple B (Balsamic-Bacon-Basil) Vinaigrette

Umm...Umm...Good!

I am looking for words to describe this dish and all I came up with was...Umm...Umm...Good! This is one of those dishes that you bring to a potluck and people stop talking, because they're too busy eating.

My goal was to create a light, welcome to summertime dish and I think, mission accomplished. This dish is really simple and goes together and less than 30 minutes.

First things first, let's get the pasta going. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water for the sauce.

Next, fry the bacon until nice and crispy! Please don't discard the bacon grease, we need it for the vinaigrette and to saute the vegetables in.

Peel, devein and marinate the shrimp in lemon juice and zest, olive oil and a few spices.

After we saute the vegetables we add the marinated shrimp and cook for about 6 minutes.

This is the what happens after 6 minutes of cooking time. This can be served over rice if you like, but we're about to kick it up!

The balsamic vinaigrette is cooked with a little shallot, garlic and bacon grease.

After we toss everything together, this is what miraculously happened.

It's eating time...don't forget a nice crusty loaf of bread! 

Caprese Pasta Salad with Shrimp, Tomatoes, & Triple B (Balsamic-Bacon-Basil) Vinaigrette

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

1 lb. medium shrimp, peeled, deveined

1 box of pasta

1 small container of baby tomatoes

1 container of mozzarella balls, mini

1 lemon, zested, juiced

3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon creole seasoning

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tablespoon oregano, crushed, dried

1 bell pepper, sliced

1/2 white onion, sliced

1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated

3 cloves of garlic, minced

olive oil

reserved bacon grease

1/2 cup pasta cooking water

balsamic bacon basil vinaigrette (recipe below) 

For the Tripe B Vinaigrette

1/2 pack of bacon, chopped

4 tablespoon bacon grease

4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette

1 shallot

1 clove garlic

1/4 cup basil, chopped 

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

pinch of salt

Directions:

To prepare Vinaigrette, slice bacon and cook until nice and crispy, remove bacon from pan and set aside. Remove 3 tablespoons of bacon grease and set aside for cooking vegetables above. Add 4 tablespoonfuls of olive oil to remaining bacon grease over medium heat. 

Add shallot and cook for about 3 minutes, add basil and garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add black pepper and salt. Slowly add balsamic vinaigrette while whisking well. 

Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes.

To prepare shrimp, mix seasoning blend and set aside.

In a large bowl season shrimp with lemon juice, zest, all the seasoning blend minus 1 tablespoonful and a few tablespoonful of extra virgin olive oil. Mix well and set aside.

Bring a large part of water to boil, salt water once it starts to boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 minutes or according to package directions. Drain pasta, rinse in cold water, drain again and add a little olive oil to prevent sticking. Reserve 1/2 of pasta cooking water.

After frying bacon for vinaigrette, add a few tablespoons of bacon grease to pan and a little olive oil over medium heat. 

Add onion, peppers and tomatoes, cook for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Season with tablespoon of seasoning blend. 

Add shrimp to pan and saute for about 6-8 minutes, until shrimp are cooked through. Add pasta cooking water, vinaigrette and cook for a few minutes. 

Toss mixture with pasta. Add cooked bacon, mozzarella balls and parmigiano reggiano cheese, toss well and serve.