One-Pan Tomato Cream Cheese Pasta
A creamy one-skillet pasta with tomatoes, cream cheese, and shrimp, extracted from a cooking video and simple enough for a weeknight.
Cook: 25 min
The original video
Recipe from @MoonCanCook on YouTube
Ingredients
- 250 g pasta (of your choice)
- 400 g tomatoes (canned or fresh)
- 300 g shrimp (peeled)
- 1 medium onion (finely chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 200 g tomato sauce
- 150 g cream cheese
- 200 ml milk
- 200 ml water
- 150 g grated cheese (to taste)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Chop the onion, mince the garlic, and prepare the shrimp.
- In a large skillet over medium heat with a little oil, sauté the onion until translucent, then add the garlic and cook another minute until fragrant.
- Add the pasta and tomatoes to the skillet and mix well so the pasta is coated in the tomato juices.
- Pour in the tomato sauce, milk, and water, stir thoroughly, and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the cream cheese and stir until it dissolves completely into the sauce.
- Stir in the shrimp and cook for another 5-10 minutes, until the pasta is tender and the shrimp are cooked through.
- Add the grated cheese and stir until melted; if the sauce is too thick, loosen it with a little more water or milk.
- Serve hot, garnished with fresh herbs or extra grated cheese if desired.
This is a whole dinner built in one pan: the pasta cooks right in a tomato-and-milk base, so it absorbs the sauce instead of being drained and tossed. Cream cheese melts in for a velvety finish while the shrimp poach gently in the last few minutes, keeping them tender.
Tips: Because the pasta simmers in the liquid, keep an eye on it and add a splash of water or milk if the sauce tightens before the noodles are done. Stir the cream cheese in off a hard boil so it emulsifies smoothly rather than splitting.