by Rachel Simson, BuffaloDietician.com

Ingredients (6 servings)
1 lb. shrimp thawed with tails removed
2 tbsp. sun dried tomatoes and oil from jar
3 garlic cloves minced
8 oz. mushrooms sliced
½ lb. pasta rigatoni or pasta of choice
1.5 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
3 oz. cream cheese
⅓ cup basil pesto
¼ cup parmesan cheese
½ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. crushed red pepper optional
3 cups fresh spinach

Preparation (6 servings)

  1. Spray a large pan with cooking spray, and turn heat to medium-high. Place shrimp in pan, cook for 2 minutes then flip and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Remove from pan and place in small bowl.
  2. In same pan add sun dried tomato oil, and garlic. Sauté for a minute and add sliced mushrooms. Cook the mushrooms until tender, about 5 minutes, remove from pan, and set in small bowl.
  3. Add the uncooked pasta and chicken broth to the same pan. Stir to dissolve any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Cover with lid, turn heat up to medium-high, and bring the broth to a boil.
  4. Once broth comes to a full boil, give the pasta a quick stir, replace the lid, and reduce the heat to medium-low. Let pasta simmer over medium-low heat for about 8 minutes, until tender and most of the broth has been absorbed. Stir briefly every two minutes as it simmers, replacing the lid quickly each time.
  5. Once pasta is tender and most of the broth absorbed, add the milk, cream cheese (cut into chunks), and pesto. Stir and cook over medium heat until the cream cheese has fully melted into the sauce.
  6. Add the grated Parmesan and stir until combined. Add the fresh spinach and sliced sun dried tomatoes. Stir until the spinach has wilted. Then add mushrooms and shrimp back in. Remove the pasta from the heat. Top the pasta with pepper and crushed red pepper, and serve.

Nutrition
Calories: 421kcal, Carbohydrates: 37g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 19g, Cholesterol: 145mg, Sodium: 595mg, Potassium: 784mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 2078IU, Vitamin C: 11mg, Calcium: 217mg, Iron: 2mg