Covent Garden Market Calendar - March (Lemon and Maple Shrimp Fettucine)

Spring is in the air! On Sunday we spent most of the day outside at the park (twice) and in the yard riding bikes, playing with chalk, etc.. Another good sign of spring coming is that maple season has arrived...well, it arrived and then passed... The downside of this nice weather is that the temps aren't going below freezing at night which has pretty well stalled maple syrup production already. It was a short season (sigh).


The Covent Garden Market calendar has a great recipe for the month of March using maple syrup - Lemon and Maple Shrimp Fettucine. Man oh man was it ever good!!

Ingredients:

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced from Havaris or Doris Produce
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 4 cloves garlic, minced from Havaris Produce
• 24 raw, peeled and de-veined shrimp
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley from Doris Produce
• 350g fresh pasta (fettuccine, angel hair, linguini or spaghetti) from Glenda's
• butter and olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste

There are quite a few non-local ingredients in this recipe (like shrimp and lemon) but I still feel good knowing that I am able to support the little guys in the community by buying my ingredients from them. The shrimp, however, I ended up getting at the grocery store (gasp!). Seafood can be purchased at the market via the Seoul Seafood Shop but on that day there was no shrimp to be found.


The pasta, however, was easy for me to find. Without doubt, I knew that I'd end up at Glenda's in the market. Glenda's has many different fresh pastas to choose from. For this recipe, for instance, I chose the lemon pepper linguini. It was the perfect choice.

In a small bowl, whisk together lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, and garlic. Place the raw shrimp in the bowl with the marinade, stirring until all the shrimp are coated. Marinate the shrimp in the refrigerator, for 1/2 hour to 1 hour, no longer.

Meanwhile, heat water in a large pot. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions, usually 3-5 minutes.

Begin cooking the shrimp while the pasta is cooking. Add a bit of olive oil to a saute pan and heat over medium high heat. Scoop the shrimp out of the marinade and saute, tossing them in the pan so they cook evenly.

When pasta is done, drain it and put it back in the pot, adding a bit of butter and olive oil so it doesn't stick together. Season it with salt and pepper, and toss in the freshly chopped parsley. Place pasta on a serving dish, top with hot shrimp, and serve.

All I've gotta say is 'YUM'!! Even my daughter ate it so that says a lot! I'll definitely make this recipe again.


For an online version of the Covent Garden Market Calendar see this link: http://www.coventmarket.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/2012-Market-Calendar.pdf


For other blog posts about the Covent Garden Market (and the calendar) see here: http://southwesternontariofoodie.blogspot.com/search/label/Covent%20Garden%20Market


April Recipe for the calendar? Ontario Rhubarb Pudding Cake...Ooohh...that means we can look forward to rhubarb coming into season! Yay for Spring!


NOTE: don't forget - the outdoor farmer's market will be open the Saturday of the Easter long weekend in April!