Gamberi con Rotini Paste (Shrimp With Rotini Pasta)

INGREDIENTS (Serves 1-2)
1/2 Red Onion
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
3 ounces of White Wine
5 ounces of Light Cream or Half & Half
2 Cloves Garlic
Cooked Peas
12 (1 Dozen) Medium Shrimp

This is one of my own inventions, but I am sure someone else has cooked it before I have.  

Boil your water for the pasta, you can use fuisili, rotini or penne rigate, whichever you prefer, I personally like the rotini for this dish.

To carmelize your red onions, in a big thick skillet, heat some olive oil until very hot, almost smoking.  Slice 2 thicker slices of red onion, then in half.  Break apart, reduce the heat on the pan to low and add in the red onion.  Stir a few times so it does not all burn.  Continue to cook for about 25 minutes.  Deglaze with white wine, add the squeeze of lemon juice and 2 cloves of smashed garlic (just smash the garlic cloves with the broad part of the knife so it gives off flavor, you can keep the cloves whole, no need to mince or slice them so you can remove them later).     

Salt & Pepper your boneless chicken cutlets to your liking on both sides.  Add it to the pan, cooking on both sides for a few minutes, but do not overcook, you can even undercook it since you will be adding it to the pan again eventually.  Remove, drain on a paper towel.  

Add in your broccoli and freshly sliced mushrooms, allow to cook for 5 minutes.  Add in your cream, mix together well.  Continue to cook at low heat.  By this time you should be able to add your pasta to the boiling water.   Cook the pasta according to directions.  At this time, slice up your chicken cutlets into thin strips, and add it back into the pan with the marsala cream sauce. If you chose to add shrimp to this dish, now is the time to add that as well. When your pasta is done cooking, drain, but not completely, add it to the pan with the sauce and continue to cook for a couple of more minutes, stirring often so all the flavors mix with the pasta, chicken and even some of the pasta water that it will retain.  If it is too watery, just turn up the heat to burn it off, but there is no written rule that says the sauce must be too thick or thin, I just opt for something in between.  Serve with garlic bread and a light salad with olive oil, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar, just a pinch of salt, pepper and squeeze of lemon.

Wine Notes:  You can serve the same white wine you cooked with here, a pinot grigio works well.

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