I recently was craving an Italian seafood dish cooked with fresh shrimp and garlic.  So I prepared a homemade Italian tomato sauce inspired by my time in Venice.  Here in New England the ships deliver the day's catch to the markets regularly.  Living near the sea is timeless and such a great way of life...  That's why I'm in love with the pungent culinary aromas of fresh seafood in my kitchen right now.  Using the shrimp shells, my New England lunch was inspired by the colors of the gondolas in Venice bobbing above the water of the Venetian lagoon. 

 

What I learned from European chefs is that "The Flavor" of seafood comes not just from the meat, it comes from the taste of the sea and the natural sea salt in the shells.  So after deveining my shrimp, I cooked the fresh shrimp in their shells, extracting that flavor.  I sautéed fresh large shrimps here from the Atlantic ocean with loads of garlic and butter.

 

Then I cut fresh basil.  I like cutting the basil in strips using scissors to release the flavor of the oils in the basil leaves, like I am used to tasting in Italy.  I served the shrimp on a bed of pasta lightly coated in my tomato sauce.  Lastly, I sprinkled the top of my plate with two types of imported formaggio: Grana from Tuscany and Pecorino Romano from Lazio.

 

Even though I was nostalgic for Venice, my New England creation just goes to show you that you can enjoy life wherever you are. 

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