Please meet Cooking Italy’s most delinquent member, me. This wonderful cooking club is dedicated to the earthy Italian cuisine of the great Marcella Hazan. Every month, 4 recipes or so from Hazan’s Essentials of Italian Cuisine are tested by club members who then post the results online. Wonderful cooks and bloggers from all over the world belong to Cooking Italy, just google and see.

So, after 3 months as a club member, I have this one and only recipe to show for my efforts. Don’t ask. This quick and easy dish cooks and serves under 30 minutes, a definite plus for busy moms seeking kid-friendly food. While the original recipe calls for fresh chiles, I substituted red pepper flakes which are in keeping with tradition and, truth be told, a favourite way of mine to kick it up a notch.

Now, the “Essential” question: Did Junior enjoy? He, the shrimp afficionado who loooooves just about anything smothered in tomato sauce? Well, sometimes, he comes home with his mind set on inducing peanut butter overdose and nothing else. This was one of those times. He wolfed down the baguette served for dunking but turned up his nose at both shrimp and sauce. Dad, on the other hand, was unstoppable and had to be reminded that 4-5 shrimp equal one full serving of protein… Junior notwithstanding, I will be making this again.

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You don’t say?

— Welcome to this 1st installment of “You don’t say?” featuring tips, anecdotes or food facts related to the topic at hand.

While many cooks add carrot to sweeten tomato sauce (yes, even the great Mario Batali!), Italian mamas who are sticklers for tradition prefer removing tomato seeds as a way to prevent bitterness*. How? By crushing fresh or canned whole tomatoes in the blender, then sifting the pulp to remove seeds. Of course, in ancient times, they probably just crushed tomatoes by hand… How about that.

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* Thanks to the generous foodies of Cooking Italy Club for that bit of insight.

Shrimp with Tomato and Chile

4 to 6 servings

60 ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil

45 ml (3 tbsp) chopped onion (I hate to measure these things so I used a half-onion)

10 ml (2 tsp) chopped garlic (can we agree on, say, 2 cloves?)

Pinch of hot pepper flakes, to taste

45 ml (3 tbsp) chopped fresh parsley

1 large can San Marzano* Italian tomatoes, in their juice

Salt

250 to 500 g (1 1/2 to 2 lbs) shelled raw shrimp (original recipe says unshelled)

Grilled French bread

* You can use another brand, since San Marzano cost an arm and a leg, but they truly make a difference. Go figure.

1. Pour tomatoes into a large bowl, then crush them with your hands. Messy but quite therapeutic actually!

2. Saute onion in olive oil over medium heat until translucent. Add garlic and pepper flakes, cook until garlic turns pale gold. Add parsley, tomatoes in their juice and generous pinches of salt. Combine well and simmer 20 minutes or until oil floats to surface.

(This recipe can be prepared in advance. At this stage, cool at room temperature and refrigerate up to 2-3 days. Reheat to resume recipe.)

3. Dry shrimp, slice in two lengthwise (I didn’t), mix until well-coated with sauce, cover and cook 2-3 minutes or until pink. Please don’t let the shrimp curl in on itself, a sign they are overcooked… Adjust seasoning to taste, salt, pepper AND hot pepper. Serve with crusty bread for dunkin’.