Lemon pasta with shrimp, capers, garlic and some really great olive oil is just what we all need right now. Some comfort during this crazy time in our world, but also some serious health boosters, am I right? When I was younger, my dad always drilled the importance of olive oil into our brains. He was/is a bit of a health-nut. For example, He used to make our dog eggs and put tons of it in there, along with garlic. Speaking of garlic – this hummus has plenty and is such an easy meal. Before I start rambling on about my entire life story – I wanted to let you know that he was actually on to something. Olive Oil IS one of the best things you can consume, that is to say, if it’s good quality.
What Makes Olive Oil Good Quality?
The process in which it is created. The location the olive grove is grown is important but what happens next can really make or break the quality of the olive oil you’re receiving in your grocery store. After olives are harvested there is a very small window to get them pressed because they start losing nutrients and oxidizing very quickly.
What to Look for in ‘Good’ Olive Oil
- Companies like O-LIVE who are transparent in their processes from start to finish. Their olives are harvested at the peak of ripeness and extracted within a matter of hours instead of days. Firstly, This allows the olives to become the best oil they can be without oxidizing and secondly, prevents them from losing nutrients.
- Extra-Virgin olive oil has a dark bottle to protect the oil quality
- Acidity Level or Harvest Date – olive oil does not get better with age
The Sad Truth
All olive oil is not created equal, for instance: “In fact, 70% of the olive oil that’s sold in the US is fake extra virgin or mixed with other impurities. And the reason for this madness? Frighteningly little purity regulation in the U.S. Thankfully it’s a different story down in Chile. To qualify as extra virgin, olive oil must meet the standard of 0.8% set by the International Olive Oil Council. And seeing as we don’t mess about, ours is, get this… 0.2%.” – O-LIVE website In other words, it’s extremely important to be purchasing olive oil from a trusted source.
Benefits of Good Olive Oil (aka benefits of eating this lemon pasta with shrimp)
- Full of antioxidants
- Can reduce inflammation
- Can help lower blood pressure
- Supports brain health
The list goes on! Olives provide us with so many health boosters.
Most importantly, now that you’re going to have some O-LIVE in your kitchen – I think this calls for some lemon pasta with shrimp!
Above all – thank you so much to O-LIVE for supporting me, my dreams, this lemon pasta with shrimp and for providing a quality product I can stand behind
Lemon Caper Shrimp Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ lb or 8oz of gluten-free spaghetti
- 1 lb Wild caught shrimp peeled and deveined
- 2 Tbs capers towel dried
- 2 Lemons zested and juiced
- 2 Cloves fresh garlic diced
- 1 Medium shallot diced
- 1 Tbs Grass-Fed Butter
- 2 Tbs O-LIVE ‘Robust’ olive oil
- 1 Tsp salt
Instructions
- Fill a medium sauce pan half way with water and bring to a rolling boil, add pasta and cook until al dente about 10 minutes
- In the meantime, in a medium saute pan on medium heat add butter and shallot and cook until translucent
- Add garlic and shrimp and cook for about 1-2 minutes on each side. The shrimp should be opaque.
- Add lemon zest, lemon juice, capers and drained pasta. COmbine together and top with parmesan and O-LIVE Robust Olive Oil
Notes
