Skinny Shrimp Alfredo Pasta Bake
An unbelievably cheesy, creamy lightened-up pasta bake that you can easily make ahead of time. Just pop it right in the oven before serving!
Seafood alfredo was a huge favorite of mine growing up. It was the only kind of pasta I would eat, no matter which Italian restaurant we were in. All I needed was that “white pasta” and those warm bread rolls at the center of the table, and I was the happiest kid ever.
But since I don’t have that fast metabolism I had as a kid, this skinny version fits in perfectly. Best of all, taste is not compromised at all in this lightened-up version. TRUST.
It’s just as creamy and cheesy as the original, and you can even make it ahead of time. All you have to do is pop it right in the oven and dinner will be on the table in just 15 minutes. Boom.
Skinny Shrimp Alfredo Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8 ounces whole wheat penne pasta
- 1 14.5-ounce can petite diced tomatoes, drained
- ½ cup reduced fat mozzarella cheese
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
For the alfredo sauce
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 6-ounce can 2% evaporated milk
- 1 ounce light cream cheese
- ¼ cup chicken broth, or more, to taste
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- To make the alfredo sauce, melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk, and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in cream cheese and chicken broth until smooth, about 1 minute; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add more chicken broth as needed until desired consistency is reached.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with nonstick spray.
- Place shrimp onto the prepared baking sheet. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper, to taste, and gently toss to combine. Place into oven and roast just until pink, firm and cooked through, about 6-8 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat an 8×8 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, combine shrimp, pasta, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, red pepper flakes and alfredo sauce. Add pasta mixture to prepared baking dish and top with Parmesan.
- Place into oven and bake until golden brown and cheese has melted, about 10 minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
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My daughter made this for my Birthday. What a wonderful present. It was absolutely delicious. We had snow peas and a side salad with it. Oh and of course garlic bread. After dinner we mixed the snow peas in with the leftover Shrimp Alfredo and I had a wonderful dish of leftovers to take home. I think when I make it again I might just try adding snow peas or baby broccoli floret’s in when I bake it.
I made this tonight for dinner and it was delicious. My family loved it.Thanks for the great recipe and for answering my questions so quickly.
I have one more question. I bought jumbo shrimp and the recipe calls for medium. How should I alter the recipe?
You may have to extend cooking time to ensure that the shrimp is completely cooked through.
This recipe looks delicious. I’m definitely going to try it but was wondering if I could use vegetarian broth instead of chicken broth.
Yes, of course!
Am I reading correctly that one serving has 84% DV of cholesterol?
Yes, that’s correct. Shrimp is high in cholesterol.
Is this using dry pasta or do you have to cook the pasta before hand?
Sarah, you would start with uncooked pasta and have it cooked in step 4:
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
I was sooo looking forward to making this for dinner tonight but I don’t have any cream cheese! Will I be able to make the Alfredo sauce with out it? Is there a subsitute? Thanks so much!!
Jennifer, the cream cheese is a crucial ingredient so I do not recommend substituting nor omitting.
Real alfredo is made without cream cheese. If she just used more milk, or half and half it should be fine!
This looks delicious. Could this recipe be doubled?
Yes, of course!
Just made this tonight and it was delish, especially on such cold january night. I added some peas for a little more green and it was great!
This was amazing and I turned it into a creamy tomato sauce because my kids don’t like to “see” tomato’s. I pureed the tomato’s along with some sun dried tomato’s and added that with less chicken broth. Finally, a creamy tomato sauce that doesn’t have heavy cream in it. Thank you!
I made this using fake crab meat tonight. So rich and indulgent for a fairly light dish. Yum!
This recipe looked fantastic to me, except the tomatoes – couldn’t understand what tomatoes would be doing in a “white pasta” recipe – but when making something for the first time I like to stick to the recipe as stated. I should have followed my instincts and left the tomatoes out. I was “tasting” as I went through the steps and it was fabulous, until the tomatoes. They added a sweet element that was just not appealing. I will be making this again, sans tomatoes, because the Alfredo sauce is amazing!!! I’ll make this with shrimp and chicken, both would work wonderfully. Thanks for the recipe!
Lori, I’m so glad you tried this recipe! As for the tomatoes, if you are not a fan of this ingredient, it is definitely best to omit.
Hi Chungah!
My name is Breeona and I’m preparing for my second baby by making freezer meals prior to her arrival. I saw this recipe and knew it was exactly what my boyfriend and I needed for dinner/a freezer meal! I am preparing an article for my revamped blog and I would love to include this recipe. Would that be okay? I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks so much!
Breeona, congrats on your second baby! As for the recipe, I actually do not allow the full republication of my recipes. But please feel free to re-write the recipe in your own words, including your adaptations and an appropriate link back to my site.
Did you ever freeze this? I am wondering how it turned out from frozen although I know it was a while ago.
Hello! Would it be ok to use regular milk instead of evaporated?
You can certainly try substituting milk but without further recipe testing, I cannot speak for how much this will change the overall taste/texture of the dish. Please use your best judgment to make the appropriate substitutions.
Hi, Chungah! My little ones love shrimp (and pasta!), so I’ve bought the ingredients and we’re having this for dinner tomorrow night. It looks delicious and I can’t wait to try it! 🙂
Could I make ahead of time (a few hours) and then bake before I’m ready to serve?
Yes, that should be fine!
This looks amazing. I was wondering if I could use canned Alfredo sauce instead to making my own. Do you know how much of the bottled Alfredo I would need to use instead? Very busy weeknights make it a little easier with pre done ingredients!
It really depends on how much sauce you’d like to use, or the noodle-to-sauce ratio that you prefer. I know some use more than needed and some use less to cut back on calories so it’s really up to you!
My husband and I couldn’t stop eating this, is was soooo delicious! I used Parmesan instead of mozzarella and also added some lightly butter Italian bread crumbs with the last 2 Tb of Parmesan for the top to add texture. Can’t wait to make it again!
Awesomely delicious! Nutritional info would be great to have. My husband is diabetic and counts carbs and I am a weight watcher counting points.
Saw this on Pinterest and looks delicious! I was wondering if I used a Dutch oven to cook the ingredients on the stove top could I also use that to bake them in the oven to save on clean up? Would I need to adjust the cooking time? Thank you recipe looks great!!
That should be fine. Anything for less dishes to clean! And I would keep the cooking time as is.