Spicy Garlic Shrimp and linguine

Today is a special day for me, as it's the anniversary of the day my RL mother gave birth to her last kid....me.  It is also the anniversary of the day the docs asked if she would like a hysterectomy, and she said, "WHERE DO I SIGN?!?!?!"  Coincidence?  I think not.

Because of this, I always either go out for a special meal... or in the case of the last 10 years of my life, I cook something I love.  Since my RL doesn't like the taste or smell of seafood, I decided on shrimp for my "lunch".  The beauty of this recipe is that you CAN substitute the shrimp for chicken or sausage or whatever interests you (which I will be doing for HIS dinner when he gets home, so he gets something special too).  I love a good versatile recipe:)

((I was lazy again...  no SL pic on this one, but will start doing SL pics again soon))

INGREDIENTS:

Enough pasta (linguine in this case) for the amount of people eating, cooked per instructions on box/package
1 1/2 tablespoons (22 ml) olive oil
1 pound (.45 kg) shrimp, peeled and deveined
salt to taste
6 cloves garlic, minced (cut really small;) )
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 ml)red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons (45 ml) lemon juice (I juiced half a lemon)
1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5 ml) butter
1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh parsley (dried is okay, but the texture is going to be different)
1 1/2 tablespoons (22 ml) butter

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Cook pasta per instructions. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a heavy skillet over high heat until it just begins to smoke. Place shrimp in an even layer on the bottom of the pan and cook for 1 minute without stirring.
2.	Season shrimp with salt; cook and stir until shrimp begin to turn pink, about 1 minute.
3.	Stir in garlic and red pepper flakes; cook and stir 1 minute. Stir in lemon juice, caper brine, 1 1/2 teaspoon cold butter, and half the parsley.
4.	Cook until butter has melted, about 1 minute, then turn heat to low and stir in 1 1/2 tablespoon cold butter. Cook and stir until all butter has melted to form a thick sauce and shrimp are pink and opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes.
5.	Remove shrimp with a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl; continue to cook butter sauce, adding water 1 teaspoon at a time if too thick, about 2 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
6.	Serve shrimp topped with the pan sauce. Garnish with remaining parsley.