Lemony Shrimp Pasta with Spinach and Tomatoes

I have made this recipe several times over the last few months and every time it's a hit. Now that I'm a mom, easy and fast weeknight meals have become even more important for our household. So we can avoid the nights where we don't eat until late after putting baby girl to sleep, dinner that takes a very short amount of time to put together makes evenings all the better!

 As is my favorite, this meal is very customizable. It's pretty much a shrimp scampi, so if you like the lemon sauce, you can remove the tomatoes and spinach to make it more true to a scampi. Who needs Olive Garden when you can make something even better at home?

Lemony Shrimp Pasta with Spinach and Tomatoes
(adapted from Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:
3/4 lb. linguine
4 tbs. butter
2 tbs. olive oil
2-3 tomatoes, diced
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 cup spinach
juice and zest of 1 lemon

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions.
2. While pasta is cooking, melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet. Add garlic and saute for about 1 minute, just until golden and fragrant!
3. Add the tomatoes to the pan and cook until they start to break down, then distribute shrimp evenly around the pan. 
4. Salt and pepper the shrimp and flip them over once you start to see them turning pink on the bottom.
5. Once shrimp are flipped, add the spinach to the pan and stir just until it starts to wilt and shrimp are fully pink and opaque. 
6. Remove pan from heat, add the lemon juice and zest, and stir to combine. Serve over cooked linguine with a little freshly grated parmesan on top!