LINGUINE WITH HONEY-TOMATO SAUCE, SHRIMP & SPICY ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Ingredients:
1 12oz. package linguine
8 large Creole tomatoes, diced
1 pound 21-25 count shrimp, peeled & deveined
2 links Italian sausage
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup lightly packed, fresh basil, julienned
1 Tbsp. fresh cayenne peppers, sliced
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey
Salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
1 container Chef John Folse's Bittersweet Plantation Dairy Creole Cream Cheese

Chef: Bittersweet Plantation

Fill a large pot 2/3 full of water. Add 1 Tbsp. of salt and bring to a boil. Remove the Italian sausage from the casing and pinch into small, marble-sized meatballs. Roll and set aside. In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add meatballs and sauté for 2-3 minutes or until brown on all sides. Add garlic and sauté until lightly brown around the edges, approximately 1 minute. Add fresh tomatoes and blend well into sauté pan. Stir occasionally until juices begin to develop. Place the linguine into the boiling water and cook according to package directions, approximately 12 minutes. While pasta is boiling, add basil and cayenne peppers to the tomato sauce. A small amount of water (1/4 cup) may be added to the sauté pan, if the tomato sauce tends to be a bit dry. I recommend using the boiling pasta water for this purpose. Add balsamic vinegar and honey to the sauté pan. Stir well into the mixture, and then season to taste using salt & pepper. When pasta is tender, drain and return to the pot. Coat with 1/4 cup olive oil. Add shrimp and green onions to the tomato sauce and cook until shrimp are pink and curled, approximately 2 minutes. Place 1 or 2 cooking spoons of tomato sauce into the cooked pasta and blend well. Place the lightly coated pasta into the center of a large serving platter and top with the remaining sauce mixture. Arrange shrimp and sausage as a garnish around the edges of the platter. Finish with a large sprig of basil and dot the top of the pasta with 6 teaspoons of Creole cream cheese.