Pasta with Marinara Cream Sauce

What do you do when you have the sort of week where there simply isn't enough time to accomplish everything and actually go to sleep at all, much less anything that resembles proper amounts of sleep? If you're incredibly organized and more prudent about the very real importance of adequate rest than I am, you might find a way to prune your to-do list appropriately, conquer the the most important tasks, and still manage to sleep for 8 hours a night. Um. Sure. If you're me, however, over here in our lovely little home in Atlanta, you instead resort to desperate measures. Yesterday morning, for example, I set my alarm clock for 4AM so I could clean the bathrooms and exercise before driving to work. Normal people, I told myself, would be resting at this hour. Normal people are not so concerned about the sanitation of their bathrooms. Especially not at pre-dawn.

Yet still, when the alarm resounded, I sprang from bed and began dashing through my day, determined as ever to conquer time. And then, at the end of this same day, what do I do when the tasks still stretch out in front of me? Cooking dinner brings me back to earth, back to the center. I take my time. I savor the experience. I make a really amazing pasta sauce. Because there's something in the magic of sauteing garlic and simmering tomatoes that reminds me of why I'm not rushing anymore, not now, not in scents and the joys of this moment, even if it keeps me from sleeping...

Pasta with Marinara Cream Sauce
For the Marinara Sauce:
(Note - this will make far more marinara sauce than you'll need for just this one recipe, but it freezes beautifully for future uses...)
3 onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
25 oz pureed tomatoes
1 large can whole tomatoes, chopped into smaller pieces
2 carrots, grated
1 lb button mushrooms, sliced
1 1/2 tsp celery seed
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp basil
1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp dried parsley
2 bay leaves
2 pinches rosemary
~ In a large pot over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until the onion is limp and translucent.
~ Stir in all the remaining ingredients, reduce the heat, and simmer for at least half an hour. You'll use 24 oz of the resulting sauce for the rest of this particular recipe...

For the Rest of the Dish:
8 oz whole wheat rotini pasta
24 oz marinara sauce, from above
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup 2% evaporated milk
1 lb raw large shrimp, peeled and deveined OR 1 lb firm tofu, pressed dry and cut into 1" cubes
A handful of shredded fresh basil

~ Cook the whole wheat pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
~ Bring the marinara sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and gradually stir in the Parmesan and evaporated milk, then cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
~ Stir in the shrimp or tofu and cook for 4 minutes, stirring frequently.
~ Combine the sauce, pasta, and basil, tossing to coat. Serve warm, with more Parmesan!