Smoked Salmon Pasta Salad
This recipe is inspired by “Salmon Roe, Smoked Salmon, & Pasta Salad” from the Chez Panisse Pasta, Pizza & Calzone cookbook. My recipe is intended as an awesome gourmet lunchbox to break up the monotony of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Once chilled, the creamy sauce may be thicker than you would like. Feel free to stir in a couple tablespoons milk or lemon juice to thin it out.
Ingredients
5 ounces (2 cups) Fusili or other curly pasta
olive oil
4 stalks green garlic, sliced
half a cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
4 tablespoons crème fraîche
½ lemon, juice and zest
1 cup frozen peas, blanched
a generous 2 ounces diced smoked salmon
2 tablespoons snipped chive
2 tablespoons chopped mint
Cook the pasta al dente according to package directions, drain but do not rinse. Allow the pasta to cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Heat a bit of olive oil in a small pan and toss in the green garlic for 1 minute, just to mellow it. Combine pasta, green garlic, and cucumber in a large bowl.
Make the dressing in a small bowl by whisking together crème fraîche, lemon juice, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour the dressing over the pasta. Toss in peas and smoked salmon**. Work in half the fresh chive and mint, reserving the other half to scattered over the top when you serve the pasta salad. Taste the pasta for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Serves 4
**The peas and salmon are delicate ingredients and should be gingerly added to the pasta salad after it has been dressed. This also keeps the peas from reacting with the lemon juice and turning a sickly greenish -yellow.