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Serves: 4
start to finish: 20 minutes
from Edible Seattle May/June 2011
As far as pastas with cream sauce go, this is about as light as it gets. And because it’s made with inexpensive lox ends—the bits and corners of salmon lox that many stores and producers trim off to make the filets look snazzier on a brunch platter—it’s a relatively cheap way to make a fancy-looking dish. For something a little more decadent, increase the cream by 1/4 cup and stir in 4 ounces crumbled goat cheese at the end. Of course, you can use regular lox, but we’ll laugh at you when you pay more. Town & Country Markets sell the ends—just remember to look for them.
4 cups (about 3/4 pound) penne, or other bite-sized pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 bunch (about 1 pound) asparagus, tough ends trimmed, cut into pasta-sized pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 pound (8 ounces) finely chopped salmon lox ends
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Put a pot of salted water on for the pasta. When the water boils, cook al dente according to package instructions.
When the pasta goes in, heat the oil over medium heat in a large sauté pan. Add the asparagus, and cook, stirring, until the asparagus is bright green, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, add the garlic, and cook for another minute, stirring. Add the cream and salmon, stir, and simmer on the lowest heat until the pasta is done.
Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup pasta water. Add the pasta to the salmon/asparagus mixture, along with a bit of the water (more if you’d like a looser sauce) and the dill, and stir over low heat until the mixture is warmed through. Serve immediately.
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