For this Mercury Cook Your Catch installment, outdoorswoman Emily Hayes makes one of her favorites – creamy Tuscan salmon with penne pasta, sun-dried tomatoes and spinach. There’s a little something for everyone in this dish, so clear your counters and get cooking!
Ingredients
- 2 cups penne pasta
- 2 boneless salmon fillets, 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick
- Olive oil
- 1 jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable broth
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 bag spinach
Preparation
Begin by bringing approximately 2 quarts of water to a boil in a medium-size pot. Next, add the pasta and cook according to the directions included with the pasta. For al dente pasta, cooking times are typically between 10 and 12 minutes.
While the pasta is cooking, drizzle a little olive oil (about a tablespoon) in a skillet over medium heat. Next, season the tops and bottoms of your salmon fillets with salt and pepper. Then, add them to the pan, cooking each side for five minutes. Remove the fillets and set aside.
Next, cut the sun-dried tomatoes in half. Chop the garlic and onion. Then, grate the Parmesan cheese.
Check your pasta and if it’s done cooking, remove it from the heat and pour it into a colander. You can then add a little olive oil to the pasta to keep it from sticking.
Next, add the butter to a pan over medium heat and let it melt. Add the garlic, onion and sun-dried tomatoes and cook for about two minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the vegetable broth, and allow it to simmer and reduce for a few minutes. Turn the heat down to low and add the cream. Cook everything down a bit further and add the spinach. Allow the spinach to cook in the pan for a couple minutes until it begins to wilt.
Then, add the salmon to the pan, and gently spoon the sauce over the fillets.
Now, it’s time to plate your dish. Put some pasta on your plate, add some sauce to the pasta and place the salmon on top. Finally, add some of your freshly grated parmesan cheese.
For a meal with this much flavor, it’s amazing how quickly it all comes together. And since the vegetable is in the dish, the only thing left to add is maybe a fresh loaf of French bread and something to quench your thirst. Enjoy!
For more great recipes by some of the world’s foremost anglers and outdoor enthusiasts, search “Cook Your Catch” in the Mercury Dockline Blog.
