Pasta with mascarpone, smoked salmon, sun-dried tomatoes and garlic sautéed spinach. Super easy, creamy and a true flavor bomb. This pasta can be prepared as a quick weeknight dinner or served at a fancy dinner party. Bonus? The entire dish takes about 15 minutes to throw together.
In this recipe, the surprise ingredient is the smoked salmon. It adds a smoky, salty boost to this dish. When tossed together with the mascarpone and the bright tomatoes, you’ll be left with a great sauce for any pasta, lighter than a typical cream sauce but still silky and rich. We add toasted pine nuts for another marvelous layer of texture and flavor. Serve it with a sprinkle of crushed chili flakes and chopped chives. This is a versatile recipe that can take a rotation in your weekly meal plan. Highly recommended.
Let me guide you through the recipe with this step-by-step VIDEO.
RECIPE NOTES
- You can use canned salmon or cooked fresh salmon.
- Swap the spinach for broccoli, asparagus or kale.
- Use any kind of your favorite pasta.
- Swap the sun-dried tomatoes for cherry tomatoes.
- Make the dish vegetarian or use smoked bacon and pretend that you created a whole new dish without your family noticing it, that’s what I always do.
Other Delicious Recipes to Try
Cooking Video
Penne with smoked salmon and mascarpone
Ingredients
- 7 ounces penne
- 5 ounces smoked salmon - cut into strips
- 7 ounces mascarpone
- 3 ounces sun-dried tomatoes - drained, oil reserved
- 4 ounces spinach
- 3 garlic cloves - minced
- 1 shallot - diced
- 3 tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp grated nutmeg
- 4 tbsp pine nuts
- chopped chives - for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium low heat. Add pine nuts, toast until golden, 1-2 minutes. Remove from skillet, leaving the toasted oil in the pan.
- Add 2 tbsp oil to the skillet, garlic and shallot. Sauté until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add cumin, nutmeg, chili flakes, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in spinach, cook until slightly wilted, for 1 minute. Add sun-dried tomatoes, cook for 2 minutes.
- Now add lemon juice, smoked salmon and mascarpone, gently stir until just combined. Toss with pasta and add 1/4 cup pasta cooking water. Remove from heat.
- Serve immediately with chopped chives, toasted pine nuts and some extra chili flakes. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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