This pasta with salmon, cherry tomatoes, and ricotta cream with pesto was born on one of those days when you’re hungry but have zero desire to cook, when you open the fridge and see half a lemon, two cherry tomatoes, and the salmon sitting in a corner saying: ‘use me, or throw me away’.
From there came an easy, creamy, tasty pasta perfect for summer, with a few ingredients but lots of flavor. The sauce is prepared in no time: fresh salmon sautéed in a pan, cherry tomatoes just wilted in a pan, and then a quick cream made of ricotta and pesto, which makes everything enveloping without using cream or butter.
It’s a clever recipe, ready in less than 25 minutes, which you can adapt with whatever you have at home.
Don’t have ricotta? Robiola or spreadable cheese works just fine as well.
Want to enrich it? Add capers or a touch of pecorino. It’s good even cold, perfect to take to the beach or office.
I’ll be honest: it’s one of my most successful ‘recovery’ pastas, the kind you regret making ‘by eye’ and not writing anything down. But luckily this time I wrote it down. Even my son Andrea, always so critical, gave it the thumbs up! 👍
Here’s the recipe with all the steps and some tips on how to store it best!
Oh, I forgot… I recommend short pasta shapes, otherwise you’ll lift a tagliatella and the whole plate comes with it!
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Always on the TOPIC of Recipes with salmon, I suggest other proposals just below:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 11 oz pasta (penne, fusilli, penne)
- 9 oz salmon (in fillets)
- 7 oz cherry tomatoes
- 7 oz ricotta (cow’s milk, also 9 oz works!)
- 3 tbsps Genoese pesto
- 1 clove garlic
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- to taste basil
Tools
- High-sided casseroles
- Frying pans
- Knives
Few steps for this tasty main dish!
In a bowl, I mix cow’s milk ricotta with 2 tablespoons of pesto and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. I then season with salt and pepper and get a velvety cream that I set aside.
I bring to a boil a high-sided casserole with abundant salted water and cook the short pasta following the times indicated on the package.
I reserve 1 ladle of cooking water to add to the ricotta and pesto cream if needed, to coat the pasta perfectly.
In a large pan, I heat a drizzle of oil, adding a garlic clove to roast (to then remove just as it turns color).
I now add the fresh salmon cubes and cook for 2–3 minutes until they become slightly golden yet still soft.
I now pour the cherry tomatoes into the pan and cook for another 3/4 minutes, just enough time for them to release a bit of juice, yet remain firm.
I drain the pasta and immediately transfer it to the pan with salmon and cherry tomatoes.
I add the ricotta and pesto cream, gently mixing everything together.
If needed and to avoid a dry result, I add a bit of cooking water to make the sauce creamier.
Taste and adjust the pasta with salmon ricotta pesto and cherry tomatoes with salt and pepper.
I plate the pasta, garnish with some torn fresh basil leaves, and if you like, a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil.
Guys, dinner is ready!!!!!!!!!!
Enjoy and happy cooking!
Annalisa
RECIPES WITH SALMON CLICK → https://blog.giallozafferano.it/asilannablu/ricette-facili-e-appetitose-con-il-salmone/
Tips and variations
For a more intense flavor, replace 1 tablespoon of the pesto cream with some chopped fresh basil leaves.
If you want a citrus note, grate a bit of lemon zest (untreated) over the dish before serving it at the table.
Substitute the cherry tomatoes with zucchini sliced in rounds or sticks for a different version.
While cooking the salmon chunks, add some capers if you like!
