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Maybe it’s because we love pasta so much that we’re about to say this but really—who doesn’t love pasta?! Do you know one person who doesn’t get excited about the mere thought of sitting down to a plate full of this particular entrée? Especially if it is homemade?
It’s in our humble opinion that the only thing that’s better than a traditional pasta dish like lasagna, spaghetti or chicken alfredo is if it’s topped with some well-seasoned salmon, along with a little zucchini and basil (our mouths are watering, at the very thought!).
If you’re someone who typically waits until you are at your favorite restaurant to have this kind of dish, we’re hoping that we can convince you to take a bit of a different approach. Because it is healthier—and less expensive—to cook at home. Why not surprise yourself and your family and make some of your own zucchini pesto? If you follow the directions, just as we provide them, we can assure you that the end result will be just as good, if not better, than the kind you’d get at any eatery.
Need to get some Salmon for this recipe? Check out Wild Alaskan Company for sustainably sourced fish that can be shipped right to your door! Oh and use PROMO CODE: TRENDY15 at checkout for $15 off your Wild Alaskan Box!
If you are looking to make it with shrimp or scallops, try Fulton Fish Market! They have a great selection of seafood, including shellfish that can be ordered online.
Zucchini Pesto Pasta:
What You’ll Need:
- 1 ½ cups (200 g) of zucchini
- 1 or 1 ½ cups (260 g) of salmon
- About ½ a lemon of juice
- ½ cup (125 g) of olive oil
- ½ cup (40 g) of peanuts
- 1-2 tablespoons (10 g) of basil
- ¼ cup (30 g) of parmesan cheese
- Salt and black pepper
- 5 cups (320 g) of pasta (penne or fusilli are awesome for this recipe)
Step 1: First, I take my grater and shred my zucchini with it (for the record, 1 ½ cups is about 1-2 stalks of zucchini). Then I squeeze the water out and put the shredded results into a strainer, making sure to keep the leftover juice for the pesto that I’m going to prepare later. I add some salt to the zucchini and let it sit for around 10 minutes or so (usually with a plate or bowl on top of it to put some weight on it so the juice can drain even more).
Step 2: In a medium pot of water, I add some more salt and zucchini juice and bring everything to a boil.
Step 3: Next, I pull out my mixer and put the shredded zucchini into it. This is when I also add my fresh basil, peanuts, parmesan cheese and olive oil and mix everything together. (By the way, feel free to add more salt or olive oil if you want a bit more taste.)
SPECIAL NOTE:
If you’re going to serve your pasta right away, you can totally skip over this step. But if you want to serve it later, you can store your fresh pesto by putting it into a glass jar. After you do, pour enough olive oil over the pesto to cover all of it up. Put a lid over it and place the pesto into your freezer.
Step 4: Now it’s time to put your pasta into the pot of boiling water. Check the cooking instructions on the packaging of the pasta so that you avoid overcooking it (overcooked pasta is the worst!).
Step 5: While your pasta is cooking, squeeze some fresh lemon juice onto your salmon (a cup or so is like 5-6 slices of fresh thinly-sliced salmon). Follow that up by sprinkling some black pepper and salt onto your salmon as well. Let the salmon sit for about two minutes so that your newly applied seasoning can “marinate” a bit.
Step 6: Pull out a non-stick frying pan like this one from Target, pour a little olive oil into it and turn your burner onto low-medium heat. Then put your pieces of salmon into the frying pan, once piece at a time. Making sure that each piece fits fully and comfortably into the pan.
Step 7: Use your cooking utensil to gently break the salmon into smaller pieces. Once it is cooked thoroughly (meaning, there is now raw pink appearance anywhere). Pull the salmon off of your burner and add the pesto to it and mix everything together.
Step 9: Then add your pasta into your salmon pesto sauce and mix again. It will turn your pasta a light green color which is just what you want it to do.
Then pull out your favorite bottle of wine (a Pinot Noir is amazing!) and enjoy. Really…enjoy!
Need an appetizer for for this meal? Have some zucchini to spare? Check out these delicious quinoa, cheese and zucchini fritters everyone at your dinner will love!
