Tante Marie's Cooking School

July 6, 1999

A really fun thing to do is smoked fresh salmon yourself in a stovetop smoker. Simply coat the fish with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place it in the smoker over a small amount of chips—in 20 minutes you will have home-smoked salmon. Although this recipe uses several pans, most of it can be done ahead and it is a light and delicious supper dish.

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Tante Marie’s Penne with Smoked Salmon and Asparagus

Ingredients
1 lb. penne
coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 oz. smoked salmon
1/2 lb. fresh asparagus, preferable thin
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
zest of 1 lemon
juice of half a lemon
1 Tbs. butter
1 Tbs. olive oil

Instructions
Bring a medium-sized pan of water to the boil. Wash the asparagus and cut into 1 inch pieces. When the water boils, add 1 tsp. salt, and the asparagus. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes until the asparagus is tender when pierced with a fork. Drain and refresh under cold water. Cut the smoked salmon into 1 inch pieces.

Place half the stock in a small saucepan and let simmer for 10 minutes, until reduced by half. Add the remaining stock and continue cooking until you have about 1 cup liquid. Turn off heat.

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add 1 Tbs. salt. Toss in the pasta and stir to separate. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the pasta is al dente, or tender when tasted. Drain the pasta and return it to the warm pot.

Add the asparagus, smoked salmon, lemon zest, lemon juice, butter, olive oil, and stock. Stir to incorporate all the flavors. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve on warm plates or bowls.

Serves 4.