I made this easy dish for dinner on Sunday night. I wasn’t sure whether the kids would like it, as they’re not crazy about salmon. (So why did I make it, you ask? Ah, you forget that it’s all about me.) The good news…everyone loved it. I had made baked salmon the day before (yes, I like salmon. A lot.) and baked two extra fillets, which I used for this.
Cook 1 lb. of penne according to directions (add some salt to the water). While pasta is cooking, make a bechamel sauce. (The original recipe called for heavy cream, but I prefer to make bechamel, because it’s much lower in fat and therefore, lower in calories and not as filling.) To make bechamel sauce, melt 2 Tbsp. of butter in a sauce pan on medium low heat. Add 1 1/2 Tbsp. of flour and whisk. Cook for 3 minutes over medium-low heat. Gradually stir in 1 1/2 cups of skim milk, stirring constantly. Keep stirring until sauce thickens. (You have to be patient, as this can take 15-20 minutes. Don’t give up.) When the sauce starts to thicken, add several cloves of crushed garlic. Turn off heat and add 1 cup of baby peas (I used frozen peas that I steamed in the microwave for 2 minutes), the left-over salmon, which I “shredded” (or whatever you would call smushing it up with my fingers so it fell apart) and lots of chopped fresh dill, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir it all together. Mix with penne pasta and serve.
I served the pasta with ciabatta bread, which I bought at Jewel and baked.
Easy and delicious.
Laughter is the Best Medicine 