Tagliatelle with salmon and pesto

Method

1. First, make the pesto. Ensure the greens are dry before blending. Place the first five ingredients in a blender (or a hand blender or pestle and mortar). Blend briefly on pulse until the greens and walnuts are chopped. Whiz again briefly, pouring in the olive oil.

2. Remove to a bowl, fold in most of the Parmesan cheese, keeping a little for sprinkling. If you’ve no wild garlic or watercress, use 113g baby spinach. To cook the pasta, bring 8 pints of water to a fast rolling boil and add 2 teaspoon of salt.

3. Follow the cooking directions on the packet. Place Tagliatelle in vigorously boiling water and stir immediately to separate the strands. The pasta will take 6-8 minutes to cook.

4. While the pasta is cooking, heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the salmon cubes and season with salt and pepper. Cook over a low to medium heat until the salmon is cooked through.

5. When the pasta is cooked, leaving a slight bite (“al dente”), drain it, reserving some of the pasta cooking water. Rinse the pasta under hot water to remove excess starch. Mix four tablespoons of pasta water into the pesto to thin it out (this allows you to use less oil when making the pesto).

6. Place the pasta in a large warm bowl and coat evenly with the pesto. Finally, add the cooked salmon cubes and uncooked baby spinach leaves. Toss gently without breaking up the salmon. Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts, grated Parmesan and wild garlic flowers.
   This recipe is from Debbie Shaw of the Ballymaloe Cookery School