Hot-smoked salmon pasta

We have been feasting on asparagus during lock down - we are very lucky to have an asparagus farm very close to us and so it has been an essential journey to visit the farm during the week! Usually we have have asparagus for lunch simply cooked and eaten with butter and Parmesan cheese or simply with balsamic vinaigrette .... each to their own. Sweet and simply delicious. To make a change we had hot smoked salmon pasta dish made with asparagus. It was quick easy and only a few ingredients. Delicious and very much a crowd pleaser. Will make again for as long as the asparagus season lasts.

Serves 4

Ingredients
350g asparagus
300g pasta I used linguine
250g hot-smoked salmon skin off
1 lemon
100ml half-fat crème fraiche 

Method

1. Use a vegetable peeler to strip the top tender half of the asparagus stalks into ribbons. Finely slice the remaining stalks, discarding the woody ends. 
2. Cook the pasta in a pan of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions, then drain, reserving a mugful of cooking water. Meanwhile, roughly break the salmon into a large non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. Add the sliced asparagus stalks, and toss occasionally until the pasta’s ready.
3. Finely grate half the lemon zest into the salmon pan, squeeze in half the juice, then toss in the drained pasta, a good splash of the reserved cooking water and the crème fraiche. Add the asparagus ribbons, toss again, then season with sea salt and and black pepper. Serve with lemon wedges.