This Basil Pesto Pasta with Salmon and Ronde de Nice is so fresh and summery. It’s the perfect meal to make if you have a ton of basil lying around from your garden. Salmon and juicy ronde de nice dress this delicious basil pesto pasta up nicely.
This past Sunday felt almost normal for the first time since the pandemic started. The day started at the farmers market, that was surprisingly full of people. The last time I went it was eerily empty. It felt good to see people out and about and dressed up again. We got a ton of veggies and fish with friends and made a big dinner that night that involved lots of wine and laughter.
What is Ronde de Nice?
Ronde de Nice is a French small round heirloom squash that has a similar flesh to a zucchini. It’s easy to cut and is an ideal squash to stuff. I love it because the skin is soft enough to eat, and well, because it’s just a cute ass little vegetable.
How to make the pasta
- Make the basil pesto. Using a food processor, add the walnuts, garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and pulse until roughly chopped. Add the basil and pulse until combined. While the food processor is running, slowly add the olive oil. Add the Parmesan Romano and pulse again until combined.
- Marinate the Salmon and Ronde de Nice. Take 1/4 of the pesto and place it in a small bowl. The rest will be used as a sauce for the pasta. Place the salmon in a large Tupperware and cover the top with a scoop of the pesto. Take the Ronde de Nice wedges and dip them into the pesto, so all sides are covered. Place them into the container with the salmon and marinate for at least 1 hour in the fridge or overnight.
- Grill the salmon and Ronde de Nice. Set a grill to medium low heat. Grill the marinated salmon skin side down until it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Grill the Ronde de Nice either in a grill pan (I used one) or directly on the grill until soft and tender.
- Make the pasta. While grilling, boil water in a large pot with salted water. When the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente.
- Put it all together. Take the remaining pesto and toss it with the pasta. If your pasta appears a little dry, add a few dashes of olive oil. Cut the salmon into chunks and add the salmon and Ronde de Nice to the pasta. Garnish with basil leaves and fresh grated Parmesan Romano cheese.
Basil Pesto Pasta with Grilled Salmon and Ronde de Nice
Ingredients
Basil Pesto
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- juice from 1 lemon
- 3 garlic cloves
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cracked pepper
- 2 cups fresh basil
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan Romano cheese
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
Grilled Salmon and Ronde de Nice
- 1 large salmon filet
- 2 ronde de nice, sliced into wedges
Pasta
- 1 lb fettuccini
- olive oil, for drizzling
- basil leaves for garnish
- extra Parmesan Romano for garnish
Instructions
To make the Basil Pesto
- In a food processor, add the walnuts, lemon juice, garlic, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper. Pulse until well chopped.
- Add the fresh basil and pulse until well combined with the walnut mixture. While the processor is running, slowly add the olive oil.
Marinate the salmon and Ronde de Nice
- To marinate the salmon and ronde de nice you will use ¼ of the pesto. Separate the ¼ for the marinade in a small bowl. Set the remaining ¾ for the pasta aside. Place the salmon in a Tupperware or large plastic bag and with a big scoop of pesto. Take the ronde de nice and dip them in the pesto and place them into the Tupperware or bag. Marinate in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
Grill the salmon and Ronde de Nice
- Set a grill to medium low heat. Grill the marinated salmon skin side down until it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Grill the Ronde de Nice either in a grill pan (I used one) or directly on the grill until soft and tender.
Make the pasta
- While grilling, boil water in a large pot with salted water. When the water is boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Take the remaining pesto and toss it with the pasta. If your pasta appears a little dry, add a few dashes of olive oil. Cut the salmon into chunks and add the salmon and Ronde de Nice to the pasta. Garnish with basil leaves and fresh grated Parmesan Romano cheese.
Looking for more salmon recipes? Try making salmon rice bowls with avocado pepita sauce or pan seared tuscan salmon with a creamed cauliflower sauce.