A lovely and delicious recipe made with wild sockeye salmon, fresh herbs and coated with a creamy béchamel sauce. It is definitely a keeper!
This delightful creamy comfort dish is bursting with flavours. The stuffing is fresh and light with the hint of lemon flavour, and the added herbs of tarragon and parsley makes this dish so delicious. The homemade creamy béchamel sauce brings all the flavours and textures together that makes this recipe a hit!
HELPFUL TIPS
Salmon: I added wild canned salmon to this dish. When your time is limited and you want to make life easy for yourself, then canned salmon is a great substitution. If you have leftover salmon, then that would be a perfect choice. When choosing which salmon to buy, I recommend wild salmon as they are caught in the deep cold ocean waters, and high in rich omega 3 and nutrients.
Filling: if you prefer ricotta cheese, rather then cottage cheese then it can be easily substituted. I added 2 tablespoons cream cheese for a little extra creaminess to the filling. The lemon juice gives it a fresh, light and brings all of the flavours together. I really like the tarragon flavour, and how it enhances and pairs nicely with salmon. By adding spinach and parsley for freshness and their health benefits.
Béchamel Sauce: is a go to sauce for fish and seafood. It smooth, creamy and you can add cheese if you so desire to enhance the sauce or even herbs, and garlic.
This recipe is made to serve 3 people. It has 10 shells and depending who you are serving it to and what sides you add along side this dish.
HOW TO MAKE THIS DELICIOUS DISH
Saute the shallots, garlic and spinach, then add it to the mixture with salmon, cottage cheese, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, parsley, tarragon, salt and pepper. Then add the shallots, garlic and spinach mixture and blend ingredients.
Pour half of the béchamel sauce to the baking dish. Fill each shell with filling, and place into the baking dish. Once all the shells are added, then pour the remaining béchamel sauce over the shells. Cover with foil and bake for about 25 minutes, and the last 10 minutes, remove the foil and add Panko breadcrumbs to add a crispy texture.
It only requires 25 minutes in the oven, long enough for the cheese to melt and all of the ingredients stuffed into the shells to merry and all the flavours come together.
There are so many options when it comes to making stuffed shells. This happens to be my first recipe of stuffed shells on my blog, and I have made other variations with ground beef, veal and look forward to adding them to my blog. This dish can be easily served with a toss green salad, asparagus, broccoli or green beans. This dish is like eating an alfredo pasta dish with a lot of similar ingredients, except for the tarragon that I added.
Creamy Wild Salmon Herb Stuffed Shells
Equipment
- skillet
- Large and medium sauce pot
Ingredients
- 10 shell pasta
- 1/2 tsp salt
Stuffing:
- 150 g. (5 oz) wild salmon, canned or cooked fillet
- 3/4 cup cottage cheese
- 2 tbsp cream cheese
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp dried tarragon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup spinach, roughly chopped
Béchamel Sauce:
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter
- 4 tbsp flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper to season
Instructions
- Cook pasta shells according to package directions, drain. Rinse with cool water, and allow to drain.
- Stuffing: Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat, add shallots and saute for about 2 minutes, then add garlic and sauté for about 1 minute. Then add spinach to soften, then turn off heat and set aside.
- Mix together in a large bowl, salmon, cottage cheese, cream cheese, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, parsley, tarragon, salt and pepper. Add the shallots, garlic and spinach mixture and blend ingredients.
- Bechamel Sauce: Melt butter in saucepan over medium-low heat and stir in flour to create a roux (a thick paste). Slowly add milk and whisk until you have a smooth creamy consistency. Do not allow sauce to boil. Add the Parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper.
- Pour half of the béchamel sauce to the baking dish. Fill each shell with filling, and place into the baking dish. Once all the shells are added, then pour almost all of the béchamel sauce over the shells. (leave some extra to add when serving) Cover with foil and bake for about 25 minutes, and the last 10 minutes, remove the foil and add Panko breadcrumbs to add a crispy texture.
- Garnish with remaining parsley, dill and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
Garnish with chopped parsley, dill and parmesan cheese. Serve immediately with a toss salad and light lemon dressing. Happy Eating!
