Carrot Greens Pesto-Topped Roasted Salmon + 2019 Buttonwood Grove Winery Rosé #WinePW #Sponsored

This is a sponsored post written by me in conjunction with the June #WinePW Finger Lakes event.

Wine samples were provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links.

Last month, the Wine Pairing Weekend bloggers focused on the New York Finger Lakes wine region. You can read my event post: Bibimbap with Garden Banchan + Forge Cellars Classique Riesling 2017.

The day before the event, I received a shipment of wine samples from Buttonwood Grove Winery:* 2019. It was too late for me to scramble and post a pairing in time for the event, so my contacts at the Finger Lakes Wine Alliance* and Buttonwood asked for me to do a special tardy post! Done...I'm finally getting caught up this week.

In the Glass

I received a bottle of the 2019 Buttonwood Grove Winery Rosé to taste and pair. Crafted from Cabernet Franc grapes that were hand-picked, the grapes are, then, crushed and soaked with skins-on before pressing. This wine retails for $16 per bottle.

According to the dry-sweet scale on the back of the bottle, this leans towards the dry side, but it was still sweeter than I anticipated. It pours a deep salmon color and has distinct aromas of ripe strawberries. This wine was vibrant and food-friendly. I can see sipping this throughout the summer while dangling my feet in a cool lake.

On the Plate 

Inspired by the color of the wine and my family's recent carrot harvest, I decided to roast some salmon fillets and top it with a fresh pesto made with the top of our homegrown carrots.

Pesto is a sauce that originated in the Ligurian region of northern Italy. Pesto genovese, from Genoa, traditionally consists of crushed garlic, basil, and pine nuts blended with olive oil and Parmigiano Reggiano. The name derives from the Italian verb pestare which means to pound or to crush, referring to the original way of preparing it - with a mortar and pestle. The ingredients in a traditional pesto are ground with a circular motion of the pestle in the mortar. Now I use a food processor. It's much easier! And...I use whatever greens and nuts I happen to have on-hand. So, for this version, I was inspired by these carrot greens.

Ingredients serves 6 to 8

Carrot Greens Pesto (makes more than you need, but depends on your preference)

• 4 cups carrot greens, rinsed and roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh herbs (I used a mixture of basil, parsley, oregano, and thyme)
• 1/2 cup freshly shelled peas plus more for garnish
• 1 Tablespoon crushed garlic
• 1/2 cup ground almonds
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan
• olive oil
• freshly ground pepper
• freshly ground salt
• Also needed: a blender or food processor

Roasted Salmon

• 6 to 8 salmon fillets, skin-on
• 2 to 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• freshly ground salt, to taste
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Also needed: sheetpan, parchment paper or silicone mat

Procedure

Carrot Greens Pesto

Place all of the ingredients into the blender. Pulse a few times, drizzle in olive oil, and resume pulsing.  Pulse. Oil. Pulse. Oil.

If you want a smoother, sauce-like pesto, add more olive oil and blend longer; if you want a chunkier pesto, use less oil and blend for less time.  So simple. So fresh. So fragrant. Set aside until you're ready to make the salmon.

Roasted Salmon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a sheetpan with parchment paper or a silicone mat and set aside. Place the salmon, skin-side up, on the prepared sheet, then spoon 1 Tablespoon of pesto on top of each piece, spreading it to the edges of the fillet. Drizzle olive oil over the top and roast for 12 to 15 minutes.

You want the salmon cooked through, but not overcooked. So, it should flake easily, but still look moist. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving. 

Top each pieces with more pesto and garnish with fresh peas. Serve immediately. I served my carrot greens pesto-topped roasted salmon with a caprese salad and smashed potatoes, similar to these.

Finger Lakes Wine Alliance on the web, on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram

Buttonwood Grove Winery on the web, on Facebook, on Twitter, on Instagram

*Disclosure: I received sample wines for recipe development, pairing, and generating social media traction. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organizer and sponsors of this event.