Linguine with Smoked Salmon in Sherry Cream Sauce

The Fish Market, a quite serviceable Arizona/California seafood restaurant/seafood retail store chain, makes a made-to-order creamy deliciousness of a dish called Pasta Con Nova I often find myself craving.

I really can't recall what they put in it, nor were my Googling attempts fruitful. I even resorted to calling my local Fish Market and talking to the girl who answered the phone about what is in the pasta. After 5 brain-damaging minutes of my life wasted talking to her, I decided to improvise.

I have no idea if this even vaguely resembles the Fish Market's Pasta Con Nova, but it's great and can be made in less than 20 minutes with ingredients from the fridge/pantry.

Pasta Con Nova (Linguine with Smoked Salmon in a Sherry Cream Sauce):
(serves 6-8)
1 lb dried linguine
8 oz high-quality smoked Alaskan salmon
2 c half and half (can use cream)
1/2 c sherry
1 shallot, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c fresh parsley, chopped
Olive oil
Salt and white pepper to taste

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Salt the water (salty like the sea). Boil linguine 8-9 minutes or until almost al dente. It won't be quite done.

Meanwhile, saute shallots and garlic in olive oil in a saute pan. Add sherry and simmer until reduced by at least half and liquid has turned golden brown and thickened slightly. Add half/half and bring back to a simmer.

Drain pasta, reserving at least 1/4 c of the cooking water. Add the pasta and cooking water to saute pan, toss and continue to simmer for about 2-3 minutes. Add parsley and salmon, salt and pepper to taste and toss, heating salmon and absorbing liquid into pasta. Serve immediately once pasta has absorbed enough liquid.