Salmon BLT's

Sometimes the simplest things in life are some of the best. I have this ongoing suspicion that the city of Louisville is against me and finding trout. Every time I set out to cook trout for dinner, I can't find it anywhere. Not at Whole Foods, not at Kroger, not anywhere! And so yesterday was no exception, but we decided to with some Sockeye Salmon instead. And honestly, I think it was meant to be. Because these sandwiches were delicious, simple, and made me forget all about my trout woes. And plus, I'm on vacation so I couldn't stress about it too much!


Ingredients:
Adapted from Food & Wine's June 2010 issue - "Grilled-Trout BLT"

4 slices of whole wheat bread, toasted
2 6 oz. salmon fillets, skin on
3 scallions, roughly chopped
1/2 tablespoon capers
small handful italian parsley, chopped
juice from 1 lemon
zest from 1 lemon
3/4 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
6 slices habanero bacon (this was apparently a quick seller at Whole Foods and I HIGHLY recommend it if it's available), cooked
2 thick slices of tomato
2 large leaves of lettuce

Start by making your lemon-caper mayo. In a bowl of a food processor, combine scallions, capers, parsley, lemon juice, lemon zest, and mayonnaise. Pulse a few times until everything is combined well. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to small bowl.

Light a charcoal grill under medium high heat. Rub small amount of olive oil onto salmon fillets. Season with salt and pepper. Spread desired amount of lemon mayo on salmon fillets. Grill salmon fillets, skin side down first, on direct heat for about 3-4 minutes per side.

To assemble sandwiches, place a good amount of leftover lemon mayo onto bottom slice of toast. Place lettuce leaf atop mayo and add salmon fillet. Top with tomato and 3 sliced of bacon. Close sandwich with remaining piece of toast and enjoy!

I found it really hard not to like this sandwich. Who knows, it could have turned out worse with the actual trout? We'll never know will we? But what I do know, is that salmon saved the day and made these a permanent sandwich in the sandwich rotation! Enjoy!

Salmon Hash

Well, I just have to get through one more work day and I'll be plummeted into stay-cation bliss. Yup, that's right, I said stay-cation. Sometimes, just a vacation off of work is good enough. We don't need to go anywhere or do anything, we just need a break from the stress. Although we do have a few mini-trips to go on, (i.e. driving up to Indianapolis on Monday to have dinner with Andy's parents and some possible sight-seeing, and Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN for some childish fun, maybe a day or two of some hiking up at the Gorge), it's mostly going to be some time to relax at home with the dogs. What could be better?

This past weekend I made this Salmon Hash and it was pretty awesome. Hearty, delicious, unique. Definitely some comfort food. And the glaze for the salmon is my new favorite topping because it's seriously out of this world.


Ingredients:
Adapted from Food & Wine's June 2010 issue - 'Salmon, Bacon, & Potato Hash'

1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup horseradish sauce
2 tablespoons honey
2 6 oz. salmon fillets, skin on
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional for rubbing
salt and pepper to taste
5 medium red potatoes
4 thick slices of bacon, chopped
1 onion, diced
1 Granny Smith apple, diced
2-3 fried eggs

To prepare the salmon glaze, in a small bowl, mix together Dijon mustard, horseradish sauce, and honey until well combined.

Rub olive oil on both sides of salmon fillets and season with salt and pepper.


Light a grill under medium high heat and grill salmon, skin side down, for about 3 minutes. Turn then grill for an additional 3 minutes, until salmon is almost cooked through. Turn salmon and spread glaze on top. Let heat for about 30 seconds and turn once more. Glaze that side of salmon and grill for about 30 seconds longer. (At this point, the salmon is perfect to eat as is also!) Transfer to a plate and tent with foil.


To prepare the hash, in a large pot of salted water, bring the potatoes to a boil. Bring heat to medium high and let cook for about 15 minutes, or until they are starting to become tender. Drain the water and carefully peel the potatoes (I would use a napkin to hold the potatoes because those suckers are gonna be hot!). Cut the potatoes into a small dice and set aside.

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until starting to crisp, about 5 minutes or so. Transfer to a napkin-lined plate with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to same large skillet used for bacon. Add the diced potatoes and cook over medium high heat for about 10 minutes, or until they are starting to brown. Cover the skillet and let cook under low heat for about 10 minutes, or until tender.

Add onions and apples to potatoes. Cover and cook for about 7-10 more minutes, or until apples start to become tender. Quickly chop the salmon into decent sized pieces and stir into mixture. Cover and cook for 2 to 4 more minutes, or until salmon is warmed. Stir in bacon and remaining glaze if you have some left over. Season with salt and pepper, if needed and serve with a fried egg on top!

The key here is totally the fried egg. It just sets it off, because the yolk runs into the hash and there's nothing more pleasing to me than a runny yolk! Call me weird, but this is just damn good! Enjoy and have a great weekend everyone!

Grilled Salmon w/ Black Beans

Oh mother nature. I've been a really big mother nature rant lately, but it's just been such bizarre weather. Take for instance today. It rained bloody murder all morning. For once, I was glad to be inside and at work. (Raining cats and dogs = less customers wanting to come in = less stress for me) But now, as I'm about to head out to my volleyball game, it's sunshine and roses. Which is a good thing because our volleyball league plays, regardless of the weather, unless it's a threat to our lives. Meaning it was must be the Great Flood, or Zeus striking us dead with lightning, for our games to stop. So I guess in this case, I'm grateful for the sunshine... but c'mon already, make up your mind mother nature!


Ingredients:
Adapted from Bon Appetit's May 2010 Issue: Grilled Salmon w/ Black Beans & Piment D'Espelette Mayonnaise

1/3 cup olive oil
5 garlic cloves, 2 pressed, 3 minced
freshly grated lime peel
1 tablespoon dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
2 7 oz. salmon fillets, skin on
1 onion, chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
1 roma tomato, chopped
1 jalapeno chile, chopped
2 15 oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon cumin
small handful cilantro, chopped

Whisk the olive oil, pressed garlic, lime peel, thyme, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a small baking dish. Place the salmon, skin-side down, in the dish. Brush the marinade over the top and sides of fish. Let chill in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, celery, tomatoes, jalapenos, and minced garlic. Cook until vegetables are starting to soften, about 5 minutes.

Stir in black beans and cumin. Reduce heat and cook for about 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in cilantro and set aside.

Spray grill with nonstick spray and heat to medium high. Arrange the salmon on the grill, skin side up and spray skin with nonstick spray. Grill salmon for about 4-5 minutes. Carefully flip over and grill for about 3 more minutes, or until opaque all the way through.

Serve fish with black beans and dig on in!

This was pretty delicious. Aside from the small mishap of my charcoal grill going crazy. You wanna watch the salmon closely. Since you marinated it in olive oil, it's kinda really flammable if you're grill is sensitive... like mine was. It pretty much charred my skin (and that's my favorite part!), but the salmon itself was nice and smokey and delicious. Enjoy!