Steamed Salmon w/ Greens, Corn, & Pickled Vegetables

Happy Friday guys!

We've got a big Labor Day weekend planned, too!  Our great friends Ike & Becca are getting married tomorrow - so congrats to the future Lehrs! 

Sunday, we'll probably head out to World Fest - which showcases the cultural diversity of Louisville by food, music, and shops!  We went last year and had a great time, so looking forward to that one! 

Still don't have any Labor Day plans, but if all else fails, I know we'll be lounging around - which is good enough for me!  Anyway, let's get to today's dish!

We haven't been eating a lot of red meat around these parts.  I don't know why, we've just been opting for lighter meals.  Salmon is always a favorite of ours, and when I saw this simple dish over at Joanne's Eats Well With Others, I knew I had to try it out!


Ingredients:
Adapted from Eats Well With Others' Recipe

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1-inch thick slice of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1/2 cup kale, chopped
1/2 cup spinach
1/2 cup mizuna greens
1 tablespoon soy sauce, plus extra for drizzling
2 6 oz. salmon fillets
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups fresh corn
pickled vegetables

In a large skillet under medium high heat, add both oils.  Add the ginger and garlic powder.  Stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add kale, spinach, mizuna, soy sauce, and 3 tablespoons of water.  Saute until the greens start to wilt, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Spread the greens in an even layer in the skillet.  Season the salmon with salt and pepper and place the fillets on top of the greens in the skillet.  Cover pan and lower heat to medium.  Steam fish for about 5-7 minutes, or until just cooked through. 

You can choose to cook your corn if you'd like, but I'm weird and I like the taste of raw corn.  Divide corn among two plates and top with salmon fillets.  Serve alongside the greens and pickled vegetables.  Drizzle additional sesame oil, soy sauce, and/or remaining steam liquid in pan (it was infused with the garlic and ginger, so it's tasty!).

This was a great meal.  Andy and I both had our plates cleaned on this one.  That's a sure sign of a winner there!

Hope you guys have a great holiday weekend and I'll be back Monday!

One Big Mouthful: Cheeseburgers

Alright.  This is going to be a semi-tutorial type of post.  This is one of those things I learned a while back... that you don't need fancy equipment to get certain things done in the kitchen.  Case in point... grinding your own meat.

You don't need a special attachment on your Kitchen-Aid Mixer.  You don't need a full-fledged meat grinder.  You don't need to spend a bunch of money on things you don't really need in order to get the job done.  Now, I'm not saying that if you have that spare cash, and like new gadgets, that you shouldn't go get them... by all means, spend away.  But if you're a tight-budgeted college student like myself... you find shortcuts.

So what exactly do you need to grind your own meat at home?  Well... just 3 simple things.  (Most of which are found in EVERY kitchen, or can be borrowed from a friend, parent, or neighbor)

1. Food Processor
2. Freezer 
3. Meat

Sounds simple enough, right?  Well let's do it to it.


Ingredients:
Adapted from Bon Appetit's recipe

1 lb. sirloin, cut into cubes
1 lb. short ribs, meat cut from bone
1 lb. skirt steak, cut into strips
5 strips bacon, chopped
3 ounces bone marrow, chilled (I roasted about 5 soup bones and scooped the marrow out)
1 tablespoon red miso mixed in 1/4 cup water, chilled
1 tablespoon Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce 
olive oil, for brushing

optional toppings:

sliced cheddar cheese
challah buns
tomato slices
red onion slices
watercress sprigs
sliced pickles
ketchup

So first, what you'll want to do is spread your 3 meat products and the bacon on a baking sheet or bowl that will fit in your freezer.  Place in freezer for about 30-45 minutes, or until pieces are partially frozen.  This will help your food processor break down the meat easier.

Working in batches, add the meat to your food processor and set on low until you get your preferred grind, maybe about a minute or two.  And voila!  You have your very own ground beef for use in burgers, meatloaf, tacos, you name it!  So let's get to these burgers.

In a large bowl, combine 1 lb. ground beef (I saved the remainder of my ground beef for other uses) and bone marrow.  Add miso mixture and Worcestershire sauce, and stir just to incorporate.  Divide beef into 4 nicely-sized patties.  Generously season each patty with salt and pepper.

Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add burgers to skillet and cook for about 5-7 minutes per side, for a nice medium.  About 1 minute before burgers are done, add slices of cheddar cheese and cook until melted.  Remove from heat and let rest for about 2-3 minutes.

Toast your challah buns, if desired, and begin to assemble burgers.  We went with bottom bun, burger, tomato slice, red onion slice, watercress, pickles, ketchup, and top bun.  We had potato chips as a nice and easy side item!

These burgers were awesome!  Juicy, delicious, and well worth the effort to grind our own meat!  These were perfect for eating while watching the football games on Sunday, too!  They could definitely be made to be mini sliders also! 

And by the way, I received a few free coupons for some Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce from Foodbuzz's Tastemaker program and believe that the added flavor of the Worcestershire sauce definitely gave these burgers a great hint of flavor!


And it's Wednesday CSA day...  I'm getting kind of sad because we've only got 2 more pick-ups before the season is over!  But they're definitely loading us up!

 3 ears of popcorn corn (I'm pretty excited about this one!)
1 head of cabbage
1 bunch mizuna (this is new for me and I had to Google it... it's similar to arugula, but less of a peppery taste)
1 bunch of kale greens
2 turnips
2 lbs. red potatoes
2 lbs. apples
1 french baguette