Basil, Ginger & Pine Nut Crusted Salmon

I love doing crusted fish; it adds such a great texture, and you can do so much with different flavors. Last night, I decided on one of my favorite flavor combinations--basil, ginger, garlic & pine nut. It's pretty much a pesto coating, with ginger added for an extra little kick. I used my immersion blender attachment to grind everything into a paste, smeared it on the salmon, then baked it open in the oven. Yum!

P.S. I made this recipe with macadamia nuts over Passover and it was a huge hit. You can also use one whole fillet rather than a few smaller ones.

Basil, Ginger & Pine Nut Crusted Salmon

Ingredients:

12 large basil leaves
1/4 cup raw pine nuts
1 garlic clove, peeled
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled
1/8 tsp salt
pinch black pepper
1 tsp olive oil
fresh salmon (about 16 ounces)

Directions:

1. Finely chop ingredients (excluding salmon) by hand or grind in an immersion blender.
2. Place salmon on a baking sheet, spread basil-nut crust over fish, and bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until salmon is cooked to your preference.

The cost:
basil: 1.99
nuts: 4.99
ginger: .89
salmon: 8.99

Grand total: $16.86; serves 2 + lunch tomorrow

Dinner Party Appetizer: Sesame-Soy Salmon w/ Crispy Brown Rice Cake

For my dinner party I wanted to start with a fish course; I like Asian flavors for salmon, so I created a sesame-soy marinade with a little bit of sriracha for heat. While the salmon lay soaking up those wonderful flavors, I put together an accompaniment for the plate. I wanted something with crunch and texture to help offset the softness of the salmon, so I decided to make brown rice cakes that I pan fried until they were nice and crispy. I should have made more--they were the hit of the night!

Sesame-Soy Salmon

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp rice vinegar (I used garlic flavored)
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tsp agave, honey or brown sugar
1/2 tsp sriracha (more if you like it spicy)
1.5 lbs salmon, cut into individual portions

Directions:

1. In a large ziploc bag, mix together soy sauce, vinegar, oil, sesame seeds, agave and sriracha. Add salmon and marinate for at least 1 hour.
2. Remove salmon from marinade, place on baking sheet and bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 6-8 minutes or until cooked through.

Crispy Brown Rice Cakes

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
5 cremini mushrooms, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely grated
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 egg
oil for frying (I used vegetable)

Directions:

1. Heat oils in deep saute pan and cook garlic over medium-low heat until browned, 5-6 minutes. Add mushrooms and carrots and cook 5-6 minutes until soft. Remove from heat.
2. Combine mushroom mixture with cooked brown rice and salt. Allow to cool (you don't want to scramble the egg). Add egg and stir until evenly mixed.
3. Heat 1/4 inch of oil in saute pan.
4. Divide rice mixture into balls about the size of a ping pong ball (I made 15 or so), then flatten into thick patties. When oil is hot, fry patties 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown and crispy.

The cost:
salmon: 9.16
rice: 2.99
carrots: .99
cremini mushrooms: 1.99
other ingredients: <1.00

Grand total: $16.13; serves 8-9 as an appetizer

Pine Nut, Parsley & Mustard Seed Crusted Salmon

My Penzey's purchase this past weekend also included a bag of yellow mustard seeds (smells like pickles, or rather pickles smell like it because it's a common pickling spice! A little spicy, a little bitter, really great flavor). After browsing the internet for some uses, I decided to use it to crust fish; I wanted to make sure there was enough texture so I added pine nuts, and for color and flavor: Parsley, ginger, garlic, salt and pepper (sort of like a parsley pesto--I should try it with basil next time!).

Pine Nut, Parsley & Mustard Seed Crusted Salmon

Ingredients:

1 lb salmon fillet
2 Tbsp pine nuts, coarsely crushed
2 Tbsp mustard seed, coarsely crushed
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 Tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
pinch of cracked black pepper

Directions:

1. Place fish skin-side down on a baking sheet.
2. Roughly blend together remaining ingredients to form a paste  (I used my immersion blender attachment, but you can also finely chop everything then mix together); spread over salmon, pressing firmly to coat.
3. Broil 4-6 minutes until fish is cooked through and nut/seed crust is toasty brown.

Serve over rice or quinoa (1 cup = .99) with roasted brussel sprouts (2.49)

The cost:
salmon: 6.99
parsley: 1.00 (on sale at Shoppers)

Grand total: $7.99 ($11.47 for the whole meal); serves 4

Ginger-Lemon Tuna Steaks & Roasted Vegetable Medley

Thanks to everyone who has sent me feedback about the blog, both publicly and privately. It really helps to know what people are enjoying, and what they'd like to see more of!

This blog post is for you, DSK--one non-vegetarian full dinner menu coming right up! (P.S. I didn't know you always wanted to be in my Home Ec group. Thanks for sharing that with me :))

I had a long day at work and came home with the overwhelming desire to make a flavorful and healthy meal. I had a lot of leftover veggies from my soup earlier this week, as well as tuna steaks in the freezer, so I decided on ginger-lemon tuna steaks, a roasted vegetable medley, and brown basmati rice.

Ginger-Lemon Tuna Steaks

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp honey or agave
1/2 tsp salt
pinch of pepper
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
1 lemon, sliced
2 tuna steaks, defrosted

Directions:

1. In a shallow dish, combine all ingredients except tuna.
2. Place tuna in dish and coat both sides with marinade. Allow to sit in marinade for at least 15 minutes (while you prep your veggies!).
3. Cook tuna on the stove 3-4 minutes on each side (more or less depending on how you like your tuna), or roast in a foil packet in oven 8-10 minutes at 425 degrees (layer lemon slices on tuna while it steams if you do it this way).

Roasted Vegetable Medley

Ingredients:

10 baby potatoes, cubed
1 sweet onion, chopped into large pieces
4 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 parsnips, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt, pepper and garlic powder

Directions:

1. Place veggies in a baking pan; drizzle with olive oil and season liberally with salt, pepper and GP.
2. Bake in oven at 425 degrees, 50-60 minutes or until roasted and tender (I like to roast 30ish minutes covered, 30ish uncovered).

Serve over brown basmati rice.

The cost:
tuna: 4.71
lemon: .29
veggies: already paid for in previous recipe
rice: .55

Grand total: $5.55

Salmon w/ Caramelized Leeks

For those of you who enjoyed my previous post, I did promise to share my salmon recipe at some point, so here you go!

Note: I like to use 2-3 smaller fillets because they cook faster and I like it when the edges of each piece get all brown and crispy, but you can also use one whole fillet, just adjust the cooking time accordingly (add more time for larger pieces).

Salmon w/ Caramelized Leeks

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 leeks, white part only
1 shallot, sliced thin
1 Tbsp honey (agave or brown sugar work too)
1 lb salmon
salt and pepper
1 lemon

Directions:

1. Slice leeks lengthwise, rinse well to remove any grit, pat dry, and chop.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan and saute leeks and shallots until soft and browned. Add honey and stir to melt.
3. Season fish on both sides with salt and pepper. Add to pan skin side up and spread the leek mixture over the fish so it can soak up the flavor while it cooks. Cook 4-5 minutes or until fish browns and looks pink about half-way through (red = not cooked, pink = cooked).
   
4. Scrape leek mixture off of fish and flip each fillet, then spread leek mixture on other side. Squeeze lemon over top of fish. Cook 3-4 more minutes or until fish is flaky and pink all the way through.

The cost:
leeks: 1.98
shallot: .98
salmon: 5.99
lemon: .39

Grand total: $9.34; serves 3-4 over rice with a side of steamed veggies

Foil Packet Fish

I eat a lot of fish--salmon, tuna, snapper, tilapia--because it's nutrient rich, not too expensive and super easy to cook a single portion. Just drizzle the fish with a little oil, throw in some fresh herbs or citrus, wrap it all up in a foil packet then pop it in the oven to steam (15ish minutes at 400 degrees, give or take).

My fave fish flavor combos (okay that was a bit much with the alliteration, even for me):

• Olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon slices; after baking finish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• Olive oil, salt, pepper, whole chives or chopped scallions
• Olive oil, salt, pepper, orange slices, dash of chili powder; after baking finish with a squeeze of fresh orange juice
  
• Sesame oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dash of soy sauce, sprinkle of brown sugar; finish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds
  
• Olive oil, salt, pepper, chopped dill, lemon slices

Serve over rice or quinoa with a side of steamed veggies.

Spicy Cajun Salmon w/ Caramelized Leeks

I'm in Dallas for the Thanksgiving holiday visiting my sister and her family, and very much enjoying the sunny weather as well as my sister's cooking. As you may have read in a previous post, my sister is an unbelievably good cook (although I made my cholent this week and her husband couldn't stop raving, so at least I know I got some of the good chef genes :)). She made this salmon for dinner, which is similar to a recipe I have made except she does a savory rather than my sweet version (stay tuned for my version in the near future).

Note: Fresh salmon is always better than frozen, but frozen can work just as well (make sure to thaw completely in cold water before baking). You can use just one filet, or multiple small filets, but make sure to reduce the cooking time accordingly if you are using smaller pieces.

Spicy Cajun Salmon w/ Caramelized Leeks

1 tsp vegetable oil
2 leeks, cleaned & chopped
1 lb salmon, deboned
1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Heat oil in saute pan and cook leeks over medium flame until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Place salmon on greased cooking sheet. Rub seasoning all over salmon, then pour leeks over top, spreading evenly to cover fish.
4. Bake in oven 15-20 minutes or until fish is flaky, interior is pink and cooked, and leeks have caramelized (if leeks are getting very brown and fish is not yet cooked all the way through, cover with foil to avoid burning).
5. Finish with a splash of lemon juice just before serving.
   

The cost:
leeks: 2.00
salmon: 6.99

Grand total: 8.99; serves 4-6 as an appetizer, 3-4 as a main.

Asian-Style Tuna Steak

As you've probably figured out by now, I'm a fan of easy and flavorful recipes. I also like recipes that are flexible and allow me to use the same flavor profile with multiple items.

This is one of my go-to recipes: An Asian-inspired marinade provides a delightful medley of sweet, salty, tangy and spicy flavors. I use tuna here, but you could also substitute chicken, steak or tofu as the marinade works equally well with most proteins.

Asian-Style Tuna Steak

Ingredients:

1 4-6 oz tuna steak, defrosted
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar or honey
a dash of pepper
a dash or two of hot sauce (depending on how hot you like it)
1 garlic clove, peeled and sliced
1/4 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced (or 1/8 tsp ground ginger)

Directions:

1. Place tuna in zip-top bag.
2. Whisk together all other ingredients and pour over tuna. Refrigerate and marinate for at least 15 minutes (I like to prep this the night before and marinate until I get home).
3. Bake tuna in the oven at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or grill on the stove top over medium-high heat, 3-4 minutes on each side (cooking time will depend on the thickness of your steaks and how rare/well done you like your fish; I like to cook mine all the way through).

Fun tag-alongs:

• Throw a sliced bell pepper, portabello mushroom or baby bok choy on the grill with the tuna.
• Steam some edamame, toss with a little sea salt and serve with the tuna.
• Slice tuna, lay over mixed baby greens and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.
• Serve over fresh basmati rice or quinoa.
  

The cost:
tuna steak: 1.75
other ingredients: <.50

Grand total: $2.25 (give or take)

Note: This also makes a fantastic salad dressing; triple everything but the garlic & ginger, blend, pour over a mix of sliced baby bok choy, cucumber, radish, scallions, & dried cranberries; sprinkle with crunchy asian noodles or toasted sesame seeds right before serving.