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

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

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.