Microwave Salmon

 Microwave Salmon?!? WHAT?  No, seriously, this is awesome.  Super great flavor, super quick.  I'm 'hooked'. Hahahahaha.  Thanks, Jean, for the recipe!

Microwave Salmon

12 oz. or so salmon, skin on or off, either works

2 t. salt

2 c. lukewarm water

Seasoning of your choice (this time I used salt, lemon pepper, and dried dill)

Put the salmon in a dish with sides that can go in the microwave so it fits snuggly.  Sprinkle with your seasonings.  

Dissolve the salt in the water and pour in the salmon dish, but don't cover the salmon.  Have the top exposed.

Cover the salmon dish with a plate or loose plastic wrap.  Microwave for 4 minutes.  Then let it sit for another 4 minutes before uncovering.

Remove from the water and serve.

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oz = ounce

t = teaspoon

c = cup

Italian Seasoning

 Make your own Italian Seasoning -- don't buy it!

1 T. dried basil

1 T. dried oregano

1 T. dried thyme

1 T. dried Marjoram

2 t. dried Sage

1 T. dried Rosemary

Popovers

 Guess who got a popover pan for Christmas?  ME!  I found this recipe on the King Arthur flour website and it was duplicated on another site that said it was the 'best'.   We enjoyed them!  They are large and tasty.  

Popovers

4 eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 c. whole milk, lukewarm at 110 degrees or so

3/4 t. salt

1 1/2 c. flour (178 grams)

3 T. melted butter, slightly cooled

In a blender, combine the eggs, salt and milk.

Add the flour and blend. Then add the butter.  Blend until frothy.

Let it sit for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Position the oven racks so one rack is at the top setting and another is in the bottom third of the oven so there is room for the popovers to pop.

Put the popover pan on a sheet pan in the hot oven for 2 minutes.  Remove it from the oven and spray  the insides and rims of each popover pan section with nonstick spray.

Split the runny batter between the 6 popover cups.  Bake for 20 minutes, trying not to open the oven as they rise.  After 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake another 10 minutes.  If the tops are getting over-browned, slip a sheet pan on the top shelf to shield the popovers from burning. 

Remove the popovers from the oven and pierce each popover with a paring knife to release steam.  Slip  them from the pan and enjoy.  

Warm is best.  These are best right out of the oven.  If you need to make in advance, you can warm them in a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes or so to reheat and maybe crisp up again.

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t = teaspoon

T = tablespoon

c = cup

Pasta Fagioli

 I signed up for a recipe site geared toward a healthy eating plan for 'maturing' women recently.  I've tried some awesome stuff from them. homemademethod.com.  This one is going to be on repeat.  It is SO GOOD. This is a 6 serving recipe below.

Pasta e Fagioli

2 T. olive oil, divided

1 lb. ground beef, grass fed preferred

1 1/2 c. diced onion

2 c. diced carrots

4 stalks celery diced

3 c. kale spines removed, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

4 c. chicken or veggie stock

2 T. tomato paste

2 cans diced tomatoes

t t. coconut sugar

1 T. Italian seasoning

1 t. salt

1 t. pepper

1/2 c. water or more as needed

1 c. Ditalini pasta, dry (or macaroni noodles work too)

1 can kidney beans drained and rinsed

1 can cannellini beans drained and rinsed

For serving (optional):

1/2 c. parsley, fresh, roughly chopped

1/2 c. parmesan cheese, shredded

Heat 1 T. oil in a large pat over med high heat.  Add the beef and cook and break it apart until fully cooked.

Drain the fat from the pot and transfer the meat to a bowl aside.

Cook the pasta to al dente.  Drain and set aside.

Heat 1 T. oil in the same pot.  Add the onions, carrots, and celery and sauté over med high heat until tender, about 6 minutes.  Add the kale and garlic and sauté 1 minute longer.  

Add the stock, tomato past, tomatoes, sugar, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to med low.  Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the veggies are soft, 15-20 minutes.  Add water if needed.

Add the pasta and beans to the soup.  Add water if needed.  Cook until beans and pasta are hot, about 5 minutes more.

Garnish with parsley and parmesan if desired.

Lingonberry Salmon

 We try to stick to a Scandinavian theme for Christmas Dinner each year.   Lingonberry Salmon sat next to Norwegian meatballs this year.  This is based off the Quick Cured Lingonberry Salmon on northwildkitchen.com but changed a bit since we don't have fresh lingonberry readily available here.  I used a lingonberry jam instead.  It's a bit more runny than it probably should be, but it still works in a pinch.  We also did ours on the grill using cedar planks instead of baking it.  (I doubled this recipe for our crowd, but here is the single version)

Lingonberry Salmon

2 lb. salmon (We use sockeye whenever we can!)

1 T. salt

1 T. sugar

1 c. fresh or frozen lingonberries (recipe says you can sub chopped cranberries, too).  I used 1/2 c. or so of lingonberry jam in it's place

1/4 c. honey

1/4 c. whole grain mustard (I used stone ground)

1/4 c. melted butter and cooled

Place the salmon on a sheet pan, skin side down.  Combine the salt and sugar and rub it on the salmon.  Cover with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge and let it sit for an hour or so. 

Take it out and rub off with a paper towel as much of the salt and sugar mixture as you can.

In a small bowl, combine the mustard, honey, lingonberries (or jam), and the melted and cooled butter. 

If you are grilling this, transfer the salmon to the cedar planks (be sure to presoak these so they don't burn).  Spread the mustard-jam mixture over the salmon.

Grill and enjoy.

If you are baking the salmon, bake the salmon in a baking dish (without the planks of course) at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

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T = tablespoon

c = cup

lb = pound

Oven Baked Bacon Wrapped Scallops

I think I found my new favorite way to do scallops!   And if you like bacon, well, you are in luck here.  Here is what I did.  And here is what I will do again.

Bacon Wrapped Scallops

1 lb. scallops, muscle removed, rinsed and dried

Bacon strips (1/2 the number of scallops you have)

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

Paprika

Prebake your bacon strips so they start to cook but are still soft.  I did mine for about 8 minutes.  Cut each strip in half the long way. I do my bacon in the oven on 400 degrees on a wire rack on a foil lined sheet pan.

Wrap each scallop in a half cooked bacon strip and secure it with a toothpick.  Trim off the bacon if it is too long.

Put the wrapped scallops on a wire rack.  I used the same one I used for the bacon.  Brush each scallop with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.  Flip the scallops over and repeat on the other side.

Bake the scallops for 15 minutes at 425 degrees.  Recommended internal temp is 115-125 degrees.  At 15 minutes, mine were mid 140's degrees and I prefer them a bit higher temp.  They were really, really nice.

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lb  = pound

Dinner Rolls

I found this recipe on thestayathomechef.com and wow.  It's the first time I've actually gotten bread dough to have that velvety feel.  Love.  This was a definite good addition to the Thanksgiving spread.  Will make again!

Dinner Rolls

2 c. whole milk

2 T. instant dry yeast (I used quick rise)

1/4 c. sugar

2 t. salt

6 T. salted butter, softened

2 large eggs

6 cups flour, divided 5 1/2 c. and 1/2 c.  (I used 600 grams and 60 grams to begin with)

1 T. salted butter melted

Microwave the milk in 30 second intervals until it reaches 100 to 110 degrees.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook, combine the warm milk, yeast, salt, softened butter, eggs and 5 1/2 c. flour.

Start on low speed.  Once the flour starts to incorporate, increase the speed to medium.  Slowly add the remaining 1/2 c. of flour until the dough pulls away from the sides.  The dough mixture should be slightly sticky and soft. The amount of flour is an estimate and you should go by feel.  I ended up using more like 1 c. or more of flour, not 1/2 cup.  

Transfer the dough to a large lightly oiled bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until about double in size.  The recipe said this should take about 90 minutes but mine didn't take that long.  (Maybe since i used quick rise?).  My dough was so soft!!

Lightly grease a 13 x 18 baking sheet.  Punch down the dough and divide into 24 equal pieces.  (With the flour I added, mine were 69 grams.)  Place your hand into a cupping shape parallel to a clean countertop.  Place the dough ball between your palm and the countertop for approximately 30 seconds until you have a smooth round ball.

Place the rolls on the prepared baking sheet.  Cover again and rise until double in size, about an hour. (mine took less)

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 12 to 14 minutes until lightly browned.  (at least 190 degrees internal temp)

Just before they are done, brush them with the melted butter.

Let the rolls rest on the baking sheet for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

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degrees are in Fahrenheit.

c = cup

t = teaspoon

T = tablespoon