Recipes for Grilled Salmon with Ancho Honey Porter Glaze and Bear Tooth Grill's "Recado" Chile Sauce

In June, four of Alaska’s best chefs met at a salmon cook-off. The winning dish? Grilled Salmon with Ancho Honey Porter Glaze created by Clayton Jones, Executive Chef of Anchorage’s Bear Tooth Grill.

Chef Clayton paired rich sockeye salmon with a glaze made of sweet honey, spicy chiles, and bitter Porter beer. The combination is inspired. Honey balances the heat and bitterness, but is used sparingly, leaving the glaze with plenty of lip-smacking spice. During the June cook-off, I watched tasters finish their portions and immediately get back in line for seconds and thirds. It wasn’t a surprise when Chef Clayton won.

This Saturday’s tasting and the June salmon cook-off are part of Trout Unlimited Alaska’s ongoing campaign to protect Bristol Bay wild salmon from large-scale mining. Bristol Bay, home to the world’s largest sockeye salmon run, employs thousands and provides a healthy, sustainable food source. To learn more about saving Bristol Bay salmon, go here.

Chef Clayton graciously shared his winning recipe.

Grilled Salmon with Ancho Honey Porter Glaze
Serves 4-6
Adapted from recipe by Clayton Jones, Executive Chef, Bear Tooth Grill, 1230 W. 27th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska
Cook-Off Winner, Savor Bristol Bay, Trout Unlimited, www.savebristolbay.org


Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska has moved as of March 2011. To read this post please go to


http://www.laurieconstantino.com/recipes-for-grilled-salmon-with-ancho-honey-porter-glaze-and-bear-tooth-grills-recado-chile-sauce/


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Recipes for Swiss Chard Braised with Olives and Feta (Σέσκουλο με Ελιές και Φέτα) & Pancakes with Leftover Greens, Olives and Feta

Greens season is here. Gardens and farmers’ markets in Anchorage are filled with every type of cool weather green. Swiss chard, spinach, and kale are in their prime.


It’s also the season during which many Alaskans are doing hard duty out on the salmon grounds, making sure freezers are filled with fish for the upcoming winter.


The best reason to eat greens and salmon is they just plain taste good. Luckily, both are good for your health: greens because they’re high in vitamins, minerals, and fiber and salmon because it’s loaded with omega-3 fatty acids


Freshly caught salmon has so much flavor it doesn’t need anything more than salt, pepper, and a little time on the grill or cast-iron pan.  Swiss Chard Braised with Olives and Feta is a good accompaniment. The greens’ earthiness, when paired with salty olives and feta, balances fresh salmon’s richness.

Swiss Chard Braised with Olives and Feta (Σέσκουλο με Ελιές και Φέτα)
Serves 4
Any greens, wild or domesticated or, better yet, a mixture of greens, can be substituted for Swiss chard.  This is delicious made with plain Kalamata olives, but I prefer using Roasted Kalamata Olives. Dry-cured or salt-cured olives (such as those from Thassos) may be substituted, but be sure to taste them and use less than 1/2 cup if they’re strong flavored. Most Greeks squeeze a lemon wedge over braised greens; I like them better plain. Serve lemon wedges on the side so each eater can choose their own amount of lemon. Swiss Chard Braised with Olives and Feta goes well with grilled or pan-fried salmon and other simply cooked seafood.


2 large or 3 medium bunches Swiss chard (about 10-12 cups cleaned, chopped leaves)

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsp. minced garlic

1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, roughly chopped

Freshly ground black pepper

Salt

1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Lemon wedges


Strip Swiss chard leaves from stems; reserve stems for another use.  Wash and roughly chop the leaves (don’t dry leaves; the clinging water helps cook them).

In a Dutch oven or deep sauté pan, sauté garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 30 seconds, being very careful not to burn the garlic. Stir in Swiss chard, olives, a liberal seasoning of black pepper, and a light seasoning of salt (olives and feta also add salt). Cover, turn heat down to low, and cook until chard is tender, but not falling apart. (The dish may be made ahead to this point and reheated just before serving.)

Remove chard and olives from pan with slotted spoon. Put in serving bowl along with the feta. Toss well.  Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

Bonus Recipe

Pancakes with Leftover Greens, Olives and Feta
Makes 4-6 pancakes
Too lazy to make crepes, I mixed leftover Swiss Chard Braised with Olives and Feta into a simple batter and cooked it into pancakes. These cakes contain the same flavors as crepes, but can be mixed and cooked in less than 1/2 hour with a lot less hassle.  I served the savory pancakes with soft goat cheese, basil shreds, and thinly sliced prosciutto; they made a lovely lunch.


3/4 - 1 cup leftover greens, olives, and feta

3/4 – 1 cup milk

3/4 cup flour

1 egg

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Oil for griddle


Put leftover greens in a strainer set over a bowl, press down to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Measure the liquid and add enough milk to make one cup.  Whisk egg and half the milk mixture into flour. Whisk in remaining milk mixture. Whisk in greens and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat small amount of oil in a griddle or cast iron frying pan over medium heat.  When pan is hot, ladle in 1/2 cup batter, spreading it out to form a 7” circle. Cook it on one side until it’s dry around the edges and the underside is nicely browned when lifted. Flip and cook on the second side.  Repeat until all the batter is used.

Serve plain, with cheese, or with thinly sliced prosciutto or salami.

Recipes: Asian Salmon Burgers with Lime, Cilantro and Edamame Spread

A couple nights ago I made Asian Salmon Burgers with Lime, Cilantro and Edamame Spread. It’s difficult to overstate how good this was. The burgers had wonderful flavor, despite having been made with fish that was frozen last July. The spread was nothing short of amazing. I know I’m laying it on thick, but this combination was really really good.

I also liked the tasty leftovers. I had two extra salmon burgers that I shaped into patties and refrigerated raw. I cooked them for lunch: one yesterday and one today. Admittedly, I wrapped the leftovers well and refrigerated them immediately, but what I ate today was just as good as what I ate the first day. In other words, these are recipes that will be reliably good even if you make them ahead.

Asian Salmon Burgers
Serves 4

Lime, Cilantro and Edamame Spread

Serves 4


Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska has moved as of March 2011. To read this post please go to


http://www.laurieconstantino.com/easy-great-tasting-burger-using-frozen-salmon/


Please click on over and visit my new site. Thank you!

Recipes: Pan-Fried Salmon with Curly Endive and Christmas Lima Beans & Christmas Lima Bean Salad

Christmas lima beans, with their speckled, swirled coats of maroon and cream, are one of the world’s most beautiful dried beans. When properly cooked, their texture is firm and their taste nutty.

Christmas limas are a perfect foil for strong, spicy flavors and are robust enough to serve on their own as a salad, spread, side dish, or main course. They go particularly well with wild mushrooms, bitter greens, and strong-flavored fish like salmon or mackerel.

The

Ark of Taste is a list of endangered food plants and animals that the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity seeks to protect and defend. Christmas limas (Phaseolus lunatus), also known as chestnut limas, are now on the Ark of Taste list for the United States.

According to the Ark of Taste website, “gastronomic accounts date the Christmas Lima Bean to the 1840s when it was especially popular in the southwestern region of the US. … It is used in both its mature green state as a shelled Lima for eating fresh, freezing or canning as well as used dried, and cooked into stews and casseroles. The Christmas Lima is very successful in the high desert environments of the southwest. They are hardy, heat tolerant and very productive—a bean known for its yield and versatility.”

A couple days ago, I found myself with time to kill at Natural Pantry, an Anchorage store that started as a health food/vitamin store. Over the years, without my noticing it, Natural Pantry has added an extensive line of gourmet and specialty food products. Each aisle brought new surprises. I left with two full bags of hard-to-find-in-Anchorage ingredients, including a package of Christmas Lima Beans. I’ll definitely return to Natural Pantry, sooner rather than later.

One final, but important, note: Dried Christmas lima beans are delicious. Other than genes, they have nothing in common with the nasty green limas I remember from childhood.

Pan-Fried Salmon with Curly Endive and Christmas Lima Beans
Serves 4
Christmas Lima Bean Salad may be made well-ahead. If it is, this dish makes a quick weekday meal. Before serving refrigerated bean salad, remove it from the refrigerator at least 1 hour, or put it in the microwave on medium for approximately 2 minutes.

1 pound wild-caught salmon fillets
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 head curly endive (approximately 8 cups cleaned and chopped)
1/4 cup chiffonade-cut fresh mint
1 recipe Christmas Lima Bean Salad (see recipe below)

Wash the salmon and dry it well. Using needle-nosed pliers, remove as many pin-bones from the fillet as possible. Skin the fish, if necessary, and cut it into 4 even pieces. Season the fillets on both sides with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Let the seasoned fish rest for 30 minutes at room temperature before cooking.

While the fish is resting, wash the curly endive, dry it well, and roughly chop it into bite-sized pieces. In a large bowl, toss the curly endive with the mint and Christmas Lima Bean Salad. Taste and add salt or freshly ground black pepper, as needed. Divide the endive and bean mix between 4 plates.Heat the olive oil in a pan until it is hot, but not smoking. Turn the heat to medium high, and add the salmon. Cook for 3 – 5 minutes, or until the pan side of the salmon is lightly browned. Turn over and cook for 1 - 3 minutes, or until the salmon is done to your taste. The exact cooking time depends on the fillets’ thickness; keep in mind that salmon tastes better slightly underdone than it does when it's overdone.
Place the hot salmon fillets on top of the endive and bean beds. Serve immediately.

Christmas Lima Bean Salad
Serves 4-6
The amount of jalapeño in the dressing, and whether you include the jalapeños’ seeds (which add heat), depends on how spicy you like your food. I last made this with 2 jalapeños including the seeds, and it was pleasantly spicy. My husband would’ve preferred it with 3 whole jalapeños. If you don’t like spicy food, remove the seeds before adding the jalapeños. Keep in mind that jalapeños are not uniformly hot. If your jalapeños are too mild, add a little sambal oelek or crushed red pepper flakes to make a spicier dressing. I prefer the taste of capers preserved in salt to those preserved in brine (although either works here), and usually rinse and soak the capers to remove excess salt. However, for this dressing, I used the capers salt and all, and didn’t separately add salt to the dressing.

Beans:
1 cup dried Christmas lima beans (6 ounces dried or 2 1/2 cups cooked)
5 bay leaves
Water

Dressing:
2-3 red or green jalapeño peppers
4 tsp. capers, preferably salted
2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3/4 cup olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Salad:
1 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 cup chiffonade-cut fresh mint

Cook the Beans: Place the beans in a large pot, cover them with lots of water, and let soak overnight. The next day, drain and rinse the beans. Return them to the pot; add the bay leaves and enough water to cover the beans by 3 inches. Bring to a boil, cover, turn down the heat to low, and simmer the beans for 60-90 minutes, just until the flesh is tender (be careful not to cook the beans until they are mushy). Drain the beans, reserving the bean cooking water (see Note below).

Make the Dressing: While the beans are cooking, purée the jalapeños, capers, garlic, and red wine vinegar in a blender. Add the oil to the other ingredients slowly, while the blender is running. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Make the Salad: Mix the cooked Christmas lima beans with the dressing, red onions, and fresh mint. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note on Bean Cooking Water: If I’m not using it right away, I freeze bags of bean cooking water and use it instead of stock in soup and stew recipes. The cooking water from Christmas lima beans tastes particularly good, and is definitely worth saving.

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This is my entry for My Legume Love Affair – 9th Edition (MLLA9) which I am hosting this month and which was created by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook.

Recipes for Spinach Skordalia & Crispy Salmon Fingers (Σκορδαλιά με Σπανάκι & Σολομός Τηγανητός)

Skordalia, a classic Greek garlic spread, is often served with fried fish. Here I’ve enhanced traditional skordalia with earthy spinach to create a luscious, garlicky, colorful partner for crispy, pan-fried salmon fingers.

Spinach Skordalia and Crispy Salmon Fingers are quick and easy recipes that are also healthy and full-flavored. For dinner tonight I paired them with Sweet Potato Oven Fries and Tomato Salad.

Spinach Skordalia (Greek Garlic Spread) (Σκορδαλιά με Σπανάκι)
Serves 4 with fried fish or a group as an appetizer
Air-dried heels of homemade or artisan-style bread are just right for skordalia. When we have leftover heels or chunks of bread, I leave them out on the counter to air-dry. After the bread is completely dried out, I store it in an airtight container to use when it’s time to make skordalia (or breadcrumbs).

3 cups chopped and tightly packed fresh spinach leaves
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 - 5 cloves garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 cup soggy bread (see Note below)
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup best quality olive oil

Sauté the spinach in olive oil just until it wilts, about 30 seconds. Purée 3 cloves garlic by mashing them into the salt (a mortar and pestle works great for this task). Put the spinach, garlic purée, soggy bread, freshly ground black pepper, and lemon juice in a food processor (or blender). Purée the ingredients, making sure to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl, until the mixture is smooth. While the machine is running, slowly pour in the olive oil. You should end up with a mixture that has the consistency of thick mayonnaise. If it is too thick, mix in more olive oil until it reaches the proper consistency. Taste and add the remaining garlic (puréed in salt), lemon juice, or salt, as needed.

Serve with fried fish or as an appetizer with fresh raw vegetables.

Note: To make soggy bread, immerse dry, stale bread in cold water. When the bread has soaked up the water and is soft all the way through, drain the bread and, using your hands, squeeze out all the water until you have a solid ball of bread. The bread is then ready to measure and use in the recipe.

Crispy Salmon Fingers (Σολομός Τηγανητός)
Serves 4
Salmon tastes better if you salt and pepper it at least 1/2 hour before flouring and cooking. Season the salmon and then make Spinach Skordalia; the salmon will be ready to cook as soon as the skordalia is done. Semolina flour makes a crispier coating than white flour, although white flour may also be used in this recipe.

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless salmon fillets
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup semolina flour
1/4 cup olive oil

Wash the salmon and dry it well. Using needle-nosed pliers, remove as many pin-bones from the salmon as possible. Cut the salmon into long, narrow, lengthwise strips. Cut each strip into fingers approximately 3” long. Season the fingers with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Put the semolina flour in a bag; shake the salmon fingers in the bag until they are thoroughly coated with flour. Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in each of 2 frying pans until the oil is hot, but not smoking. Divide the salmon fingers between the 2 pans and cook for 2 minutes, or until the pan side of the salmon is lightly browned. Turn over and cook for 1 – 2 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked through. The exact cooking time depends on the salmon’s thickness; keep in mind that salmon tastes better slightly underdone than overdone.

Serve immediately with Spinach Skordalia.
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This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging hosted this week by Rachel from The Crispy Cook.

Masque at sunset, part of the FREEZE frozen-ice art installations in Anchorage, Alaska.

Recipe for Salmon "Kleftiko" (Σολομός Κλέφτικος) and Kleftiko: Its Modern Meaning

During the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Turks, Klefts were irregular guerilla fighters. Among their many feats, Klefts famously stole sheep and roasted them slowly over buried fires. This trick prevented the Ottomans from smelling meat and finding the guerillas.

Kleftiko is a lamb dish named after the Klefts’ cooking style. Traditionally, the meat was cooked in buried lamb skins or clay pots. In modern versions of kleftiko, lamb, vegetables, and seasonings are wrapped tightly in foil or parchment paper, and slowly cooked in the oven. The meat ends up succulent, with all its flavor sealed inside the packet.

Instead of using lamb, I employed the same closed-container technique to make Salmon Kleftiko. Salmon cooks quickly, so it doesn't need to be cooked at low temperature for a long time, as does lamb.

Salmon Kleftiko is a great dish to make if you’re in a hurry. The packets go together quickly and need bake for only 15 minutes. Even better, there aren’t any pots to clean.

Salmon "Kleftiko" (Σολομός Κλέφτικος)
Serves 6
Foil is easier to work with, but individual parchment paper packets make a more attractive presentation. If using foil packets, plate the salmon and pour the juices over the fish in the kitchen. Parchment paper packets may be delivered directly to the table for individual diners to open (be sure to put an empty plate on the table for discarding the paper packets).

Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska has moved as of March 2011. To read this post please go to


http://www.laurieconstantino.com/cooking-salmon-in-sealed-packets/


Please click on over and visit my new site. Thank you!

Moroccan Salmon, Fennel-Preserved Lemon Salad, & Sweet Potato Oven Fries (Μαροκινός Σολομός, Σαλάτα με Μάραθο και Λεμόνια, & Γλυκοπατάτα στο Φούρνο)

I have an irrational aversion to the texture of boiled or braised sweet potatoes. Until I discovered oven roasting, sweet potatoes were emphatically not part of my diet.

Even so, I'd been hankering for Moroccan sweet potato tagine. A cookbook with the recipe had been sitting open on the couch for over a week. A bag of sweet potatoes from my Full Circle Farm CSA box languished on the counter. I needed to try the tagine.

At least that’s how it seemed. Every time I went to make it, however, I thought about mushy sweet potatoes, and stopped in my tracks. Like I said, my reaction is irrational. Intellectually, I want to try it; emotionally, I can’t get beyond no, no, no.

I finally gave up on the tagine, at least for now. Someday I’ll power through my aversion, and discover what I’ve been missing all these years. In the meantime, I constructed a menu around the tagine’s flavors and ingredients, and stuck with oven-roasting the sweet potatoes.

The tagine’s dominant spices – cumin, coriander, papika, and hot pepper – I used as a rub for salmon fillets. I made oven-fries with the sweet potatoes, and salad from fennel, red peppers, and preserved lemons, three more of the tagine’s ingredients. (For how to make preserved lemons, here is an easy recipe.)

The result was truly wonderful. It put us both in a good mood for the rest of the evening.

I wish all my meals tasted this good. Of course, it’s possible the tagine would’ve been even better. I’m still trying to think my way into it.

Moroccan-Spiced Salmon (Μαροκινός Σολομός)
Serves 4

1 pound salmon fillets
1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground cumin seed
1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground coriander seed
1 1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Wash the salmon and dry it well. Using needle-nosed pliers, remove as many pin-bones from the fillet as possible. Skin the fish, if necessary, and cut it into 4 even pieces.

Mix the cumin, coriander, paprika, pepper flakes, and salt. Rub the spices over both sides of the salmon fillets.

Heat the olive oil in a pan until it is hot, but not smoking. Turn the heat to medium high, and add the salmon. Cook for 3 – 5 minutes, or until the pan side of the salmon is lightly browned. Turn over and cook for 1 - 3 minutes, or until the salmon is done to your taste. The exact cooking time depends on the fillets’ thickness; keep in mind that salmon tastes better slightly underdone than it does when it's overdone.

Serve immediately on a bed of Fennel and Preserved Lemon Salad.

Fennel and Preserved Lemon Salad (Σαλάτα με Μάραθο και Λεμόνια στην Άρμη)
Serves 4
When I served this, both of us wanted more salad than I’d made and thought the salmon should be served on a bed of it. I’ve adjusted the salad recipe accordingly. Adding the capers depends on how much you like them; one of us preferred capers, the other liked it better without. Taste the salad without the capers, then try it with capers and add them if you think they’re an improvement.

2 cups diced fennel, 1/4” dice
1 cup diced red bell pepper, 1/4” dice
2/3 cup finely sliced green onions
3 Tbsp. minced preserved lemon peel
2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. freshly ground fennel seed
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup Preserved Lemon Aioli (see recipe below)
1/2 cup capers (optional)

Mix all the ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Serve.

Preserved Lemon Aioli
Makes 1 1/2 cups
Preserved lemons are quite salty, the flesh more so than the peel. Preserved Lemon Aioli gets all the salt it needs from the lemons. I like making this with the peel from half of a preserved lemon, but the flesh from only a quarter of a preserved lemon. To prevent the aioli from being too salty, it’s best to start with a smaller amount of preserved lemon flesh and add more to taste. If you substitute lemon juice and peel for the preserved lemon, be sure to salt the aioli. I prefer making this in a blender because it grinds the ingredients more evenly, but I use the feed tube from my Cuisinart to add olive oil. Put the feed tube into the hole in the blender’s top, pour olive oil into the feed tube, and the hole in the bottom of the feed tube will effortlessly add oil at exactly the right rate for a perfect emulsion.

1/2 preserved lemon or the zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 large cloves chopped garlic
1 egg
1 cup olive oil

Rinse the preserved lemon under running water. Remove the flesh and reserve. Roughly chop the preserved lemon peel and put it in a blender with 1/4 of the reserved lemon flesh. Purée and taste to determine the degree of saltiness before adding the egg and oil. If it needs salt, add more of the lemon flesh. Mix in the egg and purée; scrape down the sides of the blender. Add the oil drop by drop while the blender is running. (The aioli will break and separate if you add the oil too fast, see NOTE below.) When all the oil is incorporated, taste and adjust the seasoning, as needed. Refrigerate for up to two weeks.

NOTE: If the aioli breaks, pour it out of the blender. Add an egg and purée, scraping down the sides of the blender. Add the broken aioli drop by drop while the blender is running.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries (Γλυκοπατάτα στο Φούρνο)
Serves 4

6 garnet yams (sweet potatoes)
6 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Peel the garnet yams and cut them in 1/4” slices. Cut the slices into 1/4” sticks. Divide between 2 rimmed baking sheets, toss the contents of each sheet with 3 Tbsp. olive oil and plenty of salt. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the cooking time. Remove the pans from the oven. (Recipe can be made ahead to this point.)

Turn the oven heat up to 450°F; when the oven reaches temperature, return the pans to the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes start browning. Remove from the oven and prop up one end of the baking sheet so the oil quickly runs off the potatoes to the lower end of the baking sheet (you may need to align the potatoes so they don't block the oil from running off). Serve immediately.

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More Preserved Lemon Recipes
Preserved Lemons, Candied Lemon Peels, and Sparkling Mint-Lemonade (I show you how to make preserved lemons, how to candy the extra lemon peels, and how to use leftover syrup for sparkling lemonade.)
Moroccan Beef Stew (Mike makes a slow cooked beef tagine with sweet potatoes, chickpeas, preserved lemons, and lots of spices.)
Olives, Chicken with Preserved Lemon (Lydia makes a quick-cooking tagine with boneless chicken thighs, olives, and preserved lemons.)
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This is my entry for Antioxidant Rich Foods/Five-a-Day Tuesdays hosted by Sweetnicks.

Recipe: Thyme-Braised Lentils with Petimezi and Pan-Fried Salmon (Φακές με Πετιμέζι και Σολομός στο Tηγάνι)

My name is Laurie and I’m an ingredient junkie.

I’m hopelessly attracted to unusual food items. Some people like to shop for shoes, others for jewelry, and others for tools. For me, the only shopping I truly enjoy is for ingredients.

When we go on vacation, visiting local grocery stores is always one of the highlights. I wander the aisles, my eyes scanning the shelves, and my heart skipping a beat when I find interesting regional specialties.

After a trip to Nashville, I came home with White Lily soft wheat flour. In Victoria B.C., locally made blackberry port took pride of place in my luggage. On our last trip to Italy, truffle cheese and Castelluccio lentils from Norcia in Umbria were my favorite purchases.

My family feeds this addiction on birthdays and holidays. Aged balsamic, specialty salts, salumi, and imported cheeses are some of the presents that helped expand my gastronomic horizons.

My sister-in-law recently sent a bottle of Italian saba. It was labeled as “saba dressing” and “condimento alimentare balsamico agrodolce.” I understood this to mean the bottle contained some kind of sweet and sour dressing, but exactly what it was, I had no idea. It was the perfect present: an ingredient I’d never heard of and had no idea how to use.

When I shook the packaging, I was relieved to find a multilingual descriptive pamphlet, with recipes. I learned saba is grape must syrup and, according to the manufacturer, was popular with early Greeks and Romans. Aha. My mind clicked into gear. Saba is the Italian equivalent of petimezi, Greek grape must syrup and a specialty of the island where we have a home.

I took out a jar of petimezi and tasted it side by side with saba. Both have the consistency of light maple syrup, and both are made exclusively with grape must. Their flavors differ slightly: saba is a little sweeter than island petimezi, which is sweet, but with a welcome hint of subtle bitterness.

On the island, petimezi is traditionally served with homemade noodles or used to make cookies, cakes, puddings, and preserves. Sometimes it is eaten with yogurt in lieu of honey. All these dishes highlight petimezi’s sweetness.

The pamphlet recommended using saba with onions, beans, meat, or vegetables, in addition to sweets. My mind started racing with possibilities for using petimezi in savory foods. I’ll investigate this intriguing concept when next we’re on the island to find out whether there are any traditional savory uses of petimezi.

In the meantime, I’ve been experimenting with saba and petimezi; the two ingredients are interchangeable. One of my most successful experiments was adding must syrup to braised lentils, a dish I like serving with salmon. The syrup’s sweet and tart flavors provide a lovely contrast to oil-rich salmon.

Thyme-Braised Lentils with Petimezi and Pan-Fried Salmon (Φακές με Πετιμέζι και Σολομός στο Tηγάνι)
Serves 4
For the vast majority of people who don’t have grape must syrup in their pantries, thyme or other strong-flavored honey can be successfully substituted. The recipe calls for salmon fillets, which I prefer serving when entertaining. But my favorite bits of salmon, shown in the photograph, are the trimmings left after filleting a whole salmon. The flesh close to the bone is full of flavor and, because the small pieces cook quickly, remains moist and juicy. For anyone with access to whole fish, this is a wonderful way to use up parts of the fish that are too often thrown in the garbage. If you have leftover lentils, add vegetable or chicken stock to make a wonderfully flavorful soup.

12 ounce salmon fillet
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 cup lentils, preferably beluga or Puy
1 cup diced shallots, 1/4” dice
1/2 cup diced carrots, 1/4” dice
1/2 cup diced celery, 1/4” dice
3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
3 Tbsp. minced thyme
1 cup dry red wine
1 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 Tbsp. petimezi or saba, or 2 tsp. thyme honey
1/4 cup minced parsley

Wash the salmon and dry it well. Using needle-nosed pliers, remove as many pin-bones from the fillet as possible. Skin the fish, if necessary, and cut it into 4 even pieces. Lightly season the salmon on both sides with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Stir in the lentils and cook for 15 – 20 minutes, or just until the lentils soften, but are not cooked all the way through. Drain and reserve.

Sauté the shallots, carrots, and celery, lightly seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper, in 2 Tbsp. olive oil until the shallots soften and begin to turn golden. Stir in the thyme and red wine and cook, stirring, until the wine is almost absorbed. Stir in the stock and petimezi, saba, or honey, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer 20 – 30 minutes, or until the lentils are tender, but not mushy.

Heat the remaining 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a pan until it is hot, but not smoking. Turn the heat to medium high, and add the salmon. Cook for 3 – 5 minutes, or until the pan side of the salmon is lightly browned. Turn over and cook for 1 - 3 minutes, or until the salmon is done to your taste. The exact length of cooking time depends on the thickness of the fillet; keep in mind that salmon tastes better slightly underdone than it does when it's overdone. (If you’re using salmon trimmings, the fish cooks in 2 minutes total.)

To serve, put some lentils on a plate, top with the salmon, and sprinkle with minced parsley. Dried black olives and crusty bread are terrific accompaniments.

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This is my entry for Heart of the Matter #13 Party Food, a collection of heart-healthy recipes, organized by Joanna of Joanna's Food, Michelle of The Accidental Scientist, and Ilva of Lucullian Delights.

Recipe: Celery Root Waffles with Smoked Salmon and Horseradish Cream

I love second-hand stores.

What do I buy? Pretty much anything. Most frequently it’s clothes, dishes, glassware, kitchen tools, or books.

I’m happier wearing clothes that didn’t cost an arm and a leg. Because I'm a thrift store regular, I make amazing finds. Lately, my husband’s been looking debonair in an Armani blazer I bought for $1.00. It’s in flawless condition and fits him perfectly.

Since I’ve been writing Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska, I’ve purchased an assortment of second-hand plates and bowls. They help make my photographs more interesting and allow me to use dishes that best set off each individual recipe.

Since we’re both notorious breakers, I long ago gave up buying nice wine glasses. The few we have left are put away and brought out only for company. For us, thrift store glassware is definitely the way to go.

Most of the dishes, pots and pans, and kitchen tools in our Greek house came from American second-hand stores and were hauled to Greece in our baggage. The pride of my Greek kitchen is a Kitchenaid stand mixer I bought for $12.50 at Salvation Army.

Our Greek relatives don’t understand why I would buy anything second-hand. They find the whole concept to be confusing and vaguely distasteful. Why would we want something that had been previously owned by a stranger? Not surprisingly, there isn’t a single second-hand store on the island.

I’ve bought and thoroughly enjoyed used books I never would've bought new. One of these books is A Passion for Vegetables: Simple and Inspired Recipes from Around the Globe by British chef Paul Gayler. Published in 2000 for $35.00, I brought the book home for the shockingly high price of $3.50.

A Passion for Vegetables is full of interesting ideas for cooking vegetables (it is not 100% vegetarian). Gus Filgate’s photographs are gorgeous and very inspirational.

Lately I’ve been thinking about Gayler’s recipe for celery root (celeriac) waffles and smoked salmon. I had a celery root from Full Circle Farm and plenty of Gravlax in the freezer. I paired the two for brunch last Saturday.

Although I liked Gayler’s concept, I modified his recipe to eliminate waste and make a batter that worked in my waffle iron. The result was a crisp waffle with a mild celery flavor that nicely complemented Gravlax. I finished the dish with a dollop of tasty horseradish cream and a sprinkling of fresh dill.

Although we enjoyed it for brunch, Celery Root Waffles with Smoked Salmon (or Gravlax) and Horseradish Cream would make a scrumptious cold appetizer. I’m definitely making this again.

Celery Root Waffles with Smoked Salmon and Horseradish Cream
Makes 6 6 - 7” waffles (serves 4 for brunch) or 24 appetizer pieces
Adapted from A Passion for Vegetables by Paul Gayler (Lyons Press 2000)

Waffles:
1 pound celery root (3/4 pound cleaned)
1 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
Freshly ground black or pepper
3 Tbsp. butter

Horseradish cream:
6 Tbsp. whipping cream
1 1/2 Tbsp. prepared horseradish
3 Tbsp. finely minced red onion or chives
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. salt

6 - 8 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon, lox, or gravlax
2 Tbsp. minced dill

Prepare the Celery Root: Cut the top and bottom off the celery root, leaving broad flat surfaces on either end. Put the celery root on a cutting board with a flat side down. Use a sharp knife and cut down towards the board to remove the peel; doing this in small pieces makes the job faster and easier. Once the celery root is peeled, cut it in half and then in wedges. Use a paring knife to remove the soft cottony center of each wedge. For pictures of how to do this, go here.

Cut the wedges of celery root into chunks. Put the milk and celery root in a saucepan, bring to a boil, turn down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the celery root is tender.

Make the Horseradish Cream: While the celery root is simmering, whisk the whipping cream until it starts to stiffen. Whisk in the horseradish, minced onions, lemon juice, and salt until the cream is fully whipped.

Make the Waffles: When the celery root is tender, remove it from the heat. Puree the milk and celery root using a stick blender, food processor, or blender. Quickly whisk 1/2 cup of celery root puree into the eggs, and then whisk this mixture back into the celery root puree.

Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Melt the butter and whisk it into the batter.

Preheat the waffle iron and cook the waffles. As each waffle is done, put it on a baking rack to cool; this helps prevent condensation and keeps the waffles crisp.

To Serve: Cut or break each waffle into quarters. Arrange a slice of smoked salmon or gravlax on the waffle, top with a small dollop of horseradish cream, and sprinkle with minced dill.
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This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted this week by Lia from Swirling Notions.

Recipe: Gravlax

Gravlax, salmon cured in sugar and salt until it is silky smooth, is expensive to buy, but easy to make. Once the fish is filleted, it takes about 10 minutes to put the gravlax together. Two or three days later, you'll have perfectly cured fish.

I make gravlax from sea-caught wild Alaska salmon, the best tasting salmon I’ve ever had. Its great taste reflects the salmon’s varied diet and the clean environment in which it grows to maturity.

Wild Alaska salmon is on the Top 10 list of “Eco-best” fish to eat because it comes from healthy, well-managed fish populations and is caught with low-impact fishing gear. In contrast, farmed salmon is on the Top 10 list of “Eco-worst” fish due to the impact of salmon farms on the environment and the elevated levels of PCBs in the fish.

We live within driving distance of the sea waters where wild Alaska salmon congregate. By the end of summer, our freezer contains a year’s supply of fish caught by my husband and his friends. I’ve previously described how we freeze salmon and how best to thaw it.




Gravlax
Makes two sides of gravlax
This recipe makes enough curing mix for two 2 – 3 pound sides of filleted salmon. You can easily make the recipe with a 1 – 2 pound salmon fillet: cut the curing mix in half and the curing time to 24 to 36 hours. Once cured, gravlax should be stored in the refrigerator or freezer. I crack the peppercorns in a mortar and pestle, but you can also do it by whacking the peppercorns with a meat mallet.






 

 Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska has moved as of March 2011. To read this post please go to

http://www.laurieconstantino.com/homemade-gravlax/

Please click on over and visit my new site. Thank you!

Tips: Freezing and Thawing Fish, with Recipes for Pomegranate Salmon and Parsley Couscous Pilaf (Σολομός με Ροδί και Κουςκούς Πιλάφι)

Writing about pomegranate molasses yesterday made me crave it. I’d planned salmon for dinner, so used the molasses for marinade that doubled as sauce. The marinade added flavor to both the fish and the Parsley Couscous Pilaf I served with it.

The salmon was caught last summer in the icy waters of Alaska’s Prince William Sound. During fishing season, my husband’s friend Richard regularly tows his boat - and his friends - hundreds of miles down the Seward and Sterling Highways in search of wild Alaska seafood.

Richard, master fisherman and mighty boat captain, is a remarkably successful seafood hunter, as are his fishing partners. By the end of summer we always have enough fish in the freezer to last the year.

Fish must be properly packaged for it to survive in the freezer without developing freezer burn or off flavors. Because it is fatty, salmon is particularly susceptible to turning rancid while frozen. Over many years, we’ve developed techniques for protecting fish against the freezer’s ravages.

Freezing Fish

Fish must be kept on ice until frozen, and should be frozen as soon as possible after it leaves the water. No matter how tired he is, when my husband gets home from fishing we immediately start processing and freezing fish. For those who buy it rather than catch it, any fish not to be eaten fresh should be frozen immediately upon return from the market.

I prefer freezing fish as fillets because they are easiest to portion, lie flat in the freezer, and freeze faster than other cuts. I pack the fillets in pieces large enough for two to avoid thawing out more fish than can be eaten at one meal.

As my husband fillets each fish, I cut the fillets to size and put them in the heaviest duty zip-lock freezer bags I can find. I fill a clean sink with very cold, clean water. I push the bag underwater and let it fill up with water so there is no air left in the bag. While it is underwater, I force enough water out of the bag for it to lie flat in the freezer and then firmly seal it.

I wrap the sealed bags of fish in freezer paper to form a flat package, tape it shut, and label it with the date, species of fish, and weight of the contents. Labeling is very important and protects against eating geriatric frozen fish discovered in the freezer’s depths.

When the fish is wrapped and labeled, I spread the packages out in the freezer to make sure they freeze as fast as possible. Fast freezing prevents large ice crystals from forming in the fish. For the same reason, you can also turn the freezer down to its lowest setting while the fish freezes. Don’t forget to turn the freezer back to its normal setting when the fish is completely frozen.

Vacuum-packing is another method of preparing fish for the freezer. This method works as long as the seal holds. If something punctures the plastic vacuum bag, air leaks in and vacuum packing’s protection is lost. For maximum freezer burn protection, wrap vacuum-packed fish in freezer paper to shield the plastic from punctures.

When vacuum-packing fish, make sure it is lying flat before applying suction. If fish is all akimbo when suctioned, the packages won’t stack well in the freezer. With one or two packages of fish, this isn’t a problem. However, it is very difficult to fit 20 irregularly shaped packages in the freezer at one time. Even worse, when the packages can’t be stacked they become dangerous rock-hard footballs that fly off freezer shelves and knock you in the head when you try to extricate a bag for dinner.

Thawing Fish

Frozen fish is best when thawed quickly. The easiest way to do this is putting the sealed bag of fish under cold running water. Resist the temptation to thaw fish in warm or hot water; doing so causes undesirable texture changes. Although some recommend it, I’ve never successfully thawed fish in a microwave and think it is a bad idea.

Thawing fish overnight in the refrigerator works, but the fish will lose a lot of moisture. I often thaw fish at room temperature without problem, but food safety experts advise strongly against doing so because it can cause bacterial growth and spoilage.

Last night we enjoyed silver salmon that was caught and packed in July. I thawed it under cold running water, put it in marinade when the center was still slightly frozen, and refrigerated the fish until just before I was ready to cook.

No matter how well you package it, frozen fish loses some moisture and is more susceptible than fresh fish to drying out. For this reason, be careful not to overcook fish that has been frozen. Serving frozen fish with a sauce, as with Pomegranate Salmon, also helps counteract dryness problems.

Pomegranate Salmon (Σολομός με Ροδί)
Serves 4 – 6
In blind tastes tests, wild Alaska salmon beats farmed salmon every time. Besides having better flavor and texture, wild Alaska salmon is better for your health and for the environment. The color of wild Alaska salmon comes from its natural diet. It is not pumped full of dye, hormones, and antibiotics, as farmed salmon can be. Wild Alaska salmon is labelled as such; if your fishmonger doesn't identify salmon as wild, it is farm-raised.

2 pounds wild Alaska salmon fillets
Freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Marinade:
1/4 cup pomegranate molasses
1/4 cup thyme or other full-flavored honey
1/4 cup finely minced garlic
1 tsp. Aleppo pepper or 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup dry white wine

Minced parsley for garnish

Wash the salmon and dry it well. Using needle-nosed pliers, remove as many pin-bones from the salmon as possible. Skin the fillets and cut them into 4 – 6 even-sized pieces.

Thoroughly mix the pomegranate molasses, honey, garlic, Aleppo pepper, salt, and 1/4 cup wine. When the molasses and honey have dissolved, mix in the remaining wine. Put the marinade in a zip-lock bag (I use the bag in which the fish was frozen), add the salmon, seal the bag, and jostle the ingredients until the salmon is completely coated with marinade. Refrigerate and let the salmon marinate for 1 – 2 hours.

Pour the marinade in a small saucepan. Bring the marinade to a boil, watching carefully so it doesn’t boil over, and immediately turn down the heat to low. Simmer the marinade while you cook the salmon.

Remove the salmon from the bag and place it on paper towels. Pat the salmon dry, and season it on both sides with freshly ground black pepper. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan large enough to hold all the salmon until it is hot but not smoking. Sauté the salmon for 2 - 4 minutes per side, depending on its thickness. Don’t overcook the salmon; it tastes better slightly underdone than slightly overdone.

Spoon a pool of sauce (cooked marinade) on a plate. Top with a piece of salmon, and sprinkle it with parsley. Serve with Parsley Couscous Pilaf and a crisp green salad.

Parsley Couscous Pilaf (Κουςκούς Πιλάφι)
Serves 4 (If you are serving 6, proportionally increase the amount of ingredients.)
“Toasted couscous” is also sold as “Israeli couscous” or “pearl couscous.” It is not couscous as that term is commonly used in Moroccan cooking. Rather, it is pearl-shaped pasta that can be boiled and sauced, made into cold salads, cooked as risotto, or, as here, substituted for rice in pilaf.

1 cup minced shallots
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup toasted couscous
2 cups hot water
1 cup thinly sliced green onion
3/4 cup minced parsley
1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon peel

Sauté the shallots, lightly seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper, in olive oil until they soften and turn golden. Add the couscous and sauté until the couscous starts to brown. Add the hot water, bring to a boil, cover, turn down the heat to low, and cook for 12 minutes. Remove from the heat, and stir in the green onion, parsley, and finely grated lemon peel. Taste and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, as needed. Serve immediately.

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This is my entry for A Taste of Terroir 2008 hosted by Anna's Cool Finds.