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Aug 3

cedar plank salmon with spearmint sauce

Have you wondered if all we ever eat around here is salad and vegetables and the occasional dessert? no, no, not so! During salmon season (I’m almost embarrassed to say) it’s on our table maybe as much as once a week. Our local newspaper’s food section had a wonderful-sounding salmon recipe last week that I was itching to try. We had a pot brimming with spearmint begging to be crushed and its aromas set free. It was fated.

This dish was so beautiful, so incredibly aromatic that (and now I truly am embarrassed) I was far too impatient to take photos of it. There was going to be no stage-setting. No turning it this way and that and getting the light just so. There was going to be no waiting. I mean none! So here you have it folks. Just as it came off the grill and its fragrant sauce was ladled on. Just before we gobbled it all up, smacking our lips and planning when we’d eat it again next…

This dish was, to my mind, absolutely perfect as it was. No changes were made to the original recipe, other than to halve it since we weren’t feeding a crowd. Therefore, we owe a debt of thanks to chef David Padberg of Portland’s Park Kitchen for the recipe. I’d hug him if he’d have it!

Salmon fillets steeped in the aromas of cedar smoke and steam, then ladled with a variation on salsa verde, made with fresh spearmint leaves. An incredibly delicious flavor combination.

(I hope you won’t be off-put by the addition of chopped anchovies to the sauce. Those and the capers add the perfect bit of salt & fish to complement the salmon…and their flavors were not at all over-bearing. The garlic and hot chili seeds added the perfect hint of heat. The lemon zest – oh you know! Let’s get on with it…

(I’ve halved the recipe for you below as most won’t be feeding 10 to 12. The above-pictured salmon fillet was 1 pound and we had sauce left over. It fed 2 generously – Guinea Pig loves his salmon – with enough left over for lunch the next day.)

Cedar Plank Salmon with Spearmint Sauce

(5 to 6 servings)

Sauce:

3 anchovies, finely chopped (if using salted anchovies, rinse them thoroughly first)
½ cup tightly packed fresh spearmint, finely minced
½ cup tightly packed fresh parsley, finely minced
2 Tablespoons capers, finely minced
¼ cup finely minced shallots
Grated zest of about 1½ lemons
2 smallish cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste

the Salmon:

1 untreated cedar plank
2 pound whole salmon fillet
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ teaspoons firmly packed brown sugar

To make the sauce: In a medium bowl, mix together the anchovies, herbs, capers, shallots, lemon zest, garlic, red pepper flakes and olive oil. Chef Padberg says to then add lemon juice to taste and allow sauce to sit for at least 1 hour for flavors to meld before serving. I let the sauce sit for quite some time before adding the juice. I waited to add the lemon juice until the salmon went on the grill as I didn’t want the vibrant green to change. Makes nearly 1 cup of sauce.

Aug 2

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we interrupt…

We interrupt our normal interruptions to bring you a new kitchen. (Normal interruptions, which will include food, will resume tomorrow.)

Long dreamed-of, our kitchen is here.

Pots are bubbling, freezer’s making ice, spices sprinkling, soapstone’s silky, cookies in the oven, mama’s smiling big.

a welcome-back-to-the-kitchen gift from spree’s Grateful Guinea Pig

So many of you good people have offered encouragement these past few months while we went through a fairly major renovation at our house. Some of you spoke from multiple experiences of your own. Your kind words have meant so much to me! I’ve held and replayed them in my mind on the most discouraging of days (and there were a few of those.) Many of you have asked for a peek into the newly remodeled kitchen – how could I possibly say no when you’ve brightened so many of my days?

We were able to save our cabinets and simply have them re-finished. We attached new pulls on drawers and cupboards.

We replaced our gas cooktop (who does that?!) with induction. It’s hiding over there under the rooster. Love it! Induction is wow, amazing, and since it’s fairly new technology and not all that widely-known, I plan to tell you a bit about it in another post. (I’ll feed you too.)

We replaced sinks and faucets.

The button on the counter above? It replaces another that had been situated on the cabinet to the side. It was one that everyone’s hip accidentally bumped to start the garbage disposal.

sil-granite sinks – made of granite dust & silicone they’re durable, virtually heat & scratch-proof, quick-drying & easy easy care

We replaced a 23-year-old fridge with one spacious and light, so that fruits and vegetables no longer go there to die.

Have I already mentioned to you that we replaced our old countertops with soapstone? I want to warn anyone out there considering them – they will scratch. (Well, more precisely I mean, you can scratch them – even as careful as you are.) BUT, much to their credit, they are smooth and silky as baby skin (for those of you tactile like me – you’ll spend a ridiculous amount of time petting them ~~at first~~ .) And because of their satiny finish, light doesn’t glare off them. They’re very very easy on the eyes! And have I mentioned they’re fun to pet?

So what haven’t I shown you or told you about? I think that about covers it. Except something you would have guessed anyway – it is such a joy to be back in the kitchen. A lot of interruptions still, and dust, because our bathrooms are more than a week away from being complete. But this is the heart of the home…the place where we prepare the food that becomes love put on the table…

♥

savoy cabbage on soapstone…look for an Indian-inspired recipe next week, and salmon on a cedar plank tomorrow.

Thanks for sharing in the journey with me and for your thoughtfulness & patience along the dusty way. And Brydie! (City Hippy Farm Girl) Thank you for the kangaroo cookie cutter from down under! Look to see Joey’s jumping off the platter here one day soon!

love, spree