I made salmon bowls for Anne’s belated birthday dinner last week. I’ve been on a salmon kick recently, in excess, since now I’m sick of salmon. I do this more often than I’d like to admit. I think it’s simply part of cooking for one. Admittedly, a large part of the problem is that I shop at Costco for my business. While I’m there (several times a week) I will also pick up food for myself. I think we can all agree that shopping at Costco when you’re cooking for one, isn’t the best strategy. This is another “something” that I need to work on.

YOU CAN’T WIN IF YOU DON’T PLAY!

Today is Monday. Our drawing is Wednesday. Time is running out. If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, please see the previous post – 14th Blogiversary. In the meantime, a new recipe:

This recipe comes from Instagram influencer, Lauren Garcia aka whatlolalikes. I met Lauren in the summer of 2019, about 8 months after I started Harmony Boards. She was at an Airbnb doing a photoshoot. The owner of the property ordered a board from me for Lauren, her photographer, and stylist to enjoy while they worked. Lauren tagged me in the photo and my Instagram account blew up. She ordered several more boards from me over the years and I can honestly say that my account quickly grew by leaps and bounds, in large part to her and her strong influence.

Lauren makes this salad all the time, so I finally decided to try it, yes she influences me too! It is amazing! It is now my go-to quick, easy, and healthy meal at least 2 times a week. I have no doubt that you’ll love it too.

Kim took on this recipe and the word on the street was that she didn’t really like it. I have yet to ask her what is what she didn’t like about it, but my read on it is that the resulting “bite” was too small. When an appetizer is too small, it can be tedious to make and deal with and not give the flavor punch you’re hoping for when you eat it. The original recipe calls for one sheet of puff pastry to be cut into 25 pieces. That made each pastry puff about the size of your thumb. I’ve changed the recipe to use both sheets of puff pastry that come in a package and cut into 12 rectangles each, resulting in less tedious work of topping them and a bigger flavor punch when you eat it.

I have a peach tree in my backyard and boy do I love it! So much so, that I’ll be using the ripe juicy peaches and other fresh summer fruits in every recipe for the rest of the week. I really have no choice. The season is fast and furious and it’s a “use it or lose it” situation.

The peach tree I have now is a sweet little dwarf tree.

But back when we bought the house in 1999, I planted a full-size peach tree, and was that ever a mistake!

By May 2003, the tree got so big and produced so much fruit that I could not keep up.

The previous three photos were taken at a “Peach Pickin’ Dinner” where I begged my friends to come over and help me pick and eat peaches. We picked enough peaches to cover the entire kitchen island, and those were just the ones that were ripe that night!

By 2005, the tree could not keep up either.

It produced so many peaches that the limbs broke under the weight of the fruit.

A couple of years later, we remodeled the entire backyard, so the damaged and the sad big peach tree was out and the dwarf peach was in.

The dwarf is in the same place and it must be the perfect local for such a tree because it produces like crazy too.

Thankfully, not a kitchen island full of peaches, but a cutting board full every few days of the short season. Much more manageable!

[Read more →]

This is the salmon and spinach recipe that I was talking about in yesterday’s post. I’ve corrected two items from the original recipe – which I enjoyed at the Ballymaloe Cookery School. The first change was the enormous amount of spinach the recipe called for. I’ve reduced it from 2-pounds to 8 ounces. If you make this dish you will be amazed to think that 2 pounds could have ever been used!

The second major change was the shape and size of the parchment. The original recipe called for a 10-inch circle. I’ve made Fish en Papillote (in parchment) several times before, so I should have known better. The traditional shape is a heart, not a circle. Even if a circle is used, 10-inches is in no way large enough, as you can see from the photos above and below.

I’d already cut out the 16 parchment circles I needed for a cooking class, so I went ahead a struggled through by using them … along with about 60 paper clips to hold the parcels together!

I don’t mean to make it sound as though the recipes from Ballymaloe were bad. There were 14 recipes from that wonderful day of cooking and this is the only one I’ve had to correct or modify.

The thing I like best about this recipe is the fact that the parcels are steamed – not baked. Fish en Papillote is traditionally baked, I love this extra-moist alternate way of cooking so much, that I think I’ll steam instead of bake from here on out.

This is the very definition of healthy and delicious!

[Read more →]

I’ve seen this cool tip for cutting a bunch of cherry tomatoes at one time all over the internet and on Pinterest. I’ve used it for some time now, but keep forgetting to share it with you. It not only comes in handy for this salad but is especially fabulous for THIS RECIPE and any other recipes calling for roasted cherry tomatoes.

Summer Squash and Salmon Salad

1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds zucchini, ends trimmed and then thinly sliced
2 tablespoons pepper jelly
3-pound salmon fillet, skin on
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
6 cups fresh spinach leaves
1/2 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
2 avocados, diced
1 cup chopped pecans

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. Add the zucchini, toss to coat and let marinate at room temperature for at least 15 minutes.

Spread the pepper jelly on the flesh side of the salmon. Heat a grill or broiler to high.

[Read more →]

How completely adorable and at the same time, sophisticated, is this? It’s the picture perfect elegant appetizer.

A cute and savory Smoked Salmon Mini “Ice Cream” Cone.

It is eaten in a bite or two. It is a flavor explosion in your mouth, a combination of creamy, sweet, smoking … perfection!

Believe it or not it is also a breeze to make. Really, it could not be more simple.

I purchased the mini ice cream cones on Amazon HERE. They came perfectly wrapped and not a one was cracked or broken.

Note: I’ve noticed that the cones above have not been available on Amazon for quite some time. Here are a few more resources:

Etsy, Restaurantware, or a sugar cone on Amazon

I made these for my last week of classes at Les Gourmettes. We served them as they were made during the class, so there was no need for a beautiful table presentation.

In fact, I made a “cone holder” with a heavy-duty cardboard box, an ice pick and a chopstick. I made the first hole with the ice pick then made it large enough to hold a cone, using the larger end of the chopstick.

You could do the same, even for a more presentable presentation. Just wrap the box in some colorful fabric or simple butcher paper. Or you can buy a lovely artist palette holder HERE.

These would be perfect for any entertaining event… say a Christmas Open House, a cocktail party or maybe even … a wedding.

[Read more →]

This gift from the kitchen would be perfect to give my best friend, Jennifer. Coincidentally, today is Jen’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Jenny Jen, I love you and I’m thinking of you today! xoxo

This would be the perfect gift because Jen loves smoked salmon and this fennel-cured salmon would make her so very happy.

On the eighth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me:
Fennel Cured Salmon
Spicy Guinness Mustard
Two Jars of Mustard
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Homemade Kahlua Liqueur
Lemon-Sugar Hand Scrub
Cranberry Citrus Vodka
and a bottle of Tomato Dust

Gravlax is similar to lox, which is cured salmon that has been cold smoked. You want to make this food gift within a few days of giving it away. Home-cured salmon has a shelf life of 7 days after the cure is removed. It can also be frozen and will keep for about 90 days before it begins to deteriorate in the freezer. So if you finish curing on Christmas Eve and you give your gift on Christmas day your gift tag should say something like:

Homemade Fennel Cured Salmon
Please enjoy by New Year’s Eve
or
Place in the freezer and use
by Valentine’s Day

I learned to make this recipe back in 1993 after attending the Sonoma County Wine Auction. Dave and I attended the Sonoma and Napa County wine auctions several times. This recipe and the memory of those events make me want to go again in the coming year.

BTW – You may substitute the same amount of dill for the fennel fronds… if that is easier for you to find… of course, then it would be Dill Cured Salmon. 

[Read more →]

Salmon is my “go-to” main dish when I really don’t want to make dinner. We all love it, it’s fast and easy to cook, it’s pretty to look at, and lo and behold, it’s good for you.

While in Alaska this past August, we were told over and over again an easy way to remember the five types of Alaskan salmon. Now I share it with you.

• Your thumb rhymes with chum, hence Chum Salmon
• Your pointer finger is the one you might sock someone in the eye with, so Sockeye Salmon
• Your middle is the largest finger – for King Salmon, the largest salmon
• Your ring finger is where you might wear a silver ring….for a Silver Salmon
• And your pinkie finger is easy! It’s the Pink Salmon

[Read more →]

Recently, one of you asked me, “Do you cook a big fancy meal every night?” The answer is “NO!” I am just like you, racking my brain about what to get onto the table.

This recipe is a good example of shooting from the hip to get dinner done in a pinch.  I made a nice meal one night with a large piece of salmon that I grilled and glazed with raspberry-chipotle sauce.

The next night I used the same bottled sauce to turn the leftover salmon into a quick pasta dinner.  Just like you, I’m throwing stuff together at the last minute with what I find in my fridge!

[Read more →]