Salmon Patties part II

I like to eat healthy when I can. Certainly I'm not fanatical about it so I work on the moderation principle a lot. A staple in our house is seafood. Costco has big bags of frozen Salmon (farm raised) and true wild caught Cod Filets. I think the latter should worry me because I'm not certain of the sustainability issues. But damn it all Jim (star trek reference people, Star Trek), the stuff tastes good so I splurge on occassions.

I'm a huge fan of crab cakes. Salmon cakes or salmon patties are made on the same principle and WAY cheaper. This I came up with a little experimentation. It isn't exactly low fat, but it does have a lot of the omega3 fatty acids from the salmon so there is at least some balance. Serve with a salad dressed with the same dressing on the Salmon Patties and its a done deal all tied nicely together.

Salmon Patties

• 1 1/2 lb salmon filets (about 4 thin costco frozen)
• 1 t Old Bay Seasoning
• Sea Salt to taste
• cracked black pepper to taste
• 3 green onions -finely sliced, separating the white and green tops.
• 1 celery stalk - finely diced
• 1 medium carrot - finely diced
• 1/3 c canned roasted pepper - coarse chopped
• 1 T chopped garlic
• 2 T butter
• 1/2 sea salt
• 1 C panko bread crumbs + additional for breading
• 1 t Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 t Colemans Dry Mustard
• 1 t dried dill weed
• 2 T mayo
• 1 egg
  
• Fresh lettuce greens and salad dressing (I use honey mustard)

Thaw and pat dry the salmon filets. Sprinkle salt, pepper and Old Bay over the filets. I micro roast them in an 8X8 pyrex pan tightly sealed with plastic wrap over them. The steam gently in their own juices and the carry over cooking finishes them off nicely. I use a 1500 Micro so you may need to alter the time a bit to match your power level. I cook full power 3 minutes, then cook 4 minutes at 30% power. Let stand 7 minutes covered tightly. As the dish cools the plastic wrap will draw tight around the salmon sealing in its juices.

Coarsely chop and flake the salmon filets and stick in fridge to cool them down.

Chop vegetables. In a small sautee pan add butter, white onion parts, Old Bay and salt. Cook until translucent. Add dry mustard, dill weed, celery and carrot, cook 5 minutes until the carrot starts to soften. Add chopped roasted peppers and garlic, cook only 1 minute so you don't burn the garlic. Remove from heat.

Bring salmon out of fridge, add veg the reserved green onion tops and toss lightly. Add 1 Cup panko crumbs and toss lightly. Do not stir hard or you will just get fine crumbled salmon instead of nice big identifiable chunks. Beat egg and mayo. Pour over the salmon and fold lightly. Let rest a couple of minutes.

Get a large non-stick baking sheet. Form the salmon mixture into 8 patties about the size of a large hamburger if using as a meal. Make smaller - 24 pieces if using as little cocktail appetizers.

Place the patties on the sheet. cover lightly with foil or plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes to up to 2 hours. This step is really important. If you do not chill and let them rest to tighten up they will just fall part when you cook them.

Preheat non-stick griddle over medium heat. Either spray with light cooking oil or brush on ghee (I use the latter for better browning). Put about 1 c panko into a bowl for breading your patties. Put a patty in the panko and tap lightly into the crumbs. Gently turn the patty over and repeat with the other side. Repeat for each patty. Place patty on griddle and cook about 2 minutes until golden brown on the bottom, flip the patty and cook the other side.

Serve hot like I did tonight with a drizzle of the same dressing I used on the salad greens. Perfect summer dinner that even my picky eaters will enjoy.

Lightly chop across the grain so you have large pieces of salmon that are lightly flaked

Sautee the vegies until translucent to release the natural sugars

Cook each side until lightly browned and heated through, serve hot.

July is Schnitza Month

It is pronounced: sch -NEET- za, also known as "french toast" or "eggy bread". Yup, all us mutts have a different name for the same food. Growing up I first knew it as Schnitza as that is what my grandmother called it. Hey...she was first generation Slovene-American and who am I to argue with grandma when she's cooking.

Every July when I was a kid we spent a few weeks in Ely MN visiting my grandparents and other family. Every year on the morning we left Ely for the drive home Grandma made a big breakfast for us. That breakfast for us kids ALWAYS included schnitza. It never deviated. (She did include these huge cinnamon carmel rolls that she made for the many years she worked at Vertin's Cafe, but that would be another post for another time).

When I was really little the hot schnitza was simply sprinkled with good old fashioned table sugar. Later years we started adding maple syrup which just takes it one step sweeter.

My grandmother was among many who taught me to cook and bake as a kid. My kids enjoy cooking and you can't start them too early. This morning my youngest decided he had to make "schnitza" for breakfast and we went at it. Enjoy the recipe and toss a salute schnitza makers everywhere!

Schnitza

2 slices bread, cut on diagonal
1 egg
1 T milk
1/4 t vanilla

sugar and maple syrup.

Preheat griddle over medium heat. Beat egg, milk and vanilla. Add bread one slice at time, turning to coat. Stack bread in the bowl and let it soak up all the egg mixture. Grease your griddle and add your slices. Cook until brown (1-2 minutes) then flip and cook the other side until it is brown. Serve hot. Sprinkle on sugar and add syrup if desired.

Coat each side of the bread well...

make sure the bread soaks up all the liquid...
fry up on a medium hot well greased griddle...

Sprinkle with sugar, only sugar for the authentic schnitza taste and look...

Shrimp Chowder...semi-light version

I'm generally not a big "chowder" fan. It is usually too rich or too pasty to really sit down and enjoy a big bowl of the stuff. I suspect the former is from recipes that call for heavy cream at the end and the latter for too much flour used to thicken that just doesn't get cooked well. Regardless not many really get me going.

I was watching food TV earlier this year and so many shows were doing chowders and the many variations. One of the episodes, I suspect it was Barefoot Contessa, that had a seafood chowder and recommended using a shrimp stock. It was interesting as it was made from the left over shells and stuff after the raw shrimp was used for something else. Around that time I had a shrimp recipe that called for peeled and deveined shrimp and I decide to use those remnants to make some stock and then just can it for future use.

Last night I got the bug to do shrimp chowder and figured out how to make it somewhat lighter than the traditional recipes I kept seeing. I eliminated the cream/half & half/whole milk and increased my stock and used instant mashed potatoes to thicken and give the soup more body. I worked. I got a lower fat per serving and still had a nice thick soup that wasn't pasty.

Shrimp Chowder

• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 large yellow onion
• 2 large carrots
• 2 celery stalks
• 2 large russet potatoes
• 1 t Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 t sea salt
• 1 whole bay leaf
• 1 t fresh cracked black pepper
• 1/2 t cayenne pepper
• 1/2 c chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
• 6 c shrimp stock
• 1/2 - 3/4 c instant mashed potato
• 1 1/2 pound peeled/deveined raw or previously cooked shrimp

Melt butter in large stock pot. Finely dice onion and add to pot, cook about 5 minutes. Finely dice celery and carrot, add to pot. Add salt and black pepper. Cook 10 minutes until onion is translucent and very soft. Cut potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes add to pot with cayenne, Old Bay, bay leaf and shrimp stock. Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes covered.

Remove lid and add 1/2 c mashed potato and stir well until dissolved and soup begins to thicken. Depending on brand you may need to add additional instant mashed potato to get the right consistency. Add the additional amounts 1 tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Add shrimp to soup. If using raw cook until they are pink, 3-5 minutes. If using previously cooked add to pot and cook 1-2 minutes until heated through. Stir in chopped parsley.

Shrimp stock:
6 cups water
1/2 large onion rough chopped
1 large carrot chopped
1 large stalk celery chopped
1 bay leaf
1 T Old Bay
shrimp shells from 1 1/2 - 2 pounds of raw shrimp.

Add onion, carrot, celery and spices to water in large stock pot. Bring to boil and simmer until onion is clear. Add shrimp shells and cook 5 minutes. Strain well. Pour stock into freezer container and freeze until ready to use. OR you may bring strained stock to a boil then pour into sterile canning jars and sealing with "pop" lids and refrigerate up to 4 weeks. I prefer the latter option as it tastes fresher that way.

It is fun to serve in small sourdough bread bowls but those tend to be hard to find. I opted to use sourdough mini-loafs which were just fine, just not the same pissy presentation you get in the usual bread bowl.

This does make a big batch of soup and the butter winds up being pretty nominal when divided into 8 big servings.

Margarita Tart

I got the idea from the Guy Fieri show last week. He did a "Tequila Lime Tart" and I thought that looks good! As usual I can't stay in the lines and do a recipe the way it was presented. This one got the wheels turning...why its almost the same flavors as a margarita. All that is missing is the hint of orange in the back to be a margarita.

I looked at the recipe a little closer and decided it needed to be a little limier too. So I opted to add in 1/2 t lime zest. And then I decided...hmm let's go for the Margarita profile and added in 1/2 t orange zest. Tasty stuff was the result for Bill and Stacey's Carne Asada BBQ tonight.

Margarita Tart
For the crust: 10 ounces vanilla wafers 1/3 cup pine nuts 1/2 cup butter, melted

For the filling: 2 egg whites 1 tablespoon sugar 1/4 cup tequila 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
½ t lime zest
½ t orange zest
4 egg yolks
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Fresh whipped cream, for serving

For the crust:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Add wafers and pine nuts to food processor, pulse until well ground up. Pour into bowl and add melted butter.
Mix by hand, with a wooden spoon, and press into 10-inch tart pan. (reserve 4 tablespoons of crumbs to sprinkle on top when done baking.)

Place tart pan in the oven and bake for 8 minutes.

For the filling:

In a mixing bowl add egg whites and sugar, beat until there are soft peaks.
In another mixing bowl, add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Fold in the egg whites. Pour into tart shell and bake for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with reserved crumbs.

Let cool before cutting and serve with fresh whipped cream.

Now for some of the tips and things I have learned over the years. Always bring your ingredients to room temp. Things mix better and actually let the flavors blend better than if you just pull them out cold.
Always make very certain your egg whites are at room temp. Always beat in a copper bowl. I don't understand the chemistry behind it but there is a reaction between the copper and the egg whites that allows them to incorporate more air. A pinch of tartar will help stabilize them as well.

When folding beaten egg whites into the base flavor mixture which is always much denser start by adding 1/2 your whites to the base and fold that in. When it is well incorporated you can pour that into the remaining whites and fold them in. This tempering allows you keep maximum air in the mixture while still getting it well mixed.

Bake your shell by putting it onto another sheet pan. This protects the bottom from cooking to fast. It also will catch any filling dribbles or boil overs and prevent a mess on the bottom of your oven. Lastly, doing that makes it easy to put the full shell into the oven without spilling as well as getting out easy without sticking your finger into the baked filling.

Lemon Pound Cake

Continuing with the "all things lemon" theme of the last few posts today's entry is Lemon Pound Cakes based on a recipe for Orange Pound Cake from Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten. (She and Paula Deen are just about my favorites for baking as it "all starts with a stick of butter"). Since I still have some 200 Meyer lemons ripening I convert a lot of things to lemons these days.

Just wait am only a couple of weeks away from grapefruits. I may have to start bagging them and handing them to the fruit sellers at the offramps and let them make some free money whilst disposing of my bounty.

Lemon Pound Cake

• 2 sticks butter at room temperature
• 2 c sugar
• 4 extra large eggs at room temperature
• 1/3 c grated lemon zest (about 8 large lemons)
• 3 c all purpose flour
• 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t baking soda
• 1 t kosher salt
• 1/4 c fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 3/4 c buttermilk at room temperature
• 1 t pure vanilla extract

Simple Syrup

• 1/2 c fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 c sugar

Icing

• 1 c powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 t fresh squeezed lemon juice

Grease and flour two loaf pans. Line bottoms and drape 2 sides with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350F. Cream butter and sugar, beat 5 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat well with each addition. Fold in lemon zest.

Combine Dry ingredients and sift into seperate bowl. Combine wet ingredients. Add 1/3 of flour and beat well. Add 1/2 wet ingredients beat well. Add next 1/3 flour and beat well. Add remaining liquid and beat in well. Add the last of the flour and beat well.

Divide batter between loaf pans. Smooth tops. Bake center oven for 45 - 60 minutes until toothpick comes out dry.

While baking prepare simple syrup by bringing juice and sugar to a boil stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool.

When cakes are done remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes. At the end of the 19 minutes the cakes will be quite warm , remove them by loosening the sides and pulling parchment paper putting cake on a wire rack. Spoon over each cake 1/2 of the lemon syrup.

When cake is cooled make the glaze by whisking in lemon juice to the powdered sugar. Add additional lemon juice by drop full until it is a runny consistency. Spoon the glaze over cake until the top is covered and it begins to run down the sides of the cake.

Enjoy one, pass the other on to a friend. That's what us folks with fruit trees do. A lot.

Lemon and 40 clove Garlic Roast Chicken...stuff them up its butt!

Continuing with all things lemon here is a twist on roast chicken. I used a lot of whole peeled garlic and included lemons in the pan itself to get a nice citrus tang to the pan juices. Definitely is tart but still very tasty.

Lemon and 40 Clove Garlic Roast Chicken

• 2 roasting chickens, about 5-6 lbs each
• 8 lemons
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 T thyme
• 2 c cubed carrots
• 4-5 medium white potatoes quartered
• salt, pepper
• olive oil
• 1/2 - 1 c water, white wine or broth

Preheat oven to 425. Wash and clean the chickens. Dry them. With cut one lemon into 4 slices. Remaining lemons cut in half.

For each chicken: Salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Sprinkle in approx 1 t thyme. Add 3-4 lemon halves and 6 cloves of garlic. Slip fingers between skin and breast meat. Insert 2 lemons and 2 cloves garlic on each breast of the chicken. Fold wings under, truss and tie legs together. Lightly oil the chicken with the olive oil. Salt and Pepper the top and bottom of chicken. Sprinkle remaining thyme over the two chickens.

Place the celery stalks in the center of large roasting pan. Place chickens on top of the celery. Add remaining lemons, cut side down around the chickens. Put in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.

Toss remaining cloves of garlic, carrots and potatoes with 1T olive oil. Add 1 t sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste. At the end of the 15 minutes remove the roasting pan. Add the vegie mix around the chickens. Insert thermometer or oven probe to the thickest leg of the largest chicken.

Lower oven to 325. Roast until thermometer reaches 170. Baste as needed if your pan starts to dry out. (The potatoes soak up a lot of pan juices so you do need to monitor).

At the end of the cooking time remove the chickens and put on platter, tenting to let stand 10-15 minutes. Spoon out the vegies and put in serving bowl. Add additional broth to pan juices and a thickener to make a gravy.

Chili Corn Chowder

Not exactly a cool winter day but I'll grab those soup nights while I can as soon enough it will be blazing hot.

Tonights soup is an adaptation of a very healthy soup from the Cooking Light Magazine. This one has a nominal bit of fat for flavor and to aid in the sautee at the beginning. I tend to like things with a bit of a kick so I do add in some chili powder and cayenne. Not enough so it burns out the back side, just enough so you feel a little heat at the back of the mouth.

Chili Corn Chowder

• 2 c fine diced cooked chicken breast
• 1/4 t Chili powder
• 2-3 pinches cayenne pepper
• 1 1/2 pound frozen corn
• 1/2 C fine diced celery
• 1/2 C fine diced onion
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t fresh cracked pepper
• 1 T butter
• 1 can chicken or vegetable broth
• 1/2 c each finely sliced green onion and cilantro.

Toss chicken with chili powder and set aside.

In a large nonstick stock pot melt butter and add the celery, onion, salt and pepper. Cook until soft and just starting to carmelize, about 10 minutes. Stir often. Add 1 lb corn and broth. Over low heat cook about 15 minutes until corn is heated through. Remove from heat.

Take mixture and put in blender whizzing it on high until smooth. Pour soup back into your pan, add remaining 1/2 lb corn and reserved chicken. Heat over low about 10 minutes until warmed through and just starting to bubble. You may have to add 1/2 c or so of water at the end to get it to the desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Serve hot garnished with the green onion and cilantro.

There you go a pretty easy and low fat soup. Just enough butter to brown and give it a little smoothness. Unlike typical chowders that are thickened with a roux and milk, cream or half-and-half this soup get's its thickening from the whizzed corn....a natural thickener. The end result is a very low fat chowder that is extremely tasty. Also, added bonus if you substitute vegetable broth and a clear cooking oil you'd be pretty close to vegan which helps when you are on a pipe cleaning diet.