Finnish Salmon Soup

Through an order mishap, I had a spare serving of salmon from my online order at Coastal Seafoods, and not a lot of time to eat it in, what with already making oyster stew, gravlax, and lamb shanks in the coming days. So tonight I made a solo (plus) portion of this salmon soup. Because it is blizzarding, and I was already drinking Austrian mulled wine, so why not carry forth with more warm deliciousness?! 

This soup was really easy and perfect tonight - buttery broth, fresh dill, creamy potatoes and tender salmon - all while the wind howls and the snow falls, what is not to love? This soup is ready in about 30 minutes, and I made the fish broth as suggested, by boiling the salmon skin in water for 10 minutes. It totally works, though it is a pretty light broth. I thought I had some shrimp shells stashed in the freezer somewhere for just this sort of need, but I couldn't locate them if I do. If you have clam broth, or fish stock around, I think that would make things even tastier. But if not, this does the job.

The recipe is from a food blogger I had forgotten about; I made her nut and fruit paleo bread some years ago, and was thinking about making it again in recent days, which is what prompted me to revisit her blog and subsequently see this recipe. The only thing I did differently was to use onion instead of leeks, (I had no leek), and I had a red potato, not a russet. I am pasting her original recipe below. (It was easy to shrink to 1/3, though this would make excellent leftovers.)

Ingredients

• 1 lb skin-on salmon filet
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 large leek, trimmed, sliced, and well rinsed
• 5 cups water (you can also use fish stock)
• 1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 1 cup (10g) fresh dill for garnish, finely chopped, divided
• 1 cup (250ml) heavy cream
• 1/4 tsp allspice, use more to taste
• salt and pepper to taste 

• Remove the skin from the salmon and cut into largish chunks. Remove any small pin bones and discard. Reserve the skin.
• Melt the butter in a soup pot and saute the leeks for 10 minutes, or until nice and soft.
• While the leeks are cooking, put 5 cups of water and the reserved fish skin in a saucepan and bring to a boil, turn down the heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Note: if you are using fish stock you can skip this step.
• Strain the broth and add to the pan with the leeks, along with the potatoes, carrots, and half of the fresh dill. Cook for another 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are just tender.
• Add the salmon chunks to the soup along with the cream and allspice, and gently simmer on low heat until cooked through, just a few minutes. Add the remaining dill, and salt and pepper to taste.
   
  

Paleo Sushi

Last weekend I bought some wild coho salmon from the Seward because it was on sale, and in deciding how to prepare it, My Charming Companion was urging sashimi. Which then created a desire for some sushi rolls to go with. The amazing thing was I had all my fave sushi ingredients in the cupboard and fridge - even some pickled ginger - so impromptu sushi dinner it was. In my pre-paleo days I ate homemade sushi pretty often. I had looked at various paleo sushi options online over the last few years, never seeing anything I was excited about. But Studio Snacks had a version recently that included a one-egg omelette-like layer in lieu of rice that I found intriguing. So that is what I tried - it turned out amazing! And was actually much easier than traditional rice sushi because the egg is way less fussier than the rice. This would work for all kinds of sushi rolls, but here are the two I made.

Paleo California Roll
Nori sheets
cucumber, sliced lengthwise
carrots, sliced lengthwise
homemade mayo (opt)
1 egg per sushi roll
coconut aminos
avocado, sliced
sesame seeds (opt)

Paleo Salmon Roll
Thin slice of quality raw salmon
1 egg per sushi roll
coconut aminos
homemade mayo (opt)
cucumber, sliced lengthwise
sesame oil
toasted sesame seeds (opt)





1. Prep all veggies/fish - slice them and have them ready to lay in roll.
2. Make egg "sheets":To prepare them you will need one egg per roll. Ideally you want a pan that is 8-9" wide that is either a well oiled cast iron, or a non-stick pan. Heat the pan on med, with just a bit of coconut oil on the bottom (I replenished the coconut oil for each egg sheet). While pan is heating, mix one egg with a splash of coconut aminos. When pan is hot, pour egg into pan and swish around so that the egg layer covers the entire pan. You want the heat setting so that it cooks the egg pretty quickly, but not immediately. I tried two techniques next: either flip the egg to cook the other side (this takes about 10 seconds since it will be mostly cooked through), or just cook it all the way on side one. Either method works - just be somewhat careful because the egg sheet is quite thin, and you want it mostly intact to lay on the nori paper.
3. Assemble rolls: Lay one sheet of nori down. Spread a thin layer of mayo (if using) along bottom half of the nori. Lay your egg "sheet" on top - it should cover much of the nori. Then make one layer of your veggies/fish. Experiment with how much to fill. Roll up, using a bit of water to "seal" the nori to itself. (Studio Snacks has some photos about how this looks step by step.)
*One note is that because the egg sheets are round they will inherently have a less tight roll at the ends. You could cut the sheets into squares, or just trim one part of the circle and place it on the edges of the roll to make this more even. I just used the egg as is and had slightly uneven ends!
4. Slice sushi rolls. If you made the raw salmon ones, drizzle some toasted sesame oil over the top. Sprinkle rolls with toasted sesame seeds if you want, and serve with coconut aminos, wasabi, and pickled ginger.

The photo shows the full spread, including the sashimi of salmon with ginger (beautifully cut and arranged by My Charming Companion). Another endeavor I hope to try is to pickle my own ginger, maybe with a little honey. I found a couple of fermented versions, so I'll post that when I get around to trying it.

Salmon and Sweet Potato Hash

This is a pretty simple recipe my friends made for me recently, and I fell in love with it. So had to make it myself.

They served a Paella type rice thing with it that involved lemon zest, fresh parsley, red pepper flakes which was very complimentary...  But I bet some of the Cauliflower rice would be good too.

Anyway, here goes:

Salmon and Sweet Potato Hash 

Get a big chunk of salmon. 

Cover it with some sugar, salt, pepper, and lemon slices. 

Wrap this in a tin foil packet, or place in a pan and cover. 

Cook for an hour at 200 degrees.

Get a couple two three sweet potatoes. 

Cut them into dice sized pieces. 

Do the same with red and green pepper and an onion. 

Throw the potatoes in a pan with olive oil and a clove or three of garlic. 

Cook for about 10 minutes. 

Add the peppers and onion. Cook for another 5. 

When salmon is done, shred the it and add that as well. 

And a generous amount of turmeric. Salt and pepper to taste. 

Paella Rice

Heat up olive or other type oil. Add 3 cloves of garlic (crushed), a healthy dose of red pepper flakes, and 2 cups of your favorite rice. Stir the rice around until coated with the oil. Add a bay leaf, ½ bunch of chopped Italian parsley, the zest of two lemons, and a quart of chicken stock. Bring to a boil (don't stir much), and then reduce to medium low and cook for 20 minutes, covered. Continue to not stir. When the stock is mostly gone, stir it and serve.

Gravlax with paleo crackers

I brought homemade gravlax to My Charming Companion's family Christmas, and it was a big success: meltingly tender and the right amount of salty with really nice accents of dill and caraway. It inspired some commentary and questions about the difference between gravlax and lox: gravlax is cured in salt AND sugar for 1-3 days and includes dill, whereas lox is cured in salt only for several weeks and is often confused with cold smoked salmon. We did all agree that all are delicious, and proceeded to eat it all up. Gravlax is just sort of sparkly and lovely to bring somewhere - it's novel and special and it's cured salmon! yum.

Cured salmon filet before slicing and pressing with dill

There are numerous recipes for gravlax and I ended up searching through lots of them. The recipes vary in the amount of salt and sugar, in the ratio of the two, there is a variety of spices and flavors, and some use alcohol and others don't. What it seems from this wide range of recipes is that there are many ways to make good gravlax, so go with a recipe that appeals to you! I found myself drawn to two: one from Saveur and one from the NY Times (in an article with 3 other recipes) because they used less sugar and salt overall and the spicing seemed most interesting. The recipe I ultimately used was most based on the one in the NY Times by chef Tom Valenti, and needs to cure for about 48 hours. Below is my adaptation.

Gravlax
1 2 pound fillet of salmon, pin bones removed
2 tablespoons vodka or tequila
1/2 cup salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 bay leaves, chopped
2 bunches dill, stems and all, minced
1/2 onion, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon caraway seeds, lightly toasted
1 tablespoon minced tarragon

Salmon on plastic wrap with salt and sugar

1. Place salmon, skin side down, on a large sheet of plastic wrap, and sprinkle it with the alcohol. Mix together the salt and sugar, then sprinkle onto the flesh side of the salmon. Mix together the bay leaves, dill, pepper, caraway seeds, and tarragon. Cover the flesh side of the salmon with the onions and this mixture, making sure to coat it completely (see photo below).
2. Wrap the fish well (as in several layers of plastic wrap), and refrigerate for about 48 hours. The salmon will release a lot of liquid, so be careful to have the whole plastic wrapped package in a tupperware or deep dish of some kind to catch all that liquid.
3. After 48 hours, unwrap the salmon and rinse off the cure.* Dry and filet the skin off as carefully as possible. I chopped up another 1/4 cup of fresh dill and pressed it to the underside of the gravlox so that there was dill in each slice. To serve, slice gravlax thinly with a sharp knife. I had mine with homemade crackers (see below) and it was excellent.

Pre-wrapping it up with all the herbs

*If you are not serving right away, do still rinse off the cure after 48 hours. Not rinsing the cure will make the gravlax more dry and overly salty. Store the gravlax in tupperware or wrapped up until ready to serve. I read that the gravlax keep in this state anywhere from 3 days to 2 weeks, but have not tested the longer length!

I made some special paleo crackers to eat my gravlax with - caraway dill almond ones, following my previously posted recipe but swapping out some herbs. They turned out great.

Almond Caraway Dill Crackers
1 3/4 c almond flour
1/2 t sea salt
1 T dried dill
1 T caraway seeds
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 T olive oil
1 egg

1. Mix dry ingredients together - make sure almond flour is nut clumped up.
2. Whisk oil and egg in a small bowl, then add to almond flour mix and stir until combined. The mixture will be wet and quite thick.
3. Roll the dough into a ball and press it between two sheets of parchment paper about 1/8" thick.
4. Remove top parchment layer and cut crackers with a pizza roller or knife into desired size. Transfer the bottom piece of parchment (with cracker dough) to a baking sheet, and bake 12-15 minutes at 350. Let cool for about 30 minutes before serving.

Blackened Salmon and garden thinnings salad

Well, it's been a busy couple of weeks. My vacation is nearing, there are lots of celebrations of love happening, lots of family visits, the Lynx are playing amazingly, and the sun is coming out occasionally. Hurray! It's like the feeling of spring flowers bursting forth, only it is a little later this year in the month we call June.

One of the things I have been enjoying lately are micro-green salads from thinnings in the garden: baby kale plants, baby brussels sprouts, baby arugula and lettuces, and some baby sheep sorrel. Sheep sorrel is a nice lemony-sour wild plant that is really tasty and seems to be abundant in MN. Thankfully it sprouts up in one of the "wild" beds (that is, one that never gets weeded) at the Northside homestead. It is easy to identify because of the little tabs at the base of the leaf, and also because if you eat a bite you will know right away that it is tasty and tangy and good. Now is the time to seek it out!

Last night's dinner included the micro-greens salad, some roasted asparagus, and a new recipe to me: Blackened Salmon. It all turned out really delicious. I was making a celebratory dinner for some friends, and also wanted to try ceviche oysters. They were not so good - I don't know if its because this is not the best time for oysters, or if ceviche and oysters just aren't a good pair. So, skip the ceviche and go straight for the salmon.

Blackened Salmon
2-4 Wild Caught Salmon Filets (with skin)
Coconut Oil
Cajun Seasoning Mix:
1 Tbsp Paprika
1 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
1 Tbsp Thyme
1 Tbsp Oregano
1 Tbsp Sea Salt
1 Tbsp Black Pepper

1. Mix spices together in a small jar. You will not need all of it, so save for another use.
2. Spread about 2 T of the cajun spice mix on a plate. Press the non-skin sides of the salmon to the spice mix to give them a nice coating.
3. Heat 2 T coconut oil in a large skillet (I used cast iron) until it is hot. Turn heat to medium and place the salmon filets spice/flesh side down and cook for 2 minutes.
4. After two minutes, turn the heat to medium low and flip the salmon over so that they are now skin side down. They will not stick and should flip nicely with a pair of tongs. The spiced side should be crisp and spicy looking!
5. Cover and cook for another 12-16 minutes. The skin should be crispy at this point. If you are unsure how long to cook your fish, it should equal about 8 minutes per 1 inch of thickness in the meat. My pieces were pretty thick, and 14 minutes seems about perfect.
6. Serve!

Bowl of "micro-greens" aka garden thinnings

For the salad:
3-4 cups plant thinnings/micro-greens/lettuce/sorrel
3 thin green onions, sliced
1/4 c. beet, grated
1/4 c. carrot, grated
2-3 T fresh lemon juice
2-3 T olive oil
sea salt
1 tsp. mustard powder
toasted almonds

Toss everything together and serve!

Hawaiian Feast: Laulau, Poi, and Poke

Coconut friend

This post actually comprises a couple of different meals, but I thought I'd put them all together and call it a smorgasbord. And more than any cooking, this post is highlighting some finds at United Noodles - namely laulaus and poi. You can buy laulaus and poi at United Noodles?! Who knew?! They aren't cheap at $15 and $10 respectively, though they wouldn't necessarily be cheap in Hawaii either. The eating of the feast coincided with me receiving 6 coconuts from my co-worker (she used them for drinks, but did not want the meat inside) - which meant a big coconut processing fest, followed by "fun with coconut shells!"

Laulau steaming....

Laulaus are pork (with some extra pork fat) and a little bit of butterfish wrapped in taro leaves. This ensemble is wrapped again, in ti leaves this time so that the little package can be steamed. When you buy them at United Noodles, they come frozen in a pack of 3. I put them in a steamer basket over boiling water and they were ready in 15 minutes. These were amazing - the taro and ti leaves smell so good! My Charming Companion and I kept trying to think up other (local) greens that could replace the taro, and though collards or spinach or lamb's quarters would do, there is something about the taro that is really unique. We did think about trying laulau with one of the aforementioned greens wrapped up in corn husks - aka tamale wrappers. It would be a laulamale. ha!

I ate my laulau with a simple egg drop soup of chicken bone broth, eggs, sesame oil, and wakame seaweed (which I love - also from United Noodles in the Japanese section). It is about the fastest soup ever and tastes good too. If you make this, be sure to really stir up the broth as you pour in the whisked eggs so that the eggs are thread-like. These got a little clumpy due to not quite enough ferocity in the broth stirring.

Poi is fermented taro root - it is a gooey thick paste that is light purple, that to me tastes faintly of sourdough. I think it is nice with raw fish (lomi salmon or poke), though My Charming Companion just eats it up plain.

Above, the frozen poi is heated over a double boiler so as to avoid defrosting the whole batch at one time. Instead, you can score the poi package down the middle, whack it firmly on some strong structure (like a butcher block) and keep half in the freezer for later. Heat it slowly in the double boiler, adding some water to get a nice smooth, not too thick consistency. Then let it sit to cool to room temp for serving. Otherwise just defrost the whole package and whisk up (with some water) for full consumption. Any leftovers will continue to ferment, so beware if you don't want it to get more sour!

Finished poi! Eat it with your fingers!

Poke is sashimi tuna (or in my case salmon - but could also be swordfish or even octopus - though you would cook that) that is marinated in sesame oil and a little coconut aminos, with hawaiian sea salt, chili pepper flakes, and limu seaweed. You can buy a little packet of poke mix at United Noodles - and really what you are buying is the limu, which seems hard to come by otherwise. I mixed mine with some fresh scallions too. And after you pick up your poke mix, you can pop right next door to Coastal Seafoods for your sashimi grade fish! Just remove the skin, and dice.

Salmon poke - yum!

So, that is the feast. One of my fave Hawaiian dishes that was not made this time around is lomi salmon, which is a salad of raw salmon with green onions, tomatoes, and hawaiian sea salt. This is not the time for tomatoes though, so that will have to wait for summer!

Coconut friend eating a laulau.

Citrus and Spice Salmon

Citrus and Spice Salmon
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4 cloves garlic minced

3 shallots or half and onion, minced

2 TBL fennel seed, crushed or ground

zest of one lemon and one orange

juice of one orange and half a lemon

2 TBL chopped fresh Tarragon, or ½ TBL dry

1 TBL ground black pepper

2 tsp chopped thyme, or 1tsp dry

½ tsp cayenne pepper

3TBL oil of choice

salt

Combine all of the above in a bowl,

then place 1-2 lbs of Salmon filets in a baking dish (I use the amounts above for 1 lb, although the recipe says they are for 2-2.5 lbs, cause I like spice!)

spread mixture on top.

Bake covered for 25-35 mins, to your desired opaque-ness.

I have also grilled this skin side down outside with success, in case it is too hot to turn on the oven :)

I enjoy serving with mashed potatoes and a nice green veggie from my CSA box.

 Sorry I don't have any photos....

Salmon Cakes (paleo)

I bought a can of wild salmon when it was on sale awhile ago, and have been meaning to try making salmon cakes ever since. Tonight, with its impending storm and warm temps, seemed a perfect night to try them. The original recipe is listed here - though I copied it below as well. This makes a quick and easy dinner for one - I ate mine on a bunch of salad greens with fresh dill, chives, lemon juice, and homemade mayo, or you could make them more miniature as an appetizer.

My salmon cakes included garden chives and green onions!

Salmon Cakes (yields 3 patties)
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1 large clove of garlic, pressed or finely chopped
1-2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh chives (set 1 Tsp aside for garnish)
1 Tsp gluten-free djion mustard
1 egg
sea salt & pepper to taste
6 oz cooked wild salmon, mashed up
1 Tsp coconut flour
1/4c coconut oil for pan-frying (quantity may vary based on pan size)
Juice & zest from 1/2 of a lemon for garnish

1. Pre-heat a small cast iron skilled with coconut oil melted in approximately 1/8-1/4″ deep.
2. Combine onion, garlic, chives, mustard, sea salt, pepper, egg and coconut flour in a small mixing bowl to combine. Add salmon and mix together until the salmon is well incorporated.
3. When the pan and oil are hot, form the mixture into approximately 2 oz patties (I just formed them in may hands very gently!) Cook the patties thoroughly until well browned on one side before attempting to flip them. If you try to flip them too early they may break. Brown the second side. Each side will take several minutes to brown.
4. Remove the salmon cakes from the pan and serve warm. Garnish with extra chives, onions and lemon juice and zest to taste. Serve over salad greens.