The wonders of smoked salmon—and a quick, easy tart

 

Photo by Judy

I can’t believe I was grown before I tasted smoked salmon. It’s the kind of thing my mom would have loved, though my Anglophile dad might have declined to try it. Note that I am talking here of cold-smoked salmon (lox is one version); hot smoked salmon is an entirely different thing and tastes, to me, liked regular cooked salmon with an overlay of smoky flavor. I eat it, it’s okay, but I have a passionate love for cold smoked salmon. You can almost always find a pack of it in my fridge—a fishmonger once told me that the packaged smoked salmon is fresher than what he lays out on the counter as fresh-cut. So I buy packaged—there are several good brands, including Ruby Bay, St. John’s Smokehouse, Spence & CO. Ltd. and others.

You can do so many things with smoked salmon, though I think most people tend to think of it as lox and cream cheese on a bagel with tomato and onion slices (I prefer a sandwich on good Jewish rye—bagel is too much chewy bread for me). Try a twist of smoked salmon on top of a deviled egg; make a spread of it with cream cheese and onion (I have a recipe I’d gladly share) and serve with crackers, or stuff in a tiny puff pastry shell with a dab of caviar for (optional) elegance; serve it as the centerpiece of a salad plate, with lettuce, tomato, onion—and scatter capers across it. I like just a plate of smoked salmon with crackers. Or you can try lox and eggs—dice up some salmon into your scrambled eggs. It’s extra good if you also toss in some diced tomato and green onions—just be sure the onions get cooked.

My local family won’t eat smoked salmon—I know, growing up in my household, Jordan has tasted it and doesn’t care for it. I wouldn’t be surprised if Christian has not tried it, and I could almost guarantee Jacob hasn’t, though sometimes he surprises me. So, dishes with smoked salmon are things I fix for happy hour or light supper for friends. Mary V. particularly likes it, and I have more than once served her a flour tortilla spread with crème fraiche, topped with generous smoked salmon, and that dab of caviar in the middle for elegance. (You can get a small jar of caviar for ten dollars—it’s not Beluga, but it’s acceptable).  Recently though I ran across a recipe for a smoked salmon tart and served it to Mary. She loved it—and so did I.

Ingredients (for four servings)

½ small red onion, thinly sliced, previously pickled

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 cup crème fraiche or sour cream

6 oz. sliced smoked salmon

Persian cucumber slices, previously pickled

Capers as garnish

Fresh dill as garnish

Chopped tomato as garnish if you wish

Lemon for serving

Directions

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and lay the puff pastry on top—no need to roll it out first. I usually use Pepperidge Farm puff pastry, but when Trader Joe’s had theirs on sale (winter holidays only) I bought some to keep in the freezer. It’s turns out really flaky. Poke it all over with a fork to eliminate air pockets. Your pastry should turn out crisp but not puffy-mine actually was puffy and I had to poke it again after baking.

Follow baking instructions for pastry sheet and then let cool to room temperature.

Spread sour cream or crème fraiche over pastry sheet. Top with generous smoked salmon. Arrange garnish vegetables in a decorative pattern if possible and scatter with either caviar or capers.

Serve with lemon.

How to pickle red onion: slice onion into a small bowl; toss with a pinch of salt. Sprinkle with white vinegar until covered and toss again. Let sit on kitchen counter for twenty or thirty minutes. Leftovers? Refrigerate and use another time

How to pickle cucumber: mix 1 cup water with 1/3 cup white cider vinegar, a pinch of sugar, ½ tsp. salt; slice two Persian or one English cucumber and stir into vinegar mixture. Add a sliced green onion if you wish. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to use immediately; otherwise refrigerate. Keeps well and is a hand accompaniment (or ingredient) of sandwiches, etc.

A  couple of quick notes that have been on my mind:

Why are so many recipes calling for jammy (perfectly set whites but with slightly cooked or jammy yolks) eggs? If I want a hard-boiled egg, I want the yolk cooked!

Speaking of eggs: if you don’t want to try salmon in your eggs, try cottage cheese. Seriously! It gives them a rich and hearty flavor. For two eggs (one person) stir in a heaping Tbsp. of cottage cheese. My mom did that and I loved it; thanks to Jordan’s friend Amy for reminding me the other day.

And a whine: if I saw one more pink-and green-kitchen, I may scream. No, I don’t think it’s a great makeover!

And on that note, happy eating.

 

 

 

Never order fish on Monday

Even the best cooks like to dine in a restaurant occasionally—it’s a break from cooking, a chance to experience new tastes (and maybe pick up some new ideas), and it’s fun to have someone else plate your food. But chefs caution there are several things to remember not to order or eat. Herewith just a few. Some have to do with weight control, others with hygiene and food safety.

For the sake of your waistline, do not order those “endless” or “all you can eat dishes. For instance, chips and salsa that is constantly replenished. As you sit and visit, waiting for your food, you almost unconsciously keep nibbling on what’s in front of you. Before you know it, you’ve consumed so many chips you’ve compromised your appetite for the meal. And those fried chips are not innocent—they have probably been fried in trans fats. The same is true for bread with olive oil dipping sauce, although in this case, it’s the oil and not the bread that you should suspect. Olive oil may be heart-healthy, but it has more calories than butter. And then there’s endless pasta—your bowl will be refilled as many times as you want. The thing is most restaurants serve huge portions of noodles to begin with, so if you ask for more, you’re eating two meals.

The same is true for entrée salads. Restaurants load them with lots of dressing (learn to ask for it on the side) and toppings that are high in calories—cheese, bacon, croutons, etc. So that salad you thought would be healthy, may end up with more calories than a Big Mac. Salads to watch are Cobb, taco, and crispy chicken—where the chicken is fried.

Speaking of a Big Mac, it’s best to avoid all fast food, no exceptions. That burger, fries and a shake can end up well over a thousand calories, too much of it from trans fat. Also to avoid trans fats, which can raise cholesterol levels and promote heart disease, avoid fried foods—that chicken-fried steak you love, fried chicken, French fries. It’s hard but you can do it.

Avoid creamy soups. Many have as much as 500 calories per bowl and filling enough to be a main dish. If you want soup before your meal, stick to clear broth. Watch out for soup of the day or house soup—it’s often a mishmash of leftovers.

Restaurant deserts have hidden dangers too. They are usually loaded with fruit, artificial sweeteners, and lots of plain old sugar.

Switching to hygienic hazards, you know those lemons and limes you like to add to your water or tea? Don’t do it. They are big germ carriers, either because your wait person doesn’t use tongs and gloves to transfer them from container to your glass or even because you yourself squeeze them, letting the juice run over your hands (when did you last wash your hands?)

Unless you’re going straight home to the refrigerator, don’t ask for a to-go box or doggie bag. Food left at room temperature for two hours is considered a hazard. For the same reason, avoid buffets—those dishes may be set out piping hot but over time they cool to room temperature and ou can’t be sure how often they are rewarmed. Also buffets present the situation of many hands dipping into a common bowl—a huge opportunity for transferring germs.

Some dishes that may carry food-borne illnesses—those sprouts in your sandwich, raw oysters, certain fish, ground meat such as medium-rare hamburgers. Avoid Hollandaise sauce—it is difficult to make, so chefs make it in large batches—what you get on your Eggs Benedict may have been sitting out for hours. Order bottled water instead of tap water, avoid ketchup in the bottle (chefs tend to combine half-full bottles at the end of the day), and bread baskets—if you think they don’t go from table to table you’re wrong.

All this is enough to scare you off restaurant trips forever, but it shouldn’t. Exercise caution and common sense. And never order fish on Monday—the markets are closed, so that fish has sat all weekend.

I like to leave with something positive, so here’s an easy good chicken recipes I’ve just discovered

Chicken Caesar salad

Ingredients

Chicken tenders

1 cup bottled Caesar dressing

1/3 cup fresh grated parmesan

Parsley (optional)

Romaine lettuce

Directions:

Pound chicken tenders if too thick. Mix Parmesan into dressing and combine. If using parsley, stir in 2 Tbsp. chopped. Coat both sides of each piece of chicken. Broil until chicken is cooked through—it should brown slightly. Spread lettuce into soup plate or dinner plate; top with chicken pieces. Add more dressing if necessary. Add croutons if you wish.

Serve to family raves!

 

The rotisserie chicken controversy

 

My photo of Grandma's chicken casserole

It tastes good. It’s quick and easy to use. It holds together in casseroles, which is a big plus to me. So what’s not love about rotisseries chicken? Start with the nitrates and nitrites and other preservatives that are in it. Then add the oils and butter that make it so tasteful but also add to the fat content. So what’s a cook to do? One trick is to be sure to skin the chicken and discard the skin. Beyond that, you’re thrown back to cooking the chicken at home yourself.

So maybe you have time to cook the chicken before you make that casserole. The obvious method is to boil it—I’ve seen too many recipes that begin with, “Boil an old hen.” Truth is boiling makes chicken tough. The new method is to poach it—a much gentler method of cooking. Some recipes say put the chicken in cold water and gradually increase the temperature to a simmer. Cook until internal temperature is 155^o.(This presumes you are using chicken breasts). The alternate poaching method calls for bringing the water just to a boil and then quickly putting a lid on the pot, remove it from the heat, and let sit at least 20 minutes. As in the other method, the internal temperature should be 155^o.

But, boiled or poached, chicken cooked in water is bland. To me, even the pale color is unappealing. You can season it yourself by adding carrots, onion, peppercorns, etc. to the poaching water. Or you can marinate the chicken first (some stores, like Central Market, sell pre-marinated chicken breasts but by using them you run into the problem of possible preservatives). You can grill or roast or pan fry the chicken. One method I like is to season the chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper, lay onion slices on them, and put in a covered pan with at least an inch of water. Then bake at 350^o for half an hour.

It's up to you: which is more important, flavorful chicken or healthy chicken? I go back and forth, use rotisserie chicken about half the time. And then the next question is what are you going to do with that cooked chicken? Here are a couple of casseroles I really like:

Grandma’s chicken casserole

3 cups cooked chicken, roughly chopped

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

3 cups crushed Ritz crackers (about two sleeves)

Arrange chicken in a greased 9 x13 pan; spoon soup over it and smooth out as evenly as possible; top with grated cheese and finish with Ritz crackers.

Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes. Do not let crackers burn. Let cool and collect itself 10 minutes before serving.

Baked chicken salad casserole

2 c. chopped chicken (about 5 breast halves)

3 hard-boiled eggs, grated or sliced (your choice)

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

½ Tbsp. lemon juice

¾ c. mayonnaise

2 tsp. salt

2 c. chopped celery

½ tsp. pepper

4 tsp. onion, minced very fine

Crushed potato chips

Layer chicken and eggs in a greased 9 x 13 pan. Mix everything else together and pour soup mixture over. Top with crushed potato chips. Bake at 375° for about 30 minutes or until hot.

These are nice, light casseroles, good for summer evenings. Serve with a green vegetable or salad.

Enjoy!