Potato Crusted Salmon

Michael tries something new with a family favourite, fish. Potato & horseradish crusted salmon with pickle sauce, roasted licorice carrots, sauteed mushrooms with sherry & spinach and mango & strawberry cobbler make up this reinvigorating menu.

• Horseradish Potato Crusted Salmon with Pickle Sauce
• Mango and Strawberry Cobbler
• Roasted Licorice Carrots
• Sautéed Mushrooms with Sherry and Spinach

Horseradish Potato Crusted Salmon with Pickle Sauce

Yield: 4

Ease of Preparation: Easy
A recipe is merely words on paper; a guideline, a starting point from which to improvise. It cannot pretend to replace the practiced hand and telling glance of a watchful cook. For that reason feel free to stir your own ideas into this dish. When you cook it once, it becomes yours, so personalize it a bit. Add more of an ingredient you like or less of something you don't like. Try substituting one ingredient for another. Remember words have no flavour, you have to add your own!

Ingredients:

The Salmon

• 2 x russet potatoes, baked and chilled
• 2 tbsp horseradish
• 2 tbsp oil
• Salt and pepper
• 4 x salmon filets, 6 ounces each
• 
  

The Pickle Sauce

• 2 x dill pickles, chopped
• 1 x small bunch dill, chopped
• 1 x green onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp mustard
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• The juice from half a lemon
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

The Salmon

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Grate potatoes through the large holes of a box grater into a medium sized bowl.
3. Stir in horseradish, oil and salt and pepper mixing well.
4. Pat crust onto top surface of filets and place in a baking pan or on a baking sheet.
5. Bake until salmon is cooked through and the crust is golden and crispy, about 15 minutes.

The Pickle Sauce

1. Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix well.
2. Serve with salmon.

Mango and Strawberry Cobbler

Yield: 4

Ease of Preparation: Easy
A recipe is merely words on paper; a guideline, a starting point from which to improvise. It cannot pretend to replace the practiced hand and telling glance of a watchful cook. For that reason feel free to stir your own ideas into this dish. When you cook it once, it becomes yours, so personalize it a bit. Add more of an ingredient you like or less of something you don't like. Try substituting one ingredient for another. Remember words have no flavour, you have to add your own!

Ingredients:

The Filling

• 2 cups fresh or frozen strawberries
• 2 cups fresh or frozen mango
• 1/2 cup cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 
  

The Topping

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 2 tbsp sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 tbsp baking powder
• 1 stick stick butter, frozen
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

The Filling

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Place fruit into a large bowl and toss well with the flour, sugar and lemon juice.
3. Pour into a 2-quart ovenproof casserole or other dish.
4. It is best if the fruit fills the dish but doesn't rise above the edges.

The Topping

1. Whisk together flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. Grate in frozen butter and mix lightly with fingertips.
2. Pour in milk and stir until mixture comes together and forms a rough dough.
3. Place spoonfuls of the dough on top of the fruit evenly covering it.
4. Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden, about 45 minutes.
5. Serve warm.

Roasted Licorice Carrots

Yield: 4

Ease of Preparation: Easy. A recipe is merely words on paper; a guideline, a starting point from which to improvise. It cannot pretend to replace the practiced hand and telling glance of a watchful cook. For that reason feel free to stir your own ideas into this dish. When you cook it once, it becomes yours, so personalize it a bit. Add more of an ingredient you like or less of something you don't like. Try substituting one ingredient for another. Remember words have no flavour, you have to add your own!

Ingredients:

Roasted Licorice Carrots

• 6 x carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp ground star anise
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

Roasted Licorice Carrots

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Place the carrots in an 8" x 8" baking pan or other baking pan.
3. It is best if they form a single layer on the bottom of the pan.
4. Drizzle with oil and toss with star anise, salt and pepper.
5. Roast until carrots are caramelized and tender, about 30 minutes.

Sautéed Mushrooms with Sherry and Spinach

Yield: 4

Ease of Preparation: Easy. A recipe is merely words on paper; a guideline, a starting point from which to improvise. It cannot pretend to replace the practiced hand and telling glance of a watchful cook. For that reason feel free to stir your own ideas into this dish. When you cook it once, it becomes yours, so personalize it a bit. Add more of an ingredient you like or less of something you don't like. Try substituting one ingredient for another. Remember words have no flavour, you have to add your own!

Ingredients:

Sautéed Mushrooms with Sherry and Spinach

• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 lb. button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced thinly
• 1 x large onion, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup sherry, Marsala, Madeira or port
• Salt and pepper
• 4 x handfuls of baby spinach

Directions:

Sautéed Mushrooms with Sherry and Spinach

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and melt butter.
2. When it begins to foam, add mushrooms and onions and sauté until they begin to caramelize.
3. Deglaze the pan with sherry, season with salt and pepper and cook down, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.
4. When the sherry has reduced, add spinach and stir until it has wilted.
5. Adjust seasoning and serve immediately.

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