Copper River Salmon and Morells

Copper River Salmon is the best. It is extremely moist and tender. It is only available in the market for a very limited time. We buy ours at McCall’s Meat and Fish, and Nate only sells it for a short period, providing us with only the best.

We found this recipe in for Oven-Steamed Salmon with Chive Oil in Paula Wolfert’s World of Food cookbook. This is actually quite easy to make an is a delicious dish. I highly recommend that you try this. Nothing is complicated, it is just essential flavors at their peak.

When we were recently in San Francisco we ate twice at Cotogna in San Francisco. It is a wonderful restaurant adjacent to Quince and owned by them. It has a slightly more rustic feel with its wood burning oven. We sat at the bar in front of the oven and watched the chefs. One of the dishes that they made was a Baked Ricotta with Fava Beans and Onions. We asked them how to make it, and it was very easy. They make their own ricotta, we skipped that step and bought the cheese at The Cheese Store of Silverlake. We then whipped some Crema Fresca into it to make it creamier. Because morels were in the market we substituted morels for the Favas. We baked it for a few minutes and it turned into a custard like consistency. We then topped the ricotta with the Sauted Morel Mushrooms and Onions. It was delicious and easy.

Oven-Steamed Salmon with Chive Oil

Paula Wolfert’s World of Food

CHIVE OIL

2 1/2 tablespoons snipped chives

Pinch of salt

¼ cup French peanut oil or high-quality salad oil

1/2 small, firm, unblemished cauliflower, broken into 12 flowerets

1/2 pound turnip greens, collards, or mustard greens, washed and stemmed

1 1/4 pound, center-cut fresh salmon fillet, cut crosswise into four l-inch-thick portions, about 5 ounces each, preferably Atlantic or King salmon

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

1 teaspoon snipped chives

1.             Make the chive oil by combining the chives, salt, and the oil in a blender jar and whirling until the mixture is smooth. Pour it into a clean jar, cover tightly, and refrigerate. It keeps up to two weeks. Return the oil to room temperature belore using.

2.             Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the cauliflower and cook it until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove it from the water, using a slotted spoon, and transfer it to a side dish. Add the greens to the boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes; drain and refresh under cold water. Cook the greens, covered, in a small saucepan with ¼ cup of lightly salted boiling water until they are almost tender, about 10 minutes (less for young leaves). Add the greens to the cauliflower, cover with plastic film, and set aside. (Up to this point the recipe can be prepared in advance.)

3.             Position one rack in the lower third of the oven and a second rack in the upper third. Preheat the oven to 225° F. Carefully place a skillet of boiling water on the lower oven shelf. Arrange the salmon pieces on a metal baking sheet, and place on the upper rack. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the salmon over and cook 1 minute longer. (Note that the color of the salmon will not turn dull and the texture will be very juicy.) Sprinkle it with salt and pepper to taste.

4.             Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat, add the cauliflower and greens, and saute them, tossing, until hot. Correct the seasoning and arrange the vegetables in clumps on a large serving platter. Add 3 tablespoons of water to the skillet and boil quickly to combine it with the buttery juices. Pour them over the vegetables and drizzle about 2 tablespoons of the chive oil over the juices that fall onto the platter. Place the warm salmon in -the center, over the juices, and sprinkle with a mixture of coarse sea salt and chopped fresh chives.