Let Them Eat Fish Cakes

One of the bounties of the season here in the Pacific Northwest is Spring Run Chinook Salmon - known as Springers - not to be confused with the dog breed that I'm very fond of.

Time for a slight digression and I find this vaguely disturbing - it appears that I share two things in common with George W. Bush - we've both owned springer spaniels and a black cat named India. W apparently named his dog Spot (picture at right) after the the dog in his favorite book. 

So back to fish - my buddy Jeff, the great and generous fisherman, shared a chunk of his first fish of the season with me. This is the fourth year in a row that I've been on the receiving end of his generosity. I'm prepared for this to be a lifelong tradition.

I steamed the fish on a bed of aromatic vegetables and dry vermouth. It picked up hints of the anise from the fennel. There was way more than I could eat and I was faced with the enviable issue of left over salmon.

One of my favorite ways to deal with leftover fish is to make fish cakes - I usually just wing it, but I remembered a recipe for Cod Cakes in an issue of Saveur that I had laying around. I substituted salmon for the cod. This recipe is really good, but it's a bit more fussy than the ones I just throw together.

I served this with some asparagus and a nice Sparr Gewurztraminer. One of the nice things about this recipe is the preparing of the salmon cakes ahead of time. You don't need to cook them all at once. You can cook them up as you want over a couple of days or you can cook them up and make a sandwich with the leftovers.

Salmon Cakes 
- based on a Cod Cake recipe from Saveur

6 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 russet potatoes (about 1 lb.), peeled and cut into 1⁄4" cubes (I used a couple of left over baked potatoes)
Kosher salt, to taste - I used several generous shakes of Old Bay Seasoning
1 lb. steamed salmon filets
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1⁄2 cup dried bread crumbs - I used Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1⁄4 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh dill or 2 tsp of dried dill
2 tbsp. finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemon zest
4 tbsp. unsalted butter


1. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a 12" skillet over medium heat. Add celery, onions, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 8 minutes. Transfer celery–onion mixture to a large bowl and set aside.

2. Put potatoes into a 4-qt. saucepan and cover with salted water by 1". Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain; transfer half the potatoes to a plate. Set aside to let cool. Transfer remaining potatoes to a bowl and mash with a fork. Transfer mashed potatoes to reserved bowl of onion mixture; set aside to let cool.

3. Add salmon, bread crumbs, mayonnaise, herbs, egg yolk, and lemon juice to the potato–onion mixture and stir vigorously to combine. Add the reserved cubed potatoes and the salmon and mix gently to combine. Using your hands, divide the mixture into 8 equal portions and form into 3"-wide cakes (use a 3" ring mold if you have one). Transfer cakes to a wax paper–lined baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes, until firm. Working in 2 batches, heat 1 tbsp. oil and 2 tbsp. butter in a 12" cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon cakes and cook, flipping once, until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer cakes to a serving platter; serve with chowchow, if you like.
SERVES 4

Chowchow

1 1⁄2 lbs. green tomatoes, cored and finely chopped (I used the greenest tomatoes I could find at the store)
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1⁄2 cup sugar
1⁄3 cup distilled white vinegar
1 1⁄2 tsp. dry mustard
1 1⁄2 tsp. yellow mustard seeds
1 tsp. celery seeds
1 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
1⁄4 tsp. ground coriander
10 whole peppercorns
10 whole cloves
10 whole allspice berries


1. Toss tomatoes, onions, celery, and peppers in a large bowl with salt; cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 4 hours or overnight. Transfer vegetables to a sieve and press to extract excess juices; discard juices.

2. Transfer vegetables to a 6-qt. saucepan and add remaining ingredients. Cover, bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are very soft, about 2 1⁄2 hours. Transfer relish to a jar and let cool. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Note: I made a double batch and water bath canned 4 pints

MAKES ABOUT 2 PINTS

 Since I now have an abundance of housemade orange liqueur I've been trying a variety of recipes that call for Cointreau. This one is pretty fine and makes a nice after dinner tipple.

Argentina Cocktail

·    1 oz gin
·    1 oz dry vermouth
·    ¼ oz Cointreau or housemade orange liqueur
·    ¼ oz Bénédictine
·    1 dash orange bitters
·    1 dash Angostura bitters
·    Stir well with ice and strain in to a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

Spring Break

I'm still battling the laurel hedge in my front yard. The more I hack away at it, the more I want to cut it down to the ground.

When we first moved in to our house thirty plus years ago the road was a thoroughfare (note to self - don't buy a house on a road with striping down the center). Luckily they built a freeway a couple of blocks down the street a few years later and now I live on a dead end street.

The hedge was a barrier to sight and sound in those early, more heavily trafficked days. Now it hides the lawn when I neglect to mow in a timely fashion and provides a cloistered feel to the front of the house.

Yesterday morning I hauled a trailer full of hedge prunings to the yard debris recycling center. I had good intentions to fill the trailer and make a return trip this morning. I found several other things to do instead. Perhaps I'm feeling a bit unsure about what to do with the other larger part of the hedge. Pruner's remorse perhaps.

So here I am, sitting inside on a beautiful spring day, sorting through books and magazines, clearing the bookshelves of clutter.

Taking a break from the sorting - I've got salmon in the oven. I think I'll dine outside.

Salmon en papillote with preserved lemons and fennel

This is the grown up version of the Hobo Lunch (hamburger patty, carrots and potatoes wrapped in tin foil and pitched on the campfire)we used to take on Boy Scout day hikes.

Preheat the oven to 425F while preparing the packets

A couple of squares of parchment paper lubed up with olive oil
2 - boneless skinless salmon filets - about 6 oz each and seasoned with salt and pepper
1/2 a preserved lemon - finely diced - you could substitute a couple of thin slices of lemon
1/2 a red bell pepper - cut in thin strips
1/2 cup of fennel fronds finely chopped
1 small zucchini coarsely grated

Divide the zucchini between the two pieces of parchment paper

Lay the salmon on top of the zucchini

Spread the red peppers on top of the salmon

Cover the red peppers with the fennel fronds

Sprinkle the preserved lemon over the top of the fennel fronds

Fold the parchment over the goodies and roll up the edges of the paper, crimping it as you go. Put a couple of slits in the top of the packets.

Bake for 12 minutes on a baking sheet.

I served this up with a fennel slaw made from a finely shredded fennel bulb dressed with a simple slaw dressing of mayo, rice vinegar, a dab of Dijon mustard and a bit of salt and pepper.

I was wishing for a nice bottle of a good German Spatlese with this, but settled for a glass of iced tea