Compound Butter for Salmon

I've never liked most fish and seafood, but it's a moot point anyway, since I'm a vegetarian.  But, my husband love, love, loves fish, so we do occassionally buy it.  He doesn't know how to cook for the most part, so even though I don't eat the fish, I do usually end up cooking it.

We ended up with some salmon in our freezer because we bought some on sale and I knew we wouldn't use it up in time.  So, I portioned it and froze it.  The other day, I saw an idea on a cooking show for a simple way to cook the salmon if the skin is still on - which it was, as I left the skin on when I portioned it.  So, I pulled a salmon portion out of the freezer to let it thaw in the fridge for the next day.

The idea I saw was to make a compound butter which gets slathered on the skin of the salmon, and then the whole thing is baked.  As the butter melts it coats and flavors the salmon as well as crisping the skin.  Sounded like something Dan would like.  You all know what compound butter is - just butter mixed with whatever sounds good.  I love making herb butter.  That day I happened to make it with lemon basil, tarragon, and a little bit of mint and oregano, since those are the fresh herbs I currently have in my Aerogarden.  I also added a bit of spicy brown mustard and a dash of lemon juice, and of course salt and pepper.  It's easiest to make the compound butter when the butter is room temp, but then I let the butter chill in the fridge for a few minutes before using it on the salmon, so that it would be firm and cold when it went into the oven.  The salmon, on the other hand, I let sit out to get to room temp so it would cook evenly.

I spread a generous layer of the mustard-herb butter right onto the skin of the salmon (after scoring it so it wouldn't curl) and put just a tiny dollop of butter underneath the salmon to help keep it from sticking.  The salmon cooked for maybe 10 minutes or so - that depends on how done you like it.  The butter oozed all over and made the kitchen smell delicious.  Dan got home and dug in, and loved it.  He said the skin got crispy and the herb butter was great.  I didn't taste it at all but he said he loved it.  I'll keep that in my arsenal for cooking skin-on fish in the future.

Happy eating!

Christmas Traditions

Every family has their own Christmas traditions, and many involve food.  In our family, the holiday festivities always began early.  We had traditions that took place days or even weeks before the Big Day itself.  For instance, we would have a tree-decorating party, and make a big deal of it.  We'd get out all the ornaments, play Christmas music, and have a big spread of food and sparkling juice while we adorned the tree.

Another tradition was our Christmas Eve dinner, which was a much bigger deal for us than Christmas Day dinner.  We always opened our gifts to each other and from others on Christmas Eve, and on Christmas morning, just the Santa Claus gifts were opened (and our stockings).  Christmas Eve day was spent hanging out together, drinking, and eating.  We always watched White Christmas in the afternoon with some appetizers.  Then we'd have the big Christmas Eve feast, then dessert, after-dinner drinks, and present-opening.

Christmas Eve dinner was always fish or seafood in our house.  It is a tradition that had been handed down from my grandmother's family.  It is not a very common meal for Christmas; most people think of ham or turkey or something like that when they think of holiday meals  (although I have heard that fish for holidays is a tradition in some Italian homes).  For us, it was just normal.  We sometimes had fish, but occassionally we would have crab legs.  Alaskan King, of course.  I never liked fish much, but I do love crab legs.

This year we are having Christmas Eve dinner at my sister's house in Ohio, and most of the family will be there.  She told me they ordered tons of Alaskan King crab legs, and I'm excited!  I'll definitely be cheating on my vegetarian diet this Christmas Eve.  I didnt' even ask her what else we'll be having on the side, cuz really, who cares?! 

On Christmas morning, after opening Santa gifts, we would sit down to our traditional breakfast of bagels, cream cheese, and lox.  It is a simple meal that requires no cooking on a day when everybody has more important things to do than be stuck in the kitchen. 

Whatever your traditions are, celebrate the season with joy, and be merry, but be safe!

Happy Holiday eating!

Crab Benedict

I am not sure if I am just talking to myself here, but what the heck, I'll keep posting.

This morning when I told Dan I was hungry and he asked what I was in the mood for, for some reason I blurted out, 'crab benedict.'  I first had eggs benedict with crab on a trip to Hawaii in 2001.  The seafood is abundant and so fresh in Hawaii, and it was one of the best breakfasts I'd ever had, especially given my love for fresh, sweet king crab legs.

Eggs benedict isn't really difficult; it's mostly time consuming.  The hollandaise sauce seems like it would be the most difficult part, but I think it's more about patience.  The key is to heat the egg yolks very slowly.  Some recipes calls for taking the yolks on and off the heat as you heat and whisk, and that method works for me.  Then of course, the butter starts to get added in, as well as lemon juice, and then some people put in herbs or other seasonings, like cayenne.  I tend to like a good amount of lemon juice, and I often use thyme.  Tarragon is good, too.

Strangely, the hardest part of benedict for me is poaching the eggs.  I am always hit-or-miss with poached eggs.  A bit of vinegar in the water helps to hold the eggs together correctly, but I have never quite found a perfect method for poaching.  Today, I messed up the first batch, but the second batch came out fine. 

If you get the hollandaise and the eggs right, there isn't really anything other than assembly.  Crab benedict requires fresh crab, never canned, and certainly not imitation.  I like a toasted english muffin with the crab right on top.  Then the egg, and then pour on the hollandaise.  Nummy nummy good!  It's a great way to use up a little bit of crab, for instance if you have some left over after a dinner, or if you find one of those little packs of smaller crab leg chunks discounted at the store like they sometimes do. 

Mmmmbreakfast.  Happy eating!