Cedar Salmon w/ Apricot/Jalapeño/Mustard Glaze

This is one of the first dishes I taught myself to make. It’s actually a recipe from Guy Fieri which I saw up on a TV show loooong ago. Yes. I am serious. Guy Fieri. That absurd host of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. His hair, his mannerisms, his personality are all off-the-charts ridiculous (“that’s a bitchin’ burrito bro”), BUT this recipe is very good so I guess underneath all of that craziness, he really does know what he’s talking about in the kitchen.

There was another first with this dish, as it was the first time I also cooked for my husband and of course the fish was WAY undercooked. Oopsie! I’ve improved my technique after some practice and am now sharing this delicious recipe with you. I use cedar planks in the oven which can cause some smoking – but I love the smell and cook with the doors open so that is ok with me. If you aren’t that interested in this plan, use an outdoor grill or you can skip the cedar planks.

INGREDIENTS:

• Two salmon filets 5-6 ounces (skinned and boned)
• 3/4 cup apricot preserves (you can also use sugar-free)
• 2 tbsp whole grain mustard
• 1 jalapeño sliced into rings
• 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/3 cup white wine
• lemon zest
• 2 small sprigs of rosemary
• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• salt & pepper
• 1 cedar plank for every 2 filets of salmon

DIRECTIONS:

• Cedar planks are optional – but if you chose to use them – soak them in your sink until ready to use
• Heat oil in saute pan over medium heat
• Begin to saute jalapeños until they become brown and caramelized – about 5 minutes
• Add garlic and stir quickly – about 15 to 30 seconds – be sure not to let it brown
• Add in white wine to deglaze the pan (deglazing removes caramelized bits/the “browned” bits from the bottom of your pan or skillet after cooking meats or vegetables.)
• Stir for about 30 seconds to scrape up the bits
• Add mustard and apricot preserves
• Continue to stir and turn heat to medium/low. Continue to simmer the sauce for about 15 minutes
• While mixture is simmering, prepare the cedar planks and heat your oven to 400 degrees. Place parchment paper on cedar plank and cut to fit. If not using cedar planks, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Place salmon filets on the parchment paper – offset and end to end.
• Top each salmon filet with a sprig of rosemary
• After the mixture has finished simmering, top each salmon liberally with the sauce.
• Cook for approximately 12 minutes or until internal temperature reads 135 to 140 degrees
• Remove from oven and let rest for about 3 minutes
• Pull off rosemary sprig and garnish w/ lemon zest. Serve immediately

I serve over mixed wild rice that is tossed with sautéed mushrooms, roasted chopped pecans and a bit of chopped rosemary. It’s a great way to ‘fancy up’ your regular rice. I also serve with a steamed veg to add in some vitamins. Enjoy!

Sliced jalapeño and rosemary sprigs

Salmon filets – topped with salt and peppe

Jalapeño slices sautéing in pan

Apricot jam and mustard added to deglazed jalapeño mixture.

Apricot/mustard/jalapeño sauce simmering

Salmon topped w/ rosemary sprig

Salmon topped with the apricot sauce

Final product!

Meatballs meet Jalapeno Cream Sauce

This is another blog post sponsored by the kitchen of Rebecca & Joel, our friends who have taken us in as our kitchen is in remodel phase. You don’t realize how much you use your kitchen until its gone. Fridge, oven/stove, dishwasher all in our dining room, dust everywhere, crawling under a table to get to the milk, no fun. BUT the end result will be awesome!

Tonight’s dish was a real winner and is immediately being filed my arsenal for ‘go to’ comforting recipes. This one isn’t on the healthy side, but its worth it. You will see Rebecca doing more of cooking this evening as we tag-teamed this dish, and its her kitchen. 🙂  This recipe was brand new to both of us so I did the shooting, taking notes, and I drank wine. Someone has to drink wine right?

The usual subjects who always appear in sweatpants are our husbands. You can see another ‘outfit’ in the CUBAN SANDWICH POST. Fancy fellas we have here.

The meal tonight turned out SO good. I didn’t know what to think about the ingredients, as jalapeño cream sauce just didn’t seem right – but its delicious and really not too spicy. I promise. Its was a pretty mellow heat and just enough spice. The cream really balances it out. We agreed initially that we should only use half the ingredients at first to ensure it wasn’t too spicy, but when we stopped to taste-test, the sauce wasn’t spicy at ALL. So we ended up using the full list of ingredients you see here, and it was perfect. I was impressed with our performance. We served it with garlic bread and a spinach/walnut/raspberry vinaigrette. Bon Apetit!

INGREDIENTS:

Meatballs:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup breadcrumbs (or 2 slices of bread if you make your own)
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup all purpose white flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Sauce:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 jalapenos finely chopped (seeds removed)
• 1 carrot finely chopped
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 2 cups half/half
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• salt to taste
• fresh or dry pasta

DIRECTIONS:

Meatballs:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
2. If making your own breadcrumbs, place two slices of bread in the oven for about 10-12 minutes, until toasted. Place bread in food processor and ground to fine bread crumbs.
3. Combine all meatball ingredients except olive oil and flour in a large mixing bowl.
4. Roll into small 1 inch balls.
5. Dredge balls in flower and set aside.
6. Heat 1 tbsp OO in saute pan.
7. Cook meatballs in pan until browned on all sides.
8. Remove from saute pan and place meatballs on baking sheet lined w/ foil.
9. Place meatballs in 350 degree oven for approx 15-20 minutes until cooked through.
10. Pull from oven and set aside.

Sauce:

1. Heat OO in a different pan from what you used for the meatballs.
2. Once onions become soft, add garlic. Cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add white wine and cook for another 2 minutes.
4. Add chopped jalapeño and carrot and saute for about 5 minutes.
5. Add in cream, half/half & milk.
6. Bring to very low simmer and stir often – you do not want the milk or cream to burn to the pan. Low heat and stir often.
7. When they are finished cooking, add meatballs to the sauce.
8. Add pepper and salt to taste.
9. Pour sauce and meatballs over pasta and serve.