Monthly Cooking Thread, December 2021

[Dragonfly]

Merry Christmas!

I love your cooking thread.

[Liz]

GLAZED SALMON

Legendary Seattle Pike’s Place Fish Market has great smoked salmon and something called
“Salmon Candy,” a sweet smoked salmon. Recipe variation: enough for 2 very small fillets.

STEPS: Fork/Combine T thyme (fresh), clove garlic (crushed), T dk br/sugar, T honey, 5 t smoked paprika, sea salt/p to taste. Really mash it. Then, slather it on salmon fillets patted dry. Grill on unglazed side. Foil over the grill and flip to glazed side to finish cooking. Skin salmon when it is light and flaky, yet still moist. Transfer it to a plate and serve with lots of oven-roasted potatoes.

[Liz]

Recipe from PHILIPPE FORCIOLI, executive chef at Cliffbreakers Riverside Resort, Rockford, Illinois. Good do ahead, Mushrooms and asparagus provide B vitamins, and pesto contains heart-healthy, unsaturated fat. “Keeps in the frige a week,” says Chef Forcioli.

Portobello and Asparagus Pasta

ING 2/3 cup pine nuts 20 large, fresh basil leaves 2/3 cup parsley 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1/4 cup Parm 4 whole, peeled garlic cloves Kosher salt and black pepper to taste 1 1/2 pounds penne or tortellini 32 medium asparagus spears, chopped, pieces 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 large portobello caps, sliced (remove gills with a spoon) 4 teaspoons chopped parsley

STEPS Make the pesto by pureeing the first seven ingredients till medium smooth. Boil a pot of salted water. Add pasta. Five minutes later add asparagus. In a saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add portobello; cook till tender [seven minutes]. When pasta is cooked, strain it and asparagus, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Transfer pasta and asparagus back to the pot along with half of the reserved water. Mix in pesto. Drizzle with remaining water, and top with portobello and parsley. Serves six.