Summer's Here (Broiled Salmon with Fresh Tomato Salsa)

As I sit here with this cool breeze coming through my kitchen window, I can't believe it's really Summer, which means almost half the year is gone already and I feel like I haven't seen it go by. Always hurrying to do one thing or another, and of course, not being able to do everything I want to do. Is it just me?


If you do have time to sit down and enjoy a meal, as we did this past Sunday, on Father's Day, this would be the dish to prepare. So easy and adaptable, you might just be able to squeeze in a walk to your favorite park, all in the same day!


Broiled Salmon with Fresh Tomato Salsa

This is a great recipe if you're like me and you just can't follow a recipe! Adapt the quantities and spices and herbs as you wish and make this perfect for you.

Salmon fillets, bones removed
Olive oil
Lime juice
Garlic cloves, minced
Coriander powder
Salt and pepper

Tomatoes
Red onions, chopped
Olive oil
Lime juice
Parsley, chopped

Preheat your broiler and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place your salmon fillets, skin side down on the prepared sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and lime juice, then sprinkle with the chopped garlic. Add as much coriander powder, salt and pepper as you like. Broil the fillets for about 10 minutes, until the salmon is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.

While the salmon is broiling, prepare your salsa. Chop up a large tomato, or a few smaller ones, removing some of the seeds so it's not too watery. Add some chopped red onions, a drizzle of olive oil and lime juice and some parsley. When the salmon is cooked, remove it from the oven, scatter the salsa on top of the fillets and put it back under the broiler for a few minutes, just to warm the salsa. Serve with some rice and a crunchy green salad on the side.

When in Doubt, use Maple Syrup (Maple Sesame Salmon Fillets)

I spend so much time trying to create meals that the whole family will enjoy together, I sometimes get a bit discouraged. But then I'll find something the kids will ask seconds of, and at that moment, I know it's all worth it.

To me, the key to a "happy meal" (ha!) is using a main ingredient I know we all like (in this case salmon fillets) and pairing it with flavors that are kid friendly. Maple syrup is always a winner at our house as are Asian flavors. So I mixed and matched and ended up with a recipe I'll be making over and over again.

Maple Sesame Salmon Fillets

Salmon or trout fillets (enough for 4 to 6 people)
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup soy sauce (I use reduced sodium)
2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp Sriracha sauce (or hot sauce of your choice)

Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Mix all the ingredients except the salmon and the sesame seeds. You can either use a bowl or a ziptop bag. Place the salmon in the marinade and let rest, in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.

Since the marinade is sweet, I usually line a baking sheet with aluminum paper, it makes clean up much easier. Preheat your broiler and place the oven rack in the middle of the oven. Place the salmon fillets on the baking sheet and broil for about 10 minutes. If you like, you can baste the fish with the marinade once or twice during cooking. To see if the salmon is ready, use a fork to flake the fillets and check if they are cooked through. You'll know that the fish is cooked when its flesh turns opaque. You might need to cook the salmon a little longer, depending on the size of your fillets.

Garnish with sesame seeds and serve with a side of rice and veggies of your choice.

Them Bones, Them Beautiful Bones

Ever since I read about the Beautiful Bones event, I knew I would participate. I even knew right away what dish I would be making. Why in the world then am I waiting until 2 days before the deadline to post my recipe?

I’ve been thinking about the way I would approach this post for almost a month. You see, my father suffers from osteoporosis and recently broke his hip. He’s been in the hospital for over a month now as he’s also been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. His quality of life has greatly diminished over the last few years, but he tries very hard to stay strong. I think it’s wonderful that bloggers like Susan, of Food Blogga, put together events such as this one, to raise people’s awareness of diseases like osteoporosis. Without becoming an alarmist, I think we (myself included) should all realize that what, and how we eat greatly impacts what we become later in life.

This salmon loaf is a wonderfully easy recipe. Just mix all the ingredients together, bake for a little while and you get a calcium rich dish that’s also very delicious! I promise, even my kids love it!

Salmon Loaf
From “Qu’est-ce qu’on mange?”

2 eggs
2 – 7 oz cans salmon, drained, bones and skin removed
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
1 carrot, grated
1 celery stalk, chopped finely
1 small onion, chopped finely
2 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

Put all ingredients in a large bowl and mix until well combined.

Place mixture into the prepared pan and pat it down lightly.

Bake in preheated oven for about 35 minutes.

Let the loaf rest 5 minutes before slicing.

Serve as is or with a béchamel sauce.

Béchamel Sauce
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
2 cups milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour, mix well with a whisk, and let it cook for about 2 minutes. While whisking, add the milk. Keep whisking until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and season to taste.

A Meme and a Nice Bowl of Soup

There's that meme bug going around and I was really surprised to be tagged by both Amy of Eggs on Sunday and Aimée of Under the High Chair. I had such a hard time trying to think of things to say about me that would be interesting to you guys who come by and read this little blog of mine once in a while. In any case, here goes (in no particular order…):

1. I know a lot of people out there don’t like the big bad Starbucks coffee, but I love it! Even before I ever tasted their coffee, I really like their designs. See, I used to work for a company that made signs and menus for them. I was in charge of layout and production drawings, so I got to see first hand what new designs would go into their stores. Eventually I even went to Seattle to visit their head office and meet all the nice people I had been working with via phone, email and fax. It was a big deal for me as I had only been out of Universtity for a few years and this was one of the company’s biggest clients. These days my life is still pretty hectic but not in the same way! Now that there are Starbucks Coffees in Quebec, I can go and relax with a nice cup of Caramel Macchiato!

2. I love to knit, sew and make some of my own jewelry. I only knit scarves mind you, I’m no expert! Sewing is not what I do best either, but I love to hand sew tiny pouches, I find the repetition of the stitches relaxing. As for the jewelry, I’ve been beading for as long as I can remember. The style of jewelry I make (and wear) has evolved over the years but one constant remains, no matter how many pieces I make, my stash of beads only gets bigger! And though I don’t have much time to do these things, they are some of my favorite things to do just the same.

3. I am not an organized person. For that reason I make lists, many, many lists. From recipes I want to try to things I have to buy, I write everything down. I have notepads, notebooks, pens and pencils all over the place, but most the time I struggle to remember which notepad I used to write down this or that recipe… Go figure!

4. My first year at University, living on my own, I ate plain rice with green peas for dinner, a LOT. What’s worse, I actually liked it!

5. When I was 8 years old my parents moved us from Montreal, Quebec to rural New Brunswick and bought a diner-style restaurant. By the age of 10 I was waiting tables and working in the kitchen. Not because I had to, because I wanted to. This love of food doesn’t come from nowhere!

6. MacGyver is my favorite TV show of all time. In high school I had posters of Richard Dean Anderson all over my bedroom walls. When the first season came out on DVD, I did a little happy dance in the middle of the living room. The kids thought I’d gone nuts!

7. I gave birth to my third child, Olivia, on my birthday. Yes, I spent my birthday last year in labor. Not exactly the way I had pictured spending my birthday but on the other hand, I got the best birthday present ever.

“7 Things” Meme How To:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 random facts about yourself
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their Blogs
5. Have fun!

I am tagging:
Ginny of Just Get Floury
Lynn of Cookie Baker Lynn
Patricia of Technicolor Kitchen
Nic of Cherrapeno
Brilynn of Jumbo Empanadas

I hope you guys don't mind, I'm looking forward to learning new things about you!

And now for your trouble, I offer this wonderful Salmon Chowder by Ricardo. If you can get your hands on his magazine, you should, it’s gorgeous and full of wonderful recipes.

Salmon Chowder
Adapted from Ricardo, Volume 6, Number 2

2 carrots, peeled and sliced
½ of a red bell pepper, diced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
5 cups chicken broth
1 lb of potatoes, peeled and diced
1 cup of frozen corn kernels
1 lb of fresh salmon, without the skin, diced
½ cup of flat leaf parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, cook carrots, bell pepper and onion in the butter. Add salt, pepper and flour, and mix well.

Add 2 cups of the chicken broth and bring to a boil stirring constantly. Add the rest of the broth, the potatoes and the corn kernels.

Bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Turn off the heat, add salmon and parsley. Cover and let rest for 5 minutes, or just enough time for the salmon to cook. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a nice slice of no-knead bread.

Fish Tales

I have never been fishing. Like most people, I rely on my supermarket to provide the freshest fish available. But that has not always been the case. My Dad doesn’t go fishing anymore, but as a child I remember him coming home from his fishing trips with baskets full of rainbow trout. He would clean and prepare the fish, then coat them lightly with flour, salt and pepper. Into the frying pan they would go until their skin got golden and crispy and delicious. Simple is best.


The closest thing to the taste of trout is salmon. I always keep salmon fillets in the freezer to use for all sorts of recipes. Once thawed I poach the salmon in simmering water, flake with a fork and refrigerate until I’m ready to use it. Last night I made a salmon burger recipe I found on Isa’s site. Her blog is in French and totally worth the visit. The burgers were a hit, though closer to a fish cake than a burger so they sort of fell apart as we ate! The next time I make these I’ll most likely serve them with a salad and bread on the side.


Today I mixed the rest of the poached salmon with leftover tartar sauce, spread the mix on a toasted bagel with lettuce, served baby carrots on the side, and that was lunch. Simple, easy and good for you. What could be better?

"Fish" by Thomas

Salmon Burgers (or Fish Cakes)
Adapted from Les Gourmandises d’Isa

1 lb salmon fillets, cooked and flaked with a fork
2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 tbsp dill, finely chopped (I omitted this)
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp capers, finely chopped
2 pickles, finely chopped
1 cup ( environ 350 g ) cooked and mashed potatoes
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 egg (I added this to help them hold their shape)
Flour

In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients together (except flour). Make 4 patties, lightly flour them and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Heat a few tbsp oil in a non-stick skillet and cook patties for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, or until nicely golden. Serve as hamburgers with lettuce, tomatoes, onion slices and tartar sauce or as fish cakes with a salad and bread on the side.

Tartar Sauce
From Ricardo and Friends

1/2 cup (125) mayonnaise
1 tbsp (15 ml) sweet pickles, chopped
1 tsp (5 ml) capers, chopped
1 tbsp (15 ml) lime juice
1 tsp (5 ml) fresh chives, finely chopped

In a bowl, mix the ingredients. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.