Salmon with Potato Salad

Week 4, day 2. (See here for the start of series)

Another week 4 recipe that I've made for the second time: Salmon with Potato Salad. (not to be confused with the many other recipes that come up on Real Simple when you google "real simple salmon watercress horseradish." seriously.)

This is actually really simple. [Groan here.] I think the key is to get really fresh, fleshy pink salmon, since the seasoning on the salmon itself is minimal. I am very partial to Coho salmon, myself, versus Atlantic salmon. Because I love horseradish (which, if you didn't know, is basically wasabi), I used Inglehoffer's Extra Hot horseradish sauce in the potato salad. I've also made the potato salad both ways: whole potatoes and sliced. The sliced new potatoes can get a little sludgy, but are a much better option if you want to shorten cooking time. Another help is to prep the salad ingredients before you start the salmon (there's time) so you can use only one cutting board.

Cauliflower Curry Soup

My last soup hurrah for the year, as part of Mark Bittman's "Creamy, Brothy, Earthy, Hearty" NY Times Article, was the cauliflower curry soup. If this article would have been published last October, I'm pretty sure I would have cooked from it for weeks. Sadly, it's in the 80s here, so I'll hold on to the other options for a few months. In fact, this recipe would have likely floundered in my files until then except for the fact that I am obsessed with cauliflower soup. I love how close it is in taste and texture to potato soup, but so much lighter. Since the premise of the article was customization, I made a few tweaks in my first making, earlier than I normally would. I couldn't bear the thought of boiling the onions and missing out on the aromatics, so I sauteed for a few minutes in olive oil before adding the ginger, and then the water. As a result I shortened boiling time to around 7 minutes prior to adding the cauliflower. Note: 2 cups of cauliflower is a tiny amount, not even half of a head of cauliflower, so plan ahead for that. The end result was a little magical, almost like eating a light curry sauce by itself (except it's a soup!) without lacking any flavor. I'm wavering on whether I want to try to substitute for the water next time; I may try half vegetable broth. Will let you know.

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Bars (including Dulce de Leche)

Prior to last weekend, I can't say that "dulce de leche" was really on my radar, other than the Girl Scout cookie flavor (which I obviously didn't buy, because that would have cut down on the space I had for Samoas) and the Starbucks flavor (again, spot previously filled by caramel macchiatos, now even available in a skinny version). Anyway, I can't speak for the quality of Girl Scout or Starbucks DDL products, but obviously there is something wrong with their marketing because I had a fundamental misunderstanding of DDL. "Mexican caramel" is a seriously lacking description. What DDL really is, as I discovered, is a rich, creamy toffee-like sauce, which unlike caramel (sorry, caramel) stands on its own.

But back to my life before last Sunday. I had plucked this recipe out of the June 2010 bon appetit because it fit an obscure category, desserts that complement Mexican food (a category that is made all the more difficult by the fact that after consuming chips, salsa, margaritas and fajitas the thought of more food is generally disturbing). An occasion presented itself, and off to the store I went. I wrongly assumed trusty Central Market would not fail to carry DDL, but I was saved by a lovely woman I met in the store who informed me that she had an easy DDL recipe that was also cheaper than the prepared stuff. Sold. It's available here, and it fit her description so well I truly wish I could thank her in person (and then roll my eyes at the silly bon appetit staffer who didn't find the recipe in their archives). The DDL recipe makes just enough for the cheesecake bars recipe, with a little leftover to serve on top of strawberries or ice cream, or to lick off several spoons.

Back to the cheesecake bars. The only real trick is timing. There are numerous "cooling" steps, which really only work on a lazy Sunday where you are doing loads of laundry and reading Agatha Christie novels. An ideal timetable would go like this:

(1) set out cream cheese to soften and preheat oven.

(2) make and bake graham cracker crust.

(3) make DDL.

(4) let graham cracker crust cool on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.

(5) let DDL cool and thicken in fridge, probably 30-45 minutes.

(6) take a break while #4 and #5 are going on.

(7) assemble cheesecake filling; this is easy.

(8) bake cheesecake bars; another long break while they cook.

(9) let cheesecake bars cool, which takes at least an hour and a half.

(10) when finally cool, glaze and let sit for an hour (although overnight is better, and will prevent the DDL from running over when you slice, as mine did in the picture).

Fancy Fish Sticks

Of course that's not the real name of a recipe from bon appetit... it's "Halibut Fish Sticks with Dill-Caper Tartar Sauce." It's very on-trend: it has all of the classic flavors of fish sticks, but with gourmet ingredients like cornichons, panko crumbs and halibut. The nutritional stats, assuming they're true, are also substantially better than Gorton's or Long John Silver's, especially when you reduce portions on the substantial amount of tartar sauce the recipe makes. This is definitely something I would have ordered out, so I'm happy I can make it at home.

Cajun Chicken with Collard Greens

Week 4, day 5.

Re-made the last Real Simple 20 days of entrees dish tonight. We enjoyed the cajun chicken with collard greens quite a bit the first time, although I neglected to remind myself of the following lessons I should have learned back in October:

DO substitute the word "dredge" for the word season. It takes about 3 times as much seasoning (Central Market cajun seasoning blend) to obtain an evenly-coated, spicy masterpiece.

DO NOT cut the red pepper into rings... then you run into the awkward situation of needing to use your knife on only part of your vegetables when you eat. Just go ahead and do a rough dice.

DO preheat your oven at the beginning if you start with the chicken and haven't done your prep first. The chicken and the vegetables take about an equal time, so the chicken will sit for a bit if you start with it. No big deal, just keep it warm in the oven at around 300 degrees.

DO NOT leave the collard greens on for 5-7 minutes. They don't take that long, and apparently, collard greens can burn! (They taste fine, actually, but cleaning the pan is a pain).

DO take a better photo of this... ugh.

and finally... DO NOT be afraid of collard greens and black-eyed peas... think kale and cannellini, with more oomph.