Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Dinner · Fish-Seafood · friends · roasted · Uncategorized · WLS

Salmon en Papillote (Salmon in Parchment)

I love fresh Salmon, and used to eat it at least twice a week.  It is super easy to cook, and comes out perfect every time, especially when you cook it in parchment.  We had friends over for dinner, and I made sure to ask if they liked Salmon.  They do–score.

I purchased a whole filet, and made sure it didn’t have any bones or scales.Cut the Salmon into equal portions (I didn’t weigh them), and place them in parchment paper cut to approximate size (you will need to measure before cutting to ensure that the paper will close tightly).Salt, pepper, a bit of olive oil, and two slices of fresh lemon on each piece of Salmon. Wrapped them.  Start at one end of the parchment working your way to the other end, crimping the paper as best you can until fairly sealed.  Place on a foiled baking sheet.Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes.  If you only have thicker slices of Salmon, check them at 15 minutes.  My piece was a thin slice, and was a bit overdone (you can tell with Salmon if it ‘bleeds’ white).  But it was still super tasty and tender.  Our guests seem to enjoy the dinner as well.  I made a nice, cheesy orzo with spinach and roasted broccolini (hybrid of broccoli and kale – I think it is sweeter), both recipes to come later in the week.

Blessings.

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Appetizers · Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · Uncategorized · Vegetables · WLS

Crab Stuffed Mini Peppers

I love these mini peppers (I get a bag of them at the grocery store) as they are sweet, and really flavorful.

I cut them in half and clean out the seeds.  Placed them on my mini round stone.Half of a package of cream cheese – soften in a bowl.Add a quarter of cup of a purple onion, chopped; and one tablespoon of Worcestershire.Mix thoroughly, then add the crab by folding the crab in gently. Spoon mixture into the mini bell peppers.Bake until yummy, actually about 20 minutes at 350 or until the cheese is slightly browned.These were really good, but definitely needed salt and pepper.

Let me know if you try them.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · meal · Salmon · Uncategorized · WLS

Salmon

I love fish.  Eating fish–any kind of fish:  sushi, fried, sauteed, grilled.  I have been craving fish lately, and had some amazing salmon marinated with Dale’s Seasoning.  It was grilled, and truly yummy.

Our grill is a charcoal grill, and not the best when you just want to quick grill something.  So we decided to pan sear them.  I marinated the salmon filet’s in about 1/2 cup of Dale’s Reduced Sodium Seasoning for about one hour.We just pan seared them, skin side down in a bit of olive oil.Cook on the skin side first (about a third of the way through), and flip just to finish the cooking (maybe two minutes maximum).Hint from Gordon Ramsey: score the salmon skin before cooking will ensure that the fish won’t curl up during cooking.  It worked (like I question him and his suggestions – ha).img_1074My plate with a bit of jasmine rice, an roasted snow peas.  This will be my go to recipe for Salmon for a while.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · Salmon · Uncategorized · WLS

Baked Salmon

I love salmon cooked or not cooked (sushi), so I just love salmon. I used the caper oil from the fried capers, and poured that in my casserole pan.  Then I brushed the salmon with it as well.  Added salt and pepper, and a couple of sliced lemons.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes.  Be careful not to overcook.  I almost overcooked these.The brinieness from the caper oil, and the sweetness of the salmon are an incredible combination. My portion with a spoonful of parmesan risotto, and the salmon with the fried capers.  I am seriously in love with this dish.

Blessings.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Dinner · Fish-Seafood · Fruit · Nuts · Uncategorized · WLS

Salmon with Pine Nuts

I have been craving a lot of fish lately.  So when David and I where in Washington DC, I had this wonderful salmon dish with pine nuts.  I thought I would try to mimic the recipe.  I came close.

Pan roast the pine nuts until golden. The use a rolling pin or chop as you like to crumble the pine nuts.I added in some fresh parsley, and did a coarse chop.I had purchased this beautiful salmon filet.  I cut it into 4 equal pieces for cooking (and I left the skin on—love the skin especially when crispy).Take the pine nut mixture and coat the top of the fish with it.  Cook it with the pine nut side down first, cooking it 4-5 minutes.Flip them, and cook until the skin is crispy.  It was good, nutty, and succulent.  I should have served the skin side up, but didn’t so it didn’t stay crispy.  It was still very good.  I did serve this with the cherry sauce.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · food · Fruit · Kitchen Helps · Sauce · Uncategorized · WLS

Cherries

Another version of a cherry sauce, this time prepping for Salmon (coming soon).  I apparently didn’t take any pictures of the prep. I am sorry.

Recipe is as follows:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup dry white wine
Salt and pepper (more pepper than salt)
Lemon zest

Bring to a boil, and simmer until reduced by half.  Cool, and pour into a glass container for keeping in the refrigerator.  Can serve cold or warmed.

Oh! and David got me this amazing cherry pitter at store after he witnessed what I went through the battle of removing cherry pits with a paperclip!  I will say it works better if you follow the instructions! This was amazing! It did four cherries at once! AND my fingers weren’t blue! So nice.  And, yes, I have to label things, otherwise I forget what it is…at least I am honest! Blessings.

Beef · Chicken · Fish-Seafood · Julia Child · meal · Random Stuff · Random Thoughts · Uncategorized

Perfect Meal

I follow a lot of amateur cooks, chefs, and foodies on social media and this has been making the rounds lately.  I am fascinated by Julia Child, and one of these days hope to purchase one or all of her cookbooks (or maybe will get them as gifts-hint hint).

But, I find this so interesting that her last meal would be a chicken – not beef or duck – but a perfectly roasted chicken.  I like roasted chicken, but for my last meal?  Maybe I just haven’t have the perfect roasted chicken?  I understand the seafood, and the dessert, but again, I come back to the chicken.

Have you had such a perfectly roast chicken that you would want it as your last meal?  What would you have as your last meal?

Mine would be cold as ice oysters on the half shell, a heavily marbled bone-in rib-eye steak medium rare, and steak fries – crispy, crunchy ones.  If I could have anything, cooked by anyone, it would be my Oma’s kase spaetzle with my Mom’s chocolate cake.

Blessings.

 

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · Hello Fresh · Salmon · Uncategorized · WLS

Hello Fresh Creamy Lemon Salmon

The third meal that we prepared was the Hello Fresh Creamy Lemon Salmon.  (Instructions copied from the Hello Fresh Site):
Prep

Wash and dry all produce. Core and seed tomato, then cut into ½-inch pieces. Zest lemon until you have 1 tsp zest, then cut into wedges. Trim, then thinly slice scallions, keeping greens and whites separate. Mince or grate garlic.

Make Crema

In a small bowl, stir together sour cream, half the lemon zest, and a few squeezes of lemon juice (to taste— start with about ¼ of the lemon and go up from there). Season with salt and pepper. Taste and add more lemon zest or juice, if desired.

Cook Couscous

Melt 1 TBSP butter in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add couscous and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly toasted, 2-3 minutes. Add 1 cup water, then bring to a boil. Lower heat slightly and let simmer until al dente, 7-9 minutes. Remove couscous from pot and set aside.

Stir Couscous

Heat another 1 TBSP butter and a large drizzle of oil in pot used for couscous over medium-high heat. Once butter is melted, add scallion whites and tomato. Cook, stirring frequently, until slightly softened, 2-3 minutes. Lower heat to medium and add garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in couscous. Season with salt and pepper, then remove pot from heat.

Cook Salmon

Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat (use a nonstick pan if you have one). Pat salmon dry with a paper towel. Season all over with salt, pepper, and fry seasoning. Add to pan skin-side down. Cook until skin is crisp, 4-6 minutes. Flip and cook to desired doneness, 2-3 minutes more.

Plate and Serve

Fluff couscous with a fork, then stir in half the scallion greens. Divide between plates, along with salmon. (TIP: Arrange the fillets skin-side up to keep the skin crisp.) Drizzle salmon with a spoonful of crema. Sprinkle with remaining scallion greens. Serve with any remaining lemon wedges and crema on the side.  Photo of their dish and David’s:This time the tomatoes disappeared, and the seasoning was too much (what they had provided), but this was my favorite meal of the three that we tried.  My plate:

I had enough for lunch leftovers the next day.  I will try to make this again.

Bariatric Surgery - My Story · Fish-Seafood · Recipes · Uncategorized · WLS

Cod with Kalamata Olives

Cod is high in protein, 3 ounces is 15 grams.  So the last time we went to the store we purchased some that are individually packed and frozen.  With it being just the two of us, and I am not able to eat a lot in each meal, this is more efficient for us.  I have gotten tired of chicken lately.

For the marinade:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small red onion, chopped  (I had a small yellow onion)
10 pitted Kalamata Olives, chopped
2 Tablespoons dried Oregano
Juice from a lemon
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Pat the fish dry with paper towels.  I only took out 3 pieces of fish.  This marinade is good for up to 6 pieces of fish.

Place in a glass dish.

Cover the fish with the marinade (yes, all of it).  Cover, refrigerate, and let the fish marinade for at least 30 minutes but up to 2-3 hours.

Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for approximately 25-30 depending on the thickness of the fish.

I made steamed broccoli and rice for David.

I just had fish.  Cod is a firm, white, flaky fish that cooked up nicely with these flavors.  It was moist, and not salty.  I had one fish, and David enjoyed the other.  Cod is full of protein, and I didn’t feel like that was all I was having.  This was a real treat that I will be making again.

Enjoy!