Fave Recipes IV

• Nut Crusted Salmon with Creamy Chrain Sauce by Naomi Nachman

I may have mentioned that Han is not into fish. Except when my sister made this and he was quite intrigued. Ta, however, doesn't like heavy sauces on his fish. What to do when feeding both . . . 

I solved this by buying a slab of salmon and painting one half in olive oil mixed with garlic and onion powders, paprika, and black pepper. The other half was topped with the above recipe, halved (I cut back on the sugar since Han isn't into sweet anyway). 

My nut distribution left much to be desired.

I sliced the the slab into pieces before topping to make serving easier, and I baked it for only 15 to 17 minutes in a standard 350 oven. Fish continues to cook even when away from the heat source, and it wasn't raw at all.  

Both men were happy. 

•  Jacqués Pepin's Chicken Jardiniere

I made this by altering the recipe a little. No bacon, obviously. I used eight skinless chicken thighs, and seared them on one side for a few minutes. Another recipe mentioned bay leaves, so I chucked in two. I wasn't starting to mess with fresh thyme; I sprinkled in dried.  

I omitted the potatoes, because they are my kryptonite, and the mushrooms, because I overlooked them. 

In my (paprikash) experience, chicken legs need at least 90 minutes of simmering, so that's what I did. However, I put in the carrots, (frozen) pearl onions, and (frozen) peas too early. They were a little mushy by the end. 

 

Yet the dish was absolutely delish.  

• Busy in Brooklyn's Apple Blueberry Crisp 

I'm not really keen on cooked fruit, but I have enough family members who are. Some crisp recipes are decadently sinful (my in-laws make one that is impossible to resist) but this one is pretty okay. My sister-in-law gleefully said she was eating it for breakfast on yuntif morning with milchig whipped cream. I coaxed Han into having his with a dollop of pareve Trader Joe's vanilla ice cream (it's dope, isn't it?) and he was bowled over.

The recipe was meant to be made in one pie plate, but I subdivided it into smaller portions for easier disbursement and storage. Maybe next time I would make them even smaller.