Hazelnut-Crusted Salmon with Roasted Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts

Are there things in your pantry you struggle to use up? For me, it's nuts. I'll buy a bag of almonds for a recipe and then neglect them for months. Next to the almonds are five walnuts lingering in a bag . One day I'll get frustrated and either eat them or chuck them in the garbage. I'm not even sure why I initially bought a container of hazelnuts... but they've been hanging in our cabinet for a while.  Occasionally, I'll be looking for something to snack on and will reach for a handful, but it never seems to do much to deplete our supply. I finally decided to take action and, the other day, I ground up the remaining nuts, mixed them with panko and parsley, and spread it on top of some salmon. The whole dinner came together quickly and has an air of elegance (just saying "encrusted salmon" feels sophisticated). You can serve it with any of your favorite vegetables. A lightly-dressed green salad would really round out the meal. For me, I went with what we had in the fridge, some baby potatoes and Brussels sprouts.  

Hazelnut-Crusted Salmon with Roasted Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts

Servings
4 servings

Ingredients
4 skin-on salmon fillets (approximately 6 oz each)
1 lb baby potatoes, cut in half
1 lb Brussels sprouts, cut in half
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon honey
Lemon zest
Salt
Black pepper
Vegetable oil
Olive oil
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 8-10 minutes to par cook them (they're done when a knife slides easily into the potato, but there should be some resistance). Strain potato in a colander. 

Preheat oven to 385 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. In a bowl, toss potatoes and Brussels sprouts with 1-tablespoon olive oil and season generously with salt. Spread them onto the prepared baking sheet in an even layer with the cut sides down. Transfer to the oven and cook for 30 minutes, giving them a stir halfway through to prevent sticking.

Raise the oven temperature to 425 degrees F. 

Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix together chopped hazelnuts, panko, parsley, and 1 ½ teaspoons salt. In another bowl, stir together Dijon mustard and honey. Season salmon fillets with salt and pepper. Spread Dijon mustard-honey mixture on top of fillets, this will allow the chopped hazelnuts and panko to adhere to the salmon. Spread hazelnuts and panko on top of the mustard.

Add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil to a large, oven-safe skillet and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil starts to shimmer, carefully place the salmon fillets, skin-side down, into the pan. Cook for 5 minutes and then transfer the pan to the oven. Cook for another 7 minutes. Take the pan out of the oven and cover with aluminum foil and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve salmon with lemon wedges, roasted Brussels sprouts and potatoes.

Gambas al Ajillo (Shrimp in Garlic Chili Oil)

I turn 33 on Friday, but my birthday is the last thing on my mind right now. There are plenty of things keeping me preoccupied. We're getting our house painted next week... which I didn't realize would be such a big, expensive project... but it is (yay home ownership!) There are a lot of elements to consider. Most of the exterior needs to be stripped before it can be painted and a couple of shingles will be repaired. The thing that's been stressing us out is the task of picking out colors. Our house is a Victorian, built in 1890, and it has four colors on it (six, if you count the door and the porch floor). My brain can handle one or two, but four is a lot to process. We knew we wanted some greens, but besides that we're completely lost. Luckily, we have a friend who does beautiful home design work and she was gracious enough to guide us through some options. We've picked out a really nice collection: two greens, a dark purple accent, an off-white trim, and a soft yellow for the door. I'm pretty psyched about it.

The other big thing is that in less than two weeks, I'll be heading off to Spain to tour some wineries in Ribera del Duero and Rueda, about 2.5 hours north of Madrid! If that weren't exciting enough, Eric is going to join me at the end so we can spend a few days exploring Madrid. We'll check out as many museums as we can, and the rest of the time will be spent walking and eating and drinking. We're hoping to take a day trip to Toledo, but we haven't made any concrete plans yet.

In honor of our upcoming trip, I pulled out a recipe from the most recent issue of Food & Wine, which happens to be dedicated to Spain (perfect timing!). I've consumed shrimp in garlic oil at my share of tapas restaurants and have never been disappointed. Chances were, this would go well. I made very few adaptations, because why mess around with a good thing? The first, less important change, was that I didn't have whole red chile on hand so I used crushed red chili pepper instead. The other two modifications may be frowned upon by traditionalists, but I felt strongly that I wanted to cut the richness a bit. This is always a thing for me. I love butter and cheese and oil and all that fatty deliciousness, but I'm always looking for balance in a dish. So, acidity is key. The changes seemed harmless enough: a small amount of diced tomato and lemon juice. It did the trick, but didn't alter the integrity of the recipe.

GAMBAS AL AJILLO (SHRIMP IN GARLIC CHILI OIL)

Source
Slightly adapted from the September 2017 issue of Food and Wine

Yield
4 servings

Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs. shelled and deveined large shrimp, tails intact
Kosher salt
1/4 cup thinly sliced garlic
1 1/4 cups extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons red chili flakes
1/2 cup minced parsley
2 Tbsp. dry sherry, such as manzanilla (alternatively, dry vermouth works)
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Crusty bread, for serving

Directions

1. In a large bowl, toss the shrimp with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and let stand for 10 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, in an 9-10 inch cast-iron skillet, combine garlic and olive oil and cook over moderately low heat until fragrant, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in chili flakes and cook for another 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally, until they turn a light pink color, approximately 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the parsley, sherry, lemon zest and lemon juice and a generous pinch of salt. Remove from heat and let stand until the shrimp are cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes.  Serve in the skillet along with some crusty bread.   

Linguine with Clams

And, just like that, we're in August. How the heck did that happen? The other night, I told Eric that we need to make more of an effort to enjoy the Cape house. The whole family has put in a lot of work this year, but it's important that we take a little time off to relax. Even a swim at the end of the day would do a lot to help us decompress. I don't want the summer to go by and for us to feel like we didn't take some time for ourselves.  The hard work is paying off though. The kitchen is done (wooooo) and now one of the bathrooms is being tackled. It's very exciting to be staying there. I'm starting to get used to it... but it's also a little weird still.

I'm not usually one for pasta in the summer, but something came over me the other day and I just needed a big bowl of linguine with clams. The addition of chopped tomatoes, fresh arugula, and a bunch of parsley keep it from being too heavy. It's a dish best served to dinner guests al fresco with a bottle of red. But it works just as well for one or two, providing leftovers for at least another meal. And who doesn't love leftovers? 

LINGUINE WITH CLAMS

SERVINGS
Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS
1 pound linguine
2 pounds littleneck clams
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
8 cloves of garlic, minced
4 Roma tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
1/3 cup dry white wine
2 cups arugula
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
Olive oil
Grated parmesan cheese, optional

DIRECTIONS
1. Bring a 8 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt, olive oil and the linguine and cook according to packaging, approximately 9 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large Dutch oven (or a large lidded pot) set over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes.

3. Add clams and white wine. Cover the Dutch oven and cook for approximately 5 minutes, or until all the clams have are wide open. Remove the lid and set heat to high and bring to a boil. Cook sauce until liquid has reduced a little, about 4 minutes. 

4. Once the pasta is done cooking, drain linguine and add to pan with the sauce. Add butter, chopped parsley and arugula and toss to combine. 

5. Serve pasta in bowls, along with a few clams and, if desired, grated Parmesan cheese.